Conventional Optical Communication Research Articles

Low-loss silicon waveguide and an ultrahigh-Q silicon microring resonator in the 2 µm wave band.

Silicon photonic-integrated circuits (PICs) operating in the 2 µm wave band are of great interest for spectroscopic sensing, nonlinear optics, and optical communication applications. However, the performance of silicon PICs in this wave band lags far behind the conventional optical communication band (1310/1550 nm). Here we report the realization of a low-loss waveguide and an ultrahigh-Q microring resonator in the 2 µm wave band on a standard 200 mm silicon photonic platform. The single-mode strip waveguide fabricated on a 220 nm-thick silicon device layer has a record-low propagation loss ∼0.2 dB/cm. Based on the low-loss waveguide, we demonstrate an ultrahigh-Q microring resonator with a measured loaded Q-factor as high as 1.1 × 106 and intrinsic Q-factor of 2 × 106, one order of magnitude higher than prior silicon resonators operating in the same wave band. The extinction ratio of the resonator is higher than 22 dB. These high-performance silicon photonic components pave the way for on-chip sensing applications and nonlinear optics in the 2 µm wave band.

Spin-orbital angular momentum degeneracy breaking in nanoplasmonic metachain.

The spin and orbital angular momentum (namely SAM and OAM) mode division provides a promising solution to surmount exhausted available degrees of freedom in conventional optical communications. Nevertheless, SAM and OAM are often subjected to the degeneracy of total angular momentum (AM) because they both have integer variables of quantum eigenstates, which inevitably brings about the shortcomings specific to limited signal channels and multiplexing cross talk. Herein, we present a nanoplasmonic metachain that can discriminatively couple any input SAM and OAM components to an extrinsic orbital AM, corresponding to the chirality and topological charge of incident light. Importantly, the unambiguous measurement has a prominent advantage of detecting the arbitrary AM component rather than the total AM. The miniature metadevice offers the possibility of harnessing AM division on chip or in fiber and holds great promise to delve the spin-orbit interactions for topological photonics and quantum cryptography.

On-orbit space optical communication demonstration with a 22 s acquisition time.

The inherent small divergence angle of space optical communication poses significant challenges to establishing communication links. Therefore, laser link acquisition becomes a crucial technology in optical communication, with a primary focus on reducing the acquisition time effectively. Conventional optical communication acquisition techniques fail to address the error effects caused by satellite insertion into the Earth orbit, thus unable to meet the rapid establishment demands of laser links in satellite optical communication networks. In this regard, we propose a novel, to the best of our knowledge, on-orbit calibration method for laser communication terminals to our knowledge. Leveraging stellar observations, this method achieves efficient on-orbit calibration with only a single observation. Theoretical analysis and on-orbit experimental results demonstrate that this approach effectively enhances an open-loop pointing accuracy, offering promising prospects for achieving a rapid establishment of optical communication links in ultra-long-distance optical communication missions.

Quantum Noise Secured Terahertz Communications

The terahertz communications display an important role in high-speed wireless communications, the security threat from the eavesdroppers in the terahertz communications has been gaining attention recently. The true randomness in the physical layer can ensure one-time-pad encryption for secured terahertz communications, however, physical layer security schemes like the quantum key distribution methods suffer from device imperfections that limit the desirable signal rate and link distance. Herein, we present the quantum noise secured terahertz wireless communications with photonic terahertz signal generation schemes. With the high-order diffusion algorithms, the signal is masked by the quantum noise ciphers to the eavesdroppers and cannot be detected because the inevitable randomness by quantum noise measurement will cause physical measurement errors. In the experiment, we demonstrate 16 Gbits <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">-1</sup> quantum noise secured terahertz wireless communications with the conventional optical communication realms and devices, operating at 300 GHz terahertz frequency. This quantum noise secured terahertz communication approach is a significant step toward high-security wireless communications.

