We report on the development, testing, and initial space qualification of a 1.5-μm, high-power (6 W), high wall-plug efficiency (∼15%), pulse-position-modulated (PPM), polarization-maintaining, fiber laser transmitter subsystem for deep-space laser communication links. Programmable high-order PPM modulation up to PPM-128 formats, with discrete pulse slots ranging from 0.5 to 8 ns, satisfies variety of link requirements for deep-space laser communication to Mars, asteroids, and other deep-space relay links, as per the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s space laser communication roadmap. We also present initial space qualification results from thermal-vacuum tests, vibration testing, radiation testing, and an overall reliability assessment.
We report on the development, testing and initial space qualification of a 1.5-μm, high-power (6W), high wall-plug efficiency (~15%), pulse-position-modulated (PPM), polarization-maintaining (PM), fiber laser transmitter subsystem for deep-space laser communication links. Programmable high-order PPM modulation up to PPM-128 formats, with discrete pulse slots ranging from 0.5- to 8-nsec, satisfies variety of link requirements for deep space laser communication to Mars, asteroids, and other deep-space relay links, per NASA's space laser communication roadmap. We also present initial space qualification results from thermal-vacuum tests, vibration testing, radiation testing and overall reliability assessment.
A Yb LMA fiber amplifier based 1030nm laser transmitter capable of operating with high average power and peak power (~500W, 9kW) is presented. The prototype, all-fiber, high TRL level laser transmitter is designed to meet all the single aperture requirements of a multi aperture deep space laser beacon system including operation with Nested pulse position modulation (PPM) format. Nested PPM format consist of an inner modulation PPM- (8,4) with 128nsec slot size and an outer modulation PPM-(2, 2) 65.5usec slot size. Here, nested PPM operation is presented for the first time. In implementing inner modulation strong pre-pulse shaping is required where PPM pattern dependent pulse energy variation (PEV) is minimized. Outer modulation is implemented by directly modulating VBG locked pump lasers for the final two gain. A sophisticated multi-stage, ultra-fast loss of signal (LOS) and backward Raman/lasing monitoring algorithm is implemented for ensuring reliable operation. Mechanical and electrical design of the delivered laser is scalable to multiple apertures.
A 1um fiber laser outputting high energy (<1mJ) pulse-bursts with high peak powers (<15kW) and narrow linewidth (<300MHz) is an attractive pump source for tunable periodically poled crystal (PPx) based OPA’s which are used in gas sensing, imaging and communication applications. Here a turn-key 1064nm PM Yb-doped fiber amplifier capable of generating high pulse burst energies with transform limited linewidth is presented. The ~20W average power capable laser is optimized for high energy (0.5-2mJ) and high peak power (<10kW) operation at low duty cycles (<0.1%). The laser is capable of operating at <10x the saturation energy level of the final stage gain fiber and achieves a high level of pulse-to-pulse peak power uniformity within pulse-burst. Stimulated Brillion Scattering (SBS) limited micro pulse energy up to 40uJ is achieved and SBS dependence on micro pulse width and separation are characterized. High wall plug efficiency (<20%) for the FPGA controlled system is maintained by temporal and spectral ASE suppression and by spreading the necessary pulse pre-shaping losses (~12dB) to three different amplitude modulation points in the amplifier chain.
Fibertek has developed a space qualifiable, highly efficient, high power (<5W), fiber based 1.5um laser optical module (LOM). The transmitter achieves 6W average and <1kW peak power out of a 2m long single mode delivery fiber with 8nsec pulses and <6Ghz linewidth. Stimulated Brillouin Scattering (SBS) is managed by precise linewidth control and by use of LMA gain fiber in the power stage while maintaining the required diffraction limited, and highly polarized (PER<20dB) output. Size and weight of the built LOM are 8”x10”x2.375” and 3 kg, respectively. With improvements in the modulation scheme and component specification, achieved LOM electrical to optical efficiency is over 17.0%. Highly efficient operation is sustained for a wide range of pulse-position modulation (16 to 128-ary PPM) formats with pulse widths varying from 8nsec to 0.5nsec and operation temperature 10-50C. Pressure stress analysis, random vibration analysis and thermal analysis of the designed LOM predicts compliance with NASA GEVS levels for vibration and thermal cycling in a vacuum environment. System will undergo both thermal vacuum and vibration testing to validate the design.
A Yb LMA fiber amplifier based laser transmitter capable of operating with high average power and high
energy (~500W, 1mJ) is presented. The prototype, all-fiber, high TRL level laser transmitter is designed to meet all
the single aperture requirements of an eight aperture deep space laser beacon system. The high speed FPGA
controlled transmitter supports a directly modulated DFB laser and two acousto-optic modulators which are used to
implement an open loop pattern dependent -pulse pre-shaping algorithm. Ultra-fast high power diode drivers are
used for generating outer nested PPM modulation with Binary PPM (67usec, 33mJ pulses) and for implementing
<1usec loss of signal (LOS) protection. Optical performance to be presented will include diffraction limited
(M2~1.2) nested PPM optical outputs with >300W average and 9kW peak power with >70% o-o efficiency for the
final power stage.
