General spatial photonic Ising machine based on the interaction matrix eigendecomposition method.

The spatial photonic Ising machine has achieved remarkable advancements in solving combinatorial optimization problems. However, it still remains a huge challenge to flexibly map an arbitrary problem to the Ising model. In this paper, we propose a general spatial photonic Ising machine based on the interaction matrix eigendecomposition method. The arbitrary interaction matrix can be configured in the two-dimensional Fourier transformation based spatial photonic Ising model by using values generated by matrix eigendecomposition. The error in the structural representation of the Hamiltonian decreases substantially with the growing number of eigenvalues utilized to form the Ising machine. In combination with the optimization algorithm, as low as ∼65% of the eigenvalues are required by intensity modulation to guarantee the best probability of optimal solution for a 20-vertex graph Max-cut problem, and this percentage decreases to below ∼20% for near-zero probability. The 4-spin experiments and error analysis demonstrate the Hamiltonian linear mapping and ergodic optimization. Our work provides a viable approach for spatial photonic Ising machines to solve arbitrary combinatorial optimization problems with the help of the multi-dimensional optical property.

Parallel wavelength-division-multiplexed signal transmission and dispersion compensation enabled by soliton microcombs and microrings.

The proliferation of computation-intensive technologies has led to a significant rise in the number of datacenters, posing challenges for high-speed and power-efficient datacenter interconnects (DCIs). Although inter-DCIs based on intensity modulation and direct detection (IM-DD) along with wavelength-division multiplexing technologies exhibit power-efficient and large-capacity properties, the requirement of multiple laser sources leads to high costs and limited scalability, and the chromatic dispersion (CD) restricts the transmission length of optical signals. Here we propose a scalable on-chip parallel IM-DD data transmission system enabled by a single-soliton Kerr microcomb and a reconfigurable microring resonator-based CD compensator. We experimentally demonstrate an aggregate line rate of 1.68 Tbit/s over a 20-km-long SMF. The extrapolated energy consumption for CD compensation of 40-km-SMFs is ~0.3 pJ/bit, which is calculated as being around 6 times less than that of the commercial 400G-ZR coherent transceivers. Our approach holds significant promise for achieving data rates exceeding 10 terabits.

Hyperspectral digital holography realized by using an electro-optical frequency comb via injection locking.

Hyperspectral digital holography (HSDH) is a versatile holographic imaging technique that offers large unambiguous depth range and spectroscopic information. In this Letter, we propose a novel, to the best of our knowledge, HSDH system that is realized by using an electro-optical frequency comb (EOFC) via injection locking. In comparison with conventional dual-comb HSDH, the proposed system only requires one EOFC and few other devices, which not only simplifies the system structure and reduces the cost but also improves the imaging speed. We validated the system using an EOFC with 20 optical frequencies spaced at 18 GHz intervals. In a total measurement time of 0.5 s, we successfully captured images of two targets that were 0.74 mm apart without phase ambiguity and obtained the transmission spectrum of an absorbing gas simultaneously. This work provides valuable insights for HSDH systems relying on an optical frequency comb.

Ultralow noise C + L wideband WDM-IMDD transmission at 18 × 112 Gbps by using hybrid second-order distributed Raman and first-order lumped Raman amplification.

We experimentally investigated and demonstrated an ultralow noise hybrid amplifier that combines second-order distributed Raman amplifier (DRA) and first-order lumped Raman amplifier (LRA) in a cascaded approach. This approach allows for the reutilization of pump light from the LRA as the seed light in the second-order DRA, and simultaneous full-band dispersion compensation is realized by using dispersion compensation fiber in the LRA. This approach also supports broadband gain flattening based on the separated DRA and LRA configuration. The transmission application of the proposed amplifier was investigated using a set of 10 external cavity lasers (ECLs) in the C-band and 8 ECLs in the L-band. Ranging from 1531.12 nm to 1595.49 nm across C + L band, the proposed hybrid amplifier gives a maximum on-off gain of 27.2 dB and an average gain of 23.4 dB, with an extremely low effective noise figure (NF) of lower than -2.9 dB. Intensity modulation direct detection (IMDD) signal transmission is carried out at two different data rates across these 18 wavelengths in the C + L band: (1) 56 Gbps/λ PAM-4 signal; (2) 112 Gbps/λ PAM-4 signal. The results show that the error free transmissions are demonstrated over 101.6 km EX2000 fiber using both signals with 7% HD-FEC and 20% SD-FEC, respectively.

Scanning-free hybrid Rayleigh-Brillouin distributed fiber-optic sensing system.

