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CURRENT CASPR INVESTIGATIONS

OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS

Title: “Reconfigurable All-Optical WDM (Wavelength Diversity Multiplex) Network”

Principal Investigator / UMBC Department:
Yung J. (Ray) Chen / CSEE
Professor
Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania, 1976

Task Objectives: To develop and implement an all-optical switching layer to the multiple protocol label switching (MPLS) testbed at UMBC. This unique, expanded optical-networking testbed will be used to address a variety of next-generation network (NGN) research issues and to develop new technologies and applications for NASA and other potential government and industry sponsors.

Title: “High-Speed All-Optical Networks”

Principal Investigator / UMBC Department:
Gary M. Carter / CSEE
Professor
Ph.D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1975

Task Objectives: To demonstrate the feasibility of 10 Gb/s data transmission in a variety of fiber optic environments and to avoid the high "tuning" required for maximizing performance through a "cross-platform" optical networking approach.

Selected Recent Publications:

“Measurement of Distributions of Differential Group Delay in a Recirculating Loop With and Without Loop-Synchronous Scrambling”, Hai Xu, Hua Jiao, Li Yan, and Gary M. Carter, IEEE Photonics Technology Letters Vol. 16, pp. 1691-1693 (2004).

“Quantitative Experimental Study of Intrachannel Nonlinear Timing Jitter in a 10-Gb/s Terrestrial WDM Return-To-Zero System”, Hai Xu, John Zweck, Li Yan, Curtis R. Menyuk, and Gary M. Carter, IEEE Photonics Technology Letters Vol. 16, pp. 314-316 (2004).

Title: “Signal Processing for Photonics”

Principal Investigator / UMBC Department:
Tulay Adali / CSEE
Professor
Ph.D., North Carolina State University, 1992

Task Objectives: To develop effective electrical domain (post-detection) approaches for optical communications by accounting for the physical properties of the optical transmission medium through (i) development of a new class of electronic signal processing solutions for mitigating effects of physical impairments in optical systems by accounting for the physical properties of the optical transmission medium and (ii) studying the performance of these signal processing solutions by accurately modeling the physical phenomena using simulation techniques that have been developed.

Selected Recent Publications:

“Comparison of power penalties due to first- and all-order PMD distortions in optical fiber transmission systems”,  A. O. Lima, I. T. Lima, Jr., C. R. Menyuk, and T. Adali, Optics Letts. vol. 28, no. 5, pp. 310--312 (2003).

“On Turbo code decoder performance in optical fiber communication systems with dominating ASE noise”, Y. Cai, J.M. Morris, T. Adali, and C.R. Menyuk, Journal of Lightwave Tech., vol. 21, no. 3, pp. 727--734 (2003).

Title: “Numerical Simulation and Analysis of Fiber Optic Compensators”

Principal Investigator / UMBC Department:
Susan E. Minkoff / Mathematics and Statistics
Assistant Professor
Ph.D., Rice University, 1995

Co-PI / UMBC Department:
John Zweck / Mathematics and Statistics
Assistant Professor
Ph.D., Rice University, 1993

Task Objectives: Data sent along fiber optic communication lines over long distances is degraded due to the combined effects of amplifier noise, chromatic dispersion, fiber nonlinearity, and polarization mode dispersion (PMD). In this project we focus on one of these effects, namely PMD, which is caused by the randomly varying birefringence (irregularities) in the fiber and results in a fast and a slow polarization state for light.  Light launched down the fiber in these two states will travel with different speeds, and the pulses will therefore spread due to PMD. Data which starts out on its travels as a pristine string of ones and zeros will eventually reach its destination with losses and distortions in signal power (amplitude). In order to overcome the distortion and pulse spreading caused by PMD, devices known as compensators can be used. This work focuses on mathematical and computational modeling and analysis of fiber optic compensation.

Selected Recent Publications:

“Performance characterization of chirped return-to-zero modulation format using an accurate receiver model”, I.T. Lima, Jr., A.O. Lima, J. Zweck, and C.R. Menyuk, Photonics Technology Letters, 15, (4), pp. 608--610 (2003).

“Statistics of the system performance in a scrambled recirculating loop with PDL and PDG”,    Y. Sun, A.O. Lima, I.T. Lima Jr., J. Zweck, L. Yan, C.R. Menyuk, and G.M. Carter, Photonics Technology Letters, 15 (8),  pp. 1067--1069 (2003)

“Efficient computation of outage probabilities due to polarization effects in a WDM system using importance sampling”, I.T. Lima, Jr., A.O. Lima, J. Zweck, and C.R. Menyuk, Photonics Technology Letters, 15, (1), pp. 45--47 ( 2003).

