r

J
J
CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

ABSTRACT

1. INTRODUCTION 6

2. FEATURES OF LASER COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM 7

3. OPERATION 10

4. ACQUISITION AND TRACKING 11

5. OPTICAL NOISE 12

I 6. SYSTEM CHARACTERISTICS AND DESCRIPTON 14

I 7. LINK PARAMETERS 15

J 8. TRANSMITTER PARAMETERS 18

9. CHANNEL PARAMETERS 19

10. RECEIVER PARAMETERS 19

11. DETECTOR PARAMETERS 21

12. AN EXAMPLE 23

13. APPLICATIONS 24

14. ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES 24

15. CONCLUSIONS
25

16. REFERENCES
26 /

3 DEPT OF TCE, BMSIT

I
J
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I am thankful and express my heart-full gratitude to B.M.S INSTITUTE OF

TECHNOLOGY for providing an opportunity of fulfilling my most cherished desire of

reaching my goals and thus helping me to wish me a bright career.

I wish to acknowledge my gratitude to our respected Principal Dr. S. Venkateswaran for

creating a good opportunity to show the talent of an individual in this institution under his

able guidance.

I express 1TIY heartfelt gratitude to our HOD and my project guide Prof. Ramana Murthy

M.V. for his guidance and constant supervision of my work.! express my heartfelt gratitude

to Prof. Ramana Murthy M.V. and Mrs. M.S Sowmya Shree for their guidance and

constant supervision of my work.

I also thank to our lectures of TELECOMMUNICATION department in clearing my

doubts and helping me to attain the completion of my technical seminar.

Finally not to forget my friends who always inspired me and encouraged me take this lecture

topic as success.

Shahabaz. T

lBY06TE047

4 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT

---

"

J
J
I ABSTRACT

J
I Laser communications offer a viable alternative to RF communications for inter-
'
I satellite links and other applications where high-performance links are necessity. High

I data rate, small antenna size, narrow beam divergence, and a narrow field of view are

characteristics of laser communication that offer a number of potential advantages for

system design.

Free space optical communications is a line-of-sight (LOS) technology that transmits a

modulated beam of visible or infrared light through the atmosphere for broadband

communications. In a manner similar to fiber optical communications, free space optics

uses a light emitting diode (LED) or laser (light amplification by stimulated emission of

radiation) point source for data transmission. However, in free space optics, an energy

beam is collimated and transmitted through space rather than being guided through an

optical cable. These beams of light, operating in the Terahertz portion of the spectrum,

are focused on a receiving lens connected to a high sensitivity receiver through an

optical fiber.

Unlike radio and microwave systems, free space optical communications requires no

spectrum licensing and interference to and from other systems is not a concern. In

addition, the point-to-point laser signal is extremely difficult to intercept, making it

ideal for covert communications. Free space optical communications offer data rates

comparable to fiber optical communications at a fraction of the deployment cost while

extremely narrow laser beam widths provide no limit to the number of free space

optical links that may be installed in a given location.

5 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT

.---

,
I
-I
INTRODUCTION

Lasers have been considered for space communications since their realization in

I 1960. However, it was soon recognized that, although the laser had potential for the

-II transfer of data at extremely high rates, specific advancements were needed in

component performance and systems engineering, particularly for space-qualified

J
I hardware.

I Advances in system architecture, data formatting, and component technology

I over the past three decades have made laser communications in space not only a viable

but also an attractive approach to inter satellite link applications.

The high data rate and large information throughput available with laser

communications are many times greater than in radiofrequency (RF) systems. The small

antenna size requires only a small increase in the weight and volume of host vehicle. In

addition, this feature substantially reduces blockage of fields of view of the most

I desirable areas on satellites. The smaller antennas, with diameters typically less than

I 30cm, create less momentum disturbance to any sensitive satellite sensors. Fewer on

I board consumables are required over the long lifetime because there are fewer

I disturbances to the satellite compared with larger and heavier RF systems. The narrow

I beam divergence of affords interference-free and secure operation.

6 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT

 FEATURES OF LASER COMMUNICATION SYSTEM

Direct or indirect modulation techniques may be employed depending on the type of

laser employed. The source output passes through an optical system into the channel.

