A finite impulse-response microwave photonic filter is typically achieved based on spectrum-shaped optical frequency combs and a dispersive element. We propose an analytical model to describe the amplitude responses of the sidelobes. The model shows that the sidelobe suppression ratio is limited by the spectrum structure of the optical combs. By taking Gaussian-profiled combs as an example, it is both theoretically and experimentally proved that the suppression ratio can be improved by optimizin