Hybrid systems based on Brillouin optical time domain analysis (BOTDA) utilizing Rayleigh backscattering light wave as a probe have enabled single-end and long-range distributed sensing for multiple parameters. However, the spatial resolution for dynamic parameter measurement is limited, and the frequency scanning process of BOTDA is time-consuming. To address these challenges, we propose a hybrid system that combines BOTDA and time-gated digital optical frequency domain reflectometry (TGD-OFDR), aiming to enhance the spatial resolution of dynamic measurements without compromising the system's signal-to-noise ratio and eliminate the frequency scanning process of BOTDA. In the experimental setup, we conducted measurements on a 9.52 km single-mode fiber. A sinusoidal vibration with a frequency of 3 kHz was measured with a spatial resolution of 3 m, achieving a noise floor of 0.05 nε/√Hz. Furthermore, temperature measurements with a spatial resolution of 10 m and a Brillouin frequency shift (BFS) measurement accuracy of 0.74 MHz were successfully obtained using the scanning-free single-end BOTDA technique. This hybrid system shows promising potential for various applications in distributed fiber-optic sensing.

Optical printed circuit boards with multimode polymer waveguides and pluggable connectors for high-speed optical interconnects.

We demonstrate the development of optical printed circuit boards (OPCBs) containing multimode polymer waveguides and pluggable optical connectors. The basic optical characteristics of the PCB-embedded waveguides, waveguide connectors, and high-speed performance were comprehensively evaluated. The fabricated OPCB comprises eight electrical layers and one optical layer. Waveguides are terminated at both ends with MT/MPO connectors. The optical channels comprising 10 cm-long waveguides embedded in OPCBs with two connectors show an average insertion loss of 6.42 dB. The resulting coupling loss is 0.77 dB per interface, which is very low and to our knowledge is among the lowest reported to date for waveguides embedded in rigid PCBs. 30 Gbps per channel NRZ data transmission was demonstrated with a measured waveguide bandwidth of 23 GHz × m, which gives a possible data traffic of 720 Gb/s for such 24-channel parallel optical link. Our efforts lay the foundation for the further development of OPCBs with higher performance.

Optical frequency domain reflectometry with broadened frequency sweep range assisted by a dual electro-optic frequency comb.

We propose an optical frequency domain reflectometry (OFDR) with the assistance of a dual electro-optic frequency comb (EOFC), which is intended to improve the system spatial resolution. As the spatial resolution of an OFDR system is inversely proportional to the frequency sweep range, the EOFC acts as a multi-frequency light source for collecting Rayleigh backscattering signals, which are combined to extend the effective frequency sweep range. By utilizing this technique, we have successfully expanded the experimental frequency sweep range to hundreds of gigahertz, achieving a sub-millimeter spatial resolution.

Silicon multi-mode micro-ring modulator for improved robustness to optical nonlinearity.

Due to the resonant nature and silicon's strong optical nonlinearity, the system's performance of silicon micro-ring modulators can be seriously affected by the input optical power. In this Letter, we proposed and experimentally demonstrated a multi-mode silicon micro-ring modulator to mitigate its optical nonlinear effects by operating in the TE1 mode. The TE1 mode features a high nonlinear threshold compared with the TE0 mode because of its larger waveguide loss and larger mode effective area. Under the condition of 10 mW optical input power, the resonance spectrum maintains a good symmetric Lorentz shape. The resonant wavelength shifts less than one resonance linewidth, showing an improved robustness to optical nonlinearity compared with regular silicon micro-ring modulators.

Ultrahigh-resolution and ultra-simple fiber-optic sensor with resonant Sagnac interferometer.

The resonant fiber-optic sensor (RFOS) is well known for its high sensing resolution but usually suffers from high cost and system complexity. In this Letter, we propose an ultra-simple white-light-driven RFOS with a resonant Sagnac interferometer. By superimposing the output of multiple equivalent Sagnac interferometers, the strain signal is amplified during the resonance. A 3 × 3 coupler is employed for demodulation, by which the signal under test can be read out directly without any modulation. With 1 km delay fiber and ultra-simple configuration, a strain resolution of 28f ε/Hz at 5 kHz is demonstrated in the experiment, which is among the highest, to the best of our knowledge, resolution optical fiber strain sensors.

Navigation-grade three-axis resonant fiber-optic gyroscope employing a multiplexed source.

A three-axis gyroscope is a vital component of an inertial measurement unit that can measure the rotation rates in three directions simultaneously. A novel three-axis resonant fiber-optic gyroscope (RFOG) configuration with a multiplexed broadband light source is proposed and demonstrated. The output light from the two vacant ports of the main gyroscope is reused as drive sources for the other two axial gyroscopes, which effectively improve the power utilization of the source. The interference between different axial gyroscopes is effectively avoided by optimizing the lengths of three fiber-optic ring resonators (FRRs) rather than by inserting other optical elements in the multiplexed link. With the optimal lengths, the influence of the input spectrum on the multiplexed RFOG is suppressed and a theoretical temperature dependence of the bias error as low as 1.08 × 10-4 °/h/°C is obtained. Finally, a navigation-grade three-axis RFOG is demonstrated with a fiber coil length of ∼100 m for each FRR.

