Thomas Weyrauch

Adaptive Array of Phase-Locked Fiber Collimators: Analysis and Experimental Demonstration

We discuss development and integration of a coherent fiber array system composed of densely packed fiber collimators with built-in capabilities for adaptive wavefront phase piston and tilt control at each fiber collimator. In this system, multi-channel fiber-integrated phase shifters are used for phase locking of seven fiber collimators and the precompensation of laboratory-generated turbulence-induced phase aberrations. Controllable x and y displacements of the fiber tips in the fiber collimator array provide additional adaptive compensation of the tip and tilt phase aberration components. An additional control system is utilized for equalization of the intensity of each of the fiber collimator beams. All three control systems are based on the stochastic parallel gradient descent optimization technique. The paper presents the first experimental results of adaptive dynamic phase distortion compensation with an adaptive phase-locked fiber collimator array system.

Experimental demonstration of coherent beam combining over a 7 km propagation path

We demonstrate coherent combining (phase locking) of seven laser beams emerging from an adaptive fiber-collimator array over a 7 km atmospheric propagation path using a target-in-the-loop (TIL) setting. Adaptive control of the piston and the tip and tilt wavefront phase at each fiber-collimator subaperture resulted in automatic focusing of the combined beam onto an unresolved retroreflector target (corner cube) with precompensation of quasi-static and atmospheric turbulence-induced phase aberrations. Both phase locking (piston) and tip-tilt control were performed by maximizing the target-return optical power using iterative stochastic parallel gradient descent (SPGD) techniques. The performance of TIL coherent beam combining and atmospheric mitigation was significantly increased by using an SPGD control variation that accounts for the round-trip propagation delay (delayed SPGD).

Adaptive phase-locked fiber array with wavefront phase tip-tilt compensation using piezoelectric fiber positioners

In this paper, we present the recent development of a conformal optical system with three adaptive phase-locked fiber elements. The coherent beam combining based on stochastic parallel gradient descent (SPGD) algorithm is investigated. We implement both phase-locking control and wavefront phase tip-tilt control in our conformal optical system. The phase-locking control is performed with fiber-coupled lithium niobate phase shifters which are modulated by an AVR micro-processor based SPGD controller. The perturbation rate of this SPGD controller is ~95,000 iterations per second. Phase-locking compensation bandwidth for phase distortion amplitude of 2π-radian phase shift is >100Hz. The tip-tilt control is realized with piezoelectric fiber positioners which are modulated by a computer-based software SPGD controller. The perturbation rate of the tip-tilt SPGD controller is up to ~950 iterations per second. The tip-tilt compensation bandwidth using fiber positioners is ~10Hz at 60-μrad. jitter swing angle.

Atmospheric compensation with a speckle beacon in strong scintillation conditions: directed energy and laser communication applications.

Wavefront control experiments in strong scintillation conditions (scintillation index, approximately equal to 1) over a 2.33 km, near-horizontal, atmospheric propagation path are presented. The adaptive-optics system used comprises a tracking and a fast-beam-steering mirror as well as a 132-actuator, microelectromechanical-system, piston-type deformable mirror with a VLSI controller that implements stochastic parallel gradient descent control optimization of a system performance metric. The experiments demonstrate mitigation of atmospheric distortions with a speckle beacon typical for directed energy and free-space laser communication applications.

Free-space laser communications with adaptive optics: Atmospheric compensation experiments

Refractive index inhomogeneities of the turbulent air cause wave-front distortions of optical waves propagating through the atmosphere, leading to such effects as beam spreading, beam wander, and intensity fluctuations (scintillations). These distortions are responsible for severe signal fading in free-space optical communications systems and therefore compromise link reliability. Wave-front distortions can be mitigated, in principle, with adaptive optics, i.e., real-time wave-front control, reducing the likeliness of signal fading. However, adaptive optics technology, currently primarily used in astronomical imaging, needs to be adapted to the requirements of free-space optical communication systems and their specific challenges.

