Fiber Link Research Articles

Wheel‐based 5G fronthaul/backhaul hybrid MDM‐NGPON/FSO system under Gamma‐Gamma turbulence and weather effects

SummaryThis work presents the bidirectional and symmetric 40 Gbps wheel architecture comprising 16 channels‐based bidirectional hybrid next generation passive optical network with free space optics (NGPON/FSO) system using mode division multiplexing (MDM) scheme. The system incorporates a low‐cost high bandwidth and integrated time and wavelength division multiplexing with orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (TWDM‐OFDM) for data transmission over mixed fiber‐FSO links to various end users at donut modes 0 and 1. This system enhances the fifth generation (5G)‐based networks reliability, survivability, and flexibility, especially in rural places where the core fiber link may be damaged/destroyed under diverse turbulent and weather conditions. The obtained results depict the faithful multimode fiber range of 100 km with fixed FSO range of 100 m at −17 dBm receiver sensitivity and low power penalty of 0.2 dB at 10−9 bit error rate. Maximum FSO range of 2800 m under weak‐to‐strong Gamma‐Gamma turbulence and the effect of fog, rain, snow, and snow with rain can be obtained successfully with fixed 50 km fiber length. Also, the proposed wheel architecture provides superior performance over hybrid ring‐mesh architecture with high split ratio of 1:64. Moreover, the system can sustain up to 70 remote nodes at symmetric 10 Gbps throughput providing high gain, high optical signal‐to‐noise ratio, and low noise figure. The comparative literature work also reveals that the proposed architecture offers high bandwidth, security, long‐reach, and cost‐effectiveness in 5G fronthaul/backhaul networks.

Development of a cost-effective optical network based on free space optical (FSO) and optical fiber links for enabling smart city infrastructure: A hybrid approach

Due to the gigantic rise in the use of high data rate-based applications and the ongoing transformation of Indian cities into smart cities, there is a need for a high-speed communication framework to handle the enormous data traffic. The radio frequency (RF) and microwave links seem to be incapable of offering sufficient bandwidth required by the data-hungry applications and consequently, the need for a more effective solution for tackling the issue of scarcity of bandwidth resources has become the necessity of current network infrastructure in India. In this study, a hybrid optical fiber-free space optical (OF-FSO) system for offering high-speed data services has been proposed to assist the implementation of smart city infrastructure in India. This study aims to inspect the system performance of the proposed model under the climatic conditions of mountainous, desert, flatland, and seaside regions of India. The proposed hybrid OF-FSO system comprises a fixed single-mode fiber (SMF) of 20 km and an FSO link (having a varied transmission range between 0–2 km). The proposed hybrid model can support an FSO link of 1.72 km for a fixed SMF of 20 km, corresponding to a bit error rate of the order of 10−4 for atmospheric conditions of the seaside location of Chennai and the range of FSO link varies from 1.32 km to 1.57 km for other locations of India, for the same length of SMF and bit error rate. Furthermore, the proposed hybrid OF-FSO has demonstrated a reduction of 30.8% in Capital Expenditure (CAPEX) cost in contrast to the conventional passive optical network (PON) system.

High-dimensional quantum key distribution using energy-time entanglement over 242 km partially deployed fiber

Entanglement-based quantum key distribution (QKD) is an essential ingredient in quantum communication, owing to the property of source-independent security and the potential on constructing large-scale quantum communication networks. However, implementation of entanglement-based QKD over long-distance optical fiber links is still challenging, especially over deployed fibers. In this work, we report an experimental QKD using energy-time entangled photon pairs that transmit over optical fibers of 242 km (including a section of 19 km deployed fibers). The QKD is realized through the protocol of dispersive-optics QKD (DO-QKD) with high-dimensional encoding to utilize coincidence counts more efficiently. A reliable, high-accuracy time synchronization technology for long-distance entanglement-based QKD is developed based on the distribution of optical pulses in quantum channels. Our system operates continuously for more than 7 d without active polarization or phase calibration. We ultimately generate secure keys with secure key rates of 0.22 bps and 0.06 bps in the asymptotic and finite-size regimes, respectively. It shows that entanglement-based DO-QKD is reliable for long-distance realization in the field if its high requirement on time synchronization is satisfied.

