Lecture 11

Optical Sources

Optical Sources
Optical source is considered to be an active component in optical fibre communication system Its fundamental function is to convert electrical energy (in the form of current) into optical energy in an efficient manner which allows high output of the sources to be effectively coupled / launched into the optical fibre Types of Optical Sources
Wide band Continuous Spectra Sources (Incandescent lamps) Incoherent Sources (LEDs) Coherent Sources (LASERs)

Wide band Continuous Spectra Sources are inefficient and not employed now a days
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Major Requirements for an Optical Source

Size & configuration compatible with launching light into Optical Fibre, ideally should be highly directional Must accurately track the electrical input signal in order to min distortion & noise. Ideally it should be linear Should be capable of emitting light in that part of spectrum () where optical losses are less e.g. 0.819 m, 1.3 m, 1.55 m Capable of operating (simple signal modulation) over a wide bandwidth from audio to GHz ranges

Contd...
Must produce / couple sufficient optical power to overcome attenuation in the fibre, additional connector losses still leave sufficient power to drive a detector Should have narrow spectral bandwidth (of the output light) to minimise dispersion in the fibre Capable of maintaining stable optical output which is largely unaffected by changes in temperature Source should be cheaper (cost effective) highly reliable to compete with conventional transmission techniques

LASERs LED Sources

LASER and LEDs are semiconductor devices, built using diodes. They work on the same phenomenon of a diode i.e. P-n junction LEDs produce light by spontaneous emission and are known as in-coherent sources, where the photons move in random directions. LASERs on the other hand produce light by stimulated emission and are called coherent sources, since they emit highly focused and directional beam. Initially in view of higher fibre losses (multimode step index fibre), in order to achieve longer range, LASERs source preferred for links having reasonable bandwidth and several Kms length LEDs being a lower power source & little spatial coherence are not suitable for long distance wide band transmission LEDs emit light with low power levels in the range of micro and milli Watts, LASERs emit light of high power levels near ranges of tens of milli Watts and Watts. LASERs are more temperature sensitive as compared to LEDs and temperatures have to be controlled when operating a LASER. Single mode fibres, coupling of light (incoherent) from LED became difficult, advanced LEDs having more directivity are being developed to allow moderate power level coupling LEDs being more economical, remain major multimode source, extensively used for long haul optical communication
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Basic Concept of LASERs

Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiations Understanding the fundamental concept & device structure, both are essential LASERs are not used as amplifiers due to problems faced to achieve higher gain, while avoiding oscillations from the required energy feedback. In LASER devices, source cavity acts as an optical resonator, provides output of monochromatic(narrow spectral width) & coherent radiations.

Absorption and emission of radiation Interaction of light (energy) with matter takes place in discrete packets of energy or quanta called photons. According to Quantum theory, an atom can exist only in discrete energy states. Absorption and emission of light results into transitions of atom from one discrete energy state to another.

Types of Emission
Spontaneous Emission
Atom returns to the lower energy state in a random manner

Stimulated Emission
When a photon having energy difference E , between the two states interacts with the atom in the upper energy state causing it to return to the lower state with the creation of a second photon. Stimulated emission gives the LASER special properties as an optical source:
Firstly, photon produced by stimulated emission is generally of an identical energy to the one which produced it. Secondly, light associated with the stimulating and the stimulated photon is in phase and has the same polarization, producing coherent radiations.
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Excitation and Population Inversion

Normally for any material, the population of electrons in the lower energy level (E1) is more as compared to the population of electrons in higher energy level (E2). In order to produce stimulated emission, the population of electrons at E2 should be more in number. To achieve this an external energy source(possibly electric current or illuminating light) is used to excite electrons to a higher energy level. This is known as population inversion, when electrons from E1 are excited to E2. Stimulated emission takes place in the presence of population inversion. Each input photon stimulates the emission of several other photons, which in turn stimulate the emission of several others. This increases the intensity of the output signal as compared to the input signal. LASER uses stimulated emission to amplify light at the output. LASERs generate light due to stimulated emission except when it starts where it sparks a spontaneous emitted photon. That point where it starts stimulated emission is called as the threshold value.
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Population Density of Atoms

For a normal atomic system, population density at various energy levels under thermal equilibrium is given by: Where C is a constant which depends on total number of atoms in system. K is Boltzmans Constant and T is the temperature. E1 and E2 are energy at each level. The ratio between the number of atoms in the two energy levels is given by:
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Example
An atomic system with the ground level energy of E1 and excited level energy of E2 are separated by an energy gap corresponding to a wavelength of 694nm. Calculate the ratio of number of atoms in the excited level to the ground level at thermal equilibrium (300K). E1 E2 = h = hc/ = 2.86x 10-12 J. N2/ N1 = e-69 =10-30 Note that at thermal equilibrium there are hardly any atoms at excited level as compared to the ground level.
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