Abstract

Automatic polarization controllers are of great interest for fiberoptic communication systems to compensate for the random polarization fluctuations in standard optical fibers, thus allowing the use of polarization-dependent components, such as coherent optical receivers, high-speed modulators, or photonic switches. Here, one requires polarization controllers with effectively endless transformation ranges and control speeds of the order of 1000 rad/sec to continuously track the large and rapid changes in the optical phase retardation of the fiber [1]. Previous systems for endless polarization control have not exceeded speeds of 50 rad/sec [2], limited by the slow response of mechanical actuators and complicated drive algorithms.

© 1992 Optical Society of America