Multipoint joint time and frequency dissemination in delay-stabilized fiber optic links.

Area of Science:

• Physics
• Optical Engineering
• Metrology

Background:

• Accurate dissemination of radio frequency (RF) and time signals is crucial for scientific and technological applications.
• Existing methods for signal dissemination over fiber optics face challenges in maintaining precision and scalability.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a novel actively tapped fiber-optic link system for simultaneous RF and time signal dissemination.
• To develop and validate a calibration algorithm for time dissemination at access nodes.
• To analyze the factors affecting time calibration uncertainty in the proposed system.

Main Methods:

• Implementation of an actively tapped fiber-optic link with electronic stabilization of propagation delay.
• Development of an algorithm to determine propagation delay from the local end to access nodes.
• Experimental validation using spooled fibers and direct measurement comparisons.

Main Results:

• The system allows for the addition of multiple access nodes without degrading signal dissemination quality.
• Time calibration uncertainty at access nodes is primarily influenced by receiver dependence on optical power, not distance.
• Experimental results demonstrate calibration accuracy within 35 picoseconds.

Conclusions:

• The developed fiber-optic system provides a robust and scalable solution for high-accuracy RF and time signal dissemination.
• The proposed calibration algorithm effectively manages propagation delay variations, ensuring reliable time transfer.
• The system's performance is suitable for applications requiring precise timing and frequency synchronization.