A full-duplex radio-over-fiber system based on a novel double-sideband modulation and frequency quadrupling

We propose a novel radio-over-fiber system based on double-sideband (DSB) modulation and frequency quadrupling to reduce the system cost both at central office (CO) and base station (BS). In this system, by properly biasing the intensity modulator, the repetitive frequency of the optical millimeter-wave (mm-wave) is four times frequency of the local oscillator (LO) signal. Additionally, due to the single-sideband of the mm-wave carrying base data signal, our theoretical simulation shows that the generated mm-wave can be immunized the fading effect and the walk-off of signals.     

The transmission performance of the single sideband optical millimeter-wave with BPSK signal in the duplex radio-over-fiber link

This paper has investigated the transmission performance of the single sideband (SSB) optical millimeter (mm)-wave with signal carried by the sideband in BPSK format in duplex radio-over-fiber (RoF) system theoretically and numerically. The SSB optical mm-wave signal is generated by a LiNbO₃ Mach–Zehnder modulator and there exists an optimal modulation index to generate the SSB optical mm-wave with a maximal RF photocurrent. The SSB optical mm-wave is much suitable for the duplex ROF link with the uplink lightwave recovered from the downlink because the optical carrier carries no signal. In such a duplex RoF link, although there are the spurs on the optical carrier, they have little influence on the downlink and the uplink signal even if the modulation index is large.     

Generation and transmission of the double-sideband optical millimeter-wave with signal carried only by optical carrier

In this paper, we have proposed a new scheme to generate double-sideband (DSB) optical millimeter-wave (mm-wave) with signal carried only by optical carrier, and its transmission performance is investigated. The theoretical and numerical results show that the DSB optical mm-wave signal generated by our scheme suffers only from the fading effect, the time shift of the sidebands has little influence on its transmission performance. The signal demodulated from the harmonic photocurrent shows a clear and open eye diagram and has good performance even if the transmission distance is very close to but not just at the fading nodes. The theoretical results are in good agreement with our numerical simulation.     

一种改进的双边带调制产生光毫米波的方案

提出了应用于光纤无线通信系统中一种改进的双边带调制产生光毫米波方案。在中心站采用强度调制将射频信号调制到光载波上产生一个双边带信号,滤掉中心载波后,利用光交叉复用器把双边带信号的上下边带模分开,将数据速率为2.5Gbit/s的基带信号调制到下边带模后,再与未调信号耦合后产生光毫米波,然后通过单模光纤传输至基站,在基站经过光电转换后产生电毫米波信号。从理论上对该毫米波的色散特性进行了分析,发现毫米波的接收功率不会周期的衰减。同时通过实验研究表明,下行链路信号通过光纤能传输50km而不需要色散补偿,功率代价小于1dBm。因此,该方法产生的光毫米波能有效克服光纤色散引起的信号时延而导致的基带信号退化,适合于远距离传输。     

The influence of fiber dispersion on the code form of the optical mm-wave signal generated by single sideband intensity-modulation

We have theoretically investigated the transmission performance of the optical mm-wave generation by using an external modulator based on single sideband (SSB) intensity modulation. Though the SSB millimeter (mm)-wave can immune the fading effect, the baseband signals with a high bit rate are degraded greatly after transmission along fiber. The main reason is that the fiber dispersion causes the time shift of the code edges; therefore the maximum transmission distance of the baseband signals is limited. The experimental and simulation results agree well with our theoretical analysis. We also propose a novel scheme to extend the transmission distance. In this novel scheme, the data signals are modulated only onto one of the two optical carriers; hence the shift of the code edges in the down-converted signals after transmission is eliminated.     

Simultaneous modulation and transmission of 10-Gb/s baseband and 60-GHz microwave signals in a radio-over-fiber system

A novel radio-over-fiber (ROF) scheme simultaneously to modulate and transmit 10-Gb/s baseband and 60-GHz microwave signals on a single wavelength using single-sideband (SSB) modulation technique is proposed and verified by simulation. The scheme is based on a Dual-Parallel Mach-Zehnder Modulator (DPMZM). The scheme can carry the microwave signals on either the upper sideband (USB) or the lower sideband (LSB) only and the baseband signals on the other sideband. The optical 60-GHz millimeter wave (mm-wave) carrier is generated by means of subcarrier-multiplexing (SCM) technique to carry 155-Mb/s baseband signals while 10-Gb/s baseband signals are imposed on the original optical carrier via SSB modulation. The signals with dual services are successfully transmitted over 50-km single-mode fiber.     

