A Multichannel DPSK Receiver

Optical communication networks, particularly those that employ wavelength division multiplexing (WDM), are an essential component of many modern communication systems. Because these networks often require large numbers of interferometers to demodulate signals, they can incur significantly increased costs to meet size, weight, and power requirements. These requirements can also limit the scalability of such systems, posing significant challenges to network expansion and upgrades. Current approaches that demodulate WDM channels by using one interferometer per channel experience several problems, including high costs, high power requirements, and a large physical footprint. Moreover, these approaches limit scalability to larger systems, thus hindering growth and cost-effectiveness of the networks. Therefore, there is a significant need for a solution that uses fewer resources, is cost-effective, and can be integrated into existing systems.

Technology Description

The optical receiver utilizes differential phase shift keying (DPSK) and employs at least one interferometer to demodulate multiple wavelength division multiplexed (WDM) channels. This innovative approach enables the distribution of the cost of interferometer(s) across all channels of an optical signal, hence creating the potential for cost-effective, scalable, wideband, WDM DPSK systems. For instance, a single interferometer can efficiently service an 80 channel WDM link, as opposed to using 80 separate interferometers. This approach substantially reduces the size, weight, power requirements, and overall cost of the receiver. The technology's architectural compatibility with existing interferometer technologies allows for the leveraging of previous development and qualification efforts. Consequently, this technology can be quickly integrated into existing optical communications networks, including terrestrial and space-based optical networks. The reduction of size, weight, power requirements, and cost could potentially revolutionize the optical receiver sector.