High power wavelength division multiplexing (HP-WDM) for high-speed space optical communication

Free-space optical communications are becoming essential, especially in space communications. Examples include data transmission for Earth observation satellites, cislunar space networks and deep space exploration missions. One approach to enhancing the capacity of free-space optical communication is increasing transmission power. However, achieving high output power while meeting the components requirements (e.g., space-environmental resistance, long-lifetime, and performance reliability) with a single optical amplifier is challenging. To address this challenge, we propose high-power wavelength-division multiplexing (HP-WDM) that consists of a free-space multiplexer and conventional high-power amplifiers.