The optical system typically includes transfer, beam shaping, and telescope optics. The

receiver beam comes in through the optical system and is passed along to detectors and

signal processing electronics.

There are also terminal control electronics that must control the gimbals and

other steering mechanisms, and servos, to keep the acquisition and tracking system

operating in the designed modes of operation.

10

Aperture 8
diameter

Optical

10 5 106 107 108 109 1010

Data rate
Figure 2. Telescope aperture Vs. data rate for
millimeter waves

7 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT

I
I The extremely high antenna gain made possible by the narrow beams enables

I small telescope apertures to be used. Plots of aperture diameter Vs data rate for

I millimeter and optical waves are shown in Fig 2. A laser communication system

operating at I Gb/s requires an aperture of approximately 30 cm. In contrast, a I Gb/s

I
millimeter wave system requires a significantly larger aperture, 2-2.75m.The laser beam
I width can be made as narrow as the diffraction limit of the optics allows. This is given

I by the beam width equal to 1.22 times the wavelength of the light, divided by the radius

of the output beam aperture. This antenna gain is proportional to the reciprocal of the

beam width squared. The most important point here is that to achieve the potential

diffraction-limited beam width given by the telescope diameter, a single-mode high­

beam-quality laser source is required, together with very high-quality optical

components throughout the transmitting subsystem.

The beam quality cannot be better than the worst element in the optical chain,

so the possible antenna gain will be restricted not only by the laser source itself, but also

by any of the optical elements, including the final mirror or telescope primary. Because

of the requirement for both high efficiency and high beam quality, many lasers that are
I suitable in other applications are unsuitable for long distance free-space

I communication. In order to communicate, adequate power must be received by the

I detector to distinguish signal from noise.

I Laser power, transmitter optical system losses, pointing system imperfections,

transmitter and receiver antenna gains, receiver losses, and receiver tracking losses are

all factors in establishing receiver power. The required optical power is determined by

data rate, detector sensitivity, modulation formats, noise, and detection methods.

8 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT

1
1 Probabilty
-I of

Signal +

detection
I Background background+

I
+ dark current dark current

I Threshold

I
I
I
Ii
II' Measured photocurrent in decision time

I Figure 3. Distribution of detection probability

Vs. photo current in the presence of signal
I
I:
I

When the receiver is detecting signals, it is actually making decisions as to the nature of

the signal (when digital signal are being sent it distinguishes between ones and zeros).

Fig 3. shows the probability of detection vs. measured photocurrent in a decision time.

There are two distributions: one when a signal is present (including the amount of

photocurrent due to background and dark current in the detector), and one when there is

no signal present (including only the non signal current sources). A threshold must be

set that maximizes the success rate and minimizes the error rate. One can see that

different types of errors will occur. Even when there is no signal present, the fluctuation

9 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT

 1

J
I of the non signal sources will periodically cause the threshold to be exceeded. This is

I the error of stating that a signal is present when there is no signal present. The signal

I distribution may also fall on the other side of the threshold, so errors stating that no

signal is present will occur even when a signal is present. For laser communication
I
systems in general, one wants to equalize these two error types. In the acquisition mode,
J however, no attempt is made to equalize these errors since this would increase

acquisition time.

OPERATION

Free space laser communications systems are wireless connections through the

atmosphere. They work similar to fiber optic cable systems except the beam is

transmitted through open space. The carrier used for the transmission of this signal is

generated by either a high power LED or a laser diode. The laser systems operate in the

near infrared region of the spectrum. The laser light across the link is at a wavelength of

between 780 - 920 run. Two parallel beams are used, one for transmission and one for

reception.

Figure 4: MAGNUM 45 High-Speed Laser-Communication System (Source:

LSA Photonics)

10 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT

 j
J ACOUISITION AND TRACKING

J There are three basic steps to laser communication: acquisition, tracking, and

J communications. Of the three, acquisition is generally the most difficult; angular

I tracking is usually the easiest. Communications depends on bandwidth or data rate, but

J is generally easier than acquisition unless very high data rates are required. Acquisition

is the most difficult because laser beams are typically much smaller than the area of

JI
uncertainty. Satellites do not know exactly where they are or where the other platform is

J
located, and since everything moves with some degree of uncertainty, they cannot take

very long to search or the reference is lost. Instability of the Platforms also causes

I
rli
uncertainty in time. In the ideal acquisition method, shown in Figure 4, the beam width

of the source is greater than the angle of uncertainty in the location of receiver. The

J receiver field of includes the location uncertainty of the transmitter. Unfortunately,

J this ideal method requires a significant amount of laser power.

