In this paper, we report on the realization of the 1.3 mu m strain-compensated InGaAsP buried heterostructure (BH) laser diodes (LDs) by using an Fe-doped semi-insulating InP layer. The performances of LDs are characterized by light output power, internal quantum efficiency, modal gain, characteristic temperature (T-0), and dynamic response. As a result of the good confinement of the injection carriers within the strained-compensated multiple quantum well (SC-MQW) and the better heat sink for thermal dissipation, the BH LDs exhibit a threshold current of 9 mA, a slope efficiency of 0.296 mW/mA, and a maximum light output power of 11.8 mW/facet at 76 mA. Besides, the transparent current density and modal gain are estimated as 106 A/cm(2) and 12.5 cm(-1), respectively, for the fabricated LDs. Otherwise, the BH LD with a facet coating is beneficial to get a lower threshold current, a higher light output power, and an improved T-0 value as compared to the conventional ridge-waveguide LD. Furthermore, this transistor outlook (TO)-packaged BH LD for small-signal analyses does not show any parasitic effects at low frequencies and has a maximum modulation frequency of 9.6 GHz at 80 mA. Finally, the BH LD also exhibits the promising potential for high speed data transmission as evaluated from the 10 Gb/s eye-opening feature. These results imply that the 1.3 mu m TO-packaged SC-MQW InGaAsP LDs are excellent candidates for use in high speed optical fiber communications. (C) 2009 The Electrochemical Society. [DOI: 10.1149/1.3236424]