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15 8'" 1).-13-638248---1 lca~l
ISIl,.. 0-13-638222-3 IDb•.l

S<!n ior. J oo n M .
OPlical fibe, comm unica tions .
1. Optic a l co m m Un k~ li [l(l~ 2 Fiber OPt iCS
I. Title
6 2 1.36'04 14 TK5 103 S9

IS BN 0- 13- 6 3 6 2 48 - 7
IS BN 0- 13- 6 36 222- 3 Pbk 32506
~ 1985 by Prentlc.-H.U Int..... tlona!. I....... London

All righl S ~. No part Of tI'Ii$ pub lica lion ma y "" re produced . SIO~ in a re lrievl l \yslem. Or
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 Contents

I
,
"
Gm aary of Symbol•• net Abtl reviatktnw IU

•
1 INTRODUCTION 1
1. ' Hlstorlca l Devel op me nt
1.2 The General System 4
1.3 Advantages of Opti cal Flbllr Com mu nication 7
References 10

2 OPTICAL FIBER WAVEGUIDES 11

2 .1 Intrcocc tion 11
2.2 Ray Theory Transm ission 12
2 2 .1 Total inte rnal refllle.lon 12
2.2.2 Acce pta nce a ngle 14
2.2 .3 Numerical aperture 15
2 .2 4 Skew rays 19
2.3 Electromagnetic M ode Th eory Fo' Optical Propagation 22
2.3.1 Electrc ma q ne tie w aves 22
2 .3 .2 Modes in a plan a r g uide 24
2 .3 .3 Phase and grOlJ p ... etcctw 27
2 .3 .4 Phase stili' w ith 10181;" Iem ul refl ec tion a nd m e eva ne eee m fie ld 29
2 .3 .5 Goo S'-Haench e... shit! 34
2.3.6 Cvlindrical liber 34
2.3.7 Mode coupling 41
2.4 S~ep Indell Fibers 43
2 .4 .1 Muhimode ste p in~l( fiber s 44
2 .4.2 Single mode SIE'p hldlltll fibers 45
2 ,5 Graded lrode. Fibers 48
Prol:Jlems 57
References 59

3 TRANSMISSION CHARACTERISTICS OF OPTICAL FIBEIIS 62

3.' Intro duction 62
3.2 Attenuet ion 63
3.3 Mate ri el Absorpt io n LO&S88 65
3 .3.1 I ntrlnsk: abaorpt ion 65
3.3.2 Elllrlnl k: abaorptlon 66
3.4 Un.., Scatulrlnll Loull 8S
1.4.1 Rtylaigh IQ,Inlfln; eEl
, ....a Mit 1C1tWI"I '1
 CONTENTS

3.5 Nonlinear Scattering Losses 71

3.5.1 Stimulated Brillouin scattering 72
3.5.2 Stimulated Raman scattering 72
3.6 Fiber Bend Loss 73
3.7 Dispersion 76
3.8 Intramodal Dispersion 80
3.8.1 Material dispersion 81
3.8.2 Waveguide dispersion 84
3.9 Intermodal Dispersion 84
3.9.1 Multimode step index fiber 85
3.9.2 Multimode graded index fiber 90
3.10 Overall Fiber Dispersion 93
3.10.1 Muitimodefibers 93
3.10.2 Single mode fibers 94
3.11 Modal Noise 98
3.12 Polarization 100
3.12.1 Modal birefringence 100
Problems 104
References 108

4 OPTICAL FIBERS, CABLES AND CONNECTIONS 111

4.1 Introduction 111
4.2 Preparation of Optical Fibers 112
4.3 Liquid Phase (Melting) Techniques 113
4.31 Fiber drawing 114
4.4 Vapor Phase Deposition Techniques 118
4.4.1 Outside vapor phase oxidation (OVPO) process 120
4.4.2 Vapor axial deposition (VADl 121
4.4.3 Modified chemical vapor deposition IMCVD) 123
4.4.4 Plasma-activated chemical vapor deposition (PGVD) 125
4.4.5 Summary of vapor phase deposition techniques 126
4.5 Optical Fibers 126
4.5.1 Multimode step index fibers 127 j(
4.5.2 Multimode graded index fibers 128
4.5.3 Single mode fibers 130
4.5.4 Plastic-clad fibers 131
4.5.5 AII-plestic fibers 132
4.6 Optical Fiber Cables 133
4.6.1 Fiber strength and durability 134
4.6.2 Stability of the fiber transmission characteristics 138
4.7 Cable Design 138
4.7.1 Fiber buffering 138
4.7.2 Cable structural and strength members 139
4.7.3 Cable sheath and water barrier 140
4.7.4 Examplesoffibercables 141
4.8 Optical Fiber Connection 144
4.8.1 Fiber alignment and joint loss 146
4.9 Fiber Splices 156
4.9.1 Fusion splices 157
4.9.2 Mechanical splices 159
4.9.3 Multiple splices 163
_.4.10 Fiber Connectors 164
4.11 Butt Jointed Connectors 165
4.11.1 Ferrule connector 166
4.11.2 Biconical connector 167

."
 CONTENTS

4 .11.3 Ceramic capillary connector

4 .1 1.4 Double eccentric connector ,.8
"8
4 .11.5 Triple ball connector 16 9
4 .11 .6 Single mace fiber conneCTor 170
4 .11 .7 M ulTip11lconnectors 170
4 ,1 2 h pandlld Beam Connectors 172
Problems 173
Re*. rences 177
•

6 OPTICAL FIBER MEASUREMENTS 183

5 .1 Introduction 183
5.2 Fiber Attenuation Measurements 16 6
5 .2.1 Tota l fiber attenuation 18 6
5.2.2 Fibllr ebsoepuon loss m easurement 190
5.2.3 Fibllr scattering loss measurement 194
6.3 Fibllr Dispersio n Me asurem anl S 196
5.3.1 Time domain measurement 19 7
5.3 .2 Frequency domain meesure rn ent 200
5.4 Fiber Refracti ve Index Profile Measurements 202
5.4. 1 Interferometric meth ods 202
5.4.2 Nearfield scanning methOd 20 4
5.4.3 End reflection method 206
5.5 Fiber Num erical Aperture Me 8Sul"@ments 209
5.6 Fiber Diameter Measurem ents 212
5.6.1 Outer diameter 21 2
5 .6 .2 Core diameter 2 14
5.7 Field M easuremenTS 215
5 .7.1 Optical ti me domain re<leclomelry IO~) 2 19
Problems 224
References 228

• OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LASER 23 1

e.1 Introd uction 23 1
'2 B, sic COflCllp ts
6 .2.1
233
Absorption and emin ion of n diation ' 34
6.2.2 The Ei.-.s:ein relations 23 6
8.2 .3 Populalion ir'Ye"$ion 238
8.2 .4 Optical feeo:t.:lack and laser osclilatton '40
8 .2.5 Threshold condit ion for laser csc ureuon 24 4
' .3 Opt ical Em lssi'on From Semiconductor, 245
8 .3 .1 The p-n ju nct ion 245
8 .3.2 Spcnteneoca ernisslc n 248
8 .3 .3 Carrier recombination 250
6 .3.4 Stimulated emission end lesing 253
8 .3 .6 Heterojunctions 2 58
8 .3.11 Semiconduct or mlterlll l!! "0
'f ' .4 Th. S.mlconductor Injection Laser
11,4,1 Etflelency
11.4.2 Stripe ;Iomltry
264
265
'"
•••• Multlrnode 'njl ctl on Lti.lrt 267
e ,l,t
....2
L..... rrnxlll
I tl\lC1\lrt.
287
2151
.....
I,IA
Op1:lotJ OI/tI)Vt powtr
"'01"' i ....IQp'M'UI
".
270
VI CONTENTS

6.6 Single Mode Injection Lasers 271

6.6,1 Single mode operation 272
.., 6.7 Single Mode Structures 273
6.7.1 'Buried heterostructure IBHllaser 273
6.7.2 z Transveree junction stripe ITJSj laser 274
6.7.3 Channelled substrate lasers 274
6.7.4 Distributed feedback lDFB) lasers 276
6.7.5 Large optical cavity (LOC) lasers 277
6.8 Longer Wavelength Injection Lasers 278
6,9 Injection Laser Characteristics 281
6,9.1 Threshold current temperature dependence 281
6.9.2 Dynamic response 283
6,9.3 Self pulsations 284
6.9,4 Noise 285
6.9.5 Mode hopping 286
6.9.6 Reliability 287
6.10 Injection Laser Coupling and Packaging 288
6.11 Nonsemiconductor lasers 289
Problems 290
References 292

7 OPTICAL SOURCES 2: THE LIGHT EMITTING DIODE 296

7.1 Introduction 296
7.2 LED Efficiency 298
7.2,1 The double heterojunction LED 302
7.3 LED Structures 303
7.3.1 Planar LED 303
7.3.2 Dome LED 304
7.3.3 Surface emitter IBurrus type) LED 304
7.3.4 Lens coupling 306
7.3.5 Edge emitter LED 308
7,4 LED Characteristics 310
7.4.1 Optical output power 310
7.4.2 Output spectrum 311
7.4.3 Modulation bandwidth 313
7.4.4 Reliability 318
7.5 Modulation 320
Problems 321
'teferences 323

8 OPTICAL DETECTORS 326

8.1 Introduction 326
8.2 Device Types 327
8.3 Optical Detection Principles 328
8.4 Absorption 329
8.4.1 Absorption coeffecient 329
8.4.2 Direct and indirect absorption: silicon and germanium 331
8.4.3 III-V alloys 331
8.5 Quantum Efficiency 332
8.6 Responsivity 333
8.7 Long Wavelength Cutoff 335
CONTENTS vii

8 .8Semicollductor Pncrcd.coes W il hou t lntem at Gail1 336

8 8 .1 p--I1 pholodiooe 336
8 .8 .2 p-+n photodiode 338
8 .9 Semiconductor Photodiodes Wi lh ' nu~rnll l GlIil1 340
8 .9.1 Avalal1che pl'!otodiodes 340
8 .9.2 Silicon reach-I hroogh avalim che phOl odiodes 342
8 .9 .3 Germanium avalanche photodiod es 34 3
8 .9 .4 III- V alloy avalanche ptlotodiod es 343
B.9 .5 Drawba cks w ith t ~lll avalar1Ct1 e photodiode 344
8.9 .6 Mu ltip licat ion fact or 345
8 10 Pl1oto tral1sist(X'S 345
Problems 348
References 3 50

9 RECEIVER NOISE CONSIDERATIONS 3 52

9 .1lnt rod uctlc n 3 52
9 .2 Nois e 3 53
9 .2.1 Thermal noise 353
9 .2.2 Dark curren t noise 3 53
9.2 .3 Ouantu m noise 3 54
9 .2 .4 Digital sillnalling Cll.lentum noise 355
9 .2.5 Anal og tra nsrntsercn qca ntum rotse 357
9.3 Becelver Noise 359
9 .3 .1 p-n and p----i-n phol ochodefeceiver 3 60
9 .3 .2 Receiver capacitance 3 64
9.3 .3 Avalanche pl1O'lodiode IAPDI receiver 366
9.3 ,4 b.cess avalanche noise faclol 37 1
9 .4 Receiver Struct ures 3 72
9.4 .1 l ow impedance front end 372
9.4.2 High impedance linu!ogra ting ) 1ro nt end 373
9 .4 .3 The l rll nsimped ence front efld 3 74
9 .5 FET Preamplifie rs 377
9 .5 .1 Gallium ar~n id8 M ESFETs 379
9 .5.2 PIN-fET hvbrids 37 9
Problem s 3 Bl
References 3 84

10 OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 38 6

10.1 Introductio n 3 86
10.2 The Opt ical Transmitter Circuit 3 aB
10.2. 1 Source limita tions 3 88
10. 2. 2 lEO drive cncons 39 1
10 ,2.3 laser drivlI circuits 399
10 .3 The Dptical.Hecelver Circuit' 403
10 .3.1 The preamplifillr 4 04
10.3.2 Automatic: gain cont rol (AGe l 409
, 0 .3 .3 EQIl , ilz.at iol1 4' 2
10." Sy'la m D••lgn Conlidlr. tlonl 4 15
10.4.1 Corr'tponent cholCl 41 6
10.4.% M ul tl~ ldng 4 17
to.• i ~ !tl I 8.r-t. m , 411
'---"'- .
v iii CONTENTS

10 .6 Digital Sysl em Planning Con$iderlltions 42 3

10 .6 .1 Thtl reg eneralive repea te r 42 4
10 .6 .2 The optica tuarl$m ltter 4 26
10.6 .3 The optic al reeei _ 427
10 .6 .4 Ch a n"'e1 Io~ 438
10 .6.5 Te mOo<lll respQtlU 4 39
10.6.6 Optica l powe r loudgeling 444
10 .6 .7 l ine coding 446
10.7 Analog S ystems 449
10 .7 .1 Direct inte nsity m od uta tlo n (D-IMi 4 61
10.7 .2 S ys te m planni ng 4 67
10 .7.3 Subcarrler inte nsltv mod ula tio n 4 60
10 .7.4 Subcarrier doubl e side ba nd modul at io n IOS B-IM) 4 62
10 .7 6 S ubc a rrie r frequency mod ulatio n (FM-l Ml 4 63
10 .7. 6 Subcarrler ph ase mo dulatiof1 (PM-l M) 466
10.7.7 Pulse a na log techniq ue s 4 67
10 .8 Cohe re ni S ystems 4 70
Problem s 473
gete-eoces 4 79

