Scintillation Reduction Research Articles

Adaptive optics LEO uplink pre-compensation with finite spatial modes.

Adaptive optics pre-compensation of free-space optical communications uplink from ground to space is complicated by the "point ahead angle" due to spacecraft velocity and the finite speed of light, as well as anisoplanatism of the uplink beam and the wavefront beacon. This Letter explores how pre-compensation varies with the number of spatial modes applied and how it varies with a beacon at the point-ahead angle versus a downlink beacon. Using a w0 = 16cm Gaussian beam propagating through a modified Hufnagel-Valley model as an example, we find pre-compensation performance plateaus beyond ∼100 applied modes regardless of integrated turbulence strength, and that a point ahead beacon provides a 1-4 dB gain in median received power and an order-of-magnitude reduction in scintillation over a downlink beacon at wavelengths typical of optical communications. Modeling tailored to specific scenarios should be conducted to determine whether implementing a resource-intensive point ahead beacon is the optimum path to meeting link requirements.

Effect of convergent beam array on reducing scintillation in underwater wireless optical communications with pointing errors

In this paper, we propose the convergent beam array to reduce scintillation induced by oceanic turbulence in underwater wireless optical communications (UWOCs) between misaligned transceivers. In the proposed convergent beam array, the propagation directions of beams are slanted inwards and different from each other. First, we present the convergent beam array system and analyze spatial relationships between the transmitter and the individual beam in beam array systems. Then, in order to simulate beams propagation in UWOCs, we review the power spectrum of refractive index fluctuations in oceanic turbulence and analyze the spatial relationship between the misaligned transceivers in view of pointing errors. Finally, we verify the effectiveness of the proposed convergent beam array on scintillation reduction by multistep wave optics simulation. Simulation results show that convergent beam array is able to decrease scintillation indices effectively in UWOCs with pointing errors.

Analysis of flat-topped Gaussian vortex beam scintillation properties in atmospheric turbulence

We analyze the scintillation properties of a flat-topped Gaussian vortex beam propagating in a weakly turbulent atmosphere. We utilize a random phase screen model to perform this analysis. We evaluate the scintillation against the changes of topological charge, beam order, operating wavelength, receiver aperture side length, and source size parameters. The results show that using a flat-topped Gaussian vortex beam with a high topological charge causes a reduction in scintillation. Increasing the receiver aperture side length reduces scintillation level. As the source size increases, scintillation decreases. Our results also indicate that a flat-topped Gaussian vortex beam with high topological charges has less scintillation than the fundamental Gaussian beam. We believe that our findings will be useful in improving the performance of next-generation optical communication links and networks.

Propagation of partially coherent beams with convex-shaped spatial coherence modulation in vertical turbulent links.

The convex partially coherent beam (CPCB) is a special type of nonuniformly correlated beam with a convex-shaped complex degree of coherence (DoC) distributions. Previously our research has illustrated the potential of CPCBs with super-Gaussian DoCs in free-space optical communications (FSOC), mainly manifested as self-focusing which can be transferred into extra scintillation reduction and SNR gain. In this study, the effects of the DoC transition slopes are analyzed and more details about the turbulence propagation of CPCBs with super-Gaussian shaped DoC are revealed. By means of wave optics simulation, the longitudinal intensity evolution of the CPCB is explored, showing that the DoC slope has a profound influence on the self-focusing features such as the focusing plane and the peak intensity. Aperture scintillation and mean SNR at the receiver end of some short-range vertical turbulent links are numerically computed. The obtained results show that, with CPCBs, an ~2 dB SNR gain can be achieved as compared to conventional Gaussian Schell-modal (GSM) beams. However, CPCBs are preferred only in shorter links, which is found to be relevant to the power-in-the-bucket of the receiving aperture. Furthermore, the impacts of the ratio of the source coherence time to the detector integration time are investigated, implying that the CPCB is less susceptible than the GSM. We have also examined the off-axis scintillation of the CPCB. Due to its convex-shaped DoC, the CPCB has significantly reduced off-axis scintillation, which can be beneficial in the presence of pointing errors.

Electronic structure of SmO and SmO- via slow photoelectron velocity-map imaging spectroscopy and spin-orbit CASPT2 calculations.

The chemi-ionization reaction of atomic samarium, Sm + O → SmO+ + e-, has been investigated by the Air Force Research Laboratory as a means to modify local electron density in the ionosphere for reduction of scintillation of high-frequency radio waves. Neutral SmO is a likely unwanted byproduct. The spectroscopy of SmO is of great interest to aid in interpretation of optical emission spectra recorded following atmospheric releases of Sm as part of the Metal Oxide Space Cloud (MOSC) observations. Here, we report a joint experimental and theoretical study of SmO using slow photoelectron velocity-map imaging spectroscopy of cryogenically cooled SmO- anions (cryo-SEVI) and high-level spin-orbit complete active space calculations with corrections from second order perturbation theory (CASPT2). With cryo-SEVI, we measure the electron affinity of SmO to be 1.0581(11) eV and report electronic and vibrational structure of low-lying electronic states of SmO in good agreement with theory and prior experimental work. We also obtain spectra of higher-lying excited states of SmO for direct comparison to the MOSC results.

