Optical Distribution and Upconversion of MB-OFDM in Ultrawide-Band-Over-Fiber Systems

Broadband radio-over-fiber networks are raising great interest for intrabuilding distribution and signal processing of ultrawide-band (UWB) signals. In this paper, a unique optical system based on an external modulator biased either in linear or nonlinear regime has been used to realize both distribution of multiband orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (MB-OFDM) UWB signal and all-optical frequency upconversion of UWB-OFDM subband. The impact of the nonlinearity of the optical link on the MB-OFDM signal is investigated through a simulation model of the complete UWB-over-fiber system. Results have shown enhanced performance of upconverted MB-OFDM subband compared to direct transmission due to optical noise reduction. First experimental results have confirmed simulation results.