Title :
Photonic generation of microwave signal using a rational harmonic mode-locked fiber ring laser
Author :
Deng, Zhichao ; Yao, Jianping
Author_Institution :
Sch. of Inf. Technol. & Eng., Univ. of Ottawa, Ont., Canada
Abstract :
A novel method for microwave signal generation using a rational harmonic actively mode-locked fiber ring laser is proposed and demonstrated. The microwave signal is generated by beating the actively mode-locked longitudinal modes from the rational mode-locked fiber ring laser at a photodetector. The phases of the longitudinal modes are phased locked, which ensures a generated microwave signal with very low phase noise. In the proposed approach, the generated microwave signal has a frequency a few times higher than the microwave drive signal. Therefore, only a low-frequency reference source and a low-speed modulator are required. A rational harmonic actively mode-locked fiber ring laser is experimentally demonstrated. With a microwave drive signal at 5.52 GHz, a microwave signal with a frequency that is four times the frequency of the microwave drive signal at 22.08 GHz is generated. The generated microwave signal is very stable with a spectral width of less than 1 Hz.
Keywords :
fibre lasers; laser mode locking; microwave generation; microwave photonics; phase noise; photodetectors; 22.08 GHz; 5.52 GHz; low phase noise; low-frequency reference source; low-speed modulator; microwave drive signal; photodetector device; photonic microwave signal generation; rational harmonic mode-locked fiber ring laser; Fiber lasers; Frequency; Laser mode locking; Laser noise; Masers; Microwave generation; Microwave theory and techniques; Optical harmonic generation; Ring lasers; Signal generators; Fiber ring laser; microwave photonics; optical generation of microwave signal; radio over fiber; rational harmonic mode locking;
Journal_Title :
Microwave Theory and Techniques, IEEE Transactions on
DOI :
10.1109/TMTT.2005.862624
