Effect of side-mode suppression ratio on the performance of self-seeded gain-switched optical pulses in lightwave communications systems

The side-mode suppression ratio (SMSR) of self-seeded gain-switched optical pulses is shown to be an extremely important factor for the use of these pulses in optical communications systems. Experiments carried out involving pulse propagation through dispersion-shifted fiber and a bandpass optical filter demonstrate that, for SMSR values of less than 25 dB, the buildup of noise due to the mode partition effect may render these pulses unsuitable for use in optical communications system

Remote downconversion scheme for uplink configuration in radio/fiber systems

The authors present a novel technology for uplink transmission in radio over fiber (RoF) distribution systems. The technique employs remote downconversion of the uplink data to intermediate frequency (IF) in the base station (BS). The local oscillator (LO) signal for the downconversion is optically generated in the central station (CS) and sent to the BS via optical fiber. The IF uplink data is then modulated onto an optical carrier and sent to the CS, where the baseband conversion takes place. By employing this method of uplink connection simplicity and cost efficiency of the BS is achieved

Cost-based burst dropping strategy in optical burst switching networks

Optical burst switching (OBS) is a new paradigm for future all-optical networks. Intentional burst dropping is one of techniques used to achieve desired quality of service. In this paper we note that some bursts are more likely to cause contention. We propose a cost function that can be used to predict the likelihood that a given burst will interfere with other traffic, then we explain how, by using this information a new burst dropping strategy can be designed. We compare our method with a random burst dropping technique and show that the cost-based approach offers a significant performance improvement

Remote downconversion with wavelength reuse for the radio/fiber uplink connection

The authors present a novel technology for uplink transmission in radio-over-fiber distribution systems. The technique employs remote downconversion of the uplink data to intermediate frequency (IF) in the base station (BS). The local oscillator signal for the downconversion is optically generated in the central station (CS) and sent to the BS via optical fiber. The IF uplink data is then modulated onto an optical carrier, retrieved from the downlink signal, and sent to the CS, where the baseband conversion takes place. By employing this method of uplink connection, simplicity and cost efficiency of the BS is achieved

Pump-probe detuning dependence of four-wave mixing pulse in an SOA

Four-wave mixing (FWM) between 2-ps pulses in a multiquantum-well semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) is presented. The conjugate pulses are fully characterized using the frequency-resolved optical gating technique. The detuning between the pump and probe is varied, leading to a compression of the FWM signal from 3.71 to 2.77 ps as the detuning is increased from 5 to 25 nm. The output conjugate pulse is always broader than the injected probe signal due to gain saturation effects. A reshaping of the conjugate pulse is also measured. However, large nonlinearities are introduced to the frequency chirp across the pulse for large detunings which may degrade the performance of four-wave-mixing-based all-optical processing applications in SOAs

Equivalent random analysis of a buffered optical switch with general interarrival times

We propose an approximate analytic model of an optical switch with fibre delay lines and wavelength converters by employing Equivalent Random Theory. General arrival traffic is modelled by means of Gamma-distributed interarrival times. The analysis is formulated in terms of virtual traffic flows within the optical switch from which we derive expressions for burst blocking probability, fibre delay line occupancy and mean delay. Emphasis is on approximations that give good numerical efficiency so that the method can be useful for formulating dimensioning problems for large-scale networks. Numerical solution values from the proposed analysis method compare well with results from a discrete-event simulation of an optical burst switch

Effects of weak input side mode suppression ratio and output filtration on the intensity noise of a self-seeded gain switched optical pulses at 2.5 GHz

Mode partition noise is shown to be a cause for concern in terms of the intensity noise induced on a self-seeded gain-switched pulse when filtering is used to increase the side mode suppression ratio (SMSR) of the output signal to >30 dB. The inherent SMSR of a self-seeded gain switched pulse is revealed to be a vital parameter especially when output filtration is used. Our results portray the fact that such a procedure would lead to an introduction of noise on the SSGS pulses if the inherent SMSR is weak, and may ultimately determine whether or not a source is suitable for use in WDM or OTDM optical communication networks

Effects of intermodulation distortion on the performance of a hybrid radio/fiber system employing a self-pulsating laser diode transmitter

A self-pulsating laser is used to generate a multicarrier (five radio frequency (RF) channels) microwave optical signal for use in a hybrid radio/fiber system. The self-pulsation is achieved by external light injection into the laser diode. By varying the RF channel spacing, we have been able to estimate the degradation in system performance due to intermodulation distortion (caused by the nonlinear dynamic response of the laser). The power penalty on the central RF channel is found to be 3.2 dB for operation at the RF band around the laser self-pulsation frequency of 18.5 GHz. We have also characterized the performance of the multicarrier hybrid radio/fiber system in the frequency band corresponding to the inherent relaxation frequency of the laser