High-power Nd-doped fiber amplifier for coherent intersatellite links

Intersatellite optical communication links require laser beams of at least 1 W of power modulated at gigahertz frequencies. They can be delivered by a master oscillator power amplifier system which consists of a stable single-frequency Nd:YAG laser, a high-speed phase modulator, and an optical amplifier. To allow coherent detection, the polarization state must be stable and controllable at the amplifier output and the phase noise must be kept low. We report here the design and the experimental results of a diode laser-pumped double clad Nd-doped fiber amplifier with polarization control, 30-dB gain, and about 1.3 W of output power.