Deep turbulence effects compensation experiments with a cascaded adaptive optics system using a 3.63 m telescope

Compensation of extended (deep) turbulence effects is one of the most challenging problems in adaptive optics (AO). In the AO approach described, the deep turbulence wave propagation regime was achieved by imaging stars at low elevation angles when image quality improvement with conventional AO was poor. These experiments were conducted at the U.S. Air Force Maui Optical and Supercomputing Site (AMOS) by using the 3.63 m telescope located on Haleakala, Maui. To enhance compensation performance we used a cascaded AO system composed of a conventional AO system based on a Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor and a deformable mirror with 941 actuators, and an AO system based on stochastic parallel gradient descent optimization with four deformable mirrors (75 control channels). This first-time field demonstration of a cascaded AO system achieved considerably improved performance of wavefront phase aberration compensation. Image quality was improved in a repeatable way in the presence of stressing atmospheric conditions obtained by using stars at elevation angles as low as 15 degrees.

Atmospheric compensation over a 2.3 km propagation path with a multi-conjugate (piston-MEMS/modal DM) adaptive system

We discuss the expansion of wavefront distortion compensation based on stochastic parallel gradient descent (SPGD) optimization to the control of several wavefront correctors. We describe then a SPGD adaptive optics system that uses a low-order deformable mirror with modal control and a high-resolution (either 132 or 320 control channels) piston-type MEMS mirror. The system was installed at a 2.3km near-horizontal propagation and used for atmospheric compensation experiments. Results obtained for different system configurations are presented.

Obscuration-free pupil-plane phase locking of a coherent array of fiber collimators

Control methods and system architectures that can be used for locking in phase of multiple laser beams that are generated at the transmitter aperture plane of a coherent fiber-collimator array system (pupil-plane phase locking) are considered. In the proposed and analyzed phase-locking techniques, sensing of the piston phase differences is performed using interference of periphery (tail) sections of the laser beams prior to their clipping by the fiber-collimator transmitter apertures. This obscuration-free sensing technique eliminates the need for a beam splitter being directly located inside the optical train of the transmitted beams--one of the major drawbacks of large-aperture and/or high-power fiber-array systems. Numerical simulation results demonstrate efficiency of the proposed phase-locking methods.

Comparative efficiency analysis of fiber-array and conventional beam director systems in volume turbulence

The performance of two prominent laser beam projection system types is analyzed through wave-optics numerical simulations for various atmospheric turbulence conditions, propagation distances, and adaptive optics (AO) mitigation techniques. Comparisons are made between different configurations of both a conventional beam director (BD) using a monolithic-optics-based Cassegrain telescope and a fiber-array BD that uses an array of densely packed fiber collimators. The BD systems considered have equal input power and aperture diameters. The projected laser beam power inside the Airy size disk at the target plane is used as the performance metric. For the fiber-array system, both incoherent and coherent beam combining regimes are considered. We also present preliminary results of side-by-side atmospheric beam projection experiments over a 7-km propagation path using both the AO-enhanced beam projection system with a Cassegrain telescope and the coherent fiber-array BD composed of 21 densely packed fiber collimators. Both wave-optics numerical simulation and experimental results demonstrate that, for similar system architectures and turbulence conditions, coherent fiber-array systems are more efficient in mitigation of atmospheric turbulence effects and generation of a hit spot of the smallest possible size on a remotely located target.

Development of adaptive fiber collimators for conformal fiber-based beam projection systems

We describe bimorph piezoelectric fiber actuators, which enable tip and tilt control in fiber collimators, as well as their integration into a fiber-array based beam-projection system. A mechanism for alignment of individual fiber actuators within the array was developed. It provides six degrees of freedom and allows for high subaperture density. The alignment procedures for a seven-subaperture prototype system as well as first results from evaluation experiments are presented.