OPTICAL TRANSMISSION OF MICROWAVE SIGNALS USING TWO ULTRA-STABLE LASERS

OPTICAL TRANSMISSION OF MICROWAVE SIGNALS AS HIGH AS 100 GHZ CAN BE ACHIEVED BY MIXING ON A PHOTO-DETECTOR TWO SINGLE FREQUENCY OPTICAL SIGNALS. MONOLITHIC, LASER DIODE-PUMPED SOLID STATE LASER ARE CAPABLE OF PROVIDING THE SINGLE FREQUENCY OPTICAL SIGNAL. THESE LASERS ARE EXTREMELY SMALL, MECHANICALLY STABLE, AND ELECTRICALLY VERY EFFICIENT. TO PRODUCE A VERY STABLE YET FREQUENCY AGILE MICROWAVE SOURCE USING TWO LASERS, WE PROPOSE TO INVESTIGATE A LASER OF EXCELLENT FREQUENCY STABILITY AND TO LOCK TWO OF THESE LASERS TOGETHER AT A PRECISE DIFFERENCE FREQUENCY. IN PHASE I WE WOULD GAIN AN UNDERSTANDING OF THE NOISE SOURCES IN OUR EXISTING SINGLE FREQUENCY LASERS, INVESTIGATE RAPID TUNING OF THESE LASERS, AND THEN CONSTRUCT TWO OF THESE UNITS WHICH CAN BE LOCKED TOGETHER.