Localized and stationary dynamic gratings via stimulated Brillouin scattering with phase modulated pumps

A novel technique for the localization of stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) interaction is proposed, analyzed and demonstrated experimentally. The method relies on the phase modulation of two counter-propagating optical waves by a common pseudo-random bit sequence (PRBS), these waves being spectrally detuned by the Brillouin frequency shift. The PRBS symbol duration is much shorter than the acoustic lifetime. The interference between the two modulated waves gives rise to an acoustic grating that is confined to narrow correlation peaks, as short as 1.7 cm. The separation between neighboring peaks, which is governed by the PRBS length, can be made arbitrarily long. The method is demonstrated in the generation and applications of dynamic gratings in polarization maintaining (PM) fibers. Localized and stationary acoustic gratings are induced by two phase modulated pumps that are polarized along one principal axis of the PM fiber, and interrogated by a third, readout wave which is polarized along the orthogonal axis. Using the proposed technique, we demonstrate the variable delay of 1 ns-long readout pulses by as much as 770 ns. Noise due to reflections from residual off-peak gratings and its implications on the potential variable delay of optical communication data are discussed. The method is equally applicable to the modulation of pump and probe waves in SBS over standard fibers.

Brillouin distributed sensing using localized and stationary dynamic gratings

Nikolay Primerov, Luc Thévenaz

In this work, we apply a recent technique for the generation of stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) dynamic gratings that are both localized and stationary to realize high-resolution distributed temperature sensing. The gratings generation method relies on the phase modulation of two pump waves by a common pseudo-random bit sequence (PRBS), with a symbol duration that is much shorter than the acoustic lifetime. This way the acoustic wave can efficiently build up in the medium at discrete locations only, where the phase difference between the two waves does not temporarily vary. The separation between neighboring correlation peaks can be made arbitrarily long. Using the proposed method, we experimentally demonstrate distributed temperature sensing with 5 cm resolution, based on modifications to both the local birefringence and the local Brillouin frequency shift in polarization maintaining fibers. The localization method does not require wideband detection and can generate the grating at any random position along the fiber, with complete flexibility. The phase-coding method is equally applicable to high-resolution SBS distributed sensing over standard fibers.

Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE)2012

Brillouin distributed sensing using localized and stationary dynamic gratings

Nikolay Primerov, Luc Thévenaz

Spie-Int Soc Optical Engineering, Po Box 10, Bellingham, Wa 98227-0010 Usa2012

Variable delay using stationary and localized Brillouin dynamic gratings

Nikolay Primerov, Luc Thévenaz

Reflections from movable, dynamic acoustic gratings in polarization maintaining (PM) fibers are employed in the long variable delay of periodic, isolated pulses. The gratings are introduced by stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) interaction between two counter-propagating pump waves, which are spectrally detuned by the Brillouin frequency shift of the PM fiber and are both polarized along one of its principal axes. The gratings are interrogated by the reflections of read-out signals that are polarized along the orthogonal principal axis. High-rate phase modulation of both pump waves by a pseudo-random binary sequence introduces dynamic gratings that are both localized and stationary, at specific locations in which the modulated pumps are correlated. The separation between adjacent correlation peaks can be made arbitrarily long. Long variable delays are readily obtained by scanning the grating along the fiber, via changing either the length or the rate of the modulation sequence. At the same time, the short length of the gratings, on the order of a cm, accommodates the delay of broadband pulses. The technique is therefore free of the delay-times-bandwidth product limitation that undermines the performance of SBS-based 'slow light' delay: we report the delay 1-ns long pulses by as much as 770 ns. In addition, the combined reflections from two dynamic gratings with a variable separation are used to implement radio-frequency photonic filters of tunable free spectral range. At the current stage, the technique is restricted by noise from residual scattering that takes place outside of the correlation peaks. Hence, it is thus far limited to the processing of repetitive signals, for which the noise may be effectively averaged out.

Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE)2012