Noise Figure Characterization of the Hyperspectral Microwave Photonic Instrument (HyMPI)
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Torres, Víctor, Fabrizio Gambini, Priscilla Mohammed, et al. “Noise Figure Characterization of the Hyperspectral Microwave Photonic Instrument (HyMPI).” IEEE Photonics Technology Letters 38, no. 1 (2026): 53–56. https://doi.org/10.1109/LPT.2025.3612866.
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This work was written as part of one of the author's official duties as an Employee of the United States Government and is therefore a work of the United States Government. In accordance with 17 U.S.C. 105, no copyright protection is available for such works under U.S. Law.
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Abstract
This work demonstrates the noise performance of the photonic back end of a hyperspectral microwave-photonic spectrometer aimed at augmenting the remote sensing capability from space, with a focus on the Earth’s planetary boundary layer (PBL). Using a distributed-feedback (DFB) laser and an electro-optical phase modulator, a 40 GHz spectrum is upconverted into the optical domain and sent to a 10-channel photonic integrated serial array waveguide grating (SAWG) where the spectra are separated into 4 GHz channels. Spectral content of each channel is downconverted to baseband using a second DFB laser and measured using an electrical spectrum analyzer (ESA) at a resolution of 8 MHz. Measured results of the end-to-end system Noise Figure (NF) for all channels agree with the theoretical analysis and demonstrate the suitability of microwave photonics for atmospheric studies.