Microwave Frequency Division Based on Optically Injected DFB-LD With an OEO Loop

A novel microwave frequency division (MFD) architecture based on an optically injected distributed feedback laser diode (DFB-LD) with an optoelectronic feedback (OEO) loop is proposed. A radio-frequency (RF) signal is imported to the MFD for frequency division. As the optically injected DFB-LD works at Period-one (P1) state, the nonlinear effect of the intensity modulator in the OEO can split the P1 modes in the DFB-LD into a series of equi-spaced subharmonics. By properly tuning the parameters of the OEO, some frequency components generated in the OEO loop can be selected and amplified to interfere with the generated subharmonics due to the Vernier effect, which are equal to divide-by-n frequency division signals of the input RF signal. In the proof-of-concept experiment, divide-by-2 to 6 MFD of the RF signal around 18.0 GHz are realized. The signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and phase noise of the division signals can respectively be enhanced to 59.6 dB and -118.32 dBc/Hz@10 kHz.