J
r-

J
-

J ,

Beamwidth Angle of
Transmitter uncertainty Receiver

r-

Unceraint,y field of
review
r

r- Figure 5. The ideal acquisition method

11 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT

r

r-
 -II
J It is possible to operate a number of laser types at high peak power and low

I duty cycle to make acquisition easier. This is because a lower pulse rate is needed for

J acquisition than for tracking and communications.

I High peak power pulses more easily overcome the receiver set threshold and

I keep the false alarm rate low. A low duty cycle transmitter gives high peak power, yet

I
requires less average power, and is thus a suitable source for acquisition. As the

uncertainty area becomes less, it becomes more feasible to use a continuous source of
II acquisition, especially if the acquisition time does not have to be short.
Ii
II OPTICAL NOISE

II
II Noise characteristics play an important role in laser communication

II systems. At optical frequencies noise characteristics are significantly different than

J those at radio frequencies. In the RF domain, quantum noise is quite low, while thermal

- II
noise predominates and does not vary with frequency in the microwave region.

However, as the wavelength gets shorter, quantum noise increases linearly, and in the
II laser regime thermal noise drops off very rapidly,becoming insignificant at optical
J wavelengths. Because there is so little energy in a photon at radio frequencies, it takes

I! many problems to equal the thermal noise. The quantum noise is actually the statistical

I fluctuations of the photons, which is the limiting sensitivity at optical frequencies.

I However, in optical receivers employing direct detection and avalanche photodiodes,

I the detection process does not approach the quantum limit performance. For this type of

I optical receiver, the thermal noise due to the preamplifier is usually a significant

contributor to the total noise power.

-I
-I
I
12 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT
 J
J Free space optical communication links, atmospheric turbulence causes

I fluctuations in both the intensity and the phase of the received light signal, impairing

I: link performance_ Atmospheric turbulence can degrade the performance of free-space

optical links, particularly over ranges of the order of 1 km or longer.

-I
In homogeneities, the temperature and pressure of the atmosphere lead to

variations of the refractive index along the transmission path. This index III

homogeneities can deteriorate the quality of the received image and can cause

fluctuations in both the intensity and the phase of the received signal.

II These fluctuations can lead to an increase in the link error probability, limiting

I
the perfonnance of communication systems. Aerosol scattering effects caused by rain,

I
snow and fog can also degrade the performance of free-space systems. The primary

background noise is the sun. The solar spectral radiance extends from the ultra- violet to

II the infrared, with the peak in the visible portion of the spectrum.

J Atmospheric scattered sunlight, sunlit clouds, the planets, the moon, and the
I Earth background have similar radiances; the sun's radiance is much higher and a star

I field's much lower. A star field is an area of the sky that includes a number of stars. If

I one were able to look only at an individual star, one would find brightness similar to

I that of the sun; but a star field as a whole is composed of small point sources of light,

I the stars in the field, against a dark area having no background level.

I. The background is reduced by making both the field of view and the spectral

width as narrow as possible. For direct detection systems, narrow field of view spectral

filters on the order of 20A *(2 nm) are typical. Heterodyne systems will enable further

reduction, but with an increase in terminal complexity. However, some systems can be

signal-quantum-noise limited, rather than background-limited, without having to resort

to heterodyne detection.

13 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT

 I
I

I SYSTEM CHARACTERISTICS AND DESCRIPTION

I
I Here we discuss specific key system characteristics which, which, when

I
quantified, together give a detailed description of a typical communication system.