Bipolar Photoresponse in Graphene/GaN Heterostructure and its Secure Function in Free‐Space Optical Communication

AbstractThe free‐space optical communication is regarded as a promising technique for next generation networks. However, all the data are exposed in free space with high risk of being attacked or eavesdropping by unauthorized parties. Here, a bipolar photodetector based on the graphene/GaN heterojunction is demonstrated. The polarity of the UV light photocurrent is opposite to that of the red light photocurrent, which results from the interface state filling effect and hot carrier injection into graphene, verified by Kelvin probe force microscope measurement results. Four stable photocurrent levels are demonstrated with only a single graphene/GaN heterojunction via the photocurrent polarity control, which is employed for a secure capability in conventional optical communication by setting visible and UV light as secret and key information, respectively. The technique provides a new strategy to design photodetectors for information encryption technology.

Electronic/Optoelectronic Memory Device Enabled by Tellurium-based 2D van der Waals Heterostructure for in-Sensor Reservoir Computing at the Optical Communication Band.

Although 2D materials are widely explored for data storage and neuromorphic computing, the construction of 2D material-based memory devices with optoelectronic responsivity in the short-wave infrared (SWIR) region for in-sensor reservoir computing (RC) at the optical communication band still remains a big challenge. In this work, an electronic/optoelectronic memory device enabled by tellurium-based 2D van der Waals (vdW) heterostructure is reported, where the ferroelectric CuInP2 S6 and tellurium channel endow this device with both the long-term potentiation/depression by voltage pulses and short-term potentiation by 1550nm laser pulses (a typical wavelength in the conventional fiber optical communication band). Leveraging the rich dynamics, a fully memristive in-sensor RC system that can simultaneously sense, decode, and learn messages transmitted by optical fibers is demonstrated. The reported 2D vdW heterostructure-based memory featuring both the long-term and short-term memory behaviors using electrical and optical pulses in SWIR region has not only complemented the wide spectrum of applications of 2D materials family in electronics/optoelectronics but also paves the way for future smart signal processing systems at the edge.

Improvement for a full-spectrum modulated nonlinear frequency division multiplexing transmission system.

Nonlinear frequency division multiplexing (NFDM), as a possible technique to overcome the limit imposed by Kerr nonlinearity in conventional coherent optical communication systems, has attracted widespread attention in the communication community in recent years. In order to fully utilize the available degrees of freedom in the nonlinear spectrum, this paper focuses on the full-spectrum (FS) modulated NFDM system. First, we maximize the data rate of discrete spectrum (DS) by optimizing the distribution of eigenvalues in DS part of FS. Then through introducing the probabilistic shaping (PS) into the FS system, and combined with linear minimum mean square (LMMSE) estimators, a 1120 km transmission with BER below the hard decision forward error correction (HD-FEC) threshold at 112 Gbps is achieved, where 128 subcarriers with PS-64QAM are used in the continuous spectrum (CS) and 13 eigenvalues with 64QAM are adopted in the discrete spectrum (DS). The achievable data rate is about 12% higher than that of pure CS modulation. Our work achieves the current FS NFDM system with the largest number of multiplexed eigenvalues, and provides a way to improve the performance of FS systems.

Visible and Online Detection of Near‐Infrared Optical Vortices via Nonlinear Photonic Crystals

AbstractNear‐infrared (NIR) optical vortices (OVs), which carry specific orbital angular momentum, are believed to greatly increase the capacity of conventional optical communication systems. However, due to the equipment limits in invisible wavelengths, NIR OVs detection remains a great difficulty. Here, the up‐conversion imaging technology is exploited to circumvent using NIR detectors. A lithium niobate crystal with its quadratic susceptibility modulated by a specially designed Dammann vortex grating is fabricated to realize the frequency conversion—from NIR to the visible region—while converting multiplexed OVs to Gaussian modes in specific multichannels. During the detection process, the most of energies of the detected OVs are preserved, which can be considered as online detection. Additionally, at least 400 nm applicable wavelength range of this method is experimentally demonstrated, as well as up to 25 independent detection channels. Compared with existing solutions, this scheme enables a large‐broadband wavelength, low energy loss, and multiprocessing channels platform for visible detection of NIR OVs, showing great potential to be applied in optical communication systems.