11 APPLICATIONS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS 484

11 .1Introd uC1:ion 484
11 .2P ublic Networlt Applicatiol'l' 486
11.2 .1 Trunk networl< 486
1 1.2 .2 Ju nctio n ne lwork, 4 89
11 .2 .3 l ocal a nd rural ne twc rks 491
11 .2.4 S ubme rged systems 4 93
11 .3 Milita ry Appli ca tions 4 94
1 1.3 .1 Mobiles 49 4
, 1.3 .2 Co mm unication li nks 495
, 1.4 Civil an d Consumer App licat ions 497
11.4 .1 Civil 497
11.4 .2 Cor1sumel 4 99
11 .5 Indus lIlal Applications 500
11 .5.1 S e r se' sysle mli 5 01
1 1.6 Compl.lter Applicatio ns 50 6
1 1.6 .1 Local area networks 5 08
1 1.7 Integ rat ed Octc s 5 12
11.7.1 Plana r w avegu id es 51 3
11 .8 lntegra t"d Optical Devices 5 17
1 1.8.1 Bea m splitters and $w ildle s 517
1 1.8.2 Modulators 52 1
11.8 .3 PeriOdic struc tures for IiIte rs a nd injel;tio n lese rs 524
11 .8.4 Bistabl e optical devices 526
11 .8.5 Optoelectronic integr at ion 530
11 .8 .6 S umma ry 532
Refe re nces &33

Appendix A Tne Fi ~d Relations in a Ptener G uide 5 39

AppelMtix 8 Valia nce m a Ra ndom Va, ia ble 5 40
Appendix C Valia nce of e e Sum of Ir'ldepende nl Ra ndo m V" ia bles 541
Appendix D Speed of Response of a Photodiode- 54 2
Appendix E Closed l oop Tra r)Sfe r Fl.lnetio n fo r th e Tfan aimpeGloce AmD tihl ' 43
AppencUxF Ga\J.ll5ian Pu lse Res po nse 544
Ind.x 5 46

•
Preface

T he concept o f guided lightwave communication along optical fibers has stimulated II

major new technology which ha s come to maturity o ver the last liftem years. During
this period tremendou s advances have been achieved with optical fibers and com-
ponents as ..... e11 a s with the associated o psoelectrcnlcs. As II result this nev.. technology
has now reached the threshold of large scale commercial exploitation. Installation of
optical fiber co mm unicat ion system s is progressing within both national telecom-
mun ica tion networks and more localized data communica tion and telemetry environ-
ments. Furthermore, optical fiber communication has become synony mous with the
current wo rldw ide revo lution in information technology . The relentless onslaught will
undou btedly continue over t he next decade and the further predicted developments wi ll
ensure even wider application of o ptic al fiber communication te chnology in this ' infer -
mation age'.
The pra ctical reebzeuon o f ....-ide-scate oplical r eer communications requires suitable
education a nd tr aining fO( engineers an d scientists with in the technology. In this
context the book has been developed from bot h teaching the subject to rmal year
undergraduates and from a succe ssful series of short co urses on opt ical fi ber com-
mu nicat ions conducted for profe ssional engineers at Manchester Polytechnic. This
book ha s therefore been written as II com prehen sive mtrod uctory textbook for use by
underg raduate a nd postgraduate engineers and scemists to provide them with a firm
grou nding in the major aspects o f this new technology whilst giving an insight into the
possible future developments within the fiekl. The reader shou ld therefore be in a post-
tion to appreciate developments a s they occur. W ith these aims in mind the book has
been produced in the form of a teaching text enabling the reader to progress onto the
g.--owing nu mber o f !>pecialist texts concerned with opt ical tiber waveguides,
optoel ect ronic s, integr ated oprcs, etc.
In keeping with the status of an introductory te xt the funda menrals arc Iectuced
where necessary and there has been no attem pt to cover the entire field in full
mat hematical rigor . However, selected proofs are developed in important areas
tbroughOUl the text, It is assumed that the rea der is conversan t with dilTerent ial and
integral calculus and ditTer~n tial equations. In addition, the reader Io\i ll find it useful to
have a gro unding in o ptics as well as a reasona ble familiarity with th e fund amentals of
, solid state physics.
C hapter I gives a short introd uction to optical tiber communications by considering
the historical development, t he general syst em and the maj or advantages provided by
this new technology, In Cha pter 2 the COncept of the oplical fiber as a transmission
medi um is introduc ed using a simple ray theory approach. This is followed by discus-
lion. of electromagnetic wave ~ry applied to optical fibers prio r to consideration of
lightwave transmission with in th e vario us fiber types. Th e major tr ansmission
characteristic. of optical fibers are th en discussed in some detail in Chapter 3.
Chapter. 4 and j deal with the more pnctical aspectli o f optical tiber communic.a·
rioM and thll'tfore could be omrned from an initial teaching ptO&ram. ln Ch apter 4 the

..
x PREFACE

manufacture and cabling o f the various fiber types are described , together Wilh fi ber to
fiber connection or jointing. C hapter ~ gives a general treatment o f the: major measure-
ments which may be undertaken on optical fi bers in both the laboratory a nd the field.
This chapter is intended to provide sufficient background for the reader to pur-me
usetul la bora tcey work with cptical Ilbers.
Chapters 6 and 7 discuss the light sou rces employed in o ptical fiber communica-
tions. In Chapter 6 the fundamental physical principles of photoemission and laser
action arc covered prior to consideration of the various types of semiconductor and
nonsemicond uctor laser cu rrent ly in use. or under invest igation, for op tical fiber com-
mu nica tions. The other important semiconductor optical source. namely the light
emitting d iode. is dealt with in C ha pte r 7.
The nell t two c hapters a re devoted to the detection of the optical signa l and the
am plifICation o f the d ectric al signal o btained. Chapter 8 discusses the basic principles
of optical d etection in semiconductors ; this is followed by a description of the various
types of pboeodetector currently utilized. The optical fiber receiver is considered in
Chapter I} witb partic ular emphasis on its performance in no ise.
C hapter 10 draws toget her the preceding material in a detailed discussion o f o ptical
fi ber communication systems. aiming to pro vide an insight into the d esign cri teria a nd
practices for a ll the main a spects of both digital and an alog fib er sy stems. A brief
account of coherent optical fiber systems is also included to give an ap preciation of this
area of future development. Finall y. Chapter [ I d escribes the many cu rrent and pre-
dicted a pplication areas for optica l fibc:r comm unications by drawing o n exa mples
from resea rch and development work which has alread y been undert aken. This discus-
sion is expanded into consideration of o ther likely fu ture developments with a brief
account o f the current technology involved in integrated optics rod optoelectronic
integration.
Wor ked examples are interspersed th roughout the text to assist the learning process
by illust rating the use of equations a nd by providing rea listic values for t he various
parameters encountered. In addition. problems have been provided a t t he end of
relevant che prers (C hapters 2 to 10 inclu~ive) to examine the reader's understa nding of
the telll an d to a ssist tutorial work. A Teacher's Manual containing the solutions to
these problems may be obtained from the publisher. Exten sive end-of- chapter
references pro vide a guide for further reading and indicate a source for those equatio ns
which have been quoted without derivation. A complete glossary of sym bols. together
with a list o f common abbreviation s em ployed in the text. is pro vided. SI units are used
th rougho ut the text.
I a m very grateful fo r the many useful commen t' and suggesnons pro vided b y
reviewers which ha ve resulted in significa nt improvements to this text. Thanks must
also be given to the authors of numerous papers. erttctes and books which 1 have
referenced whilst preparing the text, and especially to those authors, publisher s and
companies who have kindly gra nted penniu ion fo r the re production of diagra ms and
photog raphs. F urther, I would like to thank my coneagues in the Dept. o f Electrical
and Electronic Engineering at Manchester Polytech nic for their many h~lpful com-
ments on the text; in part icular Dr. Norman Burrow. Dr. Jo hn Edwards and Stewart
Cusworth for the time spent checking the man uscript. I am also grateful to my family
and friends for tolerating my infrequent appearances over the period of the writing of
this book. Finally, words cannot express my thank s to my wife. Marion, for her
patience a nd encouragement with this project a nd for her ' skilful ty ping of the
manuscri pt.
J. M. sentor
MancheJter Polyr«hFl Ic
,

