Integrated-optics for on-board processing in advanced communication satellites

Addresses advances in integrated optical (IO) device technology which can be applied to onboard signal processing with potentially attractive benefits through reduced hardware complexity. After a brief review of the critical components of a modern communications satellite, the authors present integrated optical techniques for implementation and discuss their advantages. Amplitude and phase modulators, demodulators, switching matrices and beamforming networks implemented with integrated optics are discussed. They are shown to be attractive whenever size, linearity, and electrical stability constitute the key system parameters