Ultra-long haul optical fibre transmission systems

This thesis examines experimentally options for optical fibre transmission over oceanic distances. Its format follows the chronological evolution of ultra-long haul optical systems, commencing with opto-electronic regenerators as repeaters, progressing to optically amplified NRZ systems and finally solitonic propagation. In each case recirculating loop techniques are deployed to simplify the transmission experiments. Advances in high speed electronics have allowed regenerators operating at 10 Gbit/s to become a practical reality. By augmenting such devices with optical amplifiers it is possible to greatly enhance the repeater spacing. Work detailed in this thesis has culminated in the propagation of 10 Gbit/s data over 400,000 km with a repeater spacing of 160 km. System reliability and robustness are enhanced by the use of a directly modulated DFB laser transmitter and total insensitivity of the system to the signal state of polarisation. Optically amplified ultra-long haul NRZ systems have taken on particular importance with the impending deployment of TAT 12/13 and TPC 5. The performance of these systems is demonstrated to be primarily limited by analogue impairments such as the accumulation of amplifier noise, polarisation effects and optical non-linearities. These degradations may be reduced by the use of appropriate dispersion maps and by scrambling the transmitted state of signal polarisation. A novel high speed optically passive polarisation scrambler is detailed for the first time. At bit rates in excess of 10 Gbit/s it is shown that these systems are severely limited and do not offer the advantages that might be expected over regenerated links. Propagation using solitons as the data bits appears particularly attractive since the dispersive and non-linear effects of the fibre allow distortion free transmission. However, the generation of pure solitons is difficult but must be achieved if the uncontrolled transmission distance is to be maximised. This thesis presents a new technique for the stabilisation of an erbium fibre ring laser that has aUowed propagation of 2.5 Gbit/s solitons to the theoretical limit of ~ 18,000 km. At higher bit rates temporal jitter becomes a significant impairment and to aUow an increase in the aggregate line rate multiplexing in both time and polarisation domains has been proposed. These techniques are shown to be of only limited benefit in practical systems and ultimately some form of soliton transmission control is required. The thesis demonstrates synchronous retiming by amplitude modulation that has allowed 20 Gbit/s data to propagate 125,000 km error free with an amplifier spacing approaching the soliton period. Ultimately the speed of operation of such systems is limited by the electronics used and, thus, a new form of soliton control is demonstrated using all optical techniques to achieve synchronous phase modulation.

Data transmission by frequency-hopped multilevel frequency shift keying

Spread spectrum systems make use of radio frequency bandwidths which far exceed the minimum bandwidth necessary to transmit the basic message information.These systems are designed to provide satisfactory communication of the message information under difficult transmission conditions. Frequency-hopped multilevel frequency shift keying (FH-MFSK) is one of the many techniques used in spread spectrum systems. It is a combination of frequency hopping and time hopping. In this system many users share a common frequency band using code division multiplexing. Each user is assigned an address and the message is modulated into the address. The receiver, knowing the address, decodes the received signal and extracts the message. This technique is suggested for digital mobile telephony. This thesis is concerned with an investigation of the possibility of utilising FH-MFSK for data transmission corrupted by additive white gaussian noise (A.W.G.N.). Work related to FH-MFSK has so far been mostly confined to its validity, and its performance in the presence of A.W.G.N. has not been reported before. An experimental system was therefore constructed which utilised combined hardware and software and operated under the supervision of a microprocessor system. The experimental system was used to develop an error-rate model for the system under investigation. The performance of FH-MFSK for data transmission was established in the presence of A.W.G.N. and with deleted and delayed sample effects. Its capability for multiuser applications was determined theoretically. The results show that FH-MFSK is a suitable technique for data transmission in the presence of A.W.G.N.

Correcting errors in optical data transmission using neural networks

Optical data communication systems are prone to a variety of processes that modify the transmitted signal, and contribute errors in the determination of 1s from 0s. This is a difficult, and commercially important, problem to solve. Errors must be detected and corrected at high speed, and the classifier must be very accurate; ideally it should also be tunable to the characteristics of individual communication links. We show that simple single layer neural networks may be used to address these problems, and examine how different input representations affect the accuracy of bit error correction. Our results lead us to conclude that a system based on these principles can perform at least as well as an existing non-trainable error correction system, whilst being tunable to suit the individual characteristics of different communication links.

Correcting errors in optical data transmission using neural networks

Optical data communication systems are prone to a variety of processes that modify the transmitted signal, and contribute errors in the determination of 1s from 0s. This is a difficult, and commercially important, problem to solve. Errors must be detected and corrected at high speed, and the classifier must be very accurate; ideally it should also be tunable to the characteristics of individual communication links. We show that simple single layer neural networks may be used to address these problems, and examine how different input representations affect the accuracy of bit error correction. Our results lead us to conclude that a system based on these principles can perform at least as well as an existing non-trainable error correction system, whilst being tunable to suit the individual characteristics of different communication links.

Evolution of timing jitter in nonlinearly-guided, dispersion managed transmission systems

Timing jitter is a major factor limiting the performance of any high-speed, long-haul data transmission system. It arises from a number of reasons, such as interaction with accumulated spontaneous emission, inter-symbol interference (ISI), electrostriction etc. Some effects causing timing jitter can be reduced by means of non-linear filtering, using, for example, a nonlinear optical loop mirror (NOLM) [1]. The NOLM has been shown to reduce the timing jitter by suppressing the ASE and by stabilising the pulse duration [2, 3]. In this paper, we investigate the dynamics of timing jitter in a 2R regenerated system, nonlinearly guided by NOLMs at bit rates of 10, 20, 40, and 80- Gbit/s. Transmission performance of an equivalent non-regenerated (generic) system is taken as a reference.

