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Characterization of XGM and XPM in a SOA-MZI using a linear frequency resolved gating technique

Characterization of XGM and XPM in a SOA-MZI using a linear frequency resolved gating technique
Characterization of XGM and XPM in a SOA-MZI using a linear frequency resolved gating technique
Semiconductor Optical Amplifiers (SOAs) are of considerable interest as nonlinear optical processing devices, since they can facilitate such operations as signal regeneration and wavelength conversion. All optical processing of signals in SOAs usually employs either cross-gain modulation (XGM) or cross-phase modulation (XPM). In the latter case, to convert phase changes to intensity variations, it is common to use integrated SOA Mach-Zehnder interferometers (SOA-MZIs). As signal repetition rates approach the operating bandwidth of the SOA devices, precise knowledge of their response in both intensity and phase becomes ever more crucial. The usual approach to the phase-sensitive characterisation of fast optical devices involves the use of interferometric set-ups [1], which can be quite involving and prone to environmental instabilities. In this paper, and in order to aid the optimisation of these versatile devices we present a study of SOA response behaviour using a linear frequency resolved gating technique (L-FROG). The L-FROG allows the phase and intensity of signals to be characterized using off-the-shelf all-fiberised equipment in a simple non-interferometric set-up. Using a SOA-MZI in a pump-probe configuration, we investigate both the XGM and XPM response to ps-long pump signals. Since intraband effects such as carrier heating and spectral hole burning, which facilitate high-speed switching, are dependent on the power of the incoming signals, we focus our studies on the variation of the SOA response to the input power. Through this study we hope to provide a better understanding of the nonlinear behaviour of SOA devices, and additionally prove the applicability of LFROG techniques for the complete characterisation of fast optical device response behaviour.
Ng, T.T.
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Pérez, A.
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Sales, S.
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Richardson, David J.
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Petropoulos, Periklis
522b02cc-9f3f-468e-bca5-e9f58cc9cad7
Ng, T.T.
bfbb5dd8-16ba-4171-89cb-5ade36271138
Pérez, A.
745662e7-f56d-40d4-8059-a457988e6c1f
Sales, S.
c9f739fb-32b7-428a-b119-3d7be1250f67
Richardson, David J.
ebfe1ff9-d0c2-4e52-b7ae-c1b13bccdef3
Petropoulos, Periklis
522b02cc-9f3f-468e-bca5-e9f58cc9cad7

Ng, T.T., Pérez, A., Sales, S., Richardson, David J. and Petropoulos, Periklis (2007) Characterization of XGM and XPM in a SOA-MZI using a linear frequency resolved gating technique. 20th Annual Meeting of the IEEE Lasers and Electro-Optics Society (LEOS 2007), Florida, USA. 21 - 25 Oct 2007. 2 pp . (doi:10.1109/LEOS.2007.4382577).

Record type: Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)

Abstract

Semiconductor Optical Amplifiers (SOAs) are of considerable interest as nonlinear optical processing devices, since they can facilitate such operations as signal regeneration and wavelength conversion. All optical processing of signals in SOAs usually employs either cross-gain modulation (XGM) or cross-phase modulation (XPM). In the latter case, to convert phase changes to intensity variations, it is common to use integrated SOA Mach-Zehnder interferometers (SOA-MZIs). As signal repetition rates approach the operating bandwidth of the SOA devices, precise knowledge of their response in both intensity and phase becomes ever more crucial. The usual approach to the phase-sensitive characterisation of fast optical devices involves the use of interferometric set-ups [1], which can be quite involving and prone to environmental instabilities. In this paper, and in order to aid the optimisation of these versatile devices we present a study of SOA response behaviour using a linear frequency resolved gating technique (L-FROG). The L-FROG allows the phase and intensity of signals to be characterized using off-the-shelf all-fiberised equipment in a simple non-interferometric set-up. Using a SOA-MZI in a pump-probe configuration, we investigate both the XGM and XPM response to ps-long pump signals. Since intraband effects such as carrier heating and spectral hole burning, which facilitate high-speed switching, are dependent on the power of the incoming signals, we focus our studies on the variation of the SOA response to the input power. Through this study we hope to provide a better understanding of the nonlinear behaviour of SOA devices, and additionally prove the applicability of LFROG techniques for the complete characterisation of fast optical device response behaviour.

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Published date: 2007
Venue - Dates: 20th Annual Meeting of the IEEE Lasers and Electro-Optics Society (LEOS 2007), Florida, USA, 2007-10-21 - 2007-10-25

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Local EPrints ID: 50216
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/50216
PURE UUID: bc1ab3c8-a03f-4a3a-93b3-69dc10d5efa1
ORCID for David J. Richardson: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-7751-1058
ORCID for Periklis Petropoulos: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-1576-8034

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Date deposited: 31 Jan 2008
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 02:58

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Contributors

Author: T.T. Ng
Author: A. Pérez
Author: S. Sales

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