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The inner $\sim$200 pc region of the Galaxy contains a 4 million M$_{\odot}$ supermassive black hole (SMBH), significant quantities of molecular gas, and star formation and cosmic ray energy densities that are roughly two orders of magnitude higher than the corresponding levels in the Galactic disk. At a distance of only 8.2 kpc, the region presents astronomers with a unique opportunity to study a diverse range of energetic astrophysical phenomena, from stellar objects in extreme environments, to the SMBH and star-formation driven feedback processes that are known to influence the evolution of galaxies as a whole. We present a new survey of the Galactic center conducted with the South African MeerKAT radio telescope. Radio imaging offers a view that is unaffected by the large quantities of dust that obscure the region at other wavelengths, and a scene of striking complexity is revealed. We produce total intensity and spectral index mosaics of the region from 20 pointings (144 hours on-target in total), covering 6.5 square degrees with an angular resolution of 4$"$,at a central frequency of 1.28 GHz. Many new features are revealed for the first time due to a combination of MeerKAT's high sensitivity, exceptional $u,v$-plane coverage, and geographical vantage point. We highlight some initial survey results, including new supernova remnant candidates, many new non-thermal filament complexes, and enhanced views of the Radio Arc Bubble, Sgr A and Sgr B regions. This project is a SARAO public legacy survey, and the image products are made available with this article., Comment: 29 pages, 15 figures, 3 tables, accepted for publication in the The Astrophysical Journal. Replacement arXiv version with higher quality figures

MeerKAT's large number of antennas, spanning 8 km with a densely packed 1 km core, create a powerful instrument for wide-area surveys, with high sensitivity over a wide range of angular scales. The MeerKAT Galaxy Cluster Legacy Survey (MGCLS) is a programme of long-track MeerKAT L-band (900-1670 MHz) observations of 115 galaxy clusters, observed for $\sim$6-10 hours each in full polarisation. The first legacy product data release (DR1), made available with this paper, includes the MeerKAT visibilities, basic image cubes at $\sim$8" resolution, and enhanced spectral and polarisation image cubes at $\sim$8" and 15" resolutions. Typical sensitivities for the full-resolution MGCLS image products are $\sim$3-5 {\mu}Jy/beam. The basic cubes are full-field and span 4 deg^2. The enhanced products consist of the inner 1.44 deg^2 field of view, corrected for the primary beam. The survey is fully sensitive to structures up to $\sim$10' scales and the wide bandwidth allows spectral and Faraday rotation mapping. HI mapping at 209 kHz resolution can be done at $0, Comment: 43 pages, 33 figures, 6 tables. Accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysics

The distribution of precise and accurate optical clock signals across fibre links has a significant impact in various fields. Many applications require the transfer of stable and precise timing signals from a single central location to multiple remote users via a fibre network. One such application is the big data instrument, the Square Kilometre Array (SKA). An increase in demand for more bandwidth by broadband providers has prompted the expansion and development of attractive and intelligent, modern communication networks. Vertical cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) are an attractive solution and a potential candidate for realizing low cost and high bandwidth data transmission. In this paper a novel and unique, all-optical technique for measuring the one-way transmission time delay of the propagating signal along an optical fibre is presented. This has been successfully achieved by optically injecting a pulse-per-second (PPS) signal into the secondary mode of a 1550 nm VCSEL located at the client end. A round-trip latency time of 113.2 μs was experimentally measured over a 22 km G.652 single mode fibre (SMF). A novel VCSEL capacity upgrade technique is further demonstrate. This was experimentally achieved by simultaneously modulating a single 1310 nm VCSEL with a 10 Gbps 27 − 1 pseudorandom binary sequence (PRBS) and a polarization based PPS clock signal. An error free transmission over 11 km of G.652 SMF was reported, with a measured transmission penalty of 0.52 dB when the VCSEL was simultaneously modulated with the 27 − 1 PRBS and the polarization based PPS signal.