Quasi-lossless data transmission with ultra-long Raman fibre laser based amplification

The project consists of an experimental and numerical modelling study of the applications of ultra-long Raman fibre laser (URFL) based amplification techniques for high-speed multi-wavelength optical communications systems. The research is focused in telecommunications C-band 40 Gb/s transmission data rates with direct and coherent detection. The optical transmission performance of URFL based systems in terms of optical noise, gain bandwidth and gain flatness for different system configurations is evaluated. Systems with different overall span lengths, transmission fibre types and data modulation formats are investigated. Performance is compared with conventional Erbium doped fibre amplifier based system to evaluate system configurations where URFL based amplification provide performance or commercial advantages.

Reliability analysis and economic equipment replacement appraisal for substation and sub-transmission systems with explicit inclusion of non-repairable failures

The modern society has come to expect the electrical energy on demand, while many of the facilities in power systems are aging beyond repair and maintenance. The risk of failure is increasing with the aging equipments and can pose serious consequences for continuity of electricity supply. As the equipments used in high voltage power networks are very expensive, economically it may not be feasible to purchase and store spares in a warehouse for extended periods of time. On the other hand, there is normally a significant time before receiving equipment once it is ordered. This situation has created a considerable interest in the evaluation and application of probability methods for aging plant and provisions of spares in bulk supply networks, and can be of particular importance for substations. Quantitative adequacy assessment of substation and sub-transmission power systems is generally done using a contingency enumeration approach which includes the evaluation of contingencies, classification of the contingencies based on selected failure criteria. The problem is very complex because of the need to include detailed modelling and operation of substation and sub-transmission equipment using network flow evaluation and to consider multiple levels of component failures. In this thesis a new model associated with aging equipment is developed to combine the standard tools of random failures, as well as specific model for aging failures. This technique is applied in this thesis to include and examine the impact of aging equipments on system reliability of bulk supply loads and consumers in distribution network for defined range of planning years. The power system risk indices depend on many factors such as the actual physical network configuration and operation, aging conditions of the equipment, and the relevant constraints. The impact and importance of equipment reliability on power system risk indices in a network with aging facilities contains valuable information for utilities to better understand network performance and the weak links in the system. In this thesis, algorithms are developed to measure the contribution of individual equipment to the power system risk indices, as part of the novel risk analysis tool. A new cost worth approach was developed in this thesis that can make an early decision in planning for replacement activities concerning non-repairable aging components, in order to maintain a system reliability performance which economically is acceptable. The concepts, techniques and procedures developed in this thesis are illustrated numerically using published test systems. It is believed that the methods and approaches presented, substantially improve the accuracy of risk predictions by explicit consideration of the effect of equipment entering a period of increased risk of a non-repairable failure.

Optimal HMM filtering and decision feedback equalisation for differential encoded transmission systems

In this paper conditional hidden Markov model (HMM) filters and conditional Kalman filters (KF) are coupled together to improve demodulation of differential encoded signals in noisy fading channels. We present an indicator matrix representation for differential encoded signals and the optimal HMM filter for demodulation. The filter requires O(N3) calculations per time iteration, where N is the number of message symbols. Decision feedback equalisation is investigated via coupling the optimal HMM filter for estimating the message, conditioned on estimates of the channel parameters, and a KF for estimating the channel states, conditioned on soft information message estimates. The particular differential encoding scheme examined in this paper is differential phase shift keying. However, the techniques developed can be extended to other forms of differential modulation. The channel model we use allows for multiplicative channel distortions and additive white Gaussian noise. Simulation studies are also presented.

Two Tools for Interprocess Communication in Distributed Data-Flow Systems

Abstract is not available.

An intelligent approach using support vector machines for monitoring and identification of faults on transmission systems

Power system disturbances are often caused by faults on transmission lines. When faults occur in a power system, the protective relays detect the fault and initiate tripping of appropriate circuit breakers, which isolate the affected part from the rest of the power system. Generally Extra High Voltage (EHV) transmission substations in power systems are connected with multiple transmission lines to neighboring substations. In some cases mal-operation of relays can happen under varying operating conditions, because of inappropriate coordination of relay settings. Due to these actions the power system margins for contingencies are decreasing. Hence, power system protective relaying reliability becomes increasingly important. In this paper an approach is presented using Support Vector Machine (SVM) as an intelligent tool for identifying the faulted line that is emanating from a substation and finding the distance from the substation. Results on 24-bus equivalent EHV system, part of Indian southern grid, are presented for illustration purpose. This approach is particularly important to avoid mal-operation of relays following a disturbance in the neighboring line connected to the same substation and assuring secure operation of the power systems.

Lenient Execution and Concurrent Execution of Re-entrant Routines: Efficient Implementation in Data Flow Systems

Implementation details of efficient schemes for lenient execution and concurrent execution of re-entrant routines in a data flow model have been discussed in this paper. The proposed schemes require no extra hardware support and utilise the existing hardware resources such as the Matching Unit and Memory Network Interface, effectively to achieve the above mentioned goals.