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Light
Amplification
by

Stimulated Emission Radiation

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of

LASER stands for Light Amplification by

Stimulated Emission of Radiation. A highly coherent, monochromatic and perfectly parallel beam of light.

First successful laser was constructed by

T.H. Maiman in 1960 using Ruby Laser.

A few other lasers are helium-neon laser,

carbon dioxide laser, dye laser, junction laser, etc.

RUBY LASER

What Is Laser Communication?

Laser communications systems are wireless connections through the atmosphere. They work similarly to fiber optic links, except the fact that, in lasers, beam is transmitted through free space.

Free Space Laser Communication

Transmitting information via a laser beam
Video
Data Sound

Terrestrial / Space based systems

010001100110 111011001111 001010000010 101110010001 111001011011
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How Does it Work?

Signal Transmitter

Laser Signal
laser

Receiver

High Level design

Conditioning MCU UART

MCU
UART

Conditioning
Laser Diode

Conditioning
Photo resistor

PORT
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A/D

What is the Transmitter?

The transmitter involves:

Signal processing electronics (analog/digital) Laser modulator Laser (visible, near visible wavelengths)

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Laser Diode
Laser Diodes include Photodiodes for feedback to ensure consistent output.
Obtained by polishing the two sides of a junction diode.

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The receiver involves:Antenna Signal Processor Detector

PIN diodes Avalanche Photo Diodes (APD) Single or Multiple Detectors

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Why Laser Communication?

Current high speed communications technology:
Radio Fiber Optics

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Laser Link Geometry

Critical Design Parameters
Receive area = 200 cm2

Receiver sensitivity
Beam Divergence = 3 mrad

Distance = 1km Transmit Power Diameter = 3 m Beam area = 70686 cm2

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Why not Fiber Optics?

Not always possible to lay fiber lines Physically / Economically not practical Emergencies

LC being incorporated into fiber optic networks when fiber is not practical.

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Why not RF?

Bandwidth
for Laser Communication (LC) is 100 times greater than for

RF.

Power
in LC is directed at target, so much less transmission power

required. Also the power loss is less.

Size / Weight
LC antenna is much smaller than RF.

Security
Due to low divergence of laser beam, LC is more secure

than RF.

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Current Applications
1. Defense and sensitive areas. 2. In surgery. 3. Mass communication

400 TV channels 40,000 phone conversations

4. In industry. 5. In nuclear power production. 6. In weather forecasting. 7. NASA

Satellite - satellite Earth satellite

Earth
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Groundstation Description
Control System (data and tracking)

Telescope & LASER Mounts

LASER & Transmission Optics Receiving Package (photodetector)

Satellite Description
Utilize Science Teams Telescope & Processing Capability for LASER Communication Transmission & Receiving Package.
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Uplink/Downlink Data Processing Sequence

Bits
Bit Encoder to Symbol

LASER

Transfer Optics

Channel (Atmos.)

Error Correction Bits

Symbol Recovery

Amplifier

Receiving Optics

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Demerits Of Laser Communication

Require direct line-of-sight.
Operational distance is also a variable if

there are intervening materials such as rain, smoke, fog, glass etc. Limited wavelength range.

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THANK YOU!

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ANY QUERIES?

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