Masatoshi Saruwatari

Semiconductor laser to single-mode fiber coupler

Promising results of various coupling experiments between laser diodes and single-mode fibers to determine the optimum coupling method are reported. The cylindrical lens method is shown to be most efficient, with a coupling loss of 1.8 dB under optimum alignment conditions. More than -2 dB coupling efficiency is attained with a cylindrical lens whose radius is less than 8 microm. The laser to fiber coupling characteristics are estimated by Gaussian beam approximation. The optimum radius of a cylindrical lens, which gives maximum coupling efficiency, is derived by theoretical calculation, using the ray matrix method. The cylindrical lens alignment tolerance is also shown theoretically and experimentally.

Multi-WDM-channel, Gbit/s pulse generation from a single laser source utilizing LD-pumped supercontinuum in optical fibers

More than 40 wavelength-division-multiplexed (WDM) channels of 5-10 ps pulse streams are generated over 1530-1570 nm at 6.3 Gbit/s from a single laser source utilizing laser-diode (LD)-pumped supercontinuum in optical fibers for the first time. The time-bandwidth products of the generated pulses are within the range of 0.3-0.6, and it has been verified that the generated WDM picosecond pulses are capable of being interleaved to produce up to 40 WDM channels, each consisting of 50 Gbit/s time-division-multiplexed (TDM) pulse streams, in one optical fiber.<<ETX>>

Spectroscopy and laser oscillation properties of lithium neodymium tetraphosphate

Optical absorption, fluorescence, and laser characteristics of lithium neodymium tetraphosphate (LiNdP 4 O 12 , abbreviated as LNP) were examined. The crystal belongs to the monoclinic system (pseudoorthorhombic system) and the Nd content is 4.37 \times 10^{21} cm-3. The lifetime of the4 F_{3/2} level is 120 μs, which is one-half of 230μs observed in Nd:YAG. The largest effective emission cross section at the line peak ( 1.047_{7} \mu m) was spectroscopically determined as 3.2 \times 10^{-19} cm2for the electric vector parallel to the pseudoorthorhombic c axis and quantum efficiency was estimated as 0.48. Quasi-continuous laser oscillation pumped by a chopped Ar-ion laser was achieved with a 1.85-mm-long crystal. The output light was linearly polarized along the pseudoorthorhombic c axis of the crystal, which does not depend on the polarization direction of the pump light. The measured threshold and round-trip loss yield the value of 3.1 \times 10^{-19} cm2for the effective emission cross section of LNP, which is in good agreement with the value obtained from the spectroscopic data.

Ultrafast all-optical switching utilizing the optical Kerr effect in polarization-maintaining single-mode fibers

An ultrafast all-optical switching scheme utilizing the optical Kerr effect in two birefringent fibers concatenated with each fast axis crossed is proposed. Stable optical Kerr modulation and all-optical demultiplexing of an ultrashort (30 p.s.) optical pulse train at 1.97 GHz from a gain-switched distributed-feedback laser diode (DFB LD) have been sufficiently demonstrated using CW mode-locking Nd:YAG laser pulses as a pump. Switching speed and required pump powers are studied in terms of fiber bandwidth due to fiber birefringence, and combined effects of chromatic and polarization dispersions on Kerr modulation profiles. By utilizing the optical Kerr modulation properties in the presence of dispersions, the nondiagonal yx component of the nonlinear refractive index is also determined to be 0.34 relative to the diagonal component xx. The intrinsic stability and ultimate switching capabilities are discussed. >

High-speed picosecond optical pulse compression from gain-switched 1.3-&#181;m distributed feedback-laser diode (DFB-LD) through highly dispersive single-mode fiber

Picosecond optical pulse compression characteristics of chirped pulses from gain-switched distributed feedback-laser diodes (DFB-LD) transmitting through highly dispersive media are studied theoretically and experimentally. It is clarified theoretically that gain-switched chirped pulses can be compressed to about a 0.7-time bandwidth product by normal dispersion of the dispersive media and that the optimum dispersion value to obtain a minimum compressed pulse is proportional to the square of original pulsewidth. Through a dispersion, shifted single-mode fiber with -48-ps/nm normal dispersion at a 1.3-μm wavelength, gain-switched 30-ps (FWHM) pulses from a directly modulated 1.3-μm DFB-LD at a 4.4-GHz repetition rate have been successfully compressed to 6.4-ps optical pulses with a 0.86-time bandwidth product. Experimental results agree with the theoretical analysis.