Enhanced Pre/Post Compensation of Fiber Link Nonlinear Distortion by a Stepwise Parameter Profiled Fiber and Phase Conjugation Module

Compensation of nonlinear distortion in long distance communication links from the power induced Kerr effect is demonstrated at the transmitter or receiver by the combination of optical phase conjugation (OPC) and propagation in a stepwise parameter profiled fiber (SPF). The SPF tailored with an increasing nonlinearity and decreasing dispersion parameter on average with distance as well as Raman gain induces a distortion more closely matching that of the link to improve propagation symmetry for enhancing overall distortion cancellation by OPC. Measurements show for a module inserted at the transmitter or receiver with a 60 km long SPF comprising of three different fibers, the <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">Q²</i> -factor is improved by 2.3 and 1.7 dB, respectively, compared to without for transmitting 5 channel WDM dual polarization 12 Gbaud 16-QAM signals in 2×160 km fiber spans that both include dispersion compensation. Similarly, recirculating loop transmission of the same signal over 18×80 km (1440 km) shows improved <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">Q²</i> -factors of 1.9 and 1.3 dB, respectively. This corresponds to extending the transmission reach by 125 and 80%, respectively, for matched performance at equal launch power, highlighting the greater nonlinear distortion tolerance achievable with advanced OPC designs.

Qualitative analysis of PMD-induced long-haul optical fiber link

Abstract This paper studies the detrimental effect of polarization mode dispersion on long-haul optical fiber communication in terms of the quality factor and bit error rate. The dispersion value is varied for different fiber lengths, specifically for long-haul communication, and the results obtained are analyzed in terms of the quality factor. The polarization mode dispersion causes pulse broadening, leading to interchannel interference. There is a need to check the occurrence and the associated effects of this dispersion. The communication range for conducting the analysis varies from 150 km to 350 km. The analysis is first conducted on varied communication fiber link length for different dispersion values, and it is observed that a fiber length of 200 km gives comparatively favorable results, as seen from the BER analysis.

High-dimensional time-frequency entanglement in a singly-filtered biphoton frequency comb

High-dimensional quantum entanglement is a cornerstone for advanced technology enabling large-scale noise-tolerant quantum systems, fault-tolerant quantum computing, and distributed quantum networks. The recently developed biphoton frequency comb (BFC) provides a powerful platform for high-dimensional quantum information processing in its spectral and temporal quantum modes. Here we propose and generate a singly-filtered high-dimensional BFC via spontaneous parametric down-conversion by spectrally shaping only the signal photons with a Fabry-Pérot cavity. High-dimensional energy-time entanglement is verified through Franson-interference recurrences and temporal correlation with low-jitter detectors. Frequency- and temporal- entanglement of our singly-filtered BFC is then quantified by Schmidt mode decomposition. Subsequently, we distribute the high-dimensional singly-filtered BFC state over a 10 km fiber link with a post-distribution time-bin dimension lower bounded to be at least 168. Our demonstrations of high-dimensional entanglement and entanglement distribution show the singly-filtered quantum frequency comb’s capability for high-efficiency quantum information processing and high-capacity quantum networks.

Hybrid tree-and-multiple-ring radio-over-fiber transmission system for a 5G network in metropolitan areas

What we believe to be a novel radio-over-fiber (RoF) transmission system with a hybrid tree-and-multiple-ring network structure is developed and experimentally demonstrated to support broadband wireless signal transmission among the central office (CO) and densely distributed 5G base stations (BS) in urban areas. With the assistance of an advanced network structure and a unique single-line bidirectional optical add/drop multiplexer (SBOADM), the transmission system can utilize a hybrid tree-and-ring-topology fiber network to simultaneously support multiple 5G BS-Groups constructed as sub-ring-networks. Furthermore, the system manager is able to simultaneously utilize wavelength/time division multiplexing techniques to support the connected BSs and to dynamically embed extra sub-ring-networks to the main-ring-network or extra BSs to the sub-ring-network by using the RoF transmission system. Needing no backup fiber link, the transmission system enjoys intrinsic robust resilience against fiber link failures. Experimental results proved that the proposed RoF transmission system enables prompt recovery of interrupted optical fiber connection and guarantees the expected quality of service (QoS) by adjusting a few preinstalled optical switches when fiber link failure happens in the main-ring-network, in each sub-ring-network, or even in both of the above scenarios. The induced power penalty for maintaining unchanged bit error rate performance is less than 2 dB. In sum, the proposed transmission system proves to be a great network architecture suitable for supporting 5G signal transmission between the CO and BSs in an urban area due to the dynamically extensible network size and the well-protected transmission that ensures the QoS by simple operation.

