On the use of digital predistortion to compensate the nonlinear effects of semiconductor optical amplifiers
Abstract
In this communication we use macro-modeling and signal processing techniques in order to compensate the nonlinear effects of a semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) that is used in a CO-OFDM (coherent optical and orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing) optical transmitter. Two solutions are examined in detail: a peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) reduction and a digital predistortion of the baseband signal before the optical amplification. These techniques are two complementary approaches that contribute to a better flexibility of the transmitter, which can thus operate over an extended power range.