Modular coherent photonic-aided payload receiver for communications satellites
Duarte , V. C.
;
Prata, J.
; Ribeiro, C.
;
Nogueira, R.N.
; WINZER, G
; Zimmermann, L. Zimmermann
; Walker, R.
; CLEMENTS, S
; Filipowicz, M.
; Napierala, M.
; Nasilowski, T.
; Crabb, J.
; Kechagias, M.
; Stampoulidis, L. Stampoulidis
; ANZALCHI, J
;
Drummond, M. V.
Nature Communications Vol. 10, Nº 1, pp. 1 - 9, April, 2019.
ISSN (print): 2041-1723
ISSN (online):
Scimago Journal Ranking: 5,57 (in 2019)
Digital Object Identifier: 10.1038/s41467-019-10077-4
Abstract
Ubiquitous satellite communications are in a leading position for bridging the digital divide. Fulfilling such a mission will require satellite services on par with fibre services, both in bandwidth and cost. Achieving such a performance requires a new generation of communications payloads powered by large-scale processors, enabling a dynamic allocation of hundreds of beams with a total capacity beyond 1 Tbit s−1. The fact that the scale of the processor is proportional to the wavelength of its signals has made photonics a key technology for its implementation. However, one last challenge hinders the introduction of photonics: while large-scale processors demand a modular implementation, coherency among signals must be preserved using simple methods. Here, we demonstrate a coherent photonic-aided receiver meeting such demands. This work shows that a modular and coherent photonic-aided payload is feasible, making way to an extensive introduction of photonics in next generation communications satellites.