Optical fibre communication technologies are playing important roles in data centre networks (DCNs). Techniques for increasing capacity and flexibility for the inter-rack/pod communications in data centres have drawn remarkable attention in recent years. In this work, we propose a low complexity, reliable, alternative technique for increasing DCN capacity and flexibility through multi-signal modulation onto a single mode VCSEL carrier. A 20 Gbps 4-PAM data signal is directly modulated on a single mode 10 GHz bandwidth VCSEL carrier at 1310 nm, therefore, doubling the network bit rate. Carrier spectral efficiency is further maximized by modulating its phase attribute with a 2 GHz reference frequency (RF) clock signal. We, therefore, simultaneously transmit a 20 Gbps 4-PAM data signal and a phase modulated 2 GHz RF signal using a single mode 10 GHz bandwidth VCSEL carrier. It is the first time a single mode 10 GHz bandwidth VCSEL carrier is reported to simultaneously transmit a directly modulated 4-...

In this work, a four-level pulse amplitude modulation (4-PAM) format with a polarization-modulated pulse per second (PPS) clock signal using a single vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL) carrier is for the first time experimentally demonstrated. We propose uncomplex alternative technique for increasing capacity and flexibility in short-reach optical communication links through multi-signal modulation onto a single VCSEL carrier. A 20 Gbps 4-PAM data signal is directly modulated onto a single mode 10 GHz bandwidth VCSEL carrier at 1310 nm, therefore, doubling the network bit rate. Carrier spectral efficiency is further maximized by exploiting the inherent orthogonal polarization switching of the VCSEL carrier with changing bias in transmission of a PPS clock signal. We, therefore, simultaneously transmit a 20 Gbps 4-PAM data signal and a polarization-based PPS clock signal using a single VCSEL carrier. It is the first time a signal VCSEL carrier is reported to simultaneously transmit a di...

We experimentally characterized and optimized link performance of a multi-node flexible spectrum network. The cheap and low power consuming and wavelength tunable vertical cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) have been used to create colourless and wavelength selective flexible transmitters to enable up to 10 Gb/s per channel/wavelength signals. With a −3.8 dBm VCSEL optical power and chromatic dispersion mitigation, a 25 km multi-node network has been experimentally demonstrated with a transmission penalty range of 0.2–3.2 dB. Moreover, an impairment-aware mathematical model has been created to predict signal continuity for crosstalk and dispersion penalties for a hop-to-hop signal transmission and a bit error-rate (BER) evaluation at the 10-9 threshold level. This study is vital for creating routing and network algorithms for the next-generation optical fibre networks.

For the first time, we experimentally investigate the use of vertical cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSELs) in the fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) flavour for Africa, known as fibre-to-the-hut. Fibre-to-the-hut is a VCSEL based passive optical network technology designed and optimized for African continent. VCSELs have attracted attention in optical communication due to its vast advantages; low power consumption, relatively cheap costs among others. A 4.25 Gb/s uncooled VCSEL is used in a dispersion managed, Raman assisted network achieving beyond 100 km of error free transmission suited for FTTHut scenario. Energy-efficient high performance VCSEL is modulated using a 27-1 PRBS pattern and the signal transmitted on a G.655 fibre utilizing the minimum attenuation window.

We experimentally provide an alternative solution to channel collisions through up-wavelength conversion and switching by using vertical cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs). This has been achieved by utilizing purely optical wavelength conversion on VCSELs at the low attenuation, 1550 nm transmission window. The corresponding transmission and bit error-rate (BER) performance evaluation is also presented. In this paper, two 1550 nm VCSELs with 50–150 GHz channel spacing are modulated with a 10 Gb/s NRZ PRBS 2 7 -1 data and their interferences investigated. A channel interference penalty range of 0.15–1.63 dB is incurred for 150–50 GHz channel spacing without transmission. To avoid channel collisions and to minimize high interference penalties, the transmitting VCSEL with data is injected into the side-mode of a slave VCSEL to obtain a new up converted wavelength. A 16 dB extinction ratio of the incoming wavelength is achieved when a 15 dBm transmitting beam is injected into the side-mode of a −4.5 dBm slave VCSEL. At 8.5 Gb/s, a 1.1 dB conversion and a 0.5 dB transmission penalties are realized when the converted wavelength is transmitted over a 24.7 km G.655 fibre. This work offers a low-cost, effective wavelength conversion and channel switching to reduce channel collision probability by reconfiguring channels at the node of networks.