Glossary of Symbols and Abbreviations

A con stant, area (cross-section, emission), far field pattern size, mode
a mplitude, wave amplitude (.4 0 )
Einstein coefficient of spontaneous emission
peak amplitude of the su bcarri er waveform (analo g n an smi sskm }
fi ber core radius. parameter defining the asy mmeuy of a planar guide
[eqn. 11.6). ba seband message signal (0(1»
0, Integer I or 0
B constant, electrical bandwidth (post detection), magnetic flux density,
mod e amplitude, wave am plitude (B o)
Einstein coefficients of a bsorption, stimulated emission
modal b~fri ngence
bandwidth of an intensity modulated op tical signa l m(t)
o ptical bandwid th
recombination coefficient for electrons and holes
hit t ate, when the syste m becomes dispersion limited (B T tot»
normalized prop agation constant for a fiber , ra tio of luminance to co m-
pcsite video
c constant, capacitance, crack d~pth (fiber). wave coupling coefficient per
unit length
c. effective input cap acitan ce of an optical fi ber receiver amplifier
C, optical delmar ca pacitance
C, ca pacitance associated with thc feedback resister of a transimpedaace
opt ical fiber receiver amp lifier
c, tot al optical fiber channel loss in decibels, including the disper sion-
equalization penalty (C w )
C, wave amplit ude'
C, tot al capacitance
t: vetoclty oflight in a vacuu m, const ant (C 1 • ('1)
[8p coefficients for a tran svers al equalizer
"D a mplitude coefficient, electric OU1 den sity, distance, corru ga tion period,
cecaon threshold in digital opticaf Ilber tra nsmission
frequency deviation rat io (subcarrier FM)
dispersio n-equalization penalt y in decibels
freq uency deviat ion r atio (suhcarrler PM)
fiber core diameter, d istance. width of the absorption region (photo -
detector). pin diameter (mode scrambler)
d. fiber outer (cladding) diameter
E electric rldd, energy, Youngs modulus, expect ed value o f a random vari-
able

xl
 ld i GLOSSARY OF SYMBOLS AND A BBREVI ATIO NS

E. activation energy orhomoaeoeous degrad ation for an L.ED

E, Fermi level (energy), quasi-Fermi level located in the conduction band
(E F~)' valence band (El'v) of a semiconductor
E, separation energy between the valence and conduction bands in a
semiconductor (bandgap energy)
subcerrer electric field (analOj. tran smi~ sion )
optical energy
separation energy of the quasi-Fermi levels
I electronic charge, base for natural logarithms
probability of fail ure, transmission factor of a semiconductor-external
interface, excess avalanche noise factor (F(J/ »
~ Fourier transform ation

I F.
f
f.
noise fig ure (amplifier}
frequency
peak to peak frequency deviation (PFM- IM)
f, peak frequency deviation (subcarrier FM and PM)
f. pulse rate (PFM- IM)
G open loop gain of an optical fiber receiver amplifier
G ,(r) amplitude function in lhe WKB method
G. o ptical gain (phototran sistlX')
G,. Gaussian (distribution)
8 degeneracy par ameter
g gain coefficient per unit length (l aser cavity)
'g"m transcond uctance of a field effect transistor
threshold gain per unit length (laser cavity)
H magnetic fleld
H e.,) optical power transfer function (fi ber), circuit transfer function
H A(ID) optical fiber receiver amplifier frequency response (ind uding any equaliza-
tiorl)
closed loop current to voltage transfer function (receiver amplifier)
equalizer transfer fu nction (frequency response)
open loop current to voltage transfer function (receiver amplifier)
output pulse spectru m from an optical tiber receiver
Planck's constant, thickl1eM of a planar waveguide, power impulse
response for an optical fi ber (II())
o ptical fiber receiver amplirler impulse response (including any equaliza-
tion)
effective thickness of a planar waveguide
common emitter current gain for a bipolar transistor
opticelfiber impulse response
output pulse shape from an optical tiber receiver
input pulse shape to an opticalliber receiver
tra nsmitted pulse shape on an optical fi ber link
electrical current, optical intensity
background radiation induced photocurrent (optical receiver)
bias current for an optical detector
cotleclOr current (pholotransistor)
dark current (optical detector)
maximum optical intensity
photocurrent generated in an optical detector
th reshold current (injection laser)
electrical current
, GLOSSARY OF SYMBOLS AND ABBREVIATIONS xiii

i, optical receiver preamplifier shunt noise current

i.mr optical receiver preamplifier total noise current
i[) decision threshold current (digital transmission)
photodiode dark noise current
'"i
del output current from an optical detector
i, noise current generated in the feedback resistor of an optical fiber receiver
rransimpedance preamplifier
total noise current at a digital optical fiber receiver
multiplied shot noise current at the output of an APD excluding dark
noise current
shot noise current on the photocurrent for a photodiode
multiplied shot noise current at the OUtput of an APD including the dark
noise current
I ,i~ signal current obtained in an optical fiber receiver
t, thermal noise current generated in a resistor
iTS total shot noise current for a photodiode without internal gain
J Bessel function, current density
J" threshold current density (injection laser)
j j-I
K Boltzmann's constant, constant dependent on the optical fiber properties,
modified Bessel function
K, stress intensity factor, for an elliptical crack (KId
k wave propagation constant in a vacuum (free space wave number), wave
vector for an electron in a crystal, ratio of ionization rates for holes and
electrons, integer
angular frequency deviation (subcarrier FM)
phase deviation constant (subcerrier PM)
length (fiber), distance between mirrors (laser)
beat length in a single mode optical fiber
coherence length in a single mode optical fiber
characteristic length (fiber)
constant with dimensions of length
lateral misalignment loss at an optical fiber joint
transmission loss factor (transmissivity) of an optical fiber
azimuthal mode number, distance, length
atomic spacing (bond distance)
wave coupling length
avalanche multiplication factor, material dispersion parameter, total
number of guided modes or mode volume; for a multimode step index
fiber (M,); for multimode graded index fiber (Mg), mean value (M J ) and
mean square value (M 2) of a random variable
M, safety margin in an optical power budget
M'!i' optimum avalanche multiplication factor
M excess avalanche noise factor, (also denoted as F(M)
m radial mode number, Weibull distribution parameter, intensity modulated
optical signal (m(t) ), mean value of a random variable, integer
m. modulation index
N integer, density of atoms in a particular energy level (e.g. N 1 , N 2 , N 3),
minority carrier concentration in n type semiconductor material, group
index of an optical waveguide (N 1)
NA numerical aperture of an optical fiber
NEP noile equivalent power
 Il:lv GLOSSARY OF SYM BOLS A ND ABBREVIATIONS