Saturation in cascaded optical amplifier free‐space optical communication systems

The performance of a free-space optical (FSO) communication system in a turbulent atmosphere employing an optical amplifier (OA) cascade to extend reach is investigated. Analysis of both single and cascaded OA FSO communication links is given and the implications of using both adaptive (to channel state) and non-adaptive decision threshold schemes are analysed. The benefits of amplifier saturation, for example in the form of effective scintillation reduction when a non-adaptive decision threshold scheme is utilised at the receiver for different atmospheric turbulence regimes, are presented. Monte Carlo simulation techniques are used to model the probability distributions of the optical signal power, noise and the average bit error rate due to scintillation for the cascade. The performance of an adaptive decision threshold is superior to a non-adaptive decision threshold for both saturated and fixed gain preamplified receivers and the ability of a saturated gain OA to suppress scintillation is only meaningful for system performance when a non-adaptive decision threshold is used at the receiver. An OA cascade can be successfully used to extend reach in FSO communication systems and specific system implementations are presented. The optimal cascade scheme with a non-adaptive receiver would use frequent low gain saturated amplification.

Scintillation reduction in pseudo Multi-Gaussian Schell Model beams in the maritime environment

Irradiance fluctuations of a pseudo Multi-Gaussian Schell Model beam propagating in the maritime environment is explored as a function of spatial light modulator cycling rate and estimated atmospheric turnover rate. Analysis of the data demonstrates a strong negative correlation between the scintillation index of received optical intensity and cycling speed for the estimated atmospheric turnover rate.

Experimental verification of significant reduction of turbulence-induced scintillation in a full Poincaré beam.

It is theoretically predicted in [Opt. Lett.37, 1553 (2012)] that a full Poincaré (FP) beam can significantly reduce turbulence-induced scintillation. In this paper, we propose a method for synthesizing a FP beam for different beam orders and report experimental generation of the first-, second- and third-order FP beams. Furthermore, we carry out experimental measurement of the scintillation index of a FP beam passing through thermally induced turbulence. It is demonstrated that the FP beam indeed can significantly reduce the scintillation index compared to a Gaussian beam under certain conditions. Our results will be useful in long-distance free-space optical communications.

Reduction of scintillation in optical modulating retro-reflector links.

Optical modulating retro-reflectors enable free-space optical links that have greatly reduced pointing requirements and do not require a laser at one end of the link. However, these types of links can exhibit very high optical scintillation due to the double passage of the beam through the atmosphere. This high scintillation causes fades and surges that can lead to packet errors in the link. It is shown that scintillation can be greatly reduced through a combination of techniques including retro-reflector diversity, aperture averaging and bistatic optical interrogation. Improvements of 20 dB in link performance are demonstrated.

Polarization-induced reduction in scintillation of optical beams propagating in simulated turbulent atmospheric channels

It is experimentally demonstrated that the class of partially coherent, partially polarized optical beams can be efficiently used for reduction in scintillations on propagation through turbulent air. The experiment involving the electromagnetic beam generation and its interaction with turbulent air simulator is discussed in details. The collected data is in solid agreement with the recently published theoretical predictions.

Experimental demonstration of vortex phase-induced reduction in scintillation of a partially coherent beam

We carry out experimental measurement of the scintillation index of a partially coherent beam-carrying vortex phase (i.e., Gaussian-Schell model vortex beam) propagating through thermally induced turbulence. It is demonstrated that a Gaussian-Schell model vortex beam has appreciably smaller scintillation than a Gaussian-Schell model beam, which will be useful in free-space optical communication.

Scintillation of aperture received partially coherent beams with time-averaging detection in turbulent atmosphere

A general scintillation index model for time-averaging reception of partially coherent beams (PCBs) is extended from the case of point receiver to the case of aperture receiver. The analytic expression is derived including the effects of the receiver aperture diameter D, the correlation time τS of the source phase variation and the integration time τD of the detector. There exists a maximum value τmax of the relative detection speed (RDS) τS/τD. When the RDS is lower than τmax, the PCB can reduce the scintillation compared with the coherent beam. An approximated expression for τmax is derived, which is useful for making choice of the detector speed under different link conditions. It is also found that under the influence of finite RDS, increasing receiver aperture size can degrade the performance of the PCB in scintillation reduction, compared with the coherent beam in weak turbulence regime.

Reduction of turbulence-induced scintillation by nonuniformly polarized beam arrays

We have explored a method to reduce turbulence-induced scintillation by using an incoherent beam array composed of beamlets with nonuniform polarization. It is shown that significant scintillation reduction of such an incoherent beam array can be obtained by using nonuniformly polarized beamlets whose scintillation properties are optimized.

