A novel analog optical link with high dynamic range

A heterodyne interferometric phase modulated link, a new analog optical link, is described. This link, based on phase modulation using an external modulator, has high linearity and suppresses the impact of laser relative intensity noise. The link increases the spurious-free dynamic range by 21 dB as compared to a conventional externally modulated AM link for 10 mW of received optical power, relative intensity noise of -130 dB/Hz, and a 15-GHz intermediate frequency.<
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