Long-wave Optical Communications Transceiver

With the increasing demand on battlefield information transfer bandwidth, free space optical (FSO) links are emerging as a necessary alternative and/or addition to existing RF and microwave systems. All platforms, from space to air to ground to the individual soldier, can benefit from the unique aspects of FSO links. In addition to higher bandwidth (in excess of 10 Gb/s) FSO links also bring increased security because they are challenging to intercept and tap for eavesdropping. To date, most implementations exploit mature telecommunications-industry technology and operate at wavelengths around 1.5 microns. With recent advances in longwave-infrared (LWIR, 8–12 µm) source and detector technology, there is an opportunity to extend FSO communications to these longer wavelengths where reduced Rayleigh scattering lowers transmission losses. In this effort, Physical Sciences Inc. (PSI) in partnership with Thor Quantum Electronics (TQE), will advance this field by developing and demonstrating a high bandwidth FSO communications link using novel high bandwidth LWIR quantum cascade lasers (QCLs).