Nonlinear Fiber-Optics with Picosecond Pulses for all-Optical WDM/TDM Systems

Northwestern University, Evanston IL

Investigators

Abstract

We propose to build a cache storage buffer based upon parametric amplification that will be capable of operating in the Gb/s range, permitting kbits of data to be stored. We will carry out experiments to explore various ways of reading, writing, and erasing the stored data patterns. Our work has shown that the ultrafast parametric nonlinearity can be exploited either to provide broad-band tunable gain or dynamic gain modulation for clock-recovery. We propose to combine the two to demonstrate an optical phase-lock loop, which in principle can be extremely fast as it relies on the Kerr nonlinearity for envelope-phase discrimination. Such a phase-lock loop will also be wavelength tunable-a feature that is quite important as it adds the function of wavelength conversion to the standard 3R all-optical regenerator. Simultaneous to the above experimental studies we will also develop numerical models of the various optical systems. This will provide a design tool to determine the parameter values allowing the most efficient operation of the experimental setups. We have previously demonstrated the possibility of stably propagating sub-picosecond pulses in fiber lines in which conjugating gain is used to compensate the linear loss. We propose to assemble a re-circulating loop experiment in which linear loss will be compensated by a pair of non-degenerate parametric (conjugating) amplifiers. The location of the two amplifiers will be chosen based upon further theoretical/numerical results. We will experimentally and theoretically study the stability properties of the sub-picosecond pulses by making various signal and noise measurements, and will compare the experimental results directly with numerical simulations. The proposed experiments will be performed in both the 1550 and 1300 nm wavelength regions in order to demonstrate the wideband capability of parametric amplification.