Deep space laser communication hardware driver (Conference Presentation)

Abstract

Deep space exploration will require laser communication systems optimized for cost, size, weight, and power. To improve these parameters, our group has been developing a photonic integrated circuit (PIC) based on indium phosphide for optical pulse position modulation (PPM). A field-programmable gate array (FPGA) was programmed to serve as a dedicated driver for the PIC. The FPGA is capable of generating 2-ary to 4096-ary PPM with a slot clock rate up to 700 MHz.