The Galactic Centre contains a supermassive black hole with a mass of 4 million suns within an environment that differs markedly from that of the Galactic disk. While the black hole is essentially quiescent in the broader context of active galactic nuclei, X-ray observations have provided evidence for energetic outbursts from its surroundings. Also, while the levels of star formation in the Galactic Centre have been approximately constant over the last few hundred Myr, there is evidence of elevated short-duration bursts, strongly influenced by interaction of the black hole with the enhanced gas density present within the ring-like Central Molecular Zone at Galactic longitude |l| < 0.7 degrees and latitude |b| < 0.2 degrees. The inner 200 pc region is characterized by large amounts of warm molecular gas, a high cosmic ray ionization rate, unusual gas chemistry, enhanced synchrotron emission, and a multitude of radio-emitting magnetised filaments, the origin of which has not been established. Here we report radio imaging that reveals bipolar bubbles spanning 1 degree x 3 degrees (140 parsecs x 430 parsecs), extending above and below the Galactic plane and apparently associated with the Galactic Centre. The structure is edge-brightened and bounded, with symmetry implying creation by an energetic event in the Galactic Centre. We estimate the age of the bubbles to be a few million years, with a total energy of 7 x 10^52 ergs. We postulate that the progenitor event was a major contributor to the increased cosmic-ray density in the Galactic Centre, and is in turn the principal source of the relativistic particles required to power the synchrotron emission of the radio filaments within and in the vicinity of the bubble cavities., 25 pages, 3 figures, 3 tables, authors' version of a Letter published in Nature on 11 September 2019

We present the confusion-limited 1.28 GHz MeerKAT DEEP2 image covering one $\approx 68'$ FWHM primary beam area with $7.6''$ FWHM resolution and $0.55 \pm 0.01$ $\mu$Jy/beam rms noise. Its J2000 center position $\alpha=04^h 13^m 26.4^s$, $\delta=-80^\circ 00' 00''$ was selected to minimize artifacts caused by bright sources. We introduce the new 64-element MeerKAT array and describe commissioning observations to measure the primary beam attenuation pattern, estimate telescope pointing errors, and pinpoint $(u,v)$ coordinate errors caused by offsets in frequency or time. We constructed a 1.4 GHz differential source count by combining a power-law count fit to the DEEP2 confusion $P(D)$ distribution from $0.25$ to $10$ $\mu$Jy with counts of individual DEEP2 sources between $10$ $\mu$Jy and $2.5$ mJy. Most sources fainter than $S \sim 100$ $\mu$Jy are distant star-forming galaxies obeying the FIR/radio correlation, and sources stronger than $0.25$ $\mu$Jy account for $\sim93\%$ of the radio background produced by star-forming galaxies. For the first time, the DEEP2 source count has reached the depth needed to reveal the majority of the star formation history of the universe. A pure luminosity evolution of the 1.4 GHz local luminosity function consistent with the Madau & Dickinson (2014) model for the evolution of star-forming galaxies based on UV and infrared data underpredicts our 1.4 GHz source count in the range $-5 \lesssim \log[S(\mathrm{Jy})] \lesssim -4$., Comment: 20 pages, 18 figures. Accepted for publication in ApJ

The diverse communication systems in South Africa have changed drastically over the last few years and are envisioned to continue to improve as evidenced by the deployment of high speed optical fibre networks, in both access and metro networks. The key task in the design of any communication network is to come up with a tool that monitors and evaluates the performance stability of the entire communication link. A cost effective, reliable and reconfigurable bit error ratio (BER) signal analyzer was designed and implemented to monitor and evaluate the overall performance stability of a high speed optical communication link. The reconfigurable digital signal processing (DSP) assisted optical receiver is an alternative technology to the expensive and complex hardware receivers, based on its ability to be repurposed to adapt to different modulation formats. BER is a figure of merit that allows different optical communication systems to be evaluated in a fair and consistent manner. In this experimental work, a reconfigurable DSP signal analyzer tool was developed and implemented to evaluate the performance stability of an unamplified transmission through a 25 km G. 655 fibre at 1550 nm. The developed DSP algorithm was authenticated and validated by comparing its performance with results obtained from a commercial BER tester. A transmission penalty of 2 dB was attained on comparing the back-to-back to a transmission over 25 km of fibre. The cost effective DSP assisted receiver is a valuable tool to monitor and evaluate the performance fidelity of a high speed optical communication link.

