All optical format conversion at 10 Gbps using SOA and optical band-pass filter

Abstract

In this paper, an all-optical non return-to-zero (NRZ) and return-to-zero (RZ) modulation format converter using a single semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) and an optical band-pass filter (OBPF) is proposed. The format converter consists of a single SOA which is acting as a nonlinear element to broaden the spectrum of the input signal and the OBPF which is used to extract the special spectrum from the broadened spectrum. By adopting the ultra-fast SOA model associated with optical system software, the 10 Gbps NRZ and RZ format conversion is successfully demonstrated with simulation. We also demonstrate the proof-of-principle experiment at 10 Gbps by using the test SOA and OBF converter. The converted NRZ is achieved with an output extinction ratio of 11.51 dB. The BER is 5.5 × 10−9 while the power of NRZ is −10 dBm and the BER is 1.0 × 10−9 when the power of RZ is −14 dBm. The experimental results coincide well with the simulated results. The proposed scheme is robust and has potential for applications in future optical networks.