Space based laser remote-sensing for Earth observation and planetary atmospheres has traditionally relied on the mature diode-pumped solid-state laser and nonlinear frequency conversion technology. We highlight representative examples, including ongoing space mission programs at Fibertek. Key design issues are highlighted, and the lessons learned from a multi-disciplinary design process addressing the space-qualification requirements. Fiber laser/amplifier system provides an agile optical platform for space based laser applications ‒ space lasercom, space-based Earth (or planetary) remote sensing, and space-based imaging. In particular we discuss ongoing efforts at Fibertek on a space-qualifiable, high-performance 1.5-μm Er-doped fiber laser transmitter for inter-planetary lasercom. Design and performance for space qualification is emphasized. As an example of an agile laser platform, use of above fiber laser/amplifier hardware platform for space based sensing of atmospheric CO2 is also highlighted.
We present a special high spectral resolution lidar (HSRL) by using a novel tunable fiber based transmitter. The transmitter can produce 50μJ pulse energy at 1064nm and >25μJ pulse energy at 532nm with 10 kHz repetition rate, 5ns pulse width, respectively. A key advantage of the transmitter is the frequency-tunability. The laser can be tuned over the Iodine absorption lines from 1111 to 1104. The laser has a ~130MHz linewidth at 1064nm close to the transform limit linewidth ~ 88MHz for a pulse width of 5ns. Even though it was not frequency locked, the laser has very good frequency stability, which is on the order of ~200MHz over minutes. The beam quality M2 is less than 1.5. All the preliminary transmitter parameters meet the basic requirements of a HSRL. The transmitter was implemented in UMBC’s lidar lab that includes a ceiling hatch to enable vertical propagation and viewing of transmitted laser beams into the atmosphere. The atmospheric measurement demonstrates good agreement of the signal to the model Rayleigh decay over the profile range with no significant deviations. Most importantly, these results show that the measurement successfully suppresses the Mie scattering from clouds while recovering the full molecular signal as expected.
We demonstrate highly efficient, 1.5um-fiber-amplifier, optimized for athermal and reliable operation. High efficient operation is sustained for a wide range of pulse-position-modulation (16 to 128-ary PPM) formats with pulse widths varying from 8nsec to 0.5nsec. System achieves 6W average and ~1kW peak power with 8nsec pulses and 3Ghz linewidth. Stimulated Brillion scattering is managed by use of LMA fiber in final stage and precise linewidth control while maintaining the required diffraction limited, and (PER>20dB) polarized output. System maintains performance for ambient temperatures 10-50°C.
A kW-class fiber-amplifier based laser illuminator system at 1030nm is demonstrated. At 125 kHz pulse repetition
rate, 1.9mJ energy per pulse (235W average power) is achieved for 100nsec pulses with >72% optical conversion
efficiency, and at 250kHz repetition, >350W average power is demonstrated, limited by the available pumps. Excellent
agreement is established between the experimental results and dynamic fiber amplifier simulation, for predicting the
pulse shape, spectrum and ASE accumulation throughout the fiber-amplifier chain. High pulse-energy, high power
fiber-amplifier operation requires careful engineering - minimize ASE content throughout the pre-amplifier stages, use
of large mode area gain fiber in the final power stage for effective pulse energy extraction, and pulse pre-shaping to
compensate for the laser gain-saturation induced intra-pulse and pulse-pattern dependent distortion. Such optimization
using commercially available (VLMA) fibers with core size in the 30-40μm range is estimated to lead to >4mJ pulse
energy for 100nsec pulse at 50kHz repetition rate. Such waveform agile high-power, high-energy pulsed fiber laser
illuminators at λ=1030nm satisfies requirements for active-tracking/ranging in high-energy laser (HEL) weapon
systems, and in uplink laser beacon for deep space communication.
KW level fiber based MOPA laser system at 1018-1024nm for uplink deep space communication is developed and
characterized. System achieves 5kW peak power (300W average power) with >75% optical conversion efficiency at
1024nm. Experiments with 9-ary PPM pulse format at 500 kHz are presented. Pattern dependent pulse energy
variation <10% is achieved using pulse pre-shaping algorithm. Lower PRF performance of the system where ASE
accumulation along MOPA chain results in reduction in efficiency is characterized. Excellent agreement is established
between dynamic fiber MOPA simulation tool and experimental results in predicting pulse shapes and ASE
accumulation. Using the simulation tool robust MOPA performance is predicted at 500W, 500 kHz (16-ary PPM ) for
the current system with minor component improvements. Simulation tool is also shown to be well suited for
quantifying statistical performance of open loop pulse shape correction algorithms.