I Key system characteristics are identified and subsequently quantified for a

J particular application. In the first part of this section we identify the key parameters that

I make up a link table listing. In the second part, we will describe how a link analysis is

used to provide a description of a laser communications cross-link operating at 10 Mb

J
Is. This lQw data rate is only used as an example and. gives a point of reference for RF
I systems of similar performance.
I
Key system characteristics or parameters must be identified and quantified to
I ,
fully describe the system. Critical parameters can be grouped in to five major
J categories: link, transmitter, channel, receiver, and detector parameters. Free-space laser
J communication is a very flexible means to connect end users to a high-band width data

I: network via ground-based terminals on top of buildings or to bring a variety of data

J services to remote locations via satellite terminals in space.

I External influences on the optical link due to atmospheric turbulence and

I vibrations in the transmitter's environment require some method of beam control to

I stabilize the optical link and maintain a high transmission rate. Liquid crystal (LC)

- [I optics can provide a compact and low-power solution to beam control in laser

Ii communications systems.

II
Ii
I' 14 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT
 J

LINK PARAMETERS

J
I The link parameters are the type of laser, wavelength, type of link, and required

J signal criteria. Although virtually every laser type has been considered at one time of

I
another, today the lasers typically used in free space laser communications system are

either semiconductor laser diodes, solid state lasers, or fibre amplifiers/lasers. Laser
;--1 sources are typically described as operating in either single or multiple longitudinal
J modes. In single longitudinal mode operation the laser emits radiation at a single

I frequency, while in multiple longitudinal mode operation multiple frequencies are

I emitted. Single-mode sources are required in coherent detection systems and typically

have spectral widths of the order of to kHz-IOMHz. Multimode sources are employed

I in direct detection systems and typically have spectral widths from 1.5 to 10 nm.

I Semiconductor lasers have been in development for the three decades and have only

I
recently (within last five years) demonstrated the levels of performance needed for

reliable operation as direct sources.

I
J Typically operating in the 800-900 nm range (gallium arsenide/gallium

aluminium arsenide, GaAs/GaAlAs , material system), their inherently high efficiency

1.1 (approaching 50%) and small size made this technology attractive. However key issues
II have been the lifetimes, asymmetric beam shape, and output power. Research into

J integrated phased arrays proved to be more challenging than first anticipated, forcing

J the use of single emitters and output powers in the 100-150mW range. Inherent beam

J combiners employing wavelength-division multiplex or other techniques were

11 employed for those applications requiring greater power.

I
I
II 15 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT
 J Solid state lasers have offered higher power levels and the ability to operate in

J high peak power modes for acquisition. When diode lasers are used to optically pump

J the lasing media graceful degradation and higher overall reliability (compared to lamp

II
.,
pumped systems) is achieved. A variety of materials have been proposed for laser

J
transmitters; however, neodymium doped yttrium aluminium garnet (Nd:Y AG) is the

most widely developed. Operating at 1064nm, these lasers require an external

i modulator, leading to a slight increase in complexity and reliability. The modulator

j must be capable of operating at required pulse rates as well as handling the power levels

J from the laser.

J With the rapid development of terrestrial fibre communications, a wide array of

I components is available for potential application in space. These include detectors,

I lasers, multiplexers, amplifiers, drive electronics, optical preamplifiers, and others.

I Operating at 1500 nm, erbium doped fibre amplifiers (EDFA) have been developed for

J commercial optical fibre communications that offer levels of performance consistent

with many free-space laser communications applications (500mW range). Issues here
J
,
revolved around the space qualification of terrestrial components and the desire to
I achieve as much performance (i.e., laser power) as possible to keep telescope apertures

J small.

I There are three basic link types: acquisition, tracking, and communications. The
I major differences between the link types are reflected in the required signal criteria for

J each. For acquisition, the criteria are typically the acquisition time, false alarm rate,

J probability of detection, and, if a multiple detection scheme is used, how many

! detections m (of the total number possible, n) are required. For the tracking link, the key

I·' ! consideration is the amount of angle error induced by the receiver circuitry.

I,
I
J
16 DEPT OF TeE, HMSIT
 ,
I This angle error is commonly referred to as noise effective length (NEA), and

j depends on the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), the angular sensitivity of the tracking

-'I I
detector, and the characteristics of the tracking control loops. For the communications

link, the key considerations are the required data and bit error rates. Also of prime
J
! importance, once a laser type is selected, is the modulation format used to impress
JI information on the laser carrier.
II
-II
II
,......,. - ,",,'.'
JI

lII ""

II'
II
II
J Figure 6. Photo of 1.55-_m high power diode laser FSO system by Terabeam ..

