Multi-channel 100-Gbit/s DQPSK data exchange using bidirectional degenerate four-wave mixing

Area of Science:

• Optical Communications
• Nonlinear Optics
• Photonics

Background:

• Simultaneous multi-channel data exchange is crucial for increasing optical network capacity.
• Degenerate four-wave mixing (FWM) is a nonlinear optical process with potential for wavelength conversion and data manipulation.
• Highly nonlinear fiber (HNLF) offers enhanced nonlinear effects for optical signal processing.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose and demonstrate a simple approach for simultaneous multi-channel data exchange.
• To investigate the performance of bidirectional degenerate FWM in HNLF for data exchange applications.
• To assess the feasibility of this method for high-speed optical data transmission.

Main Methods:

• Utilizing bidirectional degenerate four-wave mixing (FWM) in a single highly nonlinear fiber (HNLF).
• Employing optical filtering to manage spectral components and enable data exchange.
• Implementing 100-Gbit/s return-to-zero differential quadrature phase-shift keying (RZ-DQPSK) signals.

Main Results:

• Successful data exchange for two-channel 100-Gbit/s RZ-DQPSK signals with variable channel spacing.
• Achieved a power penalty of less than 4.2 dB at a bit-error rate (BER) of 10(-9) for two-channel exchange.
• Demonstrated simultaneous four-channel 100-Gbit/s RZ-DQPSK data exchange with a power penalty of less than 4.7 dB at a BER of 10(-9).

Conclusions:

• The proposed simple approach enables efficient simultaneous multi-channel data exchange.
• Bidirectional degenerate FWM in HNLF, assisted by optical filtering, is a viable technique for high-capacity optical networks.
• The method shows promising results for future high-speed optical communication systems.