Broadband source-driven resonant micro-optic gyroscope based on a multi-turn waveguide-type ring resonator.

The resonant micro-optic gyroscope (RMOG) is one of the most promising candidates for chip-scale optoelectronic gyroscopes. A broadband source-driven RMOG based on a multi-turn waveguide-type ring resonator (WRR) has been proposed and demonstrated. The theoretical sensitivity is enhanced with the multi-turn structure, while the parasitic backscattering can be resolved by the use of the broadband source, thus greatly improving the long-term bias stability of the RMOG. We also reduce the relative intensity noise (RIN)-induced error of the broadband source at the gyro output by optimizing the number of loop turns of the WRR, and improve the angle random walk (ARW) by 4.8 dB compared with the case of a single-turn WRR. Finally, a bias stability of 1°/h is obtained with a 5-turn WRR of 4.05 cm diameter, achieving the tactical-grade resolution. To the best of our knowledge this is the best result reported to date for an RMOG of similar size.

Integrated sensing and communication in an optical fibre.

The integration of high-speed optical communication and distributed sensing could bring intelligent functionalities to ubiquitous optical fibre networks, such as urban structure imaging, ocean seismic detection, and safety monitoring of underground embedded pipelines. This work demonstrates a scheme of integrated sensing and communication in an optical fibre (ISAC-OF) using the same wavelength channel for simultaneous data transmission and distributed vibration sensing. The scheme not only extends the intelligent functionality for optical fibre communication system, but also improves its transmission performance. A periodic linear frequency modulation (LFM) light is generated to act as the optical carrier and sensing probe in PAM4 signal transmission and phase-sensitive optical time-domain reflectometry (Φ-OTDR), respectively. After a 24.5 km fibre transmission, the forward PAM4 signal and the carrier-correspondence Rayleigh backscattering signal are detected and demodulated. Experimental results show that the integrated solution achieves better transmission performance (~1.3 dB improvement) and a larger launching power (7 dB enhancement) at a 56 Gbit/s bit rate compared to a conventional PAM4 signal transmission. Meanwhile, a 4 m spatial resolution, 4.32-nε/[Formula: see text] strain resolution, and over 21 kHz frequency response for the vibration sensing are obtained. The proposed solution offers a new path to further explore the potential of existing or future fibre-optic networks by the convergence of data transmission and status sensing. In addition, such a scheme of using shared spectrum in communication and distributed optical fibre sensing may be used to measure non-linear parameters in coherent optical communications, offering possible benefits for data transmission.

Nonlinear Distortion by Stimulated Brillouin Scattering in Kramers-Kronig Receiver Based Optical Transmission.

Nonlinear distortion for single-sideband (SSB) signals will significantly reduce the performance of Kramers-Kronig (KK) receiver-based optical transmission. In this work, we present a proof-of-concept study of stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS)-induced nonlinear distortion for 10 Gbaud and 28 Gbaud SSB QAM16 transmission over 80 km standard single mode fiber (SSMF) based on a KK receiver. Significantly reduced bit error rate (BER) has been experimentally observed due to the SBS and the threshold of SBS at about 7 dBm is detected for such an 80 km SSMF link. With left sideband (LSB) modulation of SSB, together with optical filtering, reduced SBS nonlinear distortion has been achieved with ~2 dB power tolerance improvement. The results reveal an important issue of SBS-induced nonlinear distortion, which would be of great significance for KK receiver-based optical transmission applications.

High-speed performance evaluation of ultra-flexible polymer waveguides supporting meter-scale optical interconnects.

We demonstrate bandwidth measurement and high-speed data transmission of meter-scale connectorized ultra-flexible multimode waveguide links with a maximum length of 180 cm. The pulses propagating through the waveguides broadened linearly with the increase of the length from 20 cm to 240 cm and the estimated mode delay from the pulse broadening was 0.093 ps/cm. The corresponding waveguide bandwidth decreased inversely with the increase of waveguide length, leading to a bandwidth-length product of 42 GHz·m. Degradation in bandwidth due to the introduction of bending or twisting was small when the samples were bent with a bending radius as small as 1 mm for 3 turns or twisted for 4 full turns, respectively. Error-free transmission of 30 Gb/s non-return-to-zero (NRZ) signal was achieved with a record link length up to 140 cm to the best of our knowledge. Our results show that the demonstrated flexible waveguides have both excellent optical and mechanical properties and are ideal for high-speed optical interconnects application especially those have a strict requirement on flexibility.

