System configurations based on single monolithic-apertures that are immune to atmospheric fluctuations are being
developed. Main goal is the improvement of the performance achievable in coherent, free-space optical communication
systems using atmospheric compensation techniques such as adaptive optics. As an alternative to a single monolithicaperture
coherent receiver with a full-size collecting area, a large effective aperture can be achieved by combining the
output signal from an array of smaller receivers. We study the communication performance of field conjugation adaptive
arrays applied in synchronous laser communication through the turbulent atmosphere. We assume that a single
information-bearing signal is transmitted over the atmospheric fading channel, and that the adaptive array coherent
receiver combines multiple dependent replicas to improve detection efficiency. We consider the effects of log-normal
amplitude fluctuations and Gaussian phase fluctuations, in addition to local oscillator shot noise. We study the effect of
various atmospheric parameters and the number of branches combined at the receiver.Postprint (published version