Novel tapered Yb-doped polarization-maintaining (PM) large-mode-area (LMA) fibers were fabricated, with 25/250μm
and 40/400μm core/clad at each end, and used in the last stage of a multi-stage Yb-fiber MOPA. The fiber-MOPA is
controlled by high-speed FPGA for real-time control of the seed laser diode modulation, electro-optic modulator and
acousto-optic modulator. Stable 0.3nsec pulses at 10kHz rate with 0.3mJ pulse energy (1MW peak power) is
demonstrated. At 1nsec pulsewidth, scaling to >0.5mJ pulse energy is demonstrated. Polarization extinction ratio of
17dB is obtained with diffraction limited beam quality and excellent (<3%) power stability. Such compact and robust
pulsed fiber amplifiers enable next generation of airborne and space lidar transmitters.
We report on the development of a fiber-optic pulsed coherent lidar transceiver for wind-velocity and aircraft
wake-vortex hazard detection. The all-fiber 1.5μm transmitter provides up to 560 μJ energy at 25 kHz with 800
ns pulse width (pump limited). Performance simulations indicate wake-vortex hazard signature detection up to
~2.5km range with a receiver sensitivity of ~2 fW (SNR=6), suited for an aircraft landing scenario. Furthermore,
the transceiver is implemented using high-speed FPGA based control and digital-signal-processing, enabling its
use as a flexible pulse-format multi-function in-flight lidar sensor. We present the latest laboratory results and
preliminary testing of this pulsed coherent lidar transceiver, along with the lidar performance simulation of
wake-vortex eddy models.
KW level fiber based MOPA laser system at 1064nm for uplink deep space communication is developed and
characterized. System achieves 11.5 kW peak power (600W average power) at 500 kHz (5% duty cycle) with >70%
optical conversion efficiency. Experiments using 16-ary PPM format are presented where without pre-pulse shaping
>±60% pulse energy variation is observed. Gain dynamics is identified as main source of pulse to pulse energy
fluctuation. Novel, FPGA implementable open loop pulse shaping algorithm is developed and demonstrated. Resulting
pulse energy statistics are reported, where <±7% pulse energy variation is achieved for 90% of pulses.
We demonstrate a multi-channel architecture for nsec pulsed lidar transmitter, scalable to larger channel counts via
wavelength- and time-multiplexing in a multi-stage Yb-fiber amplifier. This technology enables lidar systems for
topographic mapping missions, requiring much greater spatial coverage and range resolution. We demonstrate prototype
hardware, where wavelength channels at 1060nm, 1061nm and 1064nm are multiplexed, and precise 1.3nsec pulse using
LiNbO3 electro-optic(EO) modulators, at a combined repetition rate of 1MHz, with equal time interleaving between the
wavelengths. The multiplexed pulses are amplified to >20W average power, in an optimized three-stage Yb-fiber
amplifier system. We show simple de-multiplexing and frequency-doubling of one of the wavelengths (1064nm). Highspeed
FPGA based control provides for independent and programmable control of the pulse rate, timing trigger,
pulsewidth, and the intra-pulse-pattern for improved detection schemes.
We present results on the design, development and initial testing of a fiber-optic based RF-modulated lidar transmitter
operating at 532nm, for underwater imaging application in littoral waters. The design implementation is based on using
state-of-the-art high-speed FPGAs, thereby producing optical waveforms with arbitrary digital-RF-modulated pulse
patterns with carrier frequencies ≥ 3GHz, with a repetition rate of 0.5-1MHz, and with average powers ≥5W (at 532nm).
Use of RF-modulated bursts above 500MHz, instead of single optical pulse lidar detection, reduces the effect of
volumetric backscatter for underwater imaging application, leading to an improved signal-to-noise-ratio (SNR) and
contrast, for a given range. Initial underwater target detection tests conducted at Patuxent River Naval Air Station, MD,
in a large water-tank facility, validates the advantages of this hybrid-lidar-radar (HLR) approach for improved
underwater imaging, over a wide range of turbidity levels and both white and black targets. The compact, robust and
power-efficient fiber laser architecture lends very well to lidar sensor integration on unmanned-underwater-vehicle
(UUV) platforms. HLR transmitters can also provide similar advantages in active-sensing situations dominated by
continuous backscatter, e.g. underwater communications, imaging through smoke and fire environment, rotor-craft
landing in degraded visual environment, and pointing-tracking of active-EO sensors through fog.
We have developed a fiber laser system capable of producing over 100W of average power. We have achieved
1.5mJ/pulse/fiber resulting in peak powers in excess of 2MW with 0.6ns pulses and near diffraction limited beams. In
another fiber, we have achieved over 0.5mJ/pulse with pulses of 700ps exceeding 500kW of peak power in polarization
maintaining Ytterbium doped fiber. In both cases, wall-plug efficiencies, excluding cooling of the pump diode lasers, in
excess of 15% were also achieved. The system we have developed is based in an all fiber design except for the last high
peak power isolator requiring free space optics. With the advent of such a component, a scalable 1.5MW/arm all fiber
laser system is proven to be possible.
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