Microwave photonic signal processing

Abstract

Photonic signal processing offers the advantages of large time-bandwidth capabilities to overcome inherent electronic limitations. In-fibre signal processors are inherently compatible with fibre optic microwave systems that can integrate with wireless antennas, and can provide connectivity with in-built signal conditioning and electromagnetic interference immunity. Recent methods in wideband and adaptive signal processing, which address the challenge of realising programmable microwave photonic phase shifters and true-time delay elements for phased array beamforming; ultra-wideband Hilbert transformers; single passband, widely tunable, and switchable microwave photonic filters; and ultra-wideband microwave photonic mixers, are described. In addition, a new microwave photonic mixer structure is presented, which is based on using the inherent frequency selectivity of the stimulated Brillouin scattering loss spectrum to suppress the carrier of a dual-phase modulated optical signal. Results for the new microwave photonic mixer demonstrate an extremely wide bandwidth operation of 0.2 to 20 GHz and a large conversion efficiency improvement compared to the conventional microwave photonic mixer.

Generating UWB and Microwave Waveforms Using Silicon Photonics

“…Indeed, many filter structures have been proposed, including those with notch responses, tailored responses involving complex tap coefficients, dispersive filters or those with specific phase profiles, and single or multiple passband responses. Excellent review articles on MPFs and microwave photonic signal processing can be found in [9]- [12]. For completeness, we provide some of their salient features.…”

“…It should be noted that many of the MPF structures described in the review articles [9]- [12] can be employed for waveform generation; we have presented only results in which the filters were used explicitly for such a purpose. We have also described briefly the implementation in SiP of a number of critical building to realize MPFs or spectral shapers.…”

All-Optical Continuously Tunable Flat-Passband Microwave Photonic Notch Filter

“…Microwave photonic signal processing has attracted significant interest in diverse areas including communications, radars, sensors, instrumentations and so on due to the prospect of realizing extremely high multigigahertz sampling frequencies and overcoming inherent electronic bottlenecks for processing wide bandwidth signals [1]. It also has the supplementary advantages of reconfigurability and immunity to electromagnetic interference.…”

Programmable RF photonic phase shifters based on FD-OP for optically controlled beamforming

“…Compared with the existing electronic methods, which have the inherent limitations in terms of bandwidth and phase-shifter range, the photonic phase shifter has the advantages inherent to photonics such as wide bandwidth, low loss, high frequency, light weight, immunity to the electromagnetic interference, and also providing features such as large phase-shifter range and reconfigurability [1][2][3].…”