A high-resolution optical vector analysis (OVA) based on optical single sideband (OSSB) modulation using a dual port Mach–Zehnder modulator (DP-MZM) is proposed and demonstrated. By using the DP-MZM, an OSSB modulation signal is generated. The generated OSSB signal is propagating through the device under test (DUT). After the optical-to-electrical conversion in photodetector (PD), a photocurrent carrying the frequency responses of the DUT is obtained. After signal processing, the photocurrent corresponding to the frequency component is extracted, and the frequency responses of DUT are measured with high-resolution in simulation. To eliminate the frequency response of the system, a calibration procedure is performed by removing the DUT. Compared to the traditional methods, the proposed OVA can be used to measure the frequency responses of high-quality optical devices with MHz-resolution over a large measurement range. By using the DP-MZM, the stability is improved, and the complexity is reduced. The proposed method is theoretically analyzed and verified by simulation. A simulation for measuring the frequency responses of the ideal phase-shifted fiber Bragg grating and the ideal Fabry–Perot cavity is carried out, the frequency responses in a range of 50 GHz are measured with a resolution of 1 MHz. The proposed method can be potentially applied in the field of characterization of integrated optoelectronic devices and future photonic systems.

An optical vector analysis (OVA) based on serrodyne modulation is proposed and numerically verified by simulations. In the proposed OVA, serrodyne modulation is implemented using a dual-parallel dual-drive Mach–Zehnder modulator to generate asymmetric optical double-sideband (ODSB) signals including a frequency-shifted optical carrier. The generated signals subsequently propagate through the optical device under test (ODUT). Owing to the asymmetric ODSB structure, the proposed OVA is inherently immune to errors induced by the nonlinearity of the electro-optic modulator (EOM). Consequently, the responses of the ODUT can be accurately obtained by processing the frequency-shifted photocurrent, which is converted from the frequency-shifted carrier and the two desired sidebands. Furthermore, the proposed approach overcomes the limitation of conventional optical single-sideband-based OVA in characterizing bandpass responses. Through numerical simulations, the frequency responses of a uniform fiber Bragg grating, a Fabry–Perot cavity, and a bandpass filter are obtained within a bandwidth of 20 GHz. The proposed OVA provides an approach for characterization of optical devices and integrated microwave photonics systems.