Open AccessFundamental limitations of spectrally-sliced optically enabled data converters arising from MLL timing jitter
Author(s) -
Andrea Zazzi,
Juliana Müller,
Sergiy Gudyriev,
Pablo Marin-Palomo,
Dengyang Fang,
J. Christoph Scheytt,
C. Koos,
Jeremy Witzens
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
optics express
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.394
H-Index - 271
ISSN - 1094-4087
DOI - 10.1364/oe.382832
Subject(s) - jitter , phase noise , optics , noise (video) , converters , pulse shaping , computer science , electronic engineering , physics , laser , power (physics) , telecommunications , engineering , quantum mechanics , artificial intelligence , image (mathematics)
The effect of phase noise introduced by optical sources in spectrally-sliced optically enabled DACs and ADCs is modeled and analyzed in detail. In both data converter architectures, a mode-locked laser is assumed to provide an optical comb whose lines are used to either synthesize or analyze individual spectral slices. While the optical phase noise of the central MLL line as well as of other optical carriers used in the analyzed system architectures have a minor impact on the system performance, the RF phase noise of the MLL fundamentally limits it. In particular, the corresponding jitter of the MLL pulse train is transferred almost one-to-one to the system-level timing jitter of the data converters. While MLL phase noise can in principle be tracked and removed by electronic signal processing, this results in electric oscillator phase noise replacing the MLL jitter and is not conducive in systems leveraging the ultra-low jitter of low-noise mode-locked lasers. Precise analytical models are derived and validated by detailed numerical simulations.