Deep-Space Optical Transceiver Uplink Detection Analysis

In this article, we develop and analyze an uplink signal detection technique for the Deep-Space Optical Transceiver (DOT). Here, the detection is carried out using a set of test statistics obtained from up-down counter (UDC) photon detection systems. Specifically, we address two sets of statistics: the count outputs from a bank of uniformly temporally spaced UDCs as well as the counts from a single UDC that cycles through multiple uniformly spaced timing phases. From these test statistics, we derive the Neyman-Pearson decision rule under certain input conditions and analyze the performance of this hypothesis test. We show the performance trade-offs associated with both sets of test statistics, which can then be used to determine which set to use as well as the number of UDCs or timing phases required for implementation.