Single Mode Communication Link
Abstract
Optical fiber transmission has many features which make it very attractive for Military applications. Furthermore, single mode fiber is superior to multimode fiber in terms of bandwidth, attenuation, radiation resistance and cost. The benefits of single mode optical fiber transmission can be further enhanced with the use of Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) technology in which multiple, independent optical signals may be simultaneously transmitted over a single fiber. This permits single fiber transmission of mixed signal traffic (e.g. digital data, voice, video, analog, etc) as well as parallel digital traffic characteristic of computer data transfer. In addition, this technology creates new system design options and architectural flexibility for Local Area Networks (LANs). This technical report describes the design and development of the critical element for implementing such a communications link - a 16 channel single mode WDM. Specifically, it describes the development and performance of a grating-based single mode WDM system suitable for use with single longitudinal lasers (e.g. Distributed feedback lasers (DFB's)). The 16 channel WDM features channels with 3 dB bandwidths of 2.4 nM and separation of 7.2 nM. Any particular channel can be set to a precise wavelength due to the mechanical design features. End-to-End system channel insertion losses of 12.5 dB have been achieved with adjacent channel crosstalk of better than -25 dB. (KT)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 01, 1990
- Accession Number
- ADA219499
Entities
People
- D. C. Reid
- R. Carpenter
- Stephen R. Cole