Transmission performance of the optical mm-wave generated by double-sideband intensity-modulation

We have theoretically investigated the transmission of the optical mm-wave generated by the double-sideband (DSB) intensity-modulation. According to our analysis and simulation, the data signals, carried by DSB optical mm-wave after transmission along fiber, are degraded greatly because of the fading effect and the time shift of the codes caused by the chromatic dispersion in fiber, and these effects limit the transmission distance of the signals. Our theory is confirmed by the experimental results.     

Influence of the modulation index of Mach-Zehnder modulator on RoF link with ASK millimeter-wave signal

In this paper, the influence of the modulation index of LiNbO₃ Mach-Zehnder modulator on the radio over fiber (RoF) link based on single sideband (SSB) optical millimeter (mm)-wave with ASK signal is theoretically and numerically investigated. Our investigation shows that there exists an optimal modulation index to generate the SSB optical mm-wave with a maximal RF photocurrent. Although the fiber dispersion distorts the code form and degrades the performance of the RF signal demodulated from the SSB optical mm-wave after fiber transmission, it does not cause the closure of the eye diagram. However, the influence of the fiber dispersion becomes more obvious as the modulation index increases. For the duplex RoF link with the optical carrier of the uplink recovered from the downlink, a larger modulation index of the downlink causes a worse crosstalk from the downlink to the uplink.     

Generation of optical carrier suppression millimeter-wave signal using one dual-parallel MZM to overcome chromatic dispersion

In this paper, we have proposed a novel approach to generate optical carrier suppression (OCS) mm-wave with signal only carried by one first-order sideband using a dual-parallel MZM in radio-over-fiber (RoF) system, and the transmission performance was also investigated. As the optical mm-wave signal is transmitted along the fiber, there is no time shift of the data symbols resulting from the group velocity dispersion in the fiber because the signal is only modulated on one sideband. The simulation results showed that the eye diagram keeps open and clear even when the optical mm-wave signals are transmitted over 96-km and the power penalty is about 1-dB after fiber transmission distance of 60-km, which is quite consistent with our theoretical analysis. Furthermore, the proposed OCS optical mm-wave generation approach is also used in a full-duplex RoF link based on wavelength reuse at the base station for the uplink due to another pure sideband without carrying data. The bidirectional 2.5-Gbit/s data is successfully transmitted over 40-km standard single mode fiber with less than 0.5-dB power penalty in the simulation. Both the unidirectional RoF downlink and the full-duplex RoF system have good performance.     

The optimization design of tilt-Spectral fiber Bragg grating and its application in SSB modulation based Radio over Fiber system

Based on theoretical analysis and simulation software, the paper researched the performance of transmission after using tilt-Spectral fiber Bragg grating for SSB modulation in Radio over Fiber system. The study concluded that DSB signal can be converted to SSB signal by using tilt-Spectral fiber Bragg grating, and inhibit the carrier power. There are two ideal conditions for a best grating. First, one side of DSB signal will be completely filtered, while the other side remains the same power. Secondly, carrier power equals to sideband power in SSB signal, which means that carrier-to-sideband ratio is 0 dB. As the result, the best tilt-Spectral fiber Bragg grating is designed. Transmitting the SSB signal which is filtered by the best grating in optical fiber not only eliminates the phenomenon that output amplitude change with the transmission distance cyclically, it also enhances the transmission efficiency and receiver sensitivity.     

A full-duplex radio-over-fiber link with 12-tupling mm-wave generation and wavelength reuse for upstream signal

A full-duplex radio-over-fiber (RoF) link with a novel scheme to generate 60 GHz mm-waves from a 5 GHz RF signal source is investigated. In the RoF downlink, the required frequency of the RF oscillator is reduced greatly. Since the optical carrier is not modulated by downstream data, part of it is reused to carry upstream data and the upstream data is transmitted to the central station using optical single-sideband modulation. In this way, a single wavelength is used for both downstream and upstream transmissions. Based on this scheme, a full-duplex RoF link is built and its transmission performance is analyzed. Theoretical analysis and numerical simulation show that the downstream signal cannot only eliminate code form distortion caused by time shift of the code edges, but also reduce the influence of the fading effect as the 60 GHz DSB optical mm-wave signal is transmitted along the fiber, and the upstream signal is immune to both fading effect and time shift of the code edges.     