40Gbits−1 Data Transmission in an Installed Optical Link Encrypted Using Physical Layer Security Seeded by Quantum Key Distribution

Data security plays an increasingly important role in modern telecommunications. The advent of quantum computational processors presents a significant threat to today's widely employed public key encryption algorithms, necessitating the adoption of new approaches to data encryption. Whilst quantum key distribution guarantees unconditional security for cryptographic key exchange in optical communication networks, the data rate is slow (Mbit/s), especially when compared to conventional optical communication. Here we present a highly secure encryption approach in which the encryption key, generated by quantum key distribution at a rate of up to 2.9 Mbit/s, was used to seed physical layer encryption performed using time domain spectral phase encoding (TDSPE). This allowed us to demonstrate encrypted 40 Gbit/s quadrature phase shift keyed data communications over 52.3 km of installed optical fiber, which cannot be eavesdropped using brute force computational attacks. Any attempt to eavesdrop the encrypted signal in the physical layer is highly time-sensitive – the phase states must be measured and decrypted prior to optical signal attenuation, which means that the attack procedure typically needs to be completed within a few milliseconds. This work represents the first example of quantum-enhanced physical layer encryption at realistic optical data rates that is fully secure from brute force computational attacks and the first demonstration of TDSPE using continuous-wave laser source and quadrature phase shift key modulation.

Portable Automatic Microring Resonator System Using a Subwavelength Grating Metamaterial Waveguide for High-Sensitivity Real-Time Optical-Biosensing Applications

The slow light sensor techniques have been applied to bio-related detection in the past decades. However, similar testing-systems are too large to carry to a remote area for diagnosis or point-of-care testing. This study demonstrated a fully automatic portable biosensing system based on the microring resonator. An optical-fiber array mounted on a controller based micro-positioning system, which can be interfaced with MATLAB to locate a tentative position for light source and waveguide coupling alignment. Chip adapter and microfluidic channel could be packaged as a product such that it is cheap to be manufactured and can be disposed of after every test conducted. Thus, the platform can be more easily operated via an ordinary user without expertise in photonics. It is designed based on conventional optical communication wavelength range. The C-band superluminescent-light-emitting-diode light source couples in/out the microring sensor to obtain quasi-TE mode by grating coupler techniques. For keeping a stable chemical binding reaction, the cost-effective microfluidic pump was developed to offer a specific flow rate of 20 μL/min by using a servo-motor, an Arduino board, and a motor driver. The subwavelength grating metamaterial ring resonator shows highly sensitive sensing performance via surface index changes due to biomarker adhered on the sensor. The real-time peak-shift monitoring shows 10μg/mL streptavidin detection of limit based on the biotin-streptavidin binding reaction. Through the different specific receptors immobilized on the sensor surface, the system can be utilized on the open applications such as heavy metal detection, gas sensing, virus examination, and cancer marker diagnosis.

Rate Analysis of Intensity Modulated Broadcast Optical Mobile Communication System With User Mobility

Optical mobile communication (OMC) provides a hopeful vision to handle with wireless communication scenarios where multiple mobile users are involved. In previous work, achievable rate analysis for broadcast OMC system with coherent transmission and detection is given. Although it was shown that OMC has superior performance compared with conventional schemes, coherent processing imposes strong challenges on the hardware design. In practice, intensity modulation (IM) and direct detection (DD) is more implementation-friendly. However, the result in coherent processing cannot be migrated to IM/DD scenario since IM imposes new constraints on the signal model, making it more challenging to evaluate the rate performance. Motivated by this, in this paper, we investigate the rate performance of broadcast OMC in IM/DD mode with user mobility. The aim of this work is to reveal the potential gain of OMC with IM/DD over some benchmark schemes. By assuming dense pulse amplitude modulation (PAM), the rate is assessed through mutual information with proposed power allocation algorithm. Through simulation results, it is found that OMC outperforms conventional free space optical (FSO) communication in time division mode at high SNR region with not-so-large number of users.

