PMD properties of spun silica holey fibers

Fuochi, M., Hayes, J.R., Petrovich, M.N., Baggett, J.C., Monro, T.M. and Richardson, D.J. (2005) PMD properties of spun silica holey fibers. Optical Fiber Communication Conference, 2005 (OFC/NFOEC), , Anaheim, United States. 06 - 11 Mar 2005. pp. 1-3 .

Abstract

Polarization mode dispersion (PMD) can lead to stochastic pulse broadening and distortion for optical signals propagating along a transmission line and represents a significant limiting factor for high capacity optical communication systems. Although it is largely possible to compensate for PMD this adds considerable complexity and cost to the system and it is thus necessary to use low-PMD fibers within any new installations. It is well-known that the PMD of a fiber can be effectively reduced without adding unwanted circular birefringence by incorporating fiber in preform spinning techniques during the drawing process [1,2]. Spinning techniques work extremely well for conventional transmission fibers and PMD values well below 100 fs/km are now routinely achieved. The loss of holey fibers (HFs) has now fallen to the level that application of such fibers for data transmission purposes is now being seriously considered. Whether low PMD values might be reliably achieved with this technology is thus an important issue. In a recent paper we reported the first results in this direction and showed that spinning of holey fibers during the draw was possible, and that a reduction in the PMD was achievable using this approach [3]. In the present paper we confirm our previous results by comparing spun and non-spun holey fiber samples with more closely-matched structural parameters than were possible in the previous demonstration. These experiments eliminate any possible concerns that the PMD reduction previously reported might have been caused by structural variation between our spun and non-spun fibers. The statistical features of the PMD of OUT spun and non-spun samples as a function of fiber length are also investigated.

This record has no associated files available for download.

Contributors

Author: M.N. Petrovich

Author: D.J. Richardson

Download statistics