Loss Imbalance Effect on Inter-Core Crosstalk in Bidirectional Uncoupled Multi-Core Fiber Transmission

The effect of core loss imbalance on inter-core crosstalk (XT) is studied theoretically and numerically in long-haul bidirectional uncoupled multi-core fiber transmission. The coupled power equations are solved for two cores with imbalance of loss coefficients, and the solution is used to obtain expressions for direct, indirect, backscattered and bidirectional XT powers. These expressions generalize expressions reported by other authors to arbitrary loss coefficients. It is shown that, in the range of the loss coefficient imbalance from <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$-0.04$</tex-math></inline-formula> dB/km to 0.04 dB/km, the XT powers in decibel show approximately a linear dependence on the loss coefficient imbalance. In that range, differences of the indirect XT power of nearly 1.2 dB relative to the indirect XT power with equal loss coefficients can occur for the larger loss coefficient imbalance; for the direct and backscattered XT powers, the differences are even larger, reaching around 2 dB. These values of 1.2 and 2 dB of difference translate directly to the bidirectional XT power of long-haul 2-core fiber links, in case of dominance of indirect and backscattered XT, respectively.

Flexible reconfigurable entanglement-based quantum key distribution network

AbstractRecently, we implemented a basic star-shaped entanglement-based quantum key distribution network without trusted nodes. It enables simultaneous pairwise exchange of quantum keys between multiple users. In this paper, we demonstrate its flexibility by focusing on several aspects. We show continuous system operation over a partially deployed 100 km fiber link for multiple days as well as dynamic reconfiguration of the communication partners. The photon pair source enables type-II or type-0 photon pair generation by SPDC as well as various demultiplexing strategies and repetition rates.

Integration of Self-Adaptive Physical-Layer Key Distribution and Encryption in Optical Coherent Communication

We propose and experimentally demonstrate a compatible physical-layer secure optical communication (PLSOC) system that integrates self-adaptive physical-layer key distribution (PLKD) and encryption (PLE) in optical coherent communication. Based on bit error rate difference of QAM signals mapped by asymmetric basis state Y-00 protocol, the secret key can be secretly exchanged over public fiber links without the pre-shared keys. Moreover, we perform a parameter self-adaptive strategy for practical and dynamic PLKD. The security of the key is evaluated in the case of a fiber-tapping attack. A secure hash algorithm, SHA3-512, is used to perform privacy amplification to obtain the virtually secure key. An error-free PLKD rate reaches 39.3 Kbits/s over 300km ultra-low loss fiber. We experimentally enable the integration of the proposed PLKD scheme and quantum noise stream cipher (QNSC) with a single wavelength, same system. Q factor penalty of the integration system compared to the QNSC system is 3.7dB (optical back-to-back) and 4.8dB (300km) respectively. By exploiting a common hardware platform, with the same wavelength, the proposed PLSOC system addresses the problem that PLKD and PLE are separately performed through independent optical fiber links or wavelengths. Since only digital signal processing is used, the scheme does not require extra hardware.

Ultra-Low Frequency High-Precision Displacement Measurement Based on Dual-Polarization Differential Fiber Heterodyne Interferometer

Picometer displacement measurement in the ultra-low frequency band below 1 Hz is highly demanded in the fields of geophysics and space exploration for the applications of hydrophones, geophones, drag-free space controllers, and so on. In this work, high-precision displacement detection in ultra-low frequency is achieved by proposing and demonstrating a dual-polarization differential fiber heterodyne interferometer. By injecting two orthogonal polarized lights into the dual-polarization differential fiber heterodyne interferometer, two optical interferences can be co-existed in a monolithic interferometer with a fully identical optical fiber path. Through the difference of the two optical interferometric phases, the light source noise and the fiber link noise can be well suppressed. Meanwhile, a pull-push type displacement sensing module is designed to double the displacement sensitivity as well as suppress the common-mode noise derived from the environmental fluctuation. Through the calibration experiment, the displacement sensitivity is obtained as 0.01634(±0.00022) rad/nm, which is consistent with the theoretical calculation. The displacement resolutions of 1.8 pm/Hz <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">1/2</sup> at 0.1 Hz and 0.25 pm/Hz <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">1/2</sup> at 1 Hz are achieved in the experiment, which is the superior displacement measurement level for this frequency band in the existing optic displacement sensors to our knowledge. The proposed fiber optic displacement sensor with ultra-high resolution in low frequency can be of great use in scientific research and precision engineering.

