Photonic instantaneous frequency measurement with digital output based on dispersion induced power fading functions

A novel photonic approach to realize the instantaneous microwave frequency measurement with digital output is proposed and demonstrated experimentally. Based on the power fading function of a double-sideband modulated microwave signal transmitting in a dispersive fiber channel, the microwave frequency to digital code mapping can be realized in a multi-channel system where each channel is configured with a predetermined amount of dispersion. The coding process involved here is similar to that of the photonic analog-to-digital conversion. The principle of the system is discussed in detail. An experiment is carried out, in which the frequency identification with 4-bit quantization levels in 17.5 GHz measurement range is demonstrated. The measurement range and the resolution are discussed theoretically and numerically.