Inter-core crosstalk in weakly coupled MCFs with arbitrary core layout and the effect of bending and twisting on the coupling coefficient.

We investigate the bending and twisting-induced longitudinal variation of the inter-core coupling coefficient (ICCC) and its effect on inter-core crosstalk (ICXT) in weakly coupled multi-core fibers (MCFs) with an arbitrary core layout. An analytical discrete changes model (DCM) for ICXT field propagation under those conditions is proposed for the first time, providing very fast and rather accurate mean ICXT power estimates. The analytical mean ICXT power estimates are validated through numerical simulation. It is predicted that the mean ICXT power between adjacent cores of the outer ring of the 19-core MCF can be more than 10 dB higher than the one between adjacent cores of the inner ring. It is also predicted that the difference between the mean ICXT power of cores in the inner and outer rings can be much smaller by decreasing the core pitch and increasing the bending radius. This behavior is attributed to the ICXT dependence on the bending and twisting-induced longitudinal variation of the ICCCs. In particular, larger bending and twisting-induced fluctuations of the ICCCs along the longitudinal coordinate are observed in the cores of the outer ring, but the fluctuations become smaller for smaller core pitches and larger bending radii. Furthermore, it is shown that, if the ICCCs' longitudinal variation is neglected, the mean ICXT power estimates between two adjacent cores are very similar despite the location of those cores. This means that neglecting the longitudinal variation of the ICCCs can lead to misleading estimates of the mean ICXT power, with an error exceeding 15 dB.

Characterization of the stochastic time evolution of short-term average intercore crosstalk in multicore fibers with multiple interfering cores.

A theoretical model for the stochastic time evolution of the intercore crosstalk (ICXT) in homogeneous weakly-coupled multicore fibers (MCF) with multiple interfering cores is proposed and validated experimentally. The model relies on the introduction of non-stationary time varying random phase shifts at every center point between the phase matching points of the MCF where the difference of the effective refractive indexes of the core of the originating signal and the core suffering from ICXT is zero. Closed form-expressions for the autocovariance of the short-term average ICXT (STAXT) with stationary and non-stationary phase shift models in MCFs with multiple excited cores are derived and validated by comparison with experimental results. These expressions enable estimating the decorrelation time of the STAXT generated by multiple interfering cores from the decorrelation times of the STAXT generated by each pair of cores. The proposed model and the ICXT measurements taken continuously over more than 150 hours show that the decorrelation time of the STAXT generated by multiple interfering cores exceeds the one obtained for the pair of cores with shorter decorrelation time. The proposed model is increasingly important to simulate and design MCF-based systems where the ICXT dynamics must be properly accounted for to develop efficient ICXT-tolerant techniques.

Performance of adaptive DD-OFDM multicore fiber links and its relation with intercore crosstalk.

Adaptive direct-detection (DD) orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) is proposed to guarantee signal quality over time in weakly-coupled homogenous multicore fiber (MCFs) links impaired by stochastic intercore crosstalk (ICXT). For the first time, the received electrical power of the ICXT and the performance of the adaptive DD-OFDM MCF link are experimentally monitored quasi-simultaneously over a 210 hour period. Experimental results show that the time evolution of the error vector magnitude due to the ICXT can be suitably estimated from the normalized power of the detected crosstalk. The detected crosstalk results from the beating between the carrier in the test core and ICXT originating from the carrier and modulated signal from interfering core. The results show that the operation of DD-OFDM systems employing fixed modulation can be severely impaired by the presence of ICXT that may unpredictable vary in both power and frequency. The system may suffer from deleterious impact of moderate ICXT levels over a time duration of several hours or from peak ICXT levels occurring over a number of minutes. Such power fluctuations can lead to large variations in bit error ratio (BER) for static modulation schemes. Here, we show that BER fluctuations may be minimized by the use of adaptive modulation techniques and that in particular, the adaptive OFDM is a viable solution to guarantee link quality in MCF-based systems. An experimental model of an adaptive DD-OFDM MCF link shows an average throughput of 12 Gb/s that represents a reduction of only 9% compared to the maximum throughput measured without ICXT and an improvement of 23% relative to throughput obtained with static modulation.

Analytical characterization of four wave mixing effect in direct-detection double-sideband OFDM optical transmission systems.

