Proposal for photonic quantization with differential encoding using a phase modulator and delay-line interferometers.

Area of Science:

• Photonics
• Optical Engineering
• Signal Processing

Background:

• Analog-to-digital conversion (ADC) is crucial for interfacing analog signals with digital systems.
• Existing ADC technologies face limitations in speed and power consumption.
• Optical domain solutions offer potential for high-speed and low-power signal processing.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose and demonstrate a novel photonic quantization approach for analog-to-digital conversion.
• To implement differential encoding using phase modulation and delay-line interferometers (DLIs).
• To achieve high-resolution quantization of optical signals.

Main Methods:

• A photonic ADC system was designed utilizing a phase modulator and an array of DLIs.
• Differential encoding was employed for quantization.
• The system was experimentally validated using a 10 GHz sinusoidal signal.

Main Results:

• The proposed photonic ADC system successfully achieved quantization.
• A proof-of-concept experiment demonstrated 4-bit quantization.
• The system effectively processed a 10 GHz sinusoidal signal.

Conclusions:

• The developed photonic quantization approach is a viable method for optical analog-to-digital conversion.
• The use of phase modulators and DLIs with differential encoding enables efficient quantization.
• This technology holds promise for future high-speed optical signal processing applications.