Chatoyant: a computer-aided- design tool for free-space optoelectronic systems.

Area of Science:

• Optoelectronics
• Optical Engineering
• Computational Modeling

Background:

• Free-space optoelectronic architectures are increasingly complex.
• Accurate system-level simulation is crucial for design and performance prediction.
• Modeling mechanical tolerances is essential for real-world applicability.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce Chatoyant, a novel simulation and analysis tool for heterogeneous free-space optoelectronic architectures.
• To demonstrate the tool's capability in modeling both digital and analog signal propagation.
• To validate the predictive power of the simulation for system-level performance.

Main Methods:

• Development of a simulation framework capable of handling diverse optoelectronic devices.
• Integration of mechanical tolerancing analysis at the system level.
• Modeling of electronic and optical signal propagation.

Main Results:

• Successful simulation of heterogeneous free-space optoelectronic architectures.
• Demonstration of Chatoyant's ability to predict the impact of component parameters (e.g., detector geometry) on performance.
• Quantification of the effect of system parameters (e.g., alignment tolerances) on measures like bit-error rate.

Conclusions:

• Chatoyant provides a robust platform for simulating and analyzing complex free-space optoelectronic systems.
• The tool accurately predicts performance degradation due to variations in component geometry and system alignment.
• Chatoyant is valuable for optimizing the design and ensuring the reliability of optoelectronic systems.