A closed-form expression for the variance of the four-wave mixing (FWM) induced in each subcarrier of a double sideband orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) system employing direct detection is proposed and validated. Particularly, using a small signal analysis, equivalent transfer functions that characterize the frequency response of the FWM effect are derived taking into account the walkoff effect between the modulated pump waves and the FWM wave. The accuracy of the variance estimates provided by the closed-form expression is assessed for different sets of system parameters. The closed-form expression provides good variance estimates of the FWM-induced degradation caused by degenerate and nonsymmetric nondegenerate FWM components. For symmetric non-degenerate FWM components, the proposed expression provides reliable but pessimistic variance estimates, not exceeding the actual FWM variance in 1.5 dB for modulation indexes of interest.

Transmission of OFDM wired-wireless quintuple-play services along WDM LR-PONs using centralized broadband impairment compensation.

The simultaneous transmission of four orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM)-based signals used to provide quintuple-play services along wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) long-reach passive optical networks (LR-PONs) is demonstrated experimentally. Particularly, the transmission performance of custom signal bearing Gigabit Ethernet data, Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access, Long Term Evolution and Ultra Wideband (sub-bands 2 and 3) signals is evaluated for different LR-PONs reaches, considering single-wavelength and WDM transmission, and using a centralized impairment compensation technique at the central office that is transparent to the services provided.It is shown that error vector magnitude-compliant levels are obtained for all the OFDM-based signals in WDM LR-PONs reaching 100 km and that negligible inter-channel crosstalk is obtained for a channel spacing of 100 GHz regardless the OFDM-based signal considered. The successful multi-format OFDM transmission along the 100 km-long WDM LR-PON is achieved in the absence of optical dispersion compensation or single sideband modulation, and it is enabled by the performance improvement provided by the centralized impairment compensation realized.

SNR approach for performance evaluation of time-stretching photonic analogue to digital converter system.

A semi-analytical simulation method (SASM) is proposed to evaluate the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of time stretched signals at the output of photonic analogue-to-digital converter (Ph-ADC) system. Analytical expressions of the signal at Ph-ADC output considering generic electrical signals applied to the electro-optic modulators of the Ph-ADC are derived. The contribution to the total variance of the received signal from the noise introduced by the electrical transmitter and receiver, and by the optical amplifier are derived analytically taking into account the pulsed nature of the optical signal. The proposed SASM shows excellent agreement of SNR estimates with the estimates provided by Monte Carlo simulation. This result is confirmed for variance dominantly imposed by the noise introduced by the electrical transmitter, by the optical amplifier and by the electrical receiver. A simplified approach is also proposed and compared with previous work. It is shown that mean power estimates obtained from this simplified approach are valid while the modulator is operating in the linear region and the signal is not affected by the frequency response of the electrical receiver filter. Additionally, it is concluded that the estimates of the noise variance due to the electrical transmitter are acceptable when a small signal analysis of noise along the Ph-ADC is valid.

Experimental study of coexistence of multi-band OFDM-UWB and OFDM-baseband signals in long-reach PONs using directly modulated lasers.

Transmission of coexisting Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM)-baseband (BB) and multi-band OFDM-ultra-wideband (UWB) signals along long-reach passive optical networks using directly modulated lasers (DML) is experimentally demonstrated.When optimized modulation indexes are used, bit error ratios not exceeding 5 × 10⁻4 can be achieved by all (OFDM-BB and three OFDM-UWB sub-bands) signals for a reach of 100 km of standard single-mode fiber (SSMF) and optical signal-to-noise ratios not lower than 25dB@0.1 nm. It is experimentally shown that, for the SSMF reach of 100km, the optimized performance of coexisting OFDM-BB and OFDM-UWB signals is mainly imposed by the combination of two effects: the SSMF dispersion-induced nonlinear distortion of the OFDM-UWB signals caused by the OFDM-BB and OFDM-UWB signals, and the further degradation of the OFDM-UWB signals with higher frequency, due to the reduced DML bandwidth.

Semi-analytical approach for performance evaluation of direct-detection OFDM optical communication systems.

A semi-analytical method to evaluate the bit error ratio (BER) in direct-detection (DD) optical fibre transmission systems employing orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) and optically pre-amplified receivers is proposed. The method considers a Gaussian approach for the signal at the equalizer output and allows evaluating accurately the BER of each OFDM subcarrier for the receiver structure considered and for practical optical and electrical filters shapes, being a powerful tool to perform the optimization of these systems. The results obtained by the proposed method have shown excellent agreement with Monte Carlo estimates for DD-OFDM ultra-wideband radio signals and for two different DD-OFDM signals proposed for long-haul systems.