Serrodyne frequency translation of continuous optical signals using ultrawide-band electrical sawtooth waveforms

Abstract

Serrodyne frequency translation of continuous optical signals by /spl plusmn/1.28 GHz is reported, significantly exceeding the highest previously published serrodyne shifts. To achieve these shifts, an ultrawide-band high-power electrical sawtooth created by spectral modulation of dispersed optical pulses was used. Its amplification involved a novel predistortion technique to compensate for the gain and phase ripple in the amplifier bandwidth.