Single chip two-polarization quadrature synthesizer, analyser and optical communications system using the same

A monolithically integrated optical analyzer for receiving a transmitted optical beam, comprising:

• an optical pulse shaper receiving an incoming local oscillator beam, the shaper outputting an initial shaped beam being split by a splitter into a first and a second received beams, the optical pulse shaper serving as an optical sampler;
• the first received beam mixing with a first portion of the transmitted optical beam in a first 90° Optical Hybrid, both the first received beam and the first portion of the transmitted optical beam having a first polarization state;
• the second received beam mixing with a second portion of the transmitted optical beam in a second 90° Optical Hybrid, both the second received beam and the second portion of the transmitted optical beam having a second polarization state being orthogonal to the first polarization state;
• the first and the second 90° Optical Hybrids each outputting four hybrid output beams being detected by sets of four balanced detectors, outputting a series of electrical signals being used to recover transmitted data;
• wherein the pulse shaper, the first and the second 90° Optical Hybrid are formed as a part of a single planar chip wherein the first received beam being reflected from a first and a second mirror prior to entering the first 90° Optical Hybrid, and the second received beam being reflected from a third and a fourth mirror prior to entering the second 90° Optical Hybrid, the first and the third mirrors located on the back output surface of the planar chip, and the second and the fourth mirrors located on the front surface of the planar chip, and wherein the beams reflection providing compactness necessary to form the analyzer on a single chip.

An optical communication system for data transmission, comprising:

• a synthesizer transmitting an encoded optical beam to a receiver, the synthesizer comprising a first optical pulse shaper receiving the light beam, the first optical shaper outputting a shaped beam being split by a splitter into a first and a second transmitting beams, the optical shaper improving a transmitting beam waveform quality by switching the synthesizer output on and off;
• the first and the second transmitting beams entering a first M-PSK modulator and a second M-PSK modulator producing a first and a second modulated output beams;
• a first and a second polarization controllers receiving the first and the second output modulated beams, respectively, and creating a third and a fourth beams having polarization state orthogonal to each other;
• a combiner that combines the third and the fourth output beams forming a final output beam transmitted to the receiver, wherein the pulse shaper is turning the synthesizer off during a data drive signals transitions, and wherein the pulse shaper, the first and the second M-PSK modulators, the first and the second polarization controllers and the combiner are formed as a part of a single planar synthesizer chip.