APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR GENERATING OPTICAL PULSES

摘要

An apparatus and method for generating a train of optical pulses. The apparatus comprises an optical resonant cavity (1) for confining an optical signal in the cavity to a number of modes, a modulator (3), and a control signal generator (101). The modulator comprises an interferometer arranged to cause interference of the optical signal with itself to produce an output and controllable material, such as an electro-optic crystal, arranged in a path of the optical signal, an optical property of the controllable material dependent on a control signal (3b) applied to the controllable material such that changes in the optical property alter optical signals travelling that path to affect the interference of the optical signals, and therefore the output of the modulator. The control signal generator is arranged to generate the control signal, wherein the control magnitude is an oscillating waveform arranged to cause transmission of the optical signal through the modulator to generate pulses having a pulse width shorter than a pulse width of pulses that would be generated using a sinusoidal waveform of the same frequency.