I
i
I
I
-I!
I:
I'
Ii
II 17 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT
J
J TRANSMITTER PARAMETERS

I The transmission parameters consist of certain key laser characteristics, losses

incurred in the transmit optical path, transmit antenna gain, and transmit pointing loss.

The key laser characteristics include peak and average optical power, pulse rate, and

pulse width. In a pulsed configuration the peak laser power and duty cycles are

specified, while in continues-wave applications the average power is specified. In a

pulsed application the pulse rate and width describe the laser's temporal performance.

In continues-wave applications, such as coherent communication employing frequency

shift keying (FSK) or phase shift keying (PSK), the pulse rate and width describe the

II symbol rate and symbol duration of the data impressed on the laser carrier.

II Transmit optical path loss is made up of optical transmission losses and loss due
II to the wave-front quality of the transmitting optics, degrading the theoretical far-field

II on-axis gain. The wave front error loss is analogous to the surface roughness loss

II .associated with RF antennas. The optical transmit antenna gain is exactly analogous to

J the antenna gain in RF systems, and describes the on-axis gain relative to an isotropic

radiator with the distribution of the transmitted laser radiation defining the transmit

antenna gain.

I The laser sources suitable to the free-space laser communications tend to

I exhibit a Gaussian intensity distribution in the main lobe. The reduction in the far-field

I signal strength due to transmitter mis-pointing is the transmitter pointing loss. For each

link in a laser system, appointing budget must be determined. The pointing budget is
J typically composed of bias (slowly varying) and random (more rapidly varying)

J components. The bias components are the alignment and detector gain mismatch errors;

I the random components are the NEA and residual error due to base motion

I disturbances.

I
I
18 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT
 I
J For a system employing a Gaussian beam, where the pointing loss is

- predominantly a bias, the on-axis transmitted gain-pointing loss product is maximized

J when thel/e2 beam width is set equal to, approximately 2.8 times the pointing error.

Increasing antenna diameter further (decreasing the lie beam width) will degrade

performance. When pointing error is a combination of bias and random terms, a

J somewhat more complex expression must be evaluated. The point to stress here is that
1 once the pointing error is determined, the system beam width must be sized

appropriately.

_I
I

I CHANNEL PARAMETERS

I The channel parameters for an optical inter satellite link (lSI) consist of the

! range and associated loss, background spectral radiance, and spectral irradiance. Since

-J .this article deals with ISLs, losses due to the atmosphere are not considered. These

I losses can be quite large and mitigation of the effects complex. The range loss is simply

I RL = (l/(4pR»2, where R is the separation between the two platforms in meters, and 1 is

I the wavelength. The background level depends on the relative altitudes of the platforms,

I
the time of the year, and the wavelength selected.

I
I RECEIVER PARAMETERS

The receiver parameters are the receiver antenna gain, the receiver optical path

loss, the optical filter bandwidth and the receiver field of view. The receiver antenna

gain is given by GR = (PDRll) 2 where D is the effective receiver diameter diameters in

meters.

19 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT

r'1
-' The receiver optical path loss is simply the optical transmission loss for

J systems employing direct detection techniques. However, for laser systems employing

I coherent optical detection (either homodyne or heterodyne) there is an additional loss

due to wave front error. The preservation of the wave front quality is essential for
j
optical mixing of the received signal and local oscillator fields on the detector surface.
I To first order, the loss expression is the same as that previously defined for the transmit
J wave front error. The optical filter bandwidth specifies the spectral width of the narrow­

J band pass filter employed in optical inter satellite links. Optical filter reduce the amount

J of unwanted background entering the system. The optical width of the filter must be

J compatible with the spectral width of the laser source. In addition to source

II considerations, the minimum width also be determined by the acceptable transmission

level of the filter; typically the transmission of the filter decreases with spectral width.
J
The final receiver parameter to be discussed is the angular field of view

(FOY), in radians, which limits the background power of an extended source incident

on the detector. To maximize background rejection, the FOY should be as small as

possible, since for the typically small angles considered « 1 mrad) the background

power incident on the detector is proportional to FOY. However, the minimum FOY is

limited by optical design constraints and the receiver pointing capability.