Transmission performance of the SCM label in optical label switching networks

We have investigated the transmission performance of the label signal in the optical double sideband subcarrier multiplexing (DSB-SCM) label switching link and clarified that the degradation of the label signal results from the fiber chromatic dispersion and the incomplete filtering out of the payload carrier. Our theoretical results show that the DSB-SCM label can immune the fading effect, and the degradation mainly results from the crosstalk from the payload and the time shift of the code edge. The deep suppression of the optical carriers at the receiver can eliminate the crosstalk. The time shift of the code edges leads to the eye closure of the label codes and is independent of the code rate, but it does not degrade the label code with a low bit rate greatly, although it is serious for the label with a high bit rate and ultimately limits the transmission distance of the label. The simulation results validate our analysis very well. As we theoretically predict that the single sideband (SSB)-SCM can eliminate the time shift of the code edges and extend the transmission distance of the label signal.     

Full-duplex radio-over-fiber system based on a modified single-side band modulation

A full-duplex radio-over-fiber system based on a modified single-sideband using external modulator is proposed and demonstrated. At the central station, a CW lightwave is intensity-modulated by a RF signal to generate a DSB signal. After the central carrier and the two first-order sidebands are separated by a FBG, the central carrier is modulated with a baseband data at 2.5 Gbit/s. Then, it is recombined with the un-modulated first-order sidebands to generate optical millimeter-wave by an optical coupler with a certain coupling coefficient and transmitted to the base station over single-mode fiber. The central carrier and one of the first-order sidebands are beaten to generate the mm-wave when they are detected by an optical receiver. Another first sideband is reused as carrier for uplink connection. The dispersion performance of the generated mm-wave is theoretically analyzed; one can see that the effect of dispersion and requirement of the optical power are reduced. The PIN-PD can avoid working in a high-DC saturation range which may distort the RF components and depress the responsibility of the detector. The stimulant results show that the system can reduce the effect of dispersion effectively, and immune the fading effect and the walking-off signals. It is suitable for a long distance transmission.     

Assessment of Fiber Chromatic Dispersion Based on Elimination of Second-Order Harmonics in Optical OFDM Single Sideband Modulation Using Mach Zehnder Modulator

This work addresses the analytical and numerical investigations of the transmission performance of an optical Single Sideband (SSB) modulation technique generated by a Mach Zehnder Modulator (MZM) with a 90° and 120° hybrid coupler. It takes into account the problem of chromatic dispersion in single mode fibers in Passive Optical Networks (PON), which severely degrades the performance of the system. Considering the transmission length of the fiber, the SSB modulation generated by maintaining a phase shift of π/2 between the two electrodes of the MZM provides better receiver sensitivity. However, the power of higher-order harmonics generated due to the nonlinearity of the MZM is directly proportional to the modulation index, making the SSB look like a quasi-double sideband (DSB) and causing power fading due to chromatic dispersion. To eliminate one of the second-order harmonics, the SSB signal based on an MZM with a 120° hybrid coupler is simulated. An analytical model of conventional SSB using 90° and 120° hybrid couplers is established. The latter suppresses unwanted (upper/lower) first-order and second-order (lower/upper) sidebands. For the analysis, a varying quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) signal with a data rate of 5 Gb/s is upconverted using both of the SSB techniques and is transmitted over a distance of 75 km in Single Mode Fiber (SMF). The simulation results show that the SSB with 120° hybrid coupler proves to be more immune to chromatic dispersion as compared to the conventional SSB technique. This is in tandem with the theoretical analysis presented in the article.     

Novel 60 GHz RoF system with optical single sideband mm-wave signal generation and wavelength reuse for uplink connection

In order to improve RF frequency to achieve higher bandwidth and larger capacity, we propose a novel scheme to generate optical single sideband (SSB) millimeter-wave, in which frequency doubling of local radio frequency (RF) is obtained by using one integrated Mach–Zehnder modulator (MZM), and we theoretically investigate the generating principle of SSB. The optical SSB modulation scheme is employed to generate 60 GHz optical mm-wave and the 2.5 Gb/s baseband signal is simultaneously up-converted at the central station (CS) for downlink transmission, and the optical carrier is reused for uplink connection at the base station (BS). The full-duplex 2.5 Gb/s data are successfully transmitted over 40 km standard single-mode fiber (SMF-28) for both uplink connection and downlink connection with less than 2-dB power penalty. Results show the novel 60 GHz RoF system with optical SSB mm-wave signal generation using optical frequency doubling is feasible and we can obtain simple cost-efficient configuration and good performance over long-distance transmission.     