The integration of time transfer and control on a low cost single board computer (SBC) system is presented. The solution allows sub-microsecond level timestamping of logic control events and analogue to digital (ADC) measurements. The system is based on low cost, miniature commercially off the shelf (COTS) hardware. External time referencing can be supplied via network timing protocol (NTP), precision timing protocol (PTP) and/or a discrete pulse per second (PPS) signal. The operating distance is extendable to tens of kilometers using a simplified PPS transmission system over fibre, based on the Karoo array timing system (KATS) developed at South African Radio Astronomy Observatory (SARAO). Integration into the MeerKAT Radio Telescope's time and frequency modules shows CISPR 22 compliance and cross coupling effects for sensitive phase transfer systems are below the stringent EMC limits acceptable for radio astronomy. Real-time control is of great importance for industrial and scientific applications. After evaluating existing market-based solutions., these were found to be either cost prohibitive, non-EMC compliant or requiring proprietary network protocols. This implementation serves to offer a time synchronisation solution which is low in cost., has a small footprint and easily integrated into timing applications.

The MeerKaT telescope consists of 64 dishes with an Offset Gregorian optical layout where the main reflector has a 13.5 m diameter. The maximum baseline of these interlinked receptors is 8 km between dishes. Synchronization and timing is vital in the operation of this telescope. There are unique challenges involved with precision time transfer in environments where ultra-low interference (below −200dBm/Hz) is required, near highly sensitive RF receivers. All electronic equipment including the MeerKAT clocks (Masers) operate within a radio frequency interference (RFI) sealed space. This forces an innovative new calibration strategy to be implemented. We present a unique calibration technique using fibre optics and a temperature stabilized global navigation satellite system (GNSS) receiver together with a time synchronization module in this article, for the first time to our knowledge. The Travelling receiver which is under development will be temperature stabilized, radio frequency interference (RFI) shielded and optically isolated. When complete the Travelling receiver will be calibrated at the National Metrology Institute of South Africa (NMISA). Thereafter the calibrated Travelling receiver will be used to calibrate the MeerKaT timing system. Using the Travelling receiver we are working towards calibrating the MeerKAT time transfer system delay (clock to GNSS delay) within ~3 ns. In this article we present key results towards the final product.

A fully integrated system for transmitting atomic clock signals over optical fibre in a high branching ratio (64) directly to L-Band Digitiser units is demonstrated to achieve ultra low jitter, sub picosecond phasing and sub nanosecond timing. The Digitiser units are located on each MeerKatradio telescope antenna which is located 6 km to 12 km from the transmitter. A 1712 MHz sampling clock and a pulse per second signal are transmitted to the Digitisers by RF over Fibre techniques. The Digitisers demodulate the timing signals and use them internally to timestamp astrophysical signals which are sampled at a rate of 1712 MSPS. The integrated jitter of the sample clock transmitter is 70 fs and the RMS phase drift over 20 minutes is 140 fs RMS at the Digitiser units connected to short lengths of fibre. Sub sample period phase variation with a short term standard deviation of < 320 ps is demonstrated between the timing pulses and RF sample clock zero crossing cycles utilizing on board time interval counting on the Digitisers. An integrated time of flight measurement is also performed by the transmitter, to compensate for differential path delays between antennas, with an estimated uncertainty of