Signal-to-noise ratio analysis of 100 Gb/s demultiplexing using nonlinear optical loop mirror

This paper investigates experimentally and theoretically the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) characteristics of 100 Gb/s all-optical demultiplexing using a nonlinear optical loop mirror (NOLM). The analysis takes into account two effects that degrade the SNR associated with NOLM demultiplexing. First is channel crosstalk originating from the leakage of nontarget channels. Second is the intensity fluctuations of demultiplexed signals caused by the combined effects of timing jitter and a profile of the switching window. Considering these two effects, power penalties associated with NOLM. Demultiplexing are theoretically evaluated using the conventional noise theory of an optical receiver followed by an optical preamplifier. Experimental results of bit error rate measurements for 100 Gb/s demultiplexing using three different NOLMs with different intrinsic crosstalk values, defined by signal transmittance in the absence of control pulses, show that the power penalties are in good agreement with the evaluation based upon our proposed analysis. It can be found from our investigation in demultiplexing from 100 to 10 Gb/s that intrinsic crosstalk of less than -25 dB, corresponding to a coupling ratio, K, of |K-0.5|/spl les/0.03, is required for the power penalty of less than 1 dB. The root-mean-square (rms) value of the relative timing jitter necessary for obtaining a sufficient timing tolerance width for combining control and signal pulses is determined.

Wideband frequency-response measurement of optical receivers using optical heterodyne detection

Measurements have been carried out using 1.3- mu m distributed-feedback laser diodes (DFB-LDs). The frequency difference of the LDs is continuously varied with temperature changes of a few degrees and the spectral linewidth of one of the LDs is narrowed by optical feedback using a grating. Wideband, highly sensitive measurement has been achieved for a p-i-n photodiode and a Ge avalanche photodiode from DC to 20 GHz. The result is compared with that of the pulse spectrum analysis (PSA) method. Although the finite pulsewidth in the PSA method causes roll-off in the frequency response, the optical heterodyne method has the advantage for very wideband frequency response measurement. The S/N ratio in the optical heterodyne method can be made as high ( approximately 40 dB) as that of the PSA method by narrowing the spectral linewidth of DFB-LDs. >

Ultra-high-speed PLL-type clock recovery circuit based on all-optical gain modulation in traveling-wave laser diode amplifier

A new phase lock loop (PLL) is developed for very-high-speed optical timing extraction using traveling-wave laser-diode amplifier (TW-LDA) as a phase detector. The all-optical gain modulation of the TW-LDA is utilized to detect the relative phase difference between an optical signal and an optical clock The frequency response of the optical gain modulation measured with the optical heterodyne technique agrees with the theoretical results based on a rate equation model. With the developed PLL, 10-GHz optical timing clock is successfully extracted from randomly modulated optical signal pulses and the measured bit-error-rate performance shows no power penalty. Influence of the received optical noise on the phase variance of the PLL is also evaluated and it is concluded that 100 GHz operation is possible by increasing the input optical power to 10 mW. >

Optical parametric loop mirror.

A novel configuration for four-wave mixing (FWM) is proposed that offers the remarkable feature of inherently separating the FWM wave from the input pump and signal waves and suppressing their background amplified stimulated emission without optical filtering. In the proposed configuration, an optical parametric loop mirror, two counterpropagating FWM waves generated in a Sagnac interferometer interfere with a relative phase difference that is introduced deliberately. FWM frequency-conversion experiments in a polarization-maintaining fiber achieved more than 35 dB of input-wave suppression against the FWM wave.

High-speed optical pulse transmission at 1.29-&#181;m wavelength using low-loss single-mode fibers

Optical-fiber transmission experiments in the 1.3-μm wavelength region are reported. GaInAsP/InP double-heterostructure semiconductor laser emitting at 1.293 μm is modulated directly in nonreturn-to-zero (NRZ) codes at digit rates tanging from 100 Mbit/s to 1.2 Gbit/s. Its output is transmitted through low-loss GeO 2 -doped single-mode silica fibers in 11-km lengths. Transmitted optical signals are detected by a high-speed Ge avalanche photodiode. Overall loss of the 11-km optical fibers, including 11 splices, is 15.5 dB at 1.3 μm. Average received optical power levels necessary for 10-9error rate are -39.9 dBm at 100 Mbit/s and -29.1 dBm at 1.2 Gbit/s. In the present system configuration, the repeater spacing is limited by loss rather than dispersion. It seems feasible that a more than 30 km repeater spacing at 100 Mbit/s and a more than 20 km even at 1.2 Gbit/s can be realized with low-loss silica fiber cables, whose loss is less than 1 dB/km. Distinctive features and problems associated with this experimental system and constituent devices are discussed.