Ne defined by eq uat ion 10.80

n re fractive index (e.l . n t • Ill ' IJj). stress corrosion susceptibility, negative
type semiconductor material
"t effective refractive index o f a planar wa veguide
no refract ive index of air
P electrica l power, minority Carrier con centr at ion in p ty pe semico nductor
material , probability . of error (p(e»), of detecting a zero level (P(O) ). of
detecting a one level (P( J», of detecting z photons in a particular lime
period (I'(z) ), cond itional probability, of detecting a zero when a one ~
tr ansmitted (P(O/ O ), of det ecting a o ne when a zero is t ransmiued
(P( I/Ol )
p. total power in a baseband message signal a(r)
P, threshold opt ica l power for Brillouin scatte ring
P, optical power cou pled into a step index fiber
Po optical power density
Po< d.c. optical output power
P, optical po wer emitted from an optic al sou rce
Po o ptical power in a guided mode
P, mean input (transmitted) optical power launched into a fiber
Pml internally generated optical power (optil:al sou rce)
p. total power in an int ensity mod ulated optical signal m( /}
p. mean ourpur (rece ived) optical power from a fiber
p. mean optical powe r tra~'elli ng in a fiber
P~, initia l output o pt ical power (prior to degrad atio n) fro m an o ptical source
P~ peak received optical power
P, reference o ptic al po wer level
II P, threshoki optical power for Raman scattering
P Ra(t l backscanered optical power (Rayleigh) within a tibe r
p. optical power sca ttered from a fiber
l' j( w ) freq uency spectrum of the mean input opt ical power launched int o a fiber
Po(ro } frequency spectru m of the mean outp ut optical power rec ei ved from a
fiber
p crystal moment um , average photoelasl ic coefficient, positive lypc
semiconductor material, probability density function I,p( x»
q integer, fringe shift
R photod iode responsivity , radius of curvature of a fi ber bend , electrical
resistance (e.g. R•• • Roo,)
R" upward transit ion rate for elec tron s from energy level I 10 levclz
Ru d own .....-a rd trans ition rate for electrons from energy level 2 to level I
R. effect ive input resistance of an optica l fi ber re ceiver preamplifier
R, bias re sistance, for optical fiber receiver preamplifier (R N )
R, critical radius of a n o pticalliber
Ro rad iance o f an o pt ica l source
RE dB ratio o f elect rical input power in dec ibels for an optical fi ber system
R, feedback re sistance in an optical fiber receiver tr anslmped ance pre-
am plifier
R, load resistance associated with an o ptical fioer detector
R O dP ratio of optica l output power 10 o ptica l input power in deci bels for an
orliea l fiber system
R" tot t! load resistan ce ....-i thin an optical fi ber receiver
r radia l distance from the fiber allis. F resnel reflc:etion coefftcien t. mirror
reflectlviry , eiectro-opuc coeffICient

_ . .0
 ~,
.~

",.
'., GLOSSARY OF SYMBOLS AND AB BREVIATIONS 'v

generated electron rate in an optical d etector

refie...x ion e nd t ransmission coellkients respectively fo r the electric field a t
a planar, 8uKle-cladding inlenace
reflect ion and transmission coefficien ts respectively for the magnetic field
at a plan ar guide-cladding interface
incident photon rate at an optical detector
'S,s fraction of cap tured o ptical power. macro scopic stress
fract ure stress
S j(r ) ph ase function in the WKB met hod
S ", (o3 ) spectr al density of the intens ity mod ula ted optical signal 171(1)
SIN peak signal power to rms noise power ratio. with peak to peak sign al
power I(SI N)1.'"""1' I. wit h ron signal power [(SIN) rm sl
s, theoretical cohesi ve strength
s pin spacin g (mode scr ambler)
T temp er ature, time
T, insertion loss re sulting from an angular offset between jointed optical
fiber s
10-90'*> rise time a rising from lnu emodal dispersion o n an o ptica l fi ber
link
To IO---9C1'1ll rise time for an optical detector
T, fictive temperature
T, insertion loss res ulting from a lateral OII<oeI between joaued optical fibers
T. 10-90% rise time a rising from inlermoda l dispersion on an optical fiber
li nk
T. threshold temp erature (injection laser), nominal pulse period (PF M- IMl
T, 10- 90% rise time at the regenerator circuit inpu t (PF M-IM )
T, 10- 90')(, rise time for an optical source
T,,,, IOla1 10-90Y6 rise lime for an optical fiber system
T, tot al insertion loss at a n optical filx r joint
T, temperature rise at time t
T. ma xim um temperature rise
I lime
I, time consta oc
I, switch on delay (laser)
I, I Ie pulse width fro m the center
I, " 10-90% rise time
U eigenvalue o f the fiber core
V electrica l voltage, nomalizcd frequency for <tn op lical fiber or planar
wavegUide
bias voltage for a phctcdiooe
cutoff val ue of norm alized freq uency
collector supply voltage
collector- emitter voltage (bipola r tra nsistor)
emitter sup ply vo ltage
voltage reading corres ponding to the total optical power in a fiber
voltage reading corres ponding to the scattered opt ical power in a fiber
elect rica l voltage
arnplirlCr series noi ce voltage
recei ver amplifier output voltage
cra ck veloci ty
If'OUp vdocity
output volull e from an RC fliter circuit
 GLOSSA RY OF SYMBOLS A NO ABBREV IATIONS

phase velocity
eigenvalue of t he fiber cladding. random variable
erecmc pulse width
optical pulse width
random variable
x coordinate, distance, constant. evanescent fi eld penetration depth, slab
thickness
y constant, shunt admittance. random varia ble
}' coordinate. lateral offset at a fi ber join t
Z r ando m variable
Z. electrical impedance
coordinate. number of photons
average or mean number of photons arriving at a detector in a time period
r
average number of photons detected in a time period 'r
characteristic refractive index profile for fiber (profi le par ameter).
optimum profile parameter (a )
u loss coefficient per unit leogth1'laser cavity)
connector loss lit transmitter and receiver in decibels
'""". signal attenuation in decibels per unit length ,
n" fiber ca ble loss in decibels per kilometer l
"j fiber j os n loss in decibels per kilometer'
signal attenuation in nepers
"" absorption coefficient
'pn", rad iation attenuation coefficient
wave propagation constant
p gain factor (injection laser cavilY)
isothermal compressibility
",
I\,
p,
proporti<Jnality constant
degradation rate
angle. attenuation coefficient per unit length for a fiber