New radio (MeerKAT and Parkes) and X-ray (XMM-Newton, Swift, Chandra, and NuSTAR) observations of PSR J1622-4950 indicate that the magnetar, in a quiescent state since at least early 2015, reactivated between 2017 March 19 and April 5. The radio flux density, while variable, is approximately 100x larger than during its dormant state. The X-ray flux one month after reactivation was at least 800x larger than during quiescence, and has been decaying exponentially on a 111+/-19 day timescale. This high-flux state, together with a radio-derived rotational ephemeris, enabled for the first time the detection of X-ray pulsations for this magnetar. At 5%, the 0.3-6 keV pulsed fraction is comparable to the smallest observed for magnetars. The overall pulsar geometry inferred from polarized radio emission appears to be broadly consistent with that determined 6-8 years earlier. However, rotating vector model fits suggest that we are now seeing radio emission from a different location in the magnetosphere than previously. This indicates a novel way in which radio emission from magnetars can differ from that of ordinary pulsars. The torque on the neutron star is varying rapidly and unsteadily, as is common for magnetars following outburst, having changed by a factor of 7 within six months of reactivation., Comment: Published in ApJ (2018 April 5); 13 pages, 4 figures

For the first time to our knowledge, we experimentally demonstrate a clock signal transmission using a counter-propagating Raman pump as a transmitter and concurrently utilize the same pump to amplify a data signal. A 1548[Formula: see text]nm vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL) was modulated with a pseudorandom bit sequence (2[Formula: see text]) and coupled into an optical fiber. A 1448[Formula: see text]nm Raman pump in the backward scheme was also modulated with a 10[Formula: see text]kHz clock and used to boost the VCSEL data signal so as to improve the reach of the transmission. Clock distribution in a telescope network such as the Square Kilometre Array (SKA) is essential for the proper operation of the digitizers as well as dish synchronization. In the SKA phase 1, long transmissions involving baselines extending up to 100[Formula: see text]km may need amplification. We propose the use of counter-Raman configuration to amplify the signal carrying received astronomical data while transmitting a clock to the receptors. This is a cost-effective bi-directional transmission suited for telescope network applications.

We present measurements of the frequency transfer stability and analysis of the noise characteristics of an optical signal propagating over aerial suspended fiber links up to 153.6 km in length. The measured frequency transfer stability over these links is on the order of 10^-11 at an integration time of one second dropping to 10^-12 for integration times longer than 100 s. We show that wind-loading of the cable spans is the dominant source of short-timescale noise on the fiber links. We also report an attempt to stabilize the optical frequency transfer over these aerial links., 4 pages, submitted to Optics Letters

An optical fiber based laser radar time transfer system has been developed for the 64-dish MeerKAT radiointerferometer telescope project to provide accurate atomic time to the receivers of the telescope system. This time transfer system is called the Karoo Array Timing System (KATS). Calibration of the time transfer system is essential to ensure that time is accurately transferred to the digitisers that form part of the receivers. Frequency domain reflectometry via vector network analysers is also used to verify measurements taken using time interval counters. This paper details the progress that is made in the verification measurements of the system in order to ensure that time, accurate to within a few nanoseconds of the Universal Coordinated Time (UTC, is available at the point where radio signals from astronomical sources are received. This capability enables world class transient and timing studies with a compact radio interferometer, which has inherent advantages over large single dish radio-telescopes, in observing the transient sky.

For the first time, we demonstrate, VCSEL-to-VCSEL wavelength conversion within the low attenuation 1550 nm window, including transmission over fibre and bit error rate (BER) performance characterization. We experimentally demonstrate a low injection power optical wavelength conversion by injecting an optical beam from a signal carrier master vertical cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) into the side-mode of the slave VCSEL. This technique solves the challenge of wavelength collisions and also provides wavelength re-use in typical wavelength division multiplexed (WDM) systems. This paper, for the first time, uses two 1550 nm VCSELs with tunability range of 3 nm for a 5-9.8 mA bias current. The master VCSEL is modulated with a non-return-to-zero (NRZ) pseudo-random binary sequence (PRBS_27-1) 8.5 Gb/s data. A data conversion penalty of 1.1 dB is realized when a 15 dBm injection beam is used. The transmission performance of the converted wavelength from the slave VCSEL is evaluated using BER measurement at a 10-9 threshold. A 0.5 dB transmission penalty of the converted wavelength data is realized in an 8.5 Gb/s transmission over 24.7 km. This work is vital for optical fibre systems that may require wavelength switching for transmission of data signals.

