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Optics Express

Upconversion detection of 1.25 Gb/s mid-infrared telecommunications using a silicon avalanche photodiode

Alan C. Gray, Sam A. Berry, Lewis G. Carpenter, James C. Gates, Corin B. E. Gawith, Peter G. R. Smith

Published Oct 5, 2020• 9 citations

Abstract

With an ever-increasing interest in secure and reliable free-space optical communication, upconversion detectors enabled through nonlinear optical processes are an attractive route to transmitting data as a mid-infrared signal. This spectral region is known to have a higher transmissivity through the atmosphere. In this work, we present an upconversion scheme for detection in the silicon absorption band using magnesium-oxide doped periodically poled lithium niobate to generate 21 mW of a 3.4 µm signal from commercial laser sources using a difference frequency generation process. Following a further nonlinear frequency conversion, via sum-frequency generation, the resulting signal at 809 nm is detected. We achieve >50 µW of signal and bit error rates of 10−7 from a single-pass nonlinear conversion for both the transmitter and receiver systems without the need for additional optical amplifiers at the receiving end. The error rates due to potentially reduced laser powers at the receiver end are investigated and laser noise transfer through our system is discussed.

DOI: 10.1364/oe.404855

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With an ever-increasing interest in secure and reliable free-space optical communication, upconversion detectors enabled through nonlinear optical processes are an attractive route to transmitting data as a mid-infrared signal. This spectral region is known to have a higher transmissivity through the atmosphere. In this work, we present an upconversion scheme for detection in the silicon absorption band using magnesium-oxide doped periodically poled lithium niobate to generate 21 mW of a 3.4 µm signal from commercial laser sources using a difference frequency generation process. Following a further nonlinear frequency conversion, via sum-frequency generation, the resulting signal at 809 nm is detected. We achieve >50 µW of signal and bit error rates of 10−7 from a single-pass nonlinear conversion for both the transmitter and receiver systems without the need for additional optical amplifiers at the receiving end. The error rates due to potentially reduced laser powers at the receiver end are investigated and laser noise transfer through our system is discussed.

We introduce a simple approach for a tunable upconversion detector. This scheme is relevant for both single photon detection or anywhere where low light levels at telecom wavelengths need to be detected with a high degree of temporal resolution or where high count rates are desired. A system combining a periodically poled lithium niobate waveguide for the nonlinear wavelength conversion and a low jitter silicon avalanche photodiode is used in conjunction with a tunable pump source. We report more than a tenfold increase in the detectable bandwidth using this tuning scheme.

We propose a method of single photon detection of infrared (IR) photons at potentially higher efficiencies and lower noise than allowed by traditional IR band avalanche photodiodes (APDs). By up-converting the photon from the IR, e.g. 1550 nm, to a visible wavelength in a nonlinear crystal, we can utilize the much higher efficiency of silicon APDs at these wavelengths. We have used a periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN) crystal and a pulsed 1064 nm Nd:YAG laser to perform the up-conversion to a 631 nm photon. We observed conversion efficiencies as high as ∼ 80%, and demonstrated scaling down to the single photon level while maintaining a background of 3 ×s; 10−4 dark counts per count. We also propose a 2-crystal extension of this scheme, whereby orthogonal polarizations may be up-converted coherently, thus enabling complete quantum state transduction of arbitrary states.

We propose a method of single photon detection of infrared (IR) photons at potentially higher efficiencies and lower noise than allowed by traditional IR band avalanche photodiodes (APDs). By up-converting the photon from the IR, e.g. 1550 nm, to a visible wavelength in a nonlinear crystal, we can utilize the much higher efficiency of silicon APDs at these wavelengths. We have used a periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN) crystal and a pulsed 1064 nm Nd:YAG laser to perform the up-conversion to a 631 nm photon. We observed conversion efficiencies as high as ∼ 80%, and demonstrated scaling down to the single photon level while maintaining a background of 3 ×s; 10−4 dark counts per count. We also propose a 2-crystal extension of this scheme, whereby orthogonal polarizations may be up-converted coherently, thus enabling complete quantum state transduction of arbitrary states.