Multiple-Branch Optical Frequency Transfer Without the Frequency Allocation Constraints

We report on the realization of a multiple-branch optical frequency transfer method, which can be adopted to deliver an optical reference to multiple independent remote sites. In comparison with the previous techniques, the proposed technique mitigates the frequency allocation constraints of the driving frequencies for the acousto-optic modulators (AOMs) at the remote sites by adding a short loop fiber link at the local site. The end-to-end optical path phase noise detection and compensation for each remote site is simultaneously performed at the remote site, which significantly simplifies the configuration at the local site, and can improve the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and reduce the cycle slip rate. We also conduct theoretical analysis for the effect of frequency aliasing from the perspective of different refractive index in triple-pass optical frequency transfer, analyze the effect of the SNR and cycle slips on the fractional frequency instability, and present a comprehensive equation for calculating noise contributions from end-to-end optical frequency transfer over the multiple-branch fiber network, demonstrating that the implementation of the fiber noise cancellation (FNC) for the each branch consisting of two fiber topologies with the single FNC setup is practical. This technique paves the way to integrate the optical frequency networks into the existing fiber communication networks with the higher compatibility and reliability.

Kalman Filter Based Pseudo-Code Ranging and Carrier Phase Measurement for Fiber Optical Time Transfer Method

In the optical fiber time transfer system, fiber optic time transfer is limited by the pulse signal time delay measurement precision, and cannot benefit from a higher precision of the carrier phase information. Its transfer precision compared to the frequency transfer exists in a larger gap transfer. This paper proposes a time delay measurement method based on carrier phase and pseudo-code ranging for optical time transfer. The time signal is modulated with pseudo-random code and carrier at the transmitter, and the time delay is measured at the receiver by the methods of pseudo-code ranging and carrier phase measurement. The time transfer is achieved by eliminating the transmission link delay through a two-way method. The first-order difference value of the carrier phase measurement and the pseudo-code ranging measurement are used as the observation quantities, and they are fused through a Kalman filtering method to finally obtain the high-precision time difference measurement. We validate the theory on the common-clock experimental platform over a 50 km fiber link, The time transfer stabilities of the systems are 5.2254×10−14/s and 2.146×10−16/104 s (modified Allan deviation), 3.0169×10−14/s and 1.2392×10−12/104 s (time deviation). The standard deviation of the time transfer system after fusion can reach 2.4255 ps.

Long-range fiber-optic earthquake sensing by active phase noise cancellation

We present a long-range fiber-optic environmental deformation sensor based on active phase noise cancellation (PNC) in metrological frequency dissemination. PNC sensing exploits recordings of a compensation frequency that is commonly discarded. Without the need for dedicated measurement devices, it operates synchronously with metrological services, suggesting that existing phase-stabilized metrological networks can be co-used effortlessly as environmental sensors. The compatibility of PNC sensing with inline amplification enables the interrogation of cables with lengths beyond 1000 km, making it a potential contributor to earthquake detection and early warning in the oceans. Using spectral-element wavefield simulations that accurately account for complex cable geometry, we compare observed and computed recordings of the compensation frequency for a magnitude 3.9 earthquake in south-eastern France and a 123 km fiber link between Bern and Basel, Switzerland. The match in both phase and amplitude indicates that PNC sensing can be used quantitatively, for example, in earthquake detection and characterization.

