GHz-bandwidth upconversion detector using a unidirectional ring cavity to reduce multilongitudinal mode pump effects

We demonstrate efficient upconversion of modulated infrared (IR) signals over a wide bandwidth (up to frequencies in excess of 1 GHz) via cavity-enhanced sum-frequency generation (SFG) in a periodically poled LiNbO₃. Intensity modulated IR signal is produced by combining beams from two 1547 nm narrow-linewidth lasers in a fiber coupler while tuning their wavelength difference down to 10 pm or less. The SFG crystal is placed inside an Nd:YVO₄ ring cavity that provides 1064 nm circulating pump powers of up to 150 W in unidirectional operation. Measured Fabry-Pérot spectrum at 1064 nm confirms the enhanced spectral stability from multiple to single longitudinal mode pumping condition. We describe analytically and demonstrate experimentally the deleterious effects of using a multimode pump to the high-bandwidth RF spectrum of the 630 nm SFG output. Offering enhanced sensitivity without the need for cooling, the GHz-bandwidth upconverter can readily be extended to the mid-IR (2 – 5 μm) as an alternative to cooled low-bandgap semiconductor detectors for applications such as high-speed free-space optical communications.