60GHz Band RoF Transport Distribution System for CATV Application

Mobile operators will face many challenges both economically and technically, as WLAN evolve through a bewildering number of different standards during the coming years. Potentially this will require several upgrades to the mobile infrastructure. A new approach for addressing these challenges is evaluated in this paper. It is based on a radio over fiber (RoF) technology that uses electro-absorption modulator (EAM) and optical single sideband (OSSB) modulation technique and it promises to provide solutions that will be transparent to changes in protocols and frequency of operation as well as reducing radio access infrastructure costs. This paper describes the development of prototype RoF system based on the 60GHz band CATV transport distribution system with EAM and the possibility of radio over fiber technology for use in the broadband convergence network (BcN) wireless access infrastructure.