High-frequency enhancement of magneto-optic data storage signals by optical and electronic filtering

We show that the system transfer function of magneto-optic data storage systems can be improved significantly by combination of optical filtering and electronic filtering. In our experiment, the relative high-frequency contrast improved from 10% to 40% after application of a combined optical and electronic filter. The carrier-to-noise ratio was slightly degraded at low frequencies but was improved by 2–3 dB at high frequencies. Measurements indicate that the combined system improves jitter by a factor of 3 at high frequencies.