D-band signal generation and transmission without optical filter based on optical carrier suppression and single-sideband modulation

We experimentally demonstrated a novel and simple scheme to generate D-band millimeter-wave (mm-wave) signal without optical filter based on optical carrier suppression (OCS) and single-sideband (SSB). One intensity modulator (IM) driven by radio frequency (RF) signal at 50 GHz is firstly employed to generate two tones with channel spacing of 2 x RF frequency based on OCS. Another subsequent in-phase/quadrature (I/Q) modulator driven by RF signal at 30 GHz is then applied to generate SSB signal by using independent sideband (ISB). No optical filter is needed so that the whole system can be simplified. After using a D-band photomixer for detection, we finally generated the vector mm-wave at 130 GHz. Based on the proposed system, 4-Gbaud/8-Gbaud quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK) information carried by the generated D-band mm-wave signals were transmitted over 22.5-km single model fiber (SMF) and 1-m wireless distance radio-over-fiber (ROF) link. Bit-error-ratio (BER) performances under hard/soft-decision forward-error-correction (FEC) threshold are shown respectively in cases of two different signals transmission rates. (c) 2021 Optica Publishing Group under the terms of the Optica Open Access Publishing Agreement