Tunable opto-electronic oscillator having optical resonator filter operating at selected modulation sideband

US8976822B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• OEwaves, Inc. · US

Inventors

• Lute Maleki · Pasadena, US
• David Seidel · Goleta, US
• Vladimir Ilchenko · Tustin, US
• Danny Eliyahu · Pasadena, US
• Anatoliy Savchenkov · Glendale, US
• Andrey B. Matsko · Pasadena, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Mar 14, 2013
• Grant date: Mar 10, 2015
• Expiry date: Mar 14, 2033

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G02F2203/50
• WIPO field: Optics
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

Opto-electronic oscillator (OEO) devices include an optical resonator filter to block the strong laser light at the laser carrier frequency from entering the optical resonator filter and to select one of the weak modulation sidebands, which is in resonance with the optical resonator filter, to be coupled into the optical resonator filter. The laser light at the laser carrier frequency and other modulation sidebands bypass the optical resonator filter to reach a fast photodetector. The laser light in the selected modulation sideband in the optical resonator filter is then coupled out to mix with the laser light at the laser carrier frequency and other modulation sidebands at the fast photodetector to produce the detector output as the input to the electrical part of the opto-electronic loop to produce the OEO oscillation.