Design of optical power delivery network based on power limitation of standard single-mode fiber at a wavelength of 1550 nm

摘要

We investigated the optical power delivery (OPD) limit of standard single-mode fibers (SMFs) at a wavelength of 1550 nm. We demonstrate that the intrinsic limits on OPD of SMFs are the fiber transmission loss and the nonlinear effect of stimulated Raman scattering (SRS). These limits cannot be overcome without choosing a different operation wavelength. We employed a C-band amplified spontaneous emission source pumped by a high-power erbium-doped fiber-optical amplifier as a broadband light source. As a result, the nonlinear effect caused by stimulated Brillouin scattering was successfully suppressed. By using this technique, we succeeded in delivering 3.5 W of optical power over a 5-km-long SMF. In addition, we demonstrated that the SRS becomes the main power-limiting factor when the delivery distance exceeds 5 km. We also used commercially available photovoltaic cells to convert optical power into electric power, and we confirmed a conversion efficiency of 17.4%. Consequently, about 500 mW of electric power can be delivered by using a 5-km-long SMF. We can construct an OPD system that can deliver electric power of the order of several hundreds of milliwatts over a distance of more than 5 km through SMF. Our results will be useful with a view to realizing long-range OPD systems such as an application of sensing network. (C) 2015 Optical Society of America