Fig.

3-17: Polarization mode dispersion

Optimum single mode fiber & distortion/attenuation characteristics

Fact 1) Minimum distortion at wavelength about 1300 nm for single mode
silica fiber.
Fact 2) Minimum attenuation is at 1550 nm for sinlge mode silica fiber.
Strategy: shifting the zero-dispersion to longer wavelength for minimum
attenuation and dispersion by Modifying waveguide dispersion by
changing from a simple step-index core profile to more complicated
profiles. There are four major categories to do that:
1- 1300 nm optimized single mode step-fibers: matched cladding (mode
diameter 9.6 micrometer) and depressed-cladding (mode diameter about 9
micrometer)
2- Dispersion shifted fibers.
3- Dispersion-flattened fibers.
4- Large-effective area (LEA) fibers (less nonlinearities for fiber optical
amplifier applications, effective cross section areas are typically greater
than 100 m 2 ).

Single mode fiber dispersion

Optical Fiber communications, 3 rd ed.,G.Keiser,McGrawHill, 2000

Dispersion Loss

As an optical signal travels along the

fiber, it becomes increasingly
distorted.
This distortion is a sequence of
intermodal and intramodal
dispersion.
Two types:
1.Intermodal Dispersion
2.Intramodal Dispersion

Intermodal Dispersion:
Pulse broadening due to intermodal
dispersion results from the propagation
delay differences between modes
within a multimode fiber.
Intramodal Dispersion:
It is the pulse spreading that occurs
within a single mode.
Material Dispersion
Waveguide Dispersion

1) Material Dispersion:
) Also known as spectral dispersion or
chromatic dispersion.
) Results because of variation due to
Refractive Index of core as a function of
wavelength, because of which pulse
spreading occurs even when different
wavelengths follow the same path.
2) Waveguide Dispersion:
) Whenever any optical signal is passed
through the optical fiber, practically 80% of
optical power is confined to core & rest

Inter Modal Dispersion

Modal Dispersion
Spreading of a pulse because different
modes (paths) through the fiber take
different times
Only happens in multimode fiber
Reduced, but not eliminated, with
graded-index fiber

Chromatic Dispersion
Different wavelengths travel at
different speeds through the fiber
This spreads a pulse in an effect
named chromatic dispersion
Chromatic dispersion occurs in both
singlemode and multimode fiber
Larger effect with LEDs than with lasers
A far smaller effect than modal
dispersion

Polarization Mode
Dispersion
Light with different polarization can
travel at different speeds, if the fiber
is not perfectly symmetric at the
atomic level
This could come from imperfect
circular geometry or stress on the
cable, and there is no easy way to
correct it
It can affect both singlemode and
multimode fiber.

Dispersion

Different modes take a different amount of time

to arrive at the receiver. Result is a spread-out signal
Graded Index Fiber
prior discussion concerned with Step Index Fiber
GRIN fiber is designed so that all modes travel at nearly
the same speed
GRIN fiber core has a parabolic index of refraction

3/4/15

15

Dispersion
Dispersion - spreading of light pulses
in a fiber
limits bandwidth
most important types
Intramodal or chromatic dispersion
material dispersion
waveguide dispersion
profile dispersion
Intermodal/multimode dispersion
polarization mode dispersion (PMD)

3/4/15

16

Intramodal or Chromatic
Dispersion
Chromatic Dispersion
caused by different
wavelengths traveling at
different speeds
is the result of material
dispersion, waveguide
dispersion or profile dispersion
for the fiber characteristics
shown at right, chromatic
dispersion goes to zero at 1550
nm (Dispersion-Shifted Fiber)
For a light-source with a narrow
spectral emission, the
bandwidth of the fiber will be
very large.
(FWHM = Full Width Half
Maximum)
3/4/15

17

Material Dispersion, DM

Material Dispersion - caused by the fact

that different wavelengths travel at
different speeds through a fiber, even in
the same mode.
Amount of Material Dispersion
Determined by:
range of light wavelengths injected into
the fiber (spectral width of source)
LEDs (35 - 170 nm)
Lasers (< 5 nm)

center operating wavelength of the source

around 850 nm: longer wavelengths (red)
travel faster than shorter wavelengths
(blue)
around 1550 nm: the situation is reversed zero dispersion occurs where the
wavelengths travel the same speed, around
1310 nm

Material dispersion greatly affects singlemode fibers. In multimode fibers,

multimode dispersion usually dominates.
3/4/15

18

Material Dispersion, DM
Can be approximated by:

[ZD = zero dispersion wavelength (ZD =

1276nm for pure silica or can be
approximated as 1300nm)]

3/4/15

19

Waveguide (DW) and Profile

Dispersion
Waveguide Dispersion, DW

occurs because optical energy travels in both the

core and cladding at slightly different speeds.
A greater concern for single-mode fibers than for
multimode fibers

Profile Dispersion

the refractive indices of the core and cladding

are described by a refractive index profile
since the refractive index of a graded index fiber
varies, it causes a variation in the propagation of
different wavelengths
profile dispersion is more significant in
multimode fibers that in single-mode fibers

3/4/15

20