Free-Space Ballistic Laser Propagation of a Pulse Coded Data Stream through Fog

We describe the use of space and polarization gates in a study of free-space optical communication of a coded pulse train as it passes through turbid media. The propagation of coded signals at 10 GHz through adverse environmental conditions is demonstrated. Polarization and space-gating techniques are used to improve the signal-to-noise ratio and to enhance the information fidelity of high-bit-rate transmitted signals, which shows potential improvement for cloud, fog, and smog applications.