A small formfactor, fiber-amplified optical system for precision timing and navigation applications

Tyler Ritz; Patrick Kelly

doi:10.1117/12.2677856

5 October 2023 A small formfactor, fiber-amplified optical system for precision timing and navigation applications

Tyler Ritz, Patrick Kelly

Proceedings Volume 12689, CubeSats, SmallSats, and Hosted Payloads for Remote Sensing VII; 1268908 (2023) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2677856
Event: SPIE Optical Engineering + Applications, 2023, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

Small satellites are performing more demanding tasks than ever, from navigation to precision time transfer and high-speed communications. Until now, terrestrial products have been sufficient for all except high-speed communication applications over orbital distances. An experimental system has been made that utilizes technology in high-speed communication systems and applies it to relative navigation systems while greatly reducing cost from complexity. The primary areas of interest for these improvements are in the laser transmitters, fiber amplifiers, precision timing systems, low-jitter optical receivers, and beam steering capabilities. Using shorter, highly doped fiber amplifiers both reduces nonlinearities in amplification and decreases the spooling complexity for small packages. Bi-directionally pumping an erbium-doped fiber amplifier (EDFA) enables increased amplification while imparting less jitter onto the optical signal.1 This layout enables the usage of low power diode lasers and achieves pulse energies greater than 1 mJ. These lasers can emit optical pulse widths of 100 ps or greater, with picosecond level timing knowledge due to the usage of gallium nitride field-effect transistors (GaN FETs). The amplified output beam is steered with a sub-micro radian precision fine steering mirror. Avalanche photodiodes (APDs) with under 60 ps timing jitter are used to detect the optical pulses as they are transmitted and received from over 100 km ranges, with the filtered and amplified outputs passing into an analog demultiplexer. This signal is then sent to either a high-speed analog-to-digital converter or to a time-to-digital converter referenced to a chip scale atomic clock for precision timing.

Conference Presentation

Citation Download Citation

Tyler Ritz and Patrick Kelly "A small formfactor, fiber-amplified optical system for precision timing and navigation applications", Proc. SPIE 12689, CubeSats, SmallSats, and Hosted Payloads for Remote Sensing VII, 1268908 (5 October 2023); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2677856

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