Ultrahigh extinction ratio silicon micro-ring modulator by MDM resonance for high speed PAM-4 and PAM-8 signaling.

Due to the difficulty of controlling the waveguide loss in the doping region, high-speed silicon micro-ring modulators usually have limited extinction ratio. In this work, we present a mode-division-multiplexing (MDM) resonance-enhanced silicon micro-ring modulator with an ultrahigh extinction ratio. We used a two-mode micro-ring resonator and a mode conversion circular structure to trap the light twice within a single micro-ring resonator. Proof-of-concept high extinction ratio up to 55 dB was obtained. 30 Gb/s PAM-8 and 50 Gb/s PAM-4 signaling with a bit error rate below the hard-decision forward error correction (HD-FEC) threshold were demonstrated with the fabricated modulator, indicating great potential for high-order pulse amplitude modulation (PAM).

Frequency-switched photonic spiking neurons.

We propose an approach to generate neuron-like spikes of vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) by multi-frequency switching. A stable temporal spiking sequence has been realized both by numerical simulations and experiments with a pulse width of sub-nanosecond, which is 8 orders of magnitude faster than ones from biological neurons. Moreover, a controllable spiking coding scheme using multi-frequency switching is designed and a sequence with 20 symbols is generated at the speed of up to 1 Gbps by experiment. Furthermore, we investigate the factors related to time delay of spiking generation, including injection strength and frequency detuning. With proper manipulation of detuning frequency, the spiking generation delay can be controlled upto 60 ns, which is 6 times longer than the delay controlled by intensity. The multi-frequency switching provides another manipulation dimension for spiking generation and will be helpful to exploit the abundant spatial-temporal features of spiking neural network. We believe the proposed VCSEL-neuron, as a single physical device for generating spiking signals with variable time delay, will pave the way for future photonic spiking neural networks.

Performance of a resonant fiber-optic gyroscope based on a broadband source.

A resonant fiber-optic gyroscope (RFOG) based on a broadband source can avoid the fundamental drawback of coherence detection processing while possessing the greater sensitivity afforded by the finesse of the fiber-optic ring resonator. In this paper, the basic operation principle is presented and demonstrated in detail, and various noise sources, as well as the temperature effect encountered in this broadband source-driven RFOG, are studied and analyzed. Then a combined modulation technique is proposed to suppress the residual backscattering noise. To further reduce the effect of temperature transience, an asymmetric fiber ring resonator is designed. In the experiment, a bias stability of 0.01°/h is successfully demonstrated with a 100 m-long fiber ring resonator of 8 cm diameter in a laboratory environment without temperature control.

Reduction of relative intensity noise in a broadband source-driven RFOG using a high-frequency modulation technique.

A broadband source-driven resonant fiber-optic gyroscope (RFOG) can reduce coherence-related noise, thus achieving a better sensitivity with a much simpler configuration than the traditional system with a coherent source. Its detection sensitivity, however, is still limited by the excess relative intensity noise (RIN) of the broadband source. In this paper, the RIN error mechanism in this broadband source-driven RFOG is revealed and countermeasures are presented. We demonstrate that the use of a high-finesse fiber-optic ring resonator and a high-frequency modulation-demodulation technique can reduce the RIN-induced error. It is indicated that the optimal modulation parameters can provide a RIN-induced error reduction of 6.1 dB, allowing the broadband source-driven RFOG to operate near the shot-noise-limited theoretical sensitivity. With the optimal high-frequency modulation-demodulation technique, an angle random walk of 0.0013°/√h is achieved with a 200-m-long fiber-optic ring resonator of 7.6 cm diameter. This is the best result reported to date, to the best of our knowledge, for fiber-optic gyroscopes of this size.

Quasi-distributed fiber-optic acoustic sensor based on a low coherence light source: publisher's note.

This publisher's note contains a correction to Opt. Lett.47, 3780 (2022)10.1364/OL.464020.

Investigation on mode dispersion and lamination stability of multimode polymer waveguides for an optical backplane.

In this paper, two noteworthy issues of mode dispersion and lamination stability of multimode polymer waveguides for optical backplane are investigated. In the case of center launching by 50-µm graded-index (GI) multimode fiber (MMF), mode dispersion of polymer waveguides with different widths is analyzed theoretically and measured in the view of bit error rate (BER) curves. Compared with the waveguide with the width of 40 µm, 1-dB power penalty is observed by the 70-µm-width waveguide due to its larger mode dispersion. On the other hand, waveguide stability after laminating process with high temperature and pressure is measured experimentally. No significant changes in core shape and size are observed. The average insertion loss of 80 channels before and after lamination are 0.137 dB/cm and 0.192 dB/cm, respectively. Error-free transmission at 25 Gb/s is obtained by laminated waveguides. The results imply the feasibility and potential of multimode waveguides for optical backplane.