,.
Y, surface energy of a ma terial
RayleiJ,h scattering coefficient for a fiber

"
0,
relative refractive index difference between the fibe r core and cladding
phase shift associated with transverse electric waves
•
...0'
Of uncorrected source frequency width
phase shift associated with tr ansverse magnetic waves
optical source spectral width (Iinewidth)
or ietermod al dispersion time in an optical fiber
or, delay difference between an extreme meridional ray and a."'l axial ray for a
graded index fiber
or. delay difference between an extreme meridional ray and an uial ray for a
step index fiber . with mode coupling (oT ",:>
,
s electrical permittivity, of free space (go), relati ve (1:,)
solid acceptance angle
quantum efficiency (optical detector)
"
' l.., angular coupling efficiency (tibet joint)
coupling efficiency (optical source to filler)
'""" differential external quantum etTlCiency (optiee.1 source)
external power efficiency (optical source)
"""
til. !
internal quantum efficiency (optical source)
lateral coupling efficiency (fiber joint)
overall power conversion efficiency (optical ' Duree)
"."" total external quantum efficiency (opticaI IDuree)
GLOSSARY OF SYM BOLS AND ABBREVIATIONS

9 angle, fiber acceptance angle (0,,), Bragg diffraction angle (8 . )

!I. acoustic wavelength, period for perturbations in a fiber
'" cutoff period for perturbat ions in a fiber
A optical wavelength
~ long wavelength cutoff (photodiode)
A" wavelength at which first order dispersion is zero
~ magnetic permeability, relative permeability w,). permeability of free
space <.u.o )
v opticai source bandwidth in gigahertz
p polarization rotation in a single mode optical fiber
PI' spectral density of the radiation energy at a tran sition frequencyf
o standard deviation, (rms pulse width), variance (0 2)
Oc rms pulse broadening resulting from intramodal dispersion in a fiber
0", rms pulse broadening resuhing from material dispersion in a fiber
(J~ rms pul~ broadening resulting from intermodal dispenon, in a graded
index fiber (0,), in a step index fiber (0.)
Oy total nos pulse broadening in a fiber or fiber link
0) rms spectral width ofemission from optical source
'r time period, bit period, pulse duration 3 dB pulse width (t o dB»
1:21 spontaneous transition lifetime between energy levels 2 and 1
1:[ time delay in a tra nsversal equalizer
t., lIe full width pulse broadening due to dispersion on an optical fi ber link
'(I group delay
r, injected (minority) carrier lifetime
'to ra diative minority carrier lifetime
4> linear retardation
~ angle, critical angle (4'0)
V scalar quantity representing E or H field
0) angular frequency. of the subcarrier waveform in analog transmission
(CIl(), of the mooulating signal in analog transmission (ro",)
lIl" spot size of the fundamer.tal mode
V vector operator, Laplacian operator (V1)

A-D analog to digital C M OS complementary metal

a.c. alternating current oxide silicon
AGC automatic gain CNR carrier to noise ratio
control CPU cent-at processing unit
AM amplitude modula Lion CSP channelled subsrrate
APD avalanche photodiode planar (injection laser)
ASK amplitude shift keying CW continuous wave or
BER bit error rate operanon
BH buried heterostructure D-A digital to analog
(injection laser) dB decibel
BOD bistable opt ical device D- IM direct intensity mcd ula-
CAM computer aided manu- tion
facture DBF distributed feedback (in·
CATV common antenna televi- ject jon laser)
"on DBR distributed Bragg renee-
CCTV erose circuit tele\o; sion tor (injection laser)
CDH constricted doobic de. direct current
heterojunction (injectiQn DH do uble heterostructure or
11m) heterojunction (injection
oodld I'ftII'k IIvtnlon Iller or LED)
xvIII GLOSSARY OF SYMBOLS AN D ABBREV IATIONS

DSB double sideba nd (a mpl i- PC VD plasma -activa ted

tude modulation) chemical vapor deposi-
EH tr adition al mod e designa - tion
tion PCW plano-convex waveguide
EM I electromagnetic ieter- (injection laser)
terence PDF probability d.:nsity func -
EMP electromagnetic pulse t io n
,n error function PFM pulse frequency mod ula-
erfc com plementary error tion
function PI N-FET p-i-n photcdiode fol-
FDM freq uency division multi- lowed by a field effect
plexing transistor
FET field effect transisto r PM p hase modula tion
FM frequency modulation PPM pulse position mod ulation
FSK frequency shift keying PSK pha se shift keying
FWItP full wid th ha lf po wer P1T Po st , Telegra ph and T ele-
H DB high density bipolar co mmunications
HE traditional mod e designa- PWM pulse width mod ulation
tion RAPD reach-thro ugh avalanche
He- Ne helium-neon (la ser) photodiode
HF high frequency . RF' rad io frequency inter-
HV high vol tage ference
IF intermediate freq uency em, root mea n sq uare
ILD injection laser diode RO relax at ion oscillation
1M intensity modulation RZ return to zero
10 integrated optics SAW surface acoustic wave
I/ O inp ut/out put SO M space divisio n multi-
lSI intersym bol interference pl elli n~
LA N local are a net ",-or" SHF su per high freq uency
LED light emitting diode SML separated mulliclad layer
LOC large optical ca~·it)· (in- (injection laser,
jection laser) SN R signal to noise ratio
LP li nearly polarized (mod e roM time division multiplexing
notation) TE transverse electric
LPE liquid p hase epitaxy TEM transverse electromag-
MCVD modified chemic al vapor net ic
deposition TJS tra nsverse junction stripe
MESFET met al Schot tky field (inject ion lase r)
elTeet tra nsistor n l transverse ma gnetic
M ISF ET metal lntegrated -seml- TIL tra n ~i~tor-U"an sistor
conductor field effect logic
transistor UHF ultra high frequency
Nd :YAG neodyrninm -doped VAD vapor axia l deposition
yttrium- aluminu m- VCO voltage co ntrolled oscil-
garnet (laser) lator
N RZ nonreturn to zero VHF very high frequency
OTDR optical time doma in VPE vapor phase epitaxy
reflectometrv WDM wave length division multi-
O VPO outside va por phase plelina
oxidation WKB Wen tzel, Kra mer" Bril-
PAM pul se a mplitude modula - louin (&rI. ly.i. t~ch·
ti~ niql,lr) for ....dad fiber
PCM pulse code modulation WPS wldthnd ,witch pomt
PCS plutic-cl&d silica (fibetj ZD Zfnlat dioc1t

__'_:L , :::...;-_.1
 1
Introduction

Communicatio n may be broad ly defin ed as the transfer o f information from

one point to anoth e~ When th e inform ation is to be conveyed over any
distance a. comm unication system is usually required. Wit hin a commcnicntion
,ystern the information tra nsfer is frequently achieved hy .s upen mposingor
modulating the information o nto an electromagnetic wave which acts 3!> a
carrier for the info rmation signa l. T his modu lated carrier is then tr ansmitted to
the required dest ination where it is received. and the original information signal
" 15 obtained by demodulat ionl Sophisticated techniq ues have been developed for
this process usingelectro magnetic carrier wavesoper anog at rad io freq ueocics .>
u well a s mic ro waveand milli meter. wa ve freq uencies, However, 'co mmuni-
catio n' may also be achieved using an electromagnetic carrier which is selected
(rom the o ptical range 01 freq uencies.