Precise and accurate timing signals distributed between a centralized location and several end-users are widely used in both metro-access and speciality networks for Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), GPS satellite systems, banking, very long baseline interferometry and science projects such as SKA radio telescope. Such systems utilize time and frequency technology to ensure phase coherence among data signals distributed across an optical fibre network. For accurate timing requirements, precise time intervals should be measured between successive pulses. In this paper we describe a novel, all optical method for quantifying one-way propagation times and phase perturbations in the fibre length, using pulse-persecond (PPS) signals. The approach utilizes side mode injection of a 1550nm 10Gbps vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL) at the remote end. A 125 μs one-way time of flight was accurately measured for 25 km G655 fibre. Since the approach is all-optical, it avoids measurement inaccuracies introduced by electro-optical conversion phase delays. Furthermore, the implementation uses cost effective VCSEL technology and suited to a flexible range of network architectures, supporting a number of end-users conducting measurements at the remote end.

Access networks based on vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL) transmitters offer alternative solution in delivering different high bandwidth, cost effective services to the customer premises. Clock and reference frequency distribution is critical for applications such as Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), GPS, banking and big data science projects. Simultaneous distribution of both data and timing signals over shared infrastructure is thus desirable. In this paper, we propose and experimentally demonstrate a novel, cost-effective technique for multi-signal modulation on a single VCSEL transmitter. Two signal types, an intensity modulated 10 Gbps data signal and a polarization-based pulse per second (PPS) clock signal are directly modulated onto a single VCSEL carrier at 1310 nm. Spectral efficiency is maximized by exploiting inherent orthogonal polarization switching of the VCSEL with changing bias in transmission of the PPS signal. A 10 Gbps VCSEL transmission with PPS over 11 km of G.652 fibre introduced a transmission penalty of 0.52 dB. The contribution of PPS to this penalty was found to be 0.08 dB.

The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) will be the world’s largest and most sensitive radio telescope. It will address fundamental unanswered questions about our Universe including how the first stars and galaxies formed after the Big Bang, how dark energy is accelerating the expansion of theUniverse, the role of magnetism in the cosmos, the nature of gravity, and the search for life beyond Earth. This project envisages the construction of 133 15-m antennas in South Africa and 131072 log-periodic antennas in Australia, together with the associated infrastructure in the two desert sites. In addition, the SKA is an exemplar Big Data project, with data rates of over 10 Tbps being transported from the telescope to HPC/HTC facilities.

The architecture of a precise fibre optic time transfer system for the MeerKAT radio telescope is presented. Preliminary measurement results achieved, on the pre-production units of the timing interface for L-Band Digitisers, are shown. The time transfer system links the central telescope atomic clock ensemble and the L-Band Digitiser units which are located at each of the 64 MeerKAT dishes, separated by up to 10 km. Timing is encoded via radio frequency (RF) modulation of an optical carrier at the time transmitter. A portion of the light is reflected back at the Digitiser units and demodulated at the time transmitter. The Digitiser demodulates the timing signal which is sampled in parallel with astronomical signals at 1712 Megasamples per second (MSPS), thereby accurately timestamping astrophysical signals. Initial test results show that the interfacing system is capable of transferring time to the Digitiser units with

We investigate both experimentally and by simulation the Noise Figure (NF) and pump reflection power of a Distributed Fibre Raman Amplifier (DFRA) as a function of pump power and fibre length, at different pump configurations. A DFRA of lengths 25 km and 50 km has been experimentally designed using Single Mode Reach Fibre (SMF-Reach) with an attenuation of 0.20 dB/km. Two pumping techniques namely Co-pumping and counter pumping have been used. It was found that the increase in fibre length, lead to increase in the NF irrespective of the pumping technique used. A NF of −2.2 dB and −1.9 dB was achieved experimentally for Co- and Counter pumping schemes respectively, for a 25 km fibre at 23 dB pump power. For a 50 km fibre, a NF of −1.8 dB and −0.7 dB was obtained for the two pump configurations respectively, under the same pump power. Pump reflection power varied inversely with gain and directly with fibre length. This work recommends Co-pumping technique in signal transmission due to its low NF and pump reflection power.

