Coherent effects and aperture averaging in retroreflected light

Rita Mahon; William S. Rabinovich; Harris R. Burris; Mike S. Ferraro; Wade Freeman; Christopher Moore; James Murphy; Michelle Suite; Linda Wasiczko

doi:10.1117/12.691317

1 September 2006 Coherent effects and aperture averaging in retroreflected light

Rita Mahon, William S. Rabinovich, Harris R. Burris, Mike S. Ferraro, Wade Freeman, Christopher Moore, James Murphy, Michelle Suite, Linda Wasiczko

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 6304, Free-Space Laser Communications VI; 63041Y (2006) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.691317
Event: SPIE Optics + Photonics, 2006, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

An experimental study has been made on the contribution to the effective scintillation index due to two retroreflectors, as a function of retroreflector spacing. For closely spaced retroreflectors the effect of coherent interference at the receiver is seen to increase the effective variance of the received signal, whereas spatial averaging is apparent for more widely spaced retroreflectors. The scintillation index, probability density functions, power spectral densities and fade rates are all affected by the interference. The range, under which these experiments were conducted, was typically 500 - 800m over mixed water/land terrains. The interrogator used a monostatic, 1550nm laser probe beam with a divergence of 0.4 mrad and had a 50mm diameter receiver aperture. Data sets of received power were recorded for durations of 10s each, using a photodiode with a bandwidth of 100kHz. For comparison, the received power from a single retroreflector at various radial positions in the probe beam was recorded. Knowledge of the fade rates and fade durations is of practical importance in considerations regarding the optimal transmission of data packets.

Citation Download Citation

Rita Mahon, William S. Rabinovich, Harris R. Burris, Mike S. Ferraro, Wade Freeman, Christopher Moore, James Murphy, Michelle Suite, and Linda Wasiczko "Coherent effects and aperture averaging in retroreflected light", Proc. SPIE 6304, Free-Space Laser Communications VI, 63041Y (1 September 2006); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.691317

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