W cLf;J '~ N ! G
to' HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT

The use o f visible optical carrier waves o r light for communication ha s been
-. common for many years. Simple system s such a s signal fires, ref1 ccting
' mirro rs and , more r ecently, signalling la mps have provided successful, if
'limited, informatio n transfer. Mo reover. as ea rly a s 1880 Alexa nder G ra ha m
Bell reported the tran smissio n of speech using a light beam [Ref. I I. The
phctopho ne propo sed by Bell j ust fo ur yea rs a fter the invention of the tele-
phone modulated sunlight with a diaph ragm giving speech tr ansmissio n {!Vcr a
dlttance of 200 m. However. altho ugh some investigation o f optical cum-
munication co ntin ued in the early pan o f the 20t h Cen tury [Refs, 2 nnd 31its
use was limited to mobile. lo w capacity co mmunication huh. Th is was du e to
both th e lack of suitable light sou rces and the problem that light transmission
In the atmosphere is restricted to line of sight and severely affected by dist ur-
ances such as rain, snow, fog. dust and atmosp heric turb ulence, Nevertheless
lower frequency and hence longer wavelength elec tro magnetic wa ves" (i.e.
·radio and microwave) proved suitable cerriers for information transfer in the

I~ POl' lJM propq.tlon 0( elecuolTlJ,l r:etie "'.~ e ~ in free soece, lh ~ .... \·elength }.. ~ (j U.1 5 the
; \'IlaDItr of IfJht In I 'I'IC lI lIm e tJ me ~ t.~ C ~proc aJ of the (requ e r:~ I in hem or ~ "= df.
:. '. ". - .r
 2 OPT ICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

atmosphere, being far less affected by these atmos pheric cond itions. Depend-
ing Oll their wa velengths these elec tromagnetic carriers can be transmitted over
considerable distances but a re limited in the amount of infor mation they can
convey by their frequencies (i.e. the information.c arrying capacity is directly
I rel ated to the bandwidth or frequency extent of the modulat ed car rier. which is
generally limited 10 a fi xed fraction of the ca rrier frequency). In theory, the
I greater the car rier Frequency, the larger the available tra nsmission bandwidth
and thus the information-carrying ca pacity of the communication system. For
this reason radio commun ication wa s developed to higher frequencies (i.e.
) V H F a nd U H F) leading to thc introductio n of the even higher frequency
micro wave a nd. latt erly, millimeter wave tra nsmission. The relative frequenc ies
I a nd wa velengths o f these types of electromagn etic wave CA n be observed from

~
the electro magn etic spectru m sho wn in Fig. 1.1. In th is cont ext it m ay also be
no ted thai communication at optical frequencies offers an increase in the
potential usable bandwidth by a factor of around 10" over high frequency
microwave transmis sion. A n add itiona l benefit of the usc o f high carrier fre-
,
q uen cies i ~ the general abili ty of the communic ation sy stem to concentrate the
a va ilable power within the transmuted electromagnetic wa ve. thus giving an
im pro ved system perform ance [ Ref 4 1.
A renewed interest in o ptical co mm unicatio n was stimulated in the early
J 960s with the inve ntion of the laser IRef. 51. This device provided a power ful
coherent lig ht source together with the possibility o f mod ulation a t high fre--
q uency . In addition the 10v. beam d ivergence of th e las er made enh anced free
s pace o pt ical t ra nsmission a pract ical possibility. Ho wever, the previously
mention ed co nstraints of ligh t tra nsmiss ion in the atm osphere tended to
restrict these system s to sho rt distance a pphca nons. Nevert heless, d espite the
p roble ms som e mo dest free sp ace optical co mm unicatio n link s ha ve bee n
implement ed for a pplication v such as the linking of a television camera to a
base vehicle and for da ta links of a fe w hu ndred me ters between buil dings.
T he re is also some interest in optical co m munication between satellites in outer
space using sim ilar techn iques IRef. 6J.
Although th e use of la ser for free space optical co mm unicatio n proved
so mewhat lim ited . the inven tion of th e la ser in stiga ted a tre mendous research
effort in the study o f o ptical components 10 achieve reliable info rmatio n
tra nsfer u sing a ligh twave carrier. TIle proposals fo r o ptical communication
via dielectric waveguides o r o ptical fibers fabricated from gla ss were made
a lmost simultaneo usly in 1966 by K ao and H ockha m (R ef. 7J and W erts lRef
8 J to avoid degradation of the optical sig nal by the atm osphere. Su ch systems
were viewed as a repl acem ent fo r coaxial c able o r ca rrier transmi ssion
systems. Initia lly the o ptical fib er s exhibited ve ry high attenuatio n (i.e.
1000 d B k m") and were therefore no t comparable with the coaxial cables the y
I were to replace (i.e. 5-1 0 d B km" ). There we re also serious pro blems involved
with jointing the fiber cables in a satisfa ctory m an ner to ach ieve low 10 55 and

I to ena ble the process to be performed relatively ea!>ily and repeatedly in the
INTRODU CTION 3

•, ~•
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 • OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTiCE

field. Neverthele..s, within the space of ten yea rs optica l fiber losses were
reduced 10 below 5 dB km-! and suitable low loss jointing techniques were
perfected.
In parallel with the development of the fi ber waveguide. attention was also
focused on the other optical components which would constitute the optical
tiber communication system. Since optical frequ encies. are accompanied by
extremely sma ll wavelengths the development of all these optica l components
essentially required a new technology. Thus semiconductor optic al so urces (i.c.
injection lasers and light emitting diodes), as well as detectors (i.c. photodiodes
a nd to a cert ain extent phototransistors) compatible in size wit h optical fibers
were designed and fabricated to enable successful implementa tion of the
optical fiber system. Initially the semiconductor lasers exhibited very short
lifetimes of at best a few hours. but significa nt adva nces in the device str ucture
enabled lifetimes greater than 1000 hr IRef 91and 7000 hr IRef 101 to be
obt ained by 1973 and 1977 respectively." Th ese devices were originally
fabricated from alloys of galliu m arsenide (AIGa As) which emitted in the near
infrared between 0.8 and 0.9 urn. More recently this wavelength range has
been extended to include the 1.I -L.6 1J.nl region by the use of e ther
semiconductor alloys (see Section 6.3.6) to take advantage o f the enhanced
performance characteristics displayed by optical fibers over this range. Simila r
developments in the generally simpler structure of light emitting diodes a nd
detector photodiod cs also contrib uted to the realization of reliable optical fi ber
communication.
Th e achievement of these impressive result s has stemmed from the enor-
mous amount of wor k directed into these areas due to the maj or distinct
advantages offered by optical liber communicat ions. However, p rior to disc us-
sion of these ad vanta ges we will briefly consider the salient fea tures of the
optical fiber communication system.

