Performance Analysis of PPM-SNSPD System for Deep Space Optical Communications

The optical communication system using pulse position modulation (PPM) and superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors (SNSPDs) has attracted considerable attention for deep space applications as it enables high speed data transmission at extremely low average signal power. The deadtime of SNSPD is a critical factor in such systems because it primarily affects the signal detection efficiency. This becomes even more crucial in high-speed systems, where the deadtime can span several symbol periods. We employ the Markov chain model to characterize the high-speed PPM-SNSPD system and investigate its behavior. Analytical expressions for symbol transition probabilities are derived to characterize system-level metrics, including the symbol error rate and achievable code rate. Analysis shows that deadtime introduces memory to the PPM-SNSPD channel, resulting in channel asymmetry. Through experimental verification and simulations, we confirmed the effectiveness of our analysis. In addition, a set of new log-likelihood ratio (LLR) expressions is proposed based on the new model. Compared with the commonly used Poisson LLR expression, our proposed LLR expressions show more than 0.5 dB performance gain.