II
J
J
J
I
-'
J 20 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT
J
J DETECTOR PARAMETERS

J The detector parameters are the type of detector, gain of the detector (if any),

J quantum efficiency, heterodyne mixing efficiency(for coherent detection only), noise

J due to the detector, noise due to the following preamplifier, and (for track links) angular

J
sensitivity or slope factor of the detector.

J For optical ISLs, based on semiconductor laser diodes or Nd: a YAG laser, the

J detector of choice is a p-type-intrinsic-n-type (PIN) or an avalanche photodiode (APD).

J A PIN photodiode can be operated in the photovoltaic or photoconductive mode, and

has no internal gain mechanism.

I
J An- APD is always operated in the photoconductive mode and has internal gain by

I virtue of the avalanche multiplication process. At shorter wavelengths (SI0-900 nm)

PINs and APDs made of silicon show the best response, but at longer wavelengths
I
(1300-1550 nm) InGaAs and Ge APDs have significantly more excess noise than
J comparable silicon devices. For application requiring gain and operating at Nd: YAG

J wavelengths, silicon APD is typically preferred because of its internal gain. However, if

J gain is not required an InGaAs PIN would be preferred because of the higher quantum

J efficiency. The quantum efficiency, h, of the detector is the efficiency with which the

I detector converts incident photons to electrons. The mean output current for both PINs

J and APDs is proportional to the quantum efficiency.

I By definition, quantum efficiencies are always less than unity. For silicon

J detectors operating at GaAlAs wavelengths, h = 0.S5-0.9, while at the Nd: YAG

wavelength h maybe only 0.4. For InGaAs detectors, operated at InGaAsP and Nd:YAG
-I
wavelengths, h is about O.S.Another detector parameter to consider is the noise due to
J the detector alone. Typically, in detector there is a DC current even in the absence of
I

J
21 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT

r
 "1

signal or background. This DC "dark" current, as it is commonly called, produces a

shot-noise current just as the signal and background currents do.

_I In an APD there are two contributors to the total dark current: an unmultiplied

I current and a multiplied current. The multiplication is provided by the avalanche gain

J mechanism and, as expected, for typical operating gains (>50) the multiplied term is

J dominant. In a PIN photodiode there is only the unmultiplied term. The output of the

J
detector is input to a preamplifier that converts the detector signal current into a voltage

and amplifies it to a workable level for further processing. Being the first element past
J the detector, the noise due to the preamplifier has a significant effect on the system's
J sensitivity. The selection of preamplifier design (transimpedance or high impedance),

I internal transistor design (bipolar or FET), and device material (GaAs or silicon)

I ,
depends on a number of factors. Transimpedance designs have greater dynamic range,

I' but are nominally less sensitive than high-impedance designs.

"J Extremely high bandwidth and large information throughput is available many

JI times greater than RF communication. Modulation of helium-Neon laser (frequency 4.7

J x 1014) results in a channel bandwidth of 4700 GHz, which is enough to carry a million

J simultaneous TV channel.

Small antenna size requires only a small increase in weight and volume of the

Ii satellite. This reduces blockage of fields of view of most desirable areas on satellites.

I Laser satellite communication equipment can provide advantages of 3: 1 in mass and 2: I

J
in power relative to microwave systems narrow beam divergence affords interference

free and secure operation. The existence of laser beams cannot be detected with
J spectrum analyzers.

J
I
I
I 22 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT

r
 J
II
II
AN EXAMPLE

J
Here we give a simple example of hoe the parameters just described are used in
I link analysis to design a laser communications system capable supporting a full duplex

J 10 Mb/s geosynchronous orbit crosslink. The detailed link analysis is not covered in

-I this article but employs the entire element described above. To size the system,

J however, a link analysis for the communications function was performed.

