Photoparametric amplifier/converter in hightwave communication systems

The development of a low noise receiver using the photoparametric effect is discussed in this paper. Photoparametric amplifiers are similar to electrical parametric amplifiers with the distinction that they use a photodiode instead of a varactor to perform photodetection and parametric amplification simultaneously. These amplifiers are also capable of performing frequency conversion required in certain applications. The photoparametric amplifier/converter can be used as part of a conventional wide band optical receiver/converter offering improved noise performance or as a low noise detector/ converter in microwave subcarrier multiplexed systems. A simulation technique has been developed to optimise amplifier/ converter performance and the practical results are presented along with those obtained by analysis and simulation.