1.5 GHz time-to-wavelength converter
- Special Technologies Laboratory, 5520 Ekwill, Suite B, Santa Barbara, California 93111 (United States)
The time-to-wavelength converter (TWC) is a fiber-based system that converts time-dependent voltage variations in a single-transient electrical pulse into wavelength-dependent power variations in an optical carrier pulse. This system is unique because its 1.5 GHz bandwidth is independent of signal transmission distance and the optical detector is a low-bandwidth gated spectrophotometer. The TWC system uses a 50-nm-wide carrier pulse centered at 810 nm. It is capable of remotely measuring a transient analog signal with a pulse width between 0.20 and 3.0 ns full width at half-maximum and has a {minus}3 dB bandwidth from 104 MHz to 1.56 GHz. The system`s dynamic range is 12 dB for transient signals but it can be increased to about 30 dB by averaging multiple pulses. Its operation is based on the generation of an optical carrier pulse by self-phase modulation in a flexible capillary filled with carbon disulfide; wavelength dispersion in a fused-silica single-mode fiber; optical intensity modulation using a Pockels cell; and spectral analysis of the modulated optical signal.
- Research Organization:
- Nevada Test Site
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC08-93NV11265
- OSTI ID:
- 46404
- Journal Information:
- Review of Scientific Instruments, Journal Name: Review of Scientific Instruments Journal Issue: 5 Vol. 66; ISSN 0034-6748; ISSN RSINAK
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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