Multiwavelength Brillouin Generation in Bismuth-Doped Fiber Laser With Single- and Double-Frequency Spacing

Multiwavelength fiber lasers operating in the 1.3 μm wavelength region are of great interest as they complement existing systems in the conventional optical communication band of 1.55 μm. In this work, a multiwavelength Brillouin fiber laser with single- and double-Brillouin frequency spacings operating in 1.3 μm is proposed and demonstrated using a dispersion compensating fiber (DCF) as the Brillouin gain medium. A bismuth-doped fiber serves as the laser gain medium. At the maximum pump power of 1021 mW and with the Brillouin pump set at 11 dBm, up to 7 Brillouin Stokes lines with a wavelength spacing of 0.074 nm are obtained in the single-spaced configuration. In the case of the double-spaced configuration, 14 Stokes lines are generated with a wavelength spacing of 0.15 nm between the even Stokes lines. By tuning the central wavelength of the Brillouin pump, both laser configurations are wavelength-tunable with a range of 93 nm and 19 nm for the single-spaced and double-spaced Brillouin lasers respectively. This is, to the best of the author's knowledge, the first demonstration of a multiwavelength/Brillouin laser using a bismuth-doped fiber as the laser gain medium.

Next Generation of High-Speed Optical Communications Networks Using OFDM Technology

The usage of data transmission through Optical Fiber is highly preferred in every area where transferring of data is needed from one end to another. Moreover, nowadays the infrastructure of telecommunications is in good shape and size to handle data transmission through its optical fibers which have low attenuation and higher bandwidth. The seeking of data rate higher than 100Gbit/second and above has been increased to build it in urban and rural areas, and for long and short hauls. Consequently, the current goal is to propel this transmission system into the next appropriated level to avoid any decline of the optical infrastructure than its current capacity. To fulfill increased demand for bandwidth in Broadband services one of the most trusted technology is the Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM). The Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing has been placed on-demand in optical communication, it is used in Long haul transmission Format in Direct and Coherent detection. OFDM has many features and abilities can boost the optical fiber performance by eliminating several limits of conventional Optical Fiber communication. OFDMA has polarization mode dispersion (PMD) and chromatic dispersion (CD) which are considered a big addition to the current systems. In addition to that, the easy correlation of the coherent optical OFDM with Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) systems can further advantages in the transmission system such as super bandwidth, high spectral efficiency, and extra data rates. Furthermore, the WDM systems can improve data rate and capacity by using multiple wavelengths over a single fiber. This work aims to bring implementation and to perform a deep-dive study of higher data rates using Direct and Coherent Optical OFDM for long path transmissions. This research starts with a unique user and then extends to the add the OFDM - WDM system to get a data rate of 100 Gbps. Regarding the software portion, the Optisystem simulation tool was used for the design and implementation of the system. Moreover, the modulation type used is QAM for the OFDM signal, and I/Q modulation is deployed, while Coherent and Direct detection is used at the receiving portion. Q Factor, the bit error rate and eye diagram were discussed to study the System’s Performance and Quality. This work found CD-OOFDM is the best system for next generation of optical. The work compared WDM CD-OOFDM with SMF-DCF to DD and CD-OOFDM. In addition to that, it compared WDM CD-OOFDM with SMF-DCF to CD-OODFM with SMF. Therefore, the results showed that WDM CD-OOFDM with SMF-DCF achieved 25 Gbps for four channels of the WDM system at 120km channel, where the carrier frequencies were from 193.05THz to 193.2THz.

Performance analysis of cooperative relaying technique for non-line-of-sight UV communication system in the presence of turbulence

Ultraviolet communication (UVC) with its ability to operate in non-line-of-sight (NLOS) offers significant advantages as compared to conventional optical wireless communication systems. NLOS UVC is a short-distance communication system due to high path loss and turbulence-induced fading. We propose an effective cooperative multirelay system to combat the effect of attenuation and fading in NLOS UVC, thereby making it suitable for long-distance communication. We investigate the performance of the proposed system in terms of outage probability by considering both variable-gain and fixed-gain amplified and forward relaying. Further, we consider higher-order modulation schemes to improve the data rate of the system and derive innovative closed-form expressions of the average symbol error rate and diversity order for the variable-gain relaying. We demonstrate performance gains of the considered multirelay system over nonrelayed links for different system parameters. We present numerical results to confirm the accuracy of the derived analytical expressions.