Quantum two-way time transfer over a hybrid free-space and fiber link

As the superiority of quantum two-way time transfer (Q-TWTT) has been proved convincingly over fiber links, its implementation on free-space links becomes an urgent need for remote time transfer expanding to the transcontinental distance. In this paper, the first Q-TWTT experimental demonstration over a hybrid link of 2 km-long turbulent free-space and 7 km-long field fiber is reported. Despite the significant loss of ∼30 dB and atmospheric turbulence, reliable time transfer performance lasting for overnights has been realized with time stability in terms of time deviation far below 1 picosecond. This achievement shows the good feasibility of quantum-enhanced time transfer in the space-ground integrated optical links and nicely certifies the capability of Q-TWTT in comparing and synchronizing the state-of-the-art space microwave atomic clocks.

Optical Communication and Positioning Convergence for Flexible Underwater Wireless Sensor Network

This paper presents a novel scheme based on underwater optical wireless communication and positioning (UOWC-UOWP) for an underwater wireless sensor network (UWSN). A dual-hop system is adopted to extend the limited coverage area of the UWSN with mobile nodes, consisting of a grade-index plastic optical fiber (GI-POF) link and a wireless link. Specifically, the mini-LED offers high-speed and flexible uplink transmission and the high-power LED enables both downlink transmission and positioning. The time frame design and code division multiplexing access (CDMA) support multi-user signal transmission. Proof-of-concept experiments with GI-POF and wireless link demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed scheme, which offers full-duplex communication, high-precise positioning and extended distance. To the best of our knowledge, the UOWC-UOWP convergent system is proposed for the first time. It has great potential to support high-capacity transmission between mobile nodes for future underwater transmission scenarios.

Coexistence of Quantum and 1.6 Tbit/s Classical Data Over Fibre-Wireless-Fibre Terminals

In this paper a fibre free-space fibre link that allows a quantum key distribution (QKD) signal and high-speed data to be transmitted in a single optical beam is presented. This setup has the potential to provide ultra-high data rate secure wireless connectivity within indoor spaces. Both quantum and classical channels were transmitted using wavelengths in the C band, over a range of 2.5 m in free space and in the presence of a 200 lx background illumination. Raman noise caused by the light propagating in the optical fibres which provide connections to the free-space segment, together with geometric loss of the free-space link are the major impairments. Results yield secret key rates of 2.343 kbit/s when the QKD signal is sent without high-speed data (and associated Raman noise), and rates of 1.305 - 1.996 kbit/s when high-speed data is also transmitted (depending on spectral separation of QKD and classical information). Further, it is shown that the secret key rate can be optimised by increasing loss to attenuate the Raman noise by misalignment of the link. Improvement of the secret key rate from 1.305 kbit/s to 1.887 kbit/s was shown using this method.

Modulational instability in randomly dispersion-managed optical fiber links

Modulational instability in randomly dispersion-managed optical fiber links

4*10 Gbps WDM communication system based on a tunable V-cavity semiconductor laser.

This paper is about the V-cavity tunable semiconductor laser with a 1550 nm band used as a transmitter to build a wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) optical fiber communication link. In the experiment, a 20 km optical fiber communication link with a reasonable eye diagram and low bit error rate (BER) transmitted by 40 Gbps can be established. The experimental results show that a single laser can achieve a wavelength tuning range of 25 nm, reach 32 channels at a 100 GHz frequency interval, and the average side mode suppression ratio (SMSR) is above 39 dB. The advantages and application potential of V-cavity tunable semiconductor laser (VCL) for wavelength routing in optical communication networking are verified by experiments.

Impairment- and fragmentation-aware, energy-efficient dynamic RMSCA for SDM-EONs

This paper presents a routing, modulation, spectrum, and core allocation (RMSCA) algorithm for space-division multiplexing-based elastic optical networks (SDM-EONs). A network state-dependent route and core selection method is proposed using a multi-attribute decision-making method based on the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and preference ranking organization method for enrichment evaluations (PROMETHEE) methods. This systematic resource allocation allows the network designer to choose which resources are most valuable. It is followed by a spectrum allocation algorithm using a weighted score function to rate and select the best spectrum blocks. Physical layer impairments, including inter-core cross talk, amplified spontaneous emission, and Kerr fiber nonlinearities, are considered alongside fragmentation and energy consumption. The proposed RMSCA approach is compared with published benchmarks incorporating quality of transmission constraints and evaluated on two network topologies, NSFNET (7- and 12-core multicore fiber links) and COST. It is shown to be superior in terms of blocking probability, bandwidth blocking probability, network fragmentation, and energy consumption compared to standard and published benchmarks.