Experimental investigation on the scintillation index of vortex beams propagating in simulated atmospheric turbulence

The scintillation index of vortex beam in simulated atmospheric turbulence is experimentally investigated. The fluctuation of the intensity can be effectively reduced by vortex beams. In particular, the reduction of scintillation is more pronounced for vortex beams with larger topological charge.

Twist phase-induced reduction in scintillation of a partially coherent beam in turbulent atmosphere

The scintillation index of a Gaussian Schell-model beam with twist phase (i.e., twisted GSM beam) in weak turbulent atmosphere is formulated with the help of a tensor method. Variations of the scintillation index of a twisted GSM beam on propagation in turbulent atmosphere are studied in detail. It is interesting to find that the scintillation index of a twisted GSM beam can be smaller than that without twist phase in weak turbulent atmosphere. Thus, modulation of the twist phase of a partially coherent beam provides a new way to reduce turbulence-induced scintillation.

Investigation on the scintillation reduction of elliptical vortex beams propagating in atmospheric turbulence

We numerically investigate the scintillation index of an elliptical vortex beam in both modest turbulence and strong turbulence. Numerical simulations are realized with random phase screen scheme. It is shown that the on-axis scintillation index can be effectively reduced by an elliptical vortex beam if crucial parameters are properly chosen. The mechanisms of scintillation reduction in turbulence of different strengths are different. We find that the topological charge and the ratio of minor axis to major axis of an elliptical vortex beam are important in determining the on-axis scintillation index. Our simulation results indicate that using an elliptical vortex beam is a promising strategy to alleviate atmospheric influence on free space optical communication link.

Scintillation reduction for laser beams propagating through turbulent atmosphere

We numerically examine the spatial evolution of the structure of coherent and partially coherent laser beams, including the optical vortices, propagating in turbulent atmospheres. The influence of beam fragmentation and wandering relative to the axis of propagation (z-axis) on the value of the scintillation index (SI) of the signal at the detector is analysed. These studies were performed for different dimensions of the detector, distances of propagation, and strengths of the atmospheric turbulence. Methods for significantly reducing the SI are described. These methods utilize averaging of the signal at the detector over a set of partially coherent beams (PCBs). It is demonstrated that the most effective approach is using a set of PCBs with definite initial directions of propagation relative to the z-axis. This approach results in a significant compensation of the beam wandering which in many cases is the main contributor to the SI. A novel method is to generate the PCBs by combining two laser beams—Gaussian and vortex beams, with different frequencies (the difference between these two frequencies being significantly smaller than the frequencies themselves). In this case, the effective suppression of the SI does not require high-frequency modulators. This result is important for achieving gigabit data rates in long-distance laser communication through turbulent atmospheres.

Reduction of laser intensity scintillations in turbulent atmospheres using time averaging of a partially coherent beam

We demonstrate experimentally and numerically that the application of a partially coherent beam (PCB) in combination with time averaging leads to a significant reduction in the scintillation index. We use a simplified experimental approach in which the atmospheric turbulence is simulated by a phase diffuser. The role of the speckle size, the amplitude of the phase modulation and the strength of the atmospheric turbulence are examined. We obtain good agreement between our numerical simulations and our experimental results. This study provides a useful foundation for future applications of PCB-based methods of scintillation reduction in physical atmospheres.

Spatial correlation and irradiance statistics in a multiple-beam terrestrial free-space optical communication link

By means of numerical simulations we analyze the statistical properties of the power fluctuations induced by the incoherent superposition of multiple transmitted laser beams in a terrestrial free-space optical communication link. The measured signals arising from different transmitted optical beams are found to be statistically correlated. This channel correlation increases with receiver aperture and propagation distance. We find a simple scaling rule for the spatial correlation coefficient in terms of the propagation distance and we are able to predict the scintillation reduction in previously reported experiments with good accuracy. We propose an approximation to the probability density function of the received power of a spatially correlated multiple-beam system in terms of the parameters of the single-channel gamma-gamma function. A bit-error-rate evaluation is also presented to demonstrate the improvement of a multibeam system over its single-beam counterpart.

Scintillation Reduction by Use of Multiple Gaussian Laser Beams With Different Wavelengths

We study the scintillation index of N partially overlapping collimated lowest order Gaussian laser beams with different wavelengths in weak atmospheric turbulence. Using the Rytov approximation, we calculate the initial beam separation that minimizes the longitudinal scintillation. Further reduction of the longitudinal scintillation is obtained by optimizing with respect to both beam separation and spot size. The longitudinal scintillation of the optimal N-beam configurations is inversely proportional to N, resulting in a 92% reduction for a nine-beam system compared with the single beam value. The radial scintillation values for the optimal N-beam configurations are significantly smaller than the corresponding single beam values