High spectral efficiency transmission using optical frequency combs
Doctoral thesis, 2019
This thesis studies the generation, transmission and detection of comb-based superchannels. Focus is on profiting from unique frequency comb properties to realize systems with capabilities beyond that of conventional systems using arrays of independent lasers. Digital, analog and optical processing schemes are proposed, and combined, to increase the system SE. Superchannel modulation is investigated and a scheme capable of encoding independent information onto the lines from a frequency comb in a single waveguide structure is demonstrated. By combining overhead-optimized pilot-based DSP with a 22GHz-spaced soliton microcomb, superchannel transmission with record SE for distances up to 3000km is realized, closing the performance gap between chip-scale and bulk-optic combs in optical communications. The use of two optical pilot tones (PTs) to phase-lock a transmitter and receiver comb pair is studied, realizing self-homodyne detection of a 50x20Gbaud PM-64QAM superchannel with 4% pilot overhead. The PT gains are furthermore analyzed and a complexity-performance trade-off using a single PT and low complexity DSP is proposed. The scheme is used to demonstrate 12bits/s/Hz SE over the full C-band using 3x50xGBaud PM-256QAM superchannels and DSP-complexity reduction at distances exceeding 1000km is shown. Finally, a comb-enabled multi-channel joint equalization scheme capable of mitigating inter-channel crosstalk and thereby minimizing the SE loss from spectral guard bands is demonstrated.
Optical frequency combs
Superchannels
Coherent optical communication
Author
Mikael Mazur
Chalmers, Microtechnology and Nanoscience (MC2), Photonics
M. Mazur, N. K. Fontaine, H. Chen, R. Ryf, D. T. Neilson, G. Raybon, A. Adamiecke, S. Cortselli and J. Schröder, "Multi-wavelength arbitrary waveform generation through spectro-temporal unitary transformations"
Overhead-optimization of pilot-based digital signal processing for flexible high spectral efficiency transmission
Optics Express,;Vol. 27(2019)p. 24654-24669
Journal article
M. Mazur, M.-G. Suh, A. Fülöp, J. Schröder, V. Torres-Company, M. Karlsson, K. J. Vahala and P. A. Andrekson, "High spectral efficiency coherent superchannel transmission with soliton microcombs"
10 Tb/s PM-64QAM Self-Homodyne Comb-Based Superchannel Transmission with 4% Shared Pilot Tone Overhead
Journal of Lightwave Technology,;Vol. 36(2018)p. 3176-3184
Journal article
High Spectral efficiency PM-128QAM Comb-Based Superchannel Transmission Enabled by a Single Shared Optical Pilot Tone
Journal of Lightwave Technology,;Vol. 36(2018)p. 1318-1325
Journal article
Experimental Investigation of Link Impairments in Pilot Tone Aided Superchannel Transmission
IEEE Photonics Technology Letters,;Vol. 31(2019)p. 459-462
Journal article
12 bits/s/Hz Spectral Efficiency Over the C-band Based on Comb-Based Superchannels
Journal of Lightwave Technology,;Vol. 37(2019)p. 411-417
Journal article
M. Mazur, J. Schröder, M. Karlsson and P. Andrekson, "Joint Superchannel Digital Signal Processing for Ultimate Bandwidth Utilization"
Alternatively, while lasers are typically viewed as a close-to-ideal realization of a single frequency light source, one could envision a light source that instead lased on multiple frequencies. This thesis focus on a coherent multi-frequency light source, an optical frequency comb, and its role in optical communications. More specifically, schemes to exploit unique properties of frequency combs to make multi-channel optical communication systems more effectively are proposed and experimentally demonstrated. Throughout the thesis, the focus is on effectiveness by means of increasing the spectral efficiency, i.e., the amount of information transmitted normalized to the signal bandwidth used to carry it. The overall goal of these systems is to make optical communications more effective, supporting more data throughput at a lower cost and energy consumption to enable future, unhindered, growth of the Internet.
Areas of Advance
Information and Communication Technology
Subject Categories
Telecommunications
Communication Systems
Signal Processing
ISBN
978-91-7905-163-1
Doktorsavhandlingar vid Chalmers tekniska högskola. Ny serie: 4630
Publisher
Chalmers
A423 (Kollektorn), Kemivägen 9
Opponent: Dr. Benn Thomsen, Microsoft Corp., United Kingdom