Photonic Analog-To-Digital Converter Utilizing Wavelength Division Multiplexing and Distributed Optical Phase Modulation

摘要

A new pipeline method and apparatus for photonic analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) utilizing wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) and distributed phase modulation is disclosed. The analog-to-digital conversion is performed within the optical system of the ADC, and thus the optical output is a digital bit patern. The optical output of this system thus facilitates ADC conversion at much higher speeds than available with conventional electronic ADCs. Phase modulators and polarization based optics are used to map an input analog waveform into a binary output.