The MeerKAT telescope is a precursor to the Square Kilometre Array, which will rely on optical fibres to link the telescope receivers to a central processor point. The main aspects to consider for the fibre transport are astronomical data transmission as well as timing, monitoring and control. The astronomical data streams from individual dishes to a central building, while the clock signal is distributed from a central point to remote dishes in the telescope array. The MeerKAT telescope, for instance, demands highly accurate and stable clock distribution over up to 12 km of optical fibre to remote dishes. The clock distribution is required for digitisation of astronomical signals. Phase stability is thus critical both for short-term and long-term requirements. In this work, we focused on the short-term stability. Phase noise measurements were performed on optical transmitters used to distribute the clock signals so as to ascertain their contribution to the overall clock jitter of the system. A maximum jitter requirement of 130 fs for a 1.712-GHz clock signal for MeerKAT time and reference is achieved using a distributed feedback laser. We found that with optimised modulation depth, additional passive optical components in the link do not significantly degrade the phase noise response. A distributed feedback laser was proven to be a suitable optical source that will meet the performance and link budget requirements for the MeerKAT telescope. Significance: A distributed feedback laser is recommended for the design of the MeerKAT time and reference system as it is a suitable optical source that will meet the performance and link budget requirements.

Scientific curiosity to probe the nature of the universe is pushing boundaries of big data transport and computing for radio telescopes. MeerKAT, the South African precursor to Square Kilometre Array (SKA), has 64 antennae separated by up to 12 km. By 2018, each antenna will stream up to 160 Gbps over optical fibre to a central computing engine. The antennae digitizers require highly accurate clock signals distributed with high stability. This paper outlines requirements and key design aspects of the MeerKAT network with timing reference overlay. Fieldwork results are presented into the impact of birefringence and polarization fluctuations on clock stability.

We experimentally investigate the effects of increase of the differential group delay (DGD) on Raman gain and gain value. It was found that the increase of DGD values lead to the formation and the increase in the number of ripples at the expense of gain. A Raman amplifier with gain of 6.65 dB has been experimentally designed using a 24 km-SMF fibre spool with a gain fluctuation of ±0.2dB. Measurement of PMD using an optical fibre Raman amplifier has also been investigated and validated. This work recommends low values of DGD to reduce signal and gain distortion.

We experimentally investigate the differential group delay (DGD) in KAT-7 optical fibre network using polametric measurement technique. Low PMD values in the femtosecond range are obtained over the 10 km single mode fibre. It is also established that deployment of the fibre alters the DGD of the network. This study is paramount in ensuring accurate and stable clock signal as well as error free transmission at very high bit rates in the optical network.

We evaluate the effects of optical fibre bending on polarization mode dispersion (PMD) and states of polarization (SOP) for a KAT-7 dish antenna riser cable. The antenna riser cable is the optical cable extending from the pedestal to the focus of the antenna. The riser cable for each antenna is subjected to environmental variations and to any physical variation caused by the motion of the fibre while the antenna is being scanned. To emulate this, we have investigated the effects of optical fibre bending with a riser cable inserted in a bending jig built to simulate antenna scanning movements. Measurements have shown that Differential Group Delay (DGD) values remain below 10 fs in the loop back configuration and below 6fs in the straight through configuration of the optical fibre placement in the bending jig. For the purpose of this paper, PMD and SOP measurements were made with a single varying element being the amount of bending enforced onto the optical fibres under test.

Recently, fiber Raman amplifiers have proven to be effective in the all-optical control of the state of polarization of signals in single-mode telecommunications optical fibers. Previous works predicted the existence of a quantitative relationship between the achieved degree of polarization and the mean Raman gain. Here, we experimentally validate such a relationship in the case of counter-propagating Raman-based polarization attractors for different pump and signal powers and for different fiber link lengths.

Scientific curiosity to probe the nature of the universe is pushing the boundaries of big data transport and computing for radio telescopes. MeerKAT, the South African precursor to Square Kilometre Array, has 64 antennas separated by up to 12 km. By 2018, each antenna will stream up to 160 Gbps over optical fiber to a central computing engine. The antenna digitizers require highly accurate clock signals distributed with high stability. This paper outlines requirements and key design aspects of the MeerKAT network with timing reference overlay. Fieldwork results are presented into the impact of birefringence and polarization fluctuations on clock stability.