SBIR Phase I: High-Bandwidth Photonic Arbitrary Waveform Generation using Low-Bandwidth Spectral Shaping

NSF SBIR Phase I Proposal 1249014 - Request for Abstract这个小型企业创新研究计划（SBIR）第一阶段项目推进了任意波形生成（AWG）功能，用于电信，测试和测量，遥感等技术中必不可少的高带宽操作，这些技术要求更高的带宽，但目前的电子设备无法实现。 这种新的创新采用了光纤存储环干涉联合收割机许多低带宽的输入波形合成高带宽的输出波形。 这项技术利用了稳定的光纤激光器和电信组件的进步，硬件由商用现成的光子学和低带宽电子器件组成。 之前的努力已经成功地证明了设备的概念，并导致一项专利申请。 该SBIR项目通过器件工程解决了基本的一致性问题，使带宽扩展到25 GHz以上，并降低了光子元件的噪声，将这种创新的解决方案推向了可行的商业产品。成功的关键是结合带宽、时间孔径和信号保真度。 这种用于宽带AWG的光子方法提供了高带宽（100 GHz）、长波形持续时间（10微秒）和高保真度（40 dB SFDR）的潜力。 该项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力为充分利用从微波到太赫兹频率的电磁频谱提供了变革性进展的潜力。 特别是，这种方法非常适合于弥合存在于波形生成之间的技术差距，通过发达的连续AM或PM调制的个别相干源，并通过频率阵列的控制合成的建议方法。 该技术提供了高光谱分辨率、长时间孔径和高带宽的独特组合，在测试和测量设备、电信、信号处理和下一代信息技术中具有广泛的应用，这些信息技术利用光纤的全部信息容量，超出了当前的能力。 敏捷、复杂、宽带光波形的生成可以实现自由空间光通信的新范例，同时也适用于扩频和低截获概率应用。 该项目还旨在研究相干光信号重复再放大所固有的基本噪声问题，为满足现代信息时代迅速增长的需求提供直接相关的见解。 此外，在这个项目中开发的相干光存储环技术将有利于许多其他潜在的应用，如宽带光谱分析和超高精度表征的光学振荡器。

NSF SBIR Phase I Proposal 1249014 - Request for Abstract This Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR) Phase I project advances arbitrary waveform generation (AWG) capabilities for high bandwidth operation essential in technologies such as telecommunications, test and measurement, remote sensing, and others where higher bandwidths are demanded but cannot be achieved with current electronic devices. This new innovation employs an optical fiber storage ring to interferometrically combine many low-bandwidth input waveforms to synthesize high-bandwidth output waveforms. This technology exploits advances in stable fiber lasers and telecommunications components with hardware comprised of commercial off-the-shelf photonics and low-bandwidth electronics. Prior efforts have successfully demonstrated the device concept and led to one patent pending. This SBIR project addresses fundamental coherence issues through device-engineering that enables bandwidth extension above 25 GHz, and noise reduction in the photonic components, moving this innovative solution towards a viable commercial product. Metrics for success are combined bandwidth, time aperture, and signal fidelity. This photonic method for wideband AWG offers the potential for high bandwidth (100 GHz), long waveform durations (10 microseconds), with high fidelity (40 dB SFDR). The broader impact/commercial potential of this project offers the potential for transformative advances in full utilization of the electromagnetic spectrum spanning microwave to terahertz frequencies. In particular, this approach is ideally suited to bridge the technological gap that exists between waveform generation by well-developed continuous AM or PM modulation of individual coherent sources and by proposed methods of controlled synthesis of frequency arrays. This technology provides a unique combination of high spectral resolution, long time aperture, and high bandwidth that has broad application in test and measurement devices, telecommunications, signal processing, and next-generation information technologies that exploit the full information capacity of optical fiber beyond the current capabilities. Generation of agile, complex, wideband optical waveforms can enable new paradigms for free space optical communications, while also applicable to spread spectrum and low probability of intercept applications. This project also aims to investigate fundamental noise issues inherent to repeated re-amplification of coherent optical signals, providing insights directly relevant to meeting the rapidly increasing needs of our modern information age. Furthermore, the coherent optical storage ring technology developed in this project will benefit a number of other potential applications such as wideband spectrum analysis and ultra-high precision characterization of optical oscillators.