Comparative analysis of long-haul system based on SSB modulation utilising dual parallel Mach–Zehnder modulators

In this paper, we have proposed a long-haul optical transmission system, based on a single sideband (SSB) modulation scheme. Analytical and simulation models have been developed, optimised and demonstrated for the proposed SSB system configurations. The SSB modulation scheme was proposed to overcome dispersion in the fibre. We have shown that the related link losses can be minimized by increasing the quality of the optical signal at the modulation. We have optimised the radio over fibre configuration scheme based on dual parallel dual drive Mach–Zehnder Modulator, thereby increasing transmission length of the fibre. With the proposed SSB, by suppressing some of the harmonics and cancelling one of the sidebands, we have halved the RF power fading and interference. The developed analytical (theoretical/mathematical) model agrees very well with the simulation results using two (both) different commercial simulation tools. The optical signal is boosted while minimizing the number of repeaters. We report a SSB configuration, compensation and amplification with individual spans of 150 km, by extending the length of the link up to 3250 km. The proposed system configuration exhibits high performance with less complexity and lower cost.     

DSB optical mm-wave with signal only on optical carrier generated by embedded LiNbO3 Mach-Zehnder modulator

We have investigated the generation of the 40-GHz double-sideband optical millimeter (mm)-wave with signal carried only by its optical carrier via an embedded LiNbO₃ Mach-Zehnder modulator (LN-MZM). Since the optical carrier and its two first-order sidebands are dominant and their powers are well balanced, the first-order harmonic in the photocurrent gets maximal. As the optical mm-wave signal is transmitted along the fiber, there is no code outline distortion because the signal is only modulated on the optical carrier. Although the first-order harmonic shows the periodical fading effect when the optical mm-wave signal is transmitted along the fiber, its degradation on the radio-over-fiber link can be avoided by adjusting the position of the fading nodes via varying the main MZM bias voltage, and the signal still keeps much good eye diagram even after 50-km fiber transmission. The experimental results prove our theory.     

Dispersion induced power fading for radio frequency signals and its application for fast online PMD and CD monitoring

We derive the expressions for the power fading including first-order polarization mode dispersion (PMD), chromatic dispersion, chirp parameter as well as polarization-dependent chromatic dispersion (PCD), which is dependent on the angle of precession of output state of polarization around the PMD vector. From the expression for radio frequency (RF) signals power fading, we get the average power fading for chromatic dispersion, chirp parameter, first-order PMD and PCD for both double sideband (DSB) modulation and single sideband (SSB) modulation. We also demonstrate a fast PMD and chromatic dispersion monitoring technology with reduced polarization-dependent gain. The measured results agree well with theoretical analysis. PACS 42.81.-i; 42.81.Gs; 42.30.Lr     

Outage performance analysis for relay-assisted UWOC systems over GGD weak turbulence with nonzero boresight pointing errors

In this paper, we mainly investigate the outage performance of serial and parallel relay-assisted underwater wireless optical communication (UWOC) systems based on a newly proposed aggregated underwater fading model. In order to overcome the deficiency of the traditional underwater weak turbulence models, that is, they could not accurately fit the measured data in the laboratory, the generalized gamma distribution (GGD) which has been verified by a series of experiments is chosen for the first time to characterize the weak oceanic turbulence. Then, we establish a new receiving signal model which has integrated the implicit path loss plus multipath propagation effect shown by fading free impulse response (FFIR), GGD weak oceanic turbulence, and nonzero boresight pointing errors. Next, we deduce the closed-form expression of the probability density function (PDF) of the hybrid fading considering GGD weak turbulence and nonzero boresight errors based on the new receiving signal model above through double-exponential Taylor expansion and higher transcendental Whittaker function. Finally, the analytical expressions of the outage probabilities for point-to-point (P2P) link, serial and parallel relay-assisted UWOC systems are further derived respectively under the proposed aggregated channel. Numerical simulations are also provided to validate the accuracy of the theoretical formulae derived above, and to show the effects of the key system parameters on the outage performance of relaying UWOC systems.     

Millimetre-wave fibre–wireless transmission systems with reduced effects of fibre chromatic dispersion

This paper describes two techniques for the implementation of millimetre-wave (mm-wave) wireless communication systems incorporating optical fibre distribution networks. Fibre chromatic dispersion can exhibit severe effects on the transportation of mm-wave frequencies over fibre, resulting in greatly reduced post-detection rf powers. Each mm-wave fibre–wireless system demonstrated here incorporates a method for the generation and modulation of an optical mm-wave carrier, which enables the effect of fibre dispersion to be significantly reduced. One set-up is a direct-detection scheme where optical single-sideband (SSB) with carrier modulation is used to overcome fibre dispersion effects. The other system employs a self-heterodyne arrangement in which a dual-frequency optical source generates a low phase-noise mm-wave beat signal. Data transmission is achieved by externally modulating the dual-mode signal and reduced effects of fibre dispersion are observed.