Measurement of scintillation and link margin for the TerraLink laser communication system

Isaac I. Kim; Joseph Koontz; Harel Hakakha; Prasanna Adhikari; Ron Stieger; Carter Moursund; Micah Barclay; Alyssa Stanford; Richard Ruigrok; John J. Schuster; Eric J. Korevaar

doi:10.1117/12.301021

23 January 1998 Measurement of scintillation and link margin for the TerraLink laser communication system

Isaac I. Kim, Joseph Koontz, Harel Hakakha, Prasanna Adhikari, Ron Stieger, Carter Moursund, Micah Barclay, Alyssa Stanford, Richard Ruigrok, John J. Schuster, Eric J. Korevaar

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 3232, Wireless Technologies and Systems: Millimeter-Wave and Optical; (1998) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.301021
Event: Voice, Video, and Data Communications, 1997, Dallas, TX, United States

Abstract

AstroTerra's TerraLink^TM 8-155 laser communications equipment is designed for a clear weather range of 8 km and a data rate of 230 Mb/s, and TerraLink 4-155 is designed for a 2 km range. The TerraLink equipment achieves a reduction in scintillation-induced intensity fluctuations by using large receive apertures and multiple transmit apertures. We present measurements of received intensity fluctuations at different ranges through 4 inch and 8 inch receive apertures. We also present link margin data, with its implications for use of lasercom equipment in various weather conditions. Scintillation measurements were made while a communications link was operating by placing a second receive telescope with a PIN photodiode next to one of the lasercom transceivers. By plotting the probability of intensity vs. intensity, the necessary link margin to achieve a desired burst error rate can be calculated. At the longest ranges, the TerraLink equipment requires a scintillation fade margin of about 10 dB to achieve a 10^-9 bit error rate. The equipment is designed with an additional margin of 4 - 5 dB for atmospheric attenuation.

Citation Download Citation

Isaac I. Kim, Joseph Koontz, Harel Hakakha, Prasanna Adhikari, Ron Stieger, Carter Moursund, Micah Barclay, Alyssa Stanford, Richard Ruigrok, John J. Schuster, and Eric J. Korevaar "Measurement of scintillation and link margin for the TerraLink laser communication system", Proc. SPIE 3232, Wireless Technologies and Systems: Millimeter-Wave and Optical, (23 January 1998); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.301021

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available