Bandwidth Variable Transmitters

Bandwidth variable transmitter (BVT) is one of the key enabling technologies for future EONs. In the University of Bristol's lab, transmitters are designed to generate optical signals with variable optical modulation formats such as NRZ, CAP, QPSK, 16-QAM, OFDM, etc. for different application scenarios. With advanced FPGA-based interfaces (including Ethernet and OTN protocols), the development transmitters are driven by real traffic and provide baud-rate variable and modulation-adaptable optical signals. The transmitters can provide and optical bandwidth from 10Gbit/s (2.7 Gbaud PM-QPSK) to 216 Gbit/s (27 Gbaud PM-16QAM) with a fine bandwidth step about 10Gbit/s. In addition, a fully programmable superchannel transmitter is available to provide beyond Tbit/s transmission for future Tera Ethernet services.

AWG-based OFDM and CAP Transmitters

Advanced multicarrier and spectral efficient modulation formats are also available for experimentation at the University of Bristol. These types of transmitters complement the aforementioned real-time transmitter for further studies on signal coexistence in the optical converged networks.

Multiformat Receivers with Digital Signal Processing

A multi-format coherent receiver is developed for accurate detection of advanced modulation format signals, including PM-QPSK, PM-16QAM, etc. Self-developed digital signal processing algorithms provide the offline processing feature with an intuitive interface. Aa 4-shannel 80Gs/s real-time oscilloscope can receive optical signals up to 400Gbit/s (50Gbaud PM-16QAM). In addition, receiver-side monitoring technologies are continuously developed to provide monitoring functions without the need of extra hardware. In addition, an automatic OSNR vs. BER characterization platform is available for network performance tests.