Electro-optical implementation of an optical spectrum inverter

Abstract

The invention relates to an optical spectrum inverter, configured for counteracting phase distortion effects in an optical channel over a predefined frequency range, to an inverter node, configured for duplex operation in at least two wavelength channels, and to a method for counteracting phase distortion effects in an optical channel. The optical spectrum inverter comprises an optical receiver comprising a polarization diversity unit configured for polarization resolved detection, wherein the optical receiver is configured for receiving an optical input signal comprising a first wavelength span and for converting the optical input signal to an electrical signal, and an optical modulator connectable to the optical receiver and configured for modulating the electrical signal onto an optical signal, wherein the optical modulator comprises an optical filter which is configured for selecting a second wavelength span of the optical signal corresponding to an optical output side band of an inverted spectrum of the optical channel such that phase distortion effects are counteracted at least partly over the predefined frequency range. In this way, an optical spectrum inverter is provided which is simple and cost-effective to realize and allows higher optical power levels in conjunction with a higher capacity per optical channel and is also adapted for longer transmission distances.