_I The source peak power requirement, 3 dB of the system margIn, was

I, determined to be 0.6 W. A semiconductor laser diode beam combiner is assumed for the

I! transmitter source employing four lasers at 150 mW each. A 5 in aperture was

I determined to produce a beam width compatible with the fine-track pointing budget of

4.0 rnrad. The pointing budget was determined by assuming a tracking system
I
employing both fine-steering mirrors and a gimballed telescope. The transmit and
II receive optics efficiencies are representatives of nominal values achievable totally in

II similar systems. Silicon bipolar transistors may come from a more mature technology,

II but GaAs FETs have a higher bandwidth capability and are inherently radiation

-II resistant.

II The peak received signal power was determined to be l.64 nW from the

I assumed parameter values given. The diode laser source is modulated directly in a

I Manchester modulation format by changing the drive current to the diodes. The link

I employs a rate 1>, constraint length 7 convolutional code with Viterbi decoding and

I hard decisions. This permits the link to operate at a higher channel symbol error rate

but still produce a decoded bit error rate of . the code employed yields
II
(0.0 14), 10-6
approximately 2 dB of coding gain for direct detection laser communications link. A

quadrant APD was selected as the detector because of its compactness, high reliability,

23 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT

 J
I.,
-' and high sensitivity (compared to a PIN photodiode). The desired communications

J\ signal was obtained by summing the four quadrants. It is assumed that 0.6W of laser

J power is adequate to support the acquisition and track functions. This example IS

representative of a typical laser communications system for satellite applications.

1
,--1 APPLICATIONS

I Depending on the climatic zone where the free space laser communications

J systems are used, they can span distances up to 15 km at low bit rates or provide bit

J rates up to 622 Mbps at shorter distances. The systems are protocol transparent allowing

transmission of digital computer data (LAN interconnect), video, voice over IP,
I
multiplexed data, or ATM. They are suitable for temporary connectivity needs such as
1
at conventions, sporting events, corporate and university campuses, disaster scenes or
1 military operations.

1
J
ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES
I
I
Free space laser communications links eliminate the need for securing right of
J ways, and buried cable installations. As the equipments operate within the near infrared

J spectrum, they are not subject to government licensing and no spectrum fees have to be

JI paid (according to Art. 7 in [3] requires only the use of the frequency spectrum below

I 3'000 GHz a licence). Additionally, since no radio interference studies are necessary,

the systems are quickly deployable. The narrow laser beam width precludes interference
1
J
with other communication systems of this type. Free space laser communications

systems provide only interconnection between points that have direct line-of-sight.
1 They can transmit through glass, however, for each glass surface the light intensity is

1 reduced, due to a mixture of absorption and refraction, thus reducing the operational

I
I 24 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT
 JI
, II distance of a system. Occasionally, short interruptions or unavailability events lasting

JI from some hours up to a few days can occur.

j
I CONCLUSION

JI The system and component technology necessary for successful inter­

JI satellite laser communication link exist today. The growing requirements for efficient

JI
and secure communications have led to increased interest in the operational deployment

JI
of laser cross links for commercial and military satellite systems in both low earth and

geosynchronous orbits. With the dramatic increase in the data handling requirement for

JI satellite communication services, laser inter satellite links offer an attractive alternative

II to RF with virtually unlimited growth potential and an unregulated spectrum. The

J demonstration programs underway in the United States, Europe, and Japan will show

JI the way for future large-scale applications of laser communications to satellite cross­

J links.

J
rl
J
J
J
J

I
I
I 25 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT

r
,

J
, Ii REFERENCES

1. IEEE communications Magazine. August 2000, free space laser communications:

J Laser cross-link systems and technology by: David L. Begley, Ball Aerospace &
technologies corporation.

,,-'I 2. Chaotic Free-Space Laser Communication over a Turbulent Channel By: N. F.

J Rulkov, 1 M. A. Vorontsov, and L. Illing institute for Nonlinear Science, University of

Ii! California, San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093 Army Research Laboratory, Adelphi,
Maryland 20783.

JI 3. Free Space Optics or Laser Communication through the Air BY: Dennis Killinger

/-'1 Optics & Photonics News _ October 2002.

JI 4. High data-rate laser transmitters for free-space laser Communications. BY: A.

I
Biswas, H. Hemmati and J. R. Lesh Optical Communications Group Jet Propulsion

Laboratory, California Institute of Technology.

J
I
J
J
J
J
I
J
I
J
J
,I
I

J 26 DEPT OF TeE, BMSIT