Signal-to-noise ratio of a semiconductor optical-amplifier-based optical phase shifter

Abstract

We report an experimental characterization of additive noise from a single-stage phase shifter based on slow and fast light propagation in a bulk semiconductor optical amplifier. We examine the influence of redshifted sideband suppression and optical input power on the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the detected signal. We conclude that in spite of the up to a 6 dB reduction in the detected noise, the SNR remains dominated by the decrease in the detected signal power.