Pre-distortion tuning for analog lasers

Abstract

In a test configuration for a pre-distortion board configured with an analog laser, a test operator adjusts the settings for one or more components (e.g., potentiometers) on the pre-distortion board, e.g., to optimize the linearity of the analog laser, relying on information contained in a graphical display presented on a computer monitor. In one embodiment, a signal generator generates electrical signals, the pre-distortion board distorts the electrical signals, the analog laser converts the distorted electrical signals into optical signals, an optical receiver converts the optical signals back into electrical signals, a band-pass filter filters the converted electrical signals, an RF spectrum analyzer generates amplitude vs. frequency data from the filtered electrical signals, and a computer generates the graphical display from the amplitude vs. frequency data, wherein the graphical display has a bar graph that graphically and textually indicates the current distortion level of the analog laser relative to a distortion requirement level and an extreme distortion level for the current test.