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Completed TRL 2 (started at 1, targeting 2)
Very large mode area (VLMA) Er:doped fiber amplifier instead of single-mode fiber amplifier can scale the laser pulse energy to a high level without noticeable spectral broadening and pulse profile distortion, but the accompanying transverse mode instability prevents from obtaining diffraction limited laser beam and impacts the pointing, acquisition, and tracking (PAT) capability. Our research aims to investigate transverse mode instability of VLMA Er:doped fiber amplifier, find the solution for improving the PAT of FSOC systems. The success will reduce size, weight, power, and cost (SWaP-C) reduction, and extend our optical communication ability from LEO to the GEO, lunar distance, and even beyond the Moon.
As space missions generate and collect more data, the need for enhanced communications capabilities becomes paramount. Optical communications will provide significant benefits for missions, including bandwidth increases of 10 to 100 times more than radio frequency systems. Ideal optical terminals should generate bandwidth limited high energy pulses with the diffraction limited beam quality.
High-power Er:fiber amplifier has the advantages for the free space optical communication: large gain, less contamination, easy heat removal, high laser beam quality and so on. Single-mode Er:doped fiber amplifier limits the power scaling level due to the nonlinearity. Very large mode area (VLMA) Er:doped fiber amplifier can scale the laser pulse energy to a high level without noticeable spectral broadening and pulse profile distortion, but the accompanying transverse mode instability impacts the PAT capability. The donut pattern of beacon beam and transverse mode instability of com beam have been observed. Our IRAD project is to investigate the mechanism of transverse mode instability, solve the challenge issues, make SWaP-C reduction of VLMA system, and develop high-performance low-cost optical terminals for free-space optical communication (FSOC) systems.
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