Title: “Multisensor Coding for Robust Wireless Optical Communications”

Principal Investigator / UMBC Department:
Joseph Thomas / CSEE
Assistant Professor
Ph.D., University of Maryland, College Park, 1999

Task Objectives: To exploit the potentially available spatial-diversity and multiplexing gains in wireless optical communications through the use of multiple-aperture signaling and information-theoretic concepts.

Selected Recent Publications:

“Iterative detection in block-orthogonal and spatially-multiplexed multisensor signaling schemes”, J. Thomas,  to appear in IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing (in press, 2004).

OPTICAL REMOTE SENSING

Title: "Tunable, Near-Infrared Detector Based on Quantum-Well Excitons"

Principal Investigator / UMBC Department:
Terrance L. Worchesky / Physics
Associate Professor
Ph.D., Georgetown University, 1984

Task Objectives: To demonstrate the feasibility of a voltage-tunable, narrow-band and near-infrared detector to address the needs of NASA LIDAR efforts. The long-term goals are a 0.1-nm bandwidth detection system with a voltage-tunable range of 10 n, and the capability to develop other similar semiconductor detectors to meet NASA, DoD and commercial requirements. 

Title: "Terahertz and Holographic Technologies for Earth and Space Science Applications"

Principal Investigator / UMBC Department:
L. Michael Hayden / Physics
Professor and Graduate Program Director
Ph.D., University of California at Davis, 1987

Task Objectives: To develop and characterize efficient, wide-band emitter-detector pairs of electro-optic polymer composites useful for the generation and detection of THz radiation. New terahertz technologies, which are useful in NASA applications, will be explored. In addition, this project will address the use of holographic wavefront correction in space telescope applications, particularly in the search for extra-solar terrestrial planets.

Selected Recent Publications:

“New Materials for Optical Rectification and Electro-optic Sampling of Ultra-short Pulses in the THz Regime”. L. Michael Hayden, A. M. Sinyukov, M. R. Leahy, P. Lindahl, J. French, W. Herman, M. He, R. Twieg, J. Polymer Sci. B. Polymer Phys. 41, 2492-2500 (2003).

“Efficient electro-optic polymers for THz applications”, A. M. Sinyukov and L. Michael Hayden, J. Phys. Chem. B 108, 8515-8522 (2004).

“Resonance enhanced THz generation in electro-optic polymers near the absorption maximum,” A. Sinyukov, M. R. Leahy, L. Michael Hayden, J. Luo, A. K-Y. Jen, and L. R. Dalton, submitted to Appl. Phys. Lett. (2004).

QUANTUM OPTICS

Title: "Synchronization of Distant Clocks Using Two-Photon Interferometry"

Co-Principal Investigator / UMBC Department:
Yanhua Shih / Physics
Professor
Ph.D., University of Maryland, College Park, 1987

Co-Principal Investigator/UMBC Department:
Morton Rubin / Physics
Professor
Ph.D., Princeton University, 1964

Task Objectives: To apply well established two-photon interferometric techniques developed at UMBC and to achieve distant clock synchronization with unprecedented pico-second accuracy for future NASA space applications.

Selected Recent Publications:

Published book Chapters:

“Entangled Photons”,  in IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Quantum Electronics on Quantum Internet Technology (2003).

“Entangled Two-photon Source”, in Reports on Progress in Physics, Institute of Physics Publishing, (2003).

“Quantum Imaging, Quantum Lithography and the Uncertainty Principle”, in Special Issue of European Physics Journal D (2003).

Refereed Publications:

 “Two-photon ‘Ghost’ Imaging with Thermal Light”,  A. Valencia, G. Scarcelli, M. D'Angelo and Y.H. Shih, submitted to PRL quant-ph.

“Two-photon Interference of Thermal light”, Valencia, M. D'Angelo, G. Scarcelli and Y.H. Shih, to be published in Phys. Rev. A (2004).

“Ultra-high Accuracy Nonlocal Timing and Positioning using Entangled Photon-pairs”, G. Scarcelli, A.Valencia and Y.H. Shih, Appl. Phys. Lett, Sept. Issue (2004); quant-ph/0407204.

“Remote Spectral Measurement Using Entangled Photons”, G. Scarcelli, A. Valencia, S.Gompers and Y.H. Shih, Appl. Phys. Lett, Vol. 83, 5560 (2003).

“Experimental Entanglement Concentration and Universal Bell-State Synthesizer”, Y.-H. Kim, M.V. Chekhova, S.P. Kulik, and Y.H. Shih, Phys. Rev. A, Vol. 67, Rapid Comm., 010301(R) (2003).

Center for Advanced Studies in Photonics Research
1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD 21250
410-455-8740 • caspr@umbc.edu