Title :
Optical low coherence reflectometer using [3/spl times/3] fiber coupler
Author :
Takada, Kazumasa ; Yamada, Hiroaki ; Horiguchi, Masaharu
Author_Institution :
NTT Opto-Electron. Labs., Ibaraki, Japan
Abstract :
This letter reports that a high-sensitivity OLCR incorporating a balanced detection scheme can be constructed using only one [3/spl times/3] fiber coupler, instead of a cascade connection of a few [2/spl times/2] fiber couplers. This is because two ports on the input side of the coupler can be used to perform balanced detection. A shot-noise limited sensitivity of -152 dB could be achieved without paying special attention to reducing reflection at the local oscillator port.<>
Keywords :
optical couplers; optical fibre testing; optical fibres; photodetectors; random noise; reflectometry; sensitivity; 2/spl times/2 fiber couplers; 3/spl times/3 fiber coupler; balanced detection; balanced detection scheme; cascade connection; high-sensitivity; input side; local oscillator port; optical low coherence reflectometer; shot-noise limited sensitivity; Backscatter; Local oscillators; Optical coupling; Optical fiber couplers; Optical fiber polarization; Optical sensors; Optical waveguides; Piezoelectric polarization; Probes; Testing;
Journal_Title :
Photonics Technology Letters, IEEE