Experimental demonstration of intensity-modulation/direct-detection secret key distribution

Quantum key distribution, that transmits single-photons or strongly attenuated coherent light, has been studied for secret-key cryptography. This paper experimentally demonstrates a novel key distribution scheme, where a transmitter sends slightly intensity-modulated light with a power level used in conventional fiber communication systems and a receiver directly detects it with a conventional photodiode followed by threshold processing. Its security relies on that the slight intensity modulation is masked by quantum noise. Experiments are presented, which demonstrate that such slight modulation is feasible in practice and a secret key is actually created. The present key distribution scheme employs a setup similar to that in conventional optical communication, featuring practicality.

Potential application of X-ray communication in Martian dust storm

X-ray communication (XCOM) is an advanced space-communication technology. The high penetration of X-ray enables XCOM to achieve lower signal attenuation than conventional optical communication in Martian dust storm. This study provided a demonstration of this approach based on simulation methods. The transmission properties of X-ray beams in Martian non-dust storm weather were evaluated based on the MCNP5 code. Results demonstrated that the X-ray beam can transmit through a long-distance in Martian atmosphere. Moreover, on the basis of the anomalous diffraction and Mie theory codes, the transmission properties of X-ray and optical links in Martian dust storm were evaluated. Results showed that the dust attenuation of the X-ray links were significantly lower than that of optical links. Moreover, the penetration and communication performance of X-ray links were evaluated and compared with the optical link, considering atmospheric and dust attenuation. Results indicated that XCOM can be used to establish a low-BER communication link between rovers, and from the rover to the orbiter, in Martian dust storm.

Position Sensing and High Bandwidth Data Communication Using Impact Ionization Engineered APD Arrays

Position sensing and high bandwidth data reception are functions typically performed by two separate detectors in conventional free-space optical communication systems. In this letter, we report low excess noise, impact ionization engineered InAlAs/InGaAs avalanche photodiode arrays that can perform both functions simultaneously.

Guessing probability under unlimited known-plaintext attack on secret keys for Y00 quantum stream cipher by quantum multiple hypotheses testing

Although quantum key distribution is regarded as promising secure communication, security of Y00 protocol proposed by Yuen in 2000 for the affinity to conventional optical communication is not well-understood yet; its security has been evaluated only by the eavesdropper’s error probabilities of detecting individual signals or masking size, the number of hidden signal levels under quantum and classical noise. Our study is the first challenge of evaluating the guessing probabilities on shared secret keys for pseudorandom number generators in a simplified Y00 communication system based on quantum multiple hypotheses testing theory. The result is that even unlimitedly long known-plaintext attack only lets the eavesdropper guess the shared secret keys of limited lengths with a probability strictly <1. This study will give some insights for detailed future works on this quantum communication protocol.

Stable multi-wavelength erbium-doped fiber laser assisted by graphene/PMMA thin film

Multi-wavelength erbium-doped fiber laser (EDFL) is of significant interest due to its operation within the conventional optical communication band. The primary concern in multi-wavelength EDFL is the low stability of its gain medium in room temperature. This work proposed the use of graphene-polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) thin film as a stabilizer and nonlinear medium to generate stable multi-wavelength EDFL. Six channels with a constant spacing of 0.62 nm are observed within 10 dB peak power difference. The peak power stability of these lasers is measured at less than 0.8 dB within an observation time of 300 min. These findings validate the potential of graphene/PMMA thin film stabilizer as a key element in producing simple and highly stable multi-wavelength EDFL structure.

Reflection assisted beam propagation model for obstructed line-of-sight FSO links

A non-line-of-sight (NLOS) infra-red reflection based beam propagation model is proposed as a supplement to conventional terrestrial free space optical (FSO) communication system. This ray propagation model lets tactically positioned optical reflectors to smartly exploit the aggregated advantages of mirror characteristics to bridge the existent communication gap between two FSO nodes due to inclined or obstructed line-of-sight view. Additionally, a numerical framework of the proposed system is presented that analytically explores the optical losses induced by harmonic distortions and the resultant beam divergence at the receiver. The impact of the different reflectors on the traversing beam is then investigated through an experimental FSO test-bed set in an outdoor environment in terms of phase shifts, divergence loss, noise margin and maximum achievable link length. Matlab based simulations, based on the experimental outcomes, envisages that concave reflectors can effectively compensate the turbulence induced signal fading and restrict the beam divergence loss; thereby, improving the maximum achievable NLOS FSO link length.