High power fiber optic modulator system and method

In a fiber optic communication system having at least one fiber optic modulator, a method of enhancing the performance of the communication system comprising:

• providing an optical source;
• splitting signals from said optical source into first and second optical paths, said first and second optical paths forming a Mach-Zender Modulator (MZM) cavity;
• phase modulating the signals in said first optical path;
• amplifying the phase modulated signal in the first optical path;
• controlling an optical path length of said second optical path;
• combining the amplified signal in said first optical path with the signal in the second optical path;
• and
• detecting the combined signals.

A fiber optic link system for transmitting signals from a source to a destination having a fiber optic modulator, the fiber optic modulator comprising:

• an optical source;
• a first polarization maintaining (PM) coupler for splitting a signal received from said source into two optical paths including a first optical path and a second optical path, said first and second optical paths forming a Mach Zender Modulator (MZM);
• a phase modulator disposed in the first optical path;
• a piezo-electric transducer (PZT) disposed in the second optical path;
• a second PM coupler for recombining said first and second paths;
• an amplifier disposed in the first optical path between the phase modulator and the second PM coupler for amplifying a phase modulated signal in the first optical path;
• and
• a detector for detecting the output of said second coupler.

A fiber optic modulator system, comprising:

• an optical source;
• a first polarization maintaining (PM) coupler for splitting a signal received from the source into a first optical path and a second optical path, the first optical path and the second optical path forming a Mach Zender Modulator (MZM) cavity;
• a first phase modulator disposed in the first optical path;
• a piezo-electric transducer (PZT) and a second phase modulator disposed in the second optical path;
• a second PM coupler for recombining the first and second optical paths;
• and
• a detector for detecting the output from the second PM coupler.

In a fiber optic system having a first optical path and a second optical path, the first and second optical paths forming a Mach-Zender Modulator (MZM) cavity, at least one phase modulator being disposed in the first optical path, the phase modulator having at least one phase modulator having a threshold breakdown level, a method comprising:

• providing an optical signal to an optical coupler, the optical signal having an optical power level greater than the threshold breakdown level of the fiber optic modulator;
• the optical coupler splitting the optical signal into a first optical signal in the first optical path and a second optical signal In the second optical path;
• phase modulating the first optical signal with the fiber optic modulator;
• controlling an optical path length of the second optical path;
• combining the phase modulated first optical signal with the second optical signal;
• and
• detecting the combined signals.

A method for detecting an optical signal, the method comprising:

• providing an optical signal to a first polarization maintaining optical coupler;
• the first polarization maintaining optical coupler splitting the optical signal in a first optical path and a second optical signal in a second optical path, the first optical path and the second optical path forming a Mach Zehnder Modulator;
• phase modulating the first optical signal with a fiber optic modulator;
• controlling an optical path length of the second optical path with piezo-electric transducer disposed in the second optical path;
• combining the phase modulated first optical signal with the second optical signal in a second polarization maintaining optical coupler;
• amplifying the combined signals with an amplifier disposed between the phase modulator and the second polarization maintaining optical coupler;
• and
• detecting the amplified combined signals.