Apparatus and method for combining multiple optical beams in a free-space optical communications system
First Claim
1. An apparatus, comprising:
- a plurality of laser beam sources, each to produce a modulated optical beam having data encoded therein via the modulation and having a respective wavelength comprising an input optical signal;
a plurality of input fiber segments, each comprising a multimode fiber optic core and including an output end and an input end operatively coupled to a respective laser beam source to receive the input optical signal produced by the respective laser beam source;
an output fiber segment comprising a multimode fiber optic core having a second diameter and including an input end and an output end; and
a multimode optical beam combiner to operatively couple the output ends of each of the multimode fiber optic cores of the input fiber segments to the input end of the multimode fiber optic core of the output fiber segment, wherein, upon operation, the input optical signals are combined into a mode-scrambled free-space optical signal that is emitted from the output end of the output fiber segment, the mode-scrambled free-space optical signal containing the data encoded in the input optical signals.
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Abstract
An apparatus and method for combining multiple optical beams into mode-scrambled optical signals. In one embodiment, the apparatus includes a plurality of laser beam sources, each to produce a modulated optical beam. A plurality of input fiber segments, each comprising a multimode optical fiber core, are operatively coupled at one end to a respective laser source to receive a respective modulated optical beam. A multimode optical beam combiner is used to operatively couple the output ends of the input fiber segments to the input end of an output fiber segment having a multimode optical fiber core. The modulated optical beams produced by the laser beam sources are combined into a single mode-scrambled optical signal. The apparatus enables multiple optical beams having similar wavelengths to be combined to increase optical signal strength. It also enables multiple optical beams having different wavelengths to be combined to form a wavelength division multiplexed signal.
76 Citations
47 Claims
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1. An apparatus, comprising:
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a plurality of laser beam sources, each to produce a modulated optical beam having data encoded therein via the modulation and having a respective wavelength comprising an input optical signal;
a plurality of input fiber segments, each comprising a multimode fiber optic core and including an output end and an input end operatively coupled to a respective laser beam source to receive the input optical signal produced by the respective laser beam source;
an output fiber segment comprising a multimode fiber optic core having a second diameter and including an input end and an output end; and
a multimode optical beam combiner to operatively couple the output ends of each of the multimode fiber optic cores of the input fiber segments to the input end of the multimode fiber optic core of the output fiber segment, wherein, upon operation, the input optical signals are combined into a mode-scrambled free-space optical signal that is emitted from the output end of the output fiber segment, the mode-scrambled free-space optical signal containing the data encoded in the input optical signals. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. An apparatus, comprising:
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three laser beam sources, each to produce a modulated optical beam having a respective wavelength and having data encoded therein via the modulation;
three input fiber segments, each comprising one of a 50 or a 62.5 micron graded-index (GI) multimode fiber optic core and including an output end and an input end operatively coupled to a respective laser beam source to receive the modulated optical beam produced by the respective laser beam source;
an output fiber segment comprising a 200 micron step-index (SI) multimode fiber optic core and including an output end and an input end operatively coupled the output ends of the input fiber optic segments via respective fusion splices, wherein, upon operation, the modulated optical beams produced by the laser beam sources are combined into a mode-scrambled modulated free-space optical signal output from the output end of the output fiber segment containing the data encoded in modulated optical beams produced by the three laser beam sources. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26)
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27. An apparatus, comprising:
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seven laser beam sources, each to produce a modulated optical beam having a respective wavelength and having data encoded therein via the modulation;
seven input fiber segments, each comprising a nominal 50 or 62.5 micron graded-index (GI) multimode fiber optic core and including an input end operatively coupled to a respective laser beam source to receive the modulated optical beam produced by the respective laser beam source and having a tapered portion at an output end;
an output fiber segment comprising a 200 micron step-index (SI) multimode fiber optic core and including an output end and an input end operatively coupled to the output ends of the input fiber segments via respective fusion splices, wherein, upon operation, the modulated optical beams produced by the laser beam sources are combined into a mode-scrambled free-space optical signal output from the output end of the output fiber segment containing the data encoded in modulated optical beams produced by the seven laser beam sources. - View Dependent Claims (28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33)
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34. A method for producing a mode-scrambled free-source optical signal, comprising:
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encoding data in each of a plurality of optical beams via modulation of respective optical beams to produce a plurality of modulated optical beams;
launching each of the modulated optical beams into an input end of a respective input fiber segment to pass through that input fiber segment, coupling output ends of the respective input fiber segments into an input end of an output fiber segment using a multimode optical beam combiner that is configured such that a signal strength of each modulated optical beam remains substantially the same as that modulated optical beam passes through the multimode optical beam combiner; and
passing the multimode optical beams through the output fiber segment to be emitted out of an end of the output fiber segment, wherein, as the modulated optical beams pass through the input and output fiber segments, they are converted into a mode-scrambled optical signal containing the data encoded in the modulated optical beams, the mode-scrambled optical signal being emitted out of an end of the output fiber segment as a mode-scramble free-space optical signal. - View Dependent Claims (35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47)
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Specification