Title :
Widely tunable narrow-line RF source based on modulation sideband injection-locked lasers
Author :
Schneider, Garrett J. ; Murakowski, Janusz ; Schuetz, Christopher A. ; Shi, S. ; Prather, Dennis W.
Author_Institution :
Dept. of Electr. & Comput. Eng., Univ. of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA
Abstract :
We have developed and demonstrated a photonic RF source architecture with a tuning range of more than 7 octaves. It is based on the photomixing of a pair of tuned lasers. Narrow linewidth is obtained by modulating one laser with a reference signal and injection seeding the other with a harmonic sideband. Tuning is accomplished by selecting a specific sideband, i.e. a particular harmonic of the drive signal, for injection locking, combined with tuning the modulator drive signal. In this paper we discuss the operation of the system and present experimental results characterizing its performance. We also discuss planned improvements to the system, including the implementation of low-noise VCOs for the reference signal, and increased RF signal power through the use of high-performance photodiode detectors.
Keywords :
laser mode locking; laser noise; laser tuning; microwave photonics; optical modulation; photodiodes; semiconductor lasers; spectral line narrowing; RF signal power; harmonic sideband; high-performance photodiode detectors; injection seeding; laser tuning; linewidth narrowing; low-noise VCO; modulation sideband injection-locked lasers; modulator drive signal; photomixing; photonic RF source architecture; reference signal; widely tunable narrow-line RF source; Frequency modulation; Harmonic analysis; Laser noise; Laser tuning; Radio frequency; injection seeding; laser; nonlinear; photodiode; tunable source;
Conference_Titel :
Microwave Photonics (MWP), 2013 International Topical Meeting on
Conference_Location :
Alexandria, VA
DOI :
10.1109/MWP.2013.6724070
