Simultaneous Measurement of Atmospheric Turbulence Induced Intensity and Polarization Fluctuation for Free Space Optical Communication

Abstract

The performance of free space optical (FSO) communication link is highly sensitive towards the intensity, phase and polarization fluctuations, which are induced by turbulent atmosphere. In order to study the impact of atmosphere induced turbulence on the optical signal, which propagates through it, it is essential to know the statistics of intensity, phase and polarization fluctuations. In this paper we report an experimental investigation that categorically measures the statistics of intensity and polarization fluctuations in terms of their probability density functions (PDFs) using a single setup of 210 cm link length and takes measurement under various turbulent conditions. Experimental results show that for all turbulent conditions considered in this paper log-normal and Gaussian distribution are closely matches with measured PDF for intensity and polarization angle fluctuations, respectively.