[OPTICAL REVIEW Vol. 21, No. 4 (2014) 425-428]
© 2014 The Japan Society of Applied Physics
RF Spectral Modulation Caused by Delayed Interference and Photodetection of Optical Noise
Keisuke NOSE1, Yasuyuki OZEKI2, Yasuo KANEMATSU1, Yoshizo TAKAI1, and Kazuyoshi ITOH1
1Department of Material and Life Science, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan
2Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Systems, Graduate School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo, Tokyo 113-8656, Japan
(Received February 11, 2014; Accepted March 24, 2014)
We demonstrate that an RF spectral fringe appears when a nonpolarized optical noise and its delayed replica are combined and photo-detected without any polarization control. A theoretical analysis explains the visibility of the fringe and its insensitivity to polarization.
Key words: spectral interferometry, group delay measurement, optical noise