Romain Modeste Nguimdo

Fast random bits generation based on a single chaotic semiconductor ring laser

Here, we numerically and experimentally demonstrate that, by combining two post-processing methods (multi-bit extraction and bitwise OR-exclusive (XOR) operations). in a single chaotic semiconductor ring laser (SRL), it is possible to generate true random bits with a bit rate up to 40 Gb/s from a chaos bandwidth of ≈ 2 GHz, thanks to the device ability of lasing in two directional modes and the fact that the two mode signals have low correlations. In addition, SRLs can be easily implemented on chip.

Loss of time-delay signature in chaotic semiconductor ring lasers

We investigate the possibility of concealing the time-delay signatures in semiconductor ring lasers (SRLs) with external feedback. Through the autocorrelation and delayed mutual information, we report different scenarios leading to simultaneous time-delay concealment both in the intensity and the phase dynamics of such systems. In particular, the fact that such delay signatures can be eliminated in a SRL subject to short feedback constitutes a step toward the possibility of implementing secure communication schemes and random number generators on chip.

Electro-optic phase chaos systems with an internal variable and a digital key

We consider an electro-optic phase chaos system with two feedback loops organized in a parallel configuration such that the dynamics of one of the loops remains internal. We show that this configuration intrinsically conceals in the transmitted variable the internal delay times, which are critical for decoding. The scheme also allows for the inclusion, in a very efficient way, of a digital key generated as a long pseudorandom binary sequence. A single digital key can operate both in the internal and transmitted variables leading to a large sensitivity of the synchronization to a key-mismatch. The combination of intrinsic delay time concealment and digital key selectivity provides the basis for a large enhancement of the confidentiality in chaos-based communications.

Fast photonic information processing using semiconductor lasers with delayed optical feedback: Role of phase dynamics

Semiconductor lasers subject to delayed optical feedback have recently shown great potential in solving computationally hard tasks. By optically implementing a neuro-inspired computational scheme, called reservoir computing, based on the transient response to optical data injection, high processing speeds have been demonstrated. While previous efforts have focused on signal bandwidths limited by the semiconductor lasers relaxation oscillation frequency, we demonstrate numerically that the much faster phase response makes significantly higher processing speeds attainable. Moreover, this also leads to shorter external cavity lengths facilitating future on-chip implementations. We numerically benchmark our system on a chaotic time-series prediction task considering two different feedback configurations. The results show that a prediction error below 4% can be obtained when the data is processed at 0.25 GSamples/s. In addition, our insight into the phase dynamics of optical injection in a semiconductor laser also provides a clear understanding of the system performance at different pump current levels, even below solitary laser threshold. Considering spontaneous emission noise and noise in the readout layer, we obtain good prediction performance at fast processing speeds for realistic values of the noise strength.

Controlled multiwavelength emission using semiconductor ring lasers with on-chip filtered optical feedback

We report on an integrated approach to obtain multiwavelength emission from semiconductor ring lasers with filtered optical feedback. The filtered feedback is realized on-chip employing two arrayed-waveguide gratings to split/recombine light into different wavelength channels. Through experimental observations and numerical simulations, we find that the effective gain of the different modes is the key parameter which has to be balanced in order to achieve multiwavelength emission. This can be achieved by tuning the injection current in each amplifier.

Digitally tunable dual wavelength emission from semiconductor ring lasers with filtered optical feedback

We report on a novel integrated approach to obtain dual wavelength emission from a semiconductor laser based on on-chip filtered optical feedback. Using this approach, we show experiments and numerical simulations of dual wavelength emission of a semiconductor ring laser. The filtered optical feedback is realized on-chip by employing two arrayed waveguide gratings to split/recombine light into different wavelength channels. Semiconductor optical amplifiers are placed in the feedback loop in order to control the feedback strength of each wavelength channel independently. By tuning the current injected into each of the amplifiers, we can effectively cancel the gain difference between the wavelength channels due to fabrication and material dichroism, thus resulting in stable dual wavelength emission. We also explore the accuracy needed in the operational parameters to maintain this dual wavelength emission.

Effect of Fiber Dispersion on Broadband Chaos Communications Implemented by Electro-Optic Nonlinear Delay Phase Dynamics

We investigate theoretically and experimentally the detrimental effect of fiber dispersion on the synchronization of an optoelectronic phase chaos cryptosystem. We evaluate the root-mean square synchronization error and the cancellation spectra between the emitter and the receiver in order to characterize the quality of the optical fiber communication link. These two indicators explicitly show in temporal and spectral domain how fiber dispersion does negatively affect the phase chaos cancellation at the receiver stage. We demonstrate that the dispersion management techniques used in conventional optical fiber networks, such as dispersion-compensating modules/fibers or dispersion shifted fibers, are also efficient to strongly reduce the detrimental effects of fiber propagation in phase chaos communications. This compatibility therefore opens the way to a successful integration of more than 10-Gb/s phase chaos communications systems in existing networks, even when the fiber link spans over more than 100 km.

Simultaneous Computation of Two Independent Tasks Using Reservoir Computing Based on a Single Photonic Nonlinear Node With Optical Feedback

In this brief, we numerically demonstrate a photonic delay-based reservoir computing system, which processes, in parallel, two independent computational tasks even when the two tasks have unrelated input streams. Our approach is based on a single-longitudinal mode semiconductor ring laser (SRL) with optical feedback. The SRL emits in two directional optical modes. Each directional mode processes one individual task to mitigate possible crosstalk. We illustrate the feasibility of our scheme by analyzing the performance on two benchmark tasks: 1) chaotic time series prediction and 2) nonlinear channel equalization. We identify some feedback configurations for which the results for simultaneous prediction/classification indicate a good performance, but with slight degradation (as compared with the performance obtained for single task processing) due to nonlinear and linear interactions between the two directional modes of the laser. In these configurations, the system performs well on both tasks for a broad range of the parameters.

Reducing the phase sensitivity of laser-based optical reservoir computing systems.

Optical implementations of reservoir computing systems are very promising because of their high processing speeds and the possibility to process several tasks in parallel. These systems can be implemented using semiconductor lasers subject to optical delayed feedback and optical injection. While the amount of the feedback/injection can be easily controlled, it is much more difficult to control the optical feedback/injection phase. We present extensive numerical investigations of the influence of the feedback/injection phases on laser-based reservoir computing systems with feedback. We show that a change in the phase can lead to a strong reduction in the reservoir computing system performance. We introduce a new readout layer design that -at least for some tasks- reduces this sensitivity to changes in the phase. It consists in optimizing the readout weights from a coherent combination of the reservoirs readout signal and its delayed version rather than only from the reservoirs readout signal as is usually done.

Electro-Optic Delay Devices With Double Feedback

We analytically and numerically study the effect of an additional feedback in the semiconductor laser used to pump optoelectronic delay devices. We show that this additional feedback renders the system into chaotic regime for a broader parameter range and also induces a stronger chaotic behavior. We study the synchronization of this system as function of the parameter mismatch and show its capability for encoded message transmission.