1.2 THE GENERAL SYSTEM

An optical fi ber communication system is similar in basic concept to any type

of com munication system. A block schematic of a genera] communication
system is shown in Fig. 1.2(a), the fu nction of which is to convey the signal
from the information source over the tr ansmission medium to t he destination.
The communication system therefore consists of a transmitter or modulator
linked to the information source, the transmission medium, and a receiver or
,, demodulator at the destination point. In electrical communications t he infer-
ma tion source provides an electrical signal. usually derived from a messa ge:

I
1I
~ Proj e'l..1ed semiconducto r laser lirelim~ are l:lIrrentl) ill the region of II)' 10 10' II 1_
Section 6.'l.6) indicating a sub'\ta nti..! im pmvemenl since 1977.

\
 ,

INTRODUCTION 5
. -- -- - .

_ ..
In,,,,,,,.,,,,. r.."""'i....,
I n ,, ~ ool . _ )
Tr.......,.."",
"'.... '~...
M,,~ .• «
(J < moJ~l . ', .- 1
lk."... . UOO

(om",,,,,,» ,,or. I}' , I " ",

,--- --------------.----------
,,, -------------,
,,,-----_ .. ---- ----_ .. ----------_ .------- --
,
b . ........ 1IOn

- '''''
,,
,
U...1ri<>1
OJ. ""';.
_.
up,...l llptltol
ra hk
fi&<',
-

Or"·"
dOle<,,,,
11. ", ,,,01
....n, ,, [l.-,un."DJI
,,
Op ticll fib" w,", " " " iootion lj,. k m
-- -------- -------------- ---- -------------,
",
Rg.1 .2 tal The gene ral co mmu nicatio n syste m . (bl The o ptical fibe r ecrnm uocauon
w ste m .

signal which Is not electrica l (e.g. sound), 10 a tra nsmitter comprising. electrical
and electronic components which converts the signal into a suitable form for
pro pagation o ver the tr ansmission mediu m. This is o ften ac hieved by modu-
lating a carrier wh ich, as m entio ned previously. may be an electro-
magnetic wave. The tra ns mission m edium can con sist of a p air of wires, a
coaxial cable o r a radio link th ro ugh free space down which th e signal is
transmitted to the receiver. where it is transformed into the origina l electrical
info rmation signal {demod ulated} befo re being pa ssed to the destination .
. H owever it mu st be noted th at in any transmission medium the signal is
attenuated , or suffers loss , and is subject to degradations due to ccntam.
tnation by random signals and noise as well a s possible disto rtions impo sed by
m echanisms within the medium ilself. Therefore. in an y com munication
stem there is a maximum permitted di stance bet ween the transnuuer and the
nceiver beyond which the system effectively ceases to give intelligible com-
':m unication. For long haul applications th ese factors nece ssitate the installation
'-Of repeater s or line amplifiers (see Section 10.4) at interv als, bot h to re move
atsnal d istortion and 10 increase signal level before tra nsmission is co ntinued
:4own the link.
.~, For optical fiber communications the system show n in Fig. 1.2(a ) m ay be
jrqn.idered in slightly greater detail, as in Fig. 1.2(b), In th is ca se the infc rma-
IOUTc. provide. In electrical sii nal to a trans mitter co mprising an
 6 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICAT IONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

electrical stage which d rives an optical source to give mod ulati on of the light -
wave c arrier. The o ptical source which provides the electrical-optical conver-
sion may be either a semiconductor laser o r light emitting diode (LED). The
tra nsmission medium consists o f an o ptical fiber c able a nd the receiver con -
sists o f an optical detector which drives a further electrical stage and hence
provides demodulation of the optical carrier. Photod iod cs (p-n . p-i-c or
avalanche) and, in some instances. pbototransistors arc utilized for the detec-
tion o f the optic al signal or the o ptical--electri cal co nversion. T h us there is a
requirement for electrical interfacing at either end of the o ptical link and at
present t he signal processing is usually performed electrically."
The o ptical carrier may be modulated using either an analog. o r digital infor-
mat ion signal. In the syste m shown in Fig. 1.2(b) analog modulati on involves
the variation o f th e light e mitted from the optical source in a co ntinuo us
manner. With digital modulation, however, discrete changes in t he light
in tensity are obt)!ined (i.e. on-off pul ses). Although often simpler to imple-
ment, analog modulation with an o ptical fiber commun icat ion system is less
efficient , requiring a far higher signal to noise ratio at the receiver tha n digital
modulation. Also the linea rity needed for an alog modulation is not always
p rovided by semiconductor o ptical sources, e specially at high modulation fre-
quencies. For these reaso ns, analog opt ical fiber com municat ion links are
generally limited to sho rter distances and lo wer bandwidt hs than digital links.
Figu re 1.3 sho ws a block schematic of a typical digital optic al fiber link.
Initia lly the input digital signa l fro m the information source is suita bly encoded
for optical transmission . T he laser drive circuit directly modulates the inten sity
o f the semicond uctor laser with the e ncoded digital signa l. H ence a d igital
o ptical signal is launched into the o ptical fiber cable. The avalanche
p hotodiode (AP D) detect o r is followed by a fro nt-end amplifier and equalizer
o r filter to provide gain as well as linear signal proc essing and noise bandwidt h
red uctio n. Finally, the signa l obtained is d ecoded to give t he original digital
info rmation. The va rious elements o f this and alternative optical fiber system
co nfigurations are discussed in deta il in the following cha pters. However, at
this stage it is instructive to consider the advantages pro vided by lightwave

bn<:G<l..
~
~ r;,'< h /
Fi t;<,
".
Am plifit'
0..,,00'"

"f "1""'''''
ci rcui t

~ 7..'" \ oabl</

Dl i ll OI
i"ro,,,,oIlO"
- !- L,-'
",, "roo ,
Flg.1.3
- L -'-
A digital optical fib er 1I t1 ~ using a sem iconductor laser source and an avalanche
Dj ~i ,"j
uu tpu t

ph otodiode lAP D) de tec to r.

I • Si&n ificam developments a re llkir.g pla~ in o ptical Jignal prolOeninll ....hich ml)' alttr thlJ
siluldion in the future (Me secnces 11.7 and t 1.8).
'.
 INTRODucnON 7

communication via o ptica l fibers in comparison with other form s of line and
radio communication whic h have brought about the introduction of such
systems in man y a rea s th rou ghout the world.
,

1.3 ADVANTAGES OF OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIO~

_ .----- --- -_.
~ iv e
----
tical carrier W3\1e ..&.l!&etL1IQJJg a .£ljl.>§ 1ib ~r has a
res v ---
which YiU"e..a.ppa~he.n
hnique was ori in!lIy con~ived: ':!:! r tht:r.,!,~r~:~_~he__. a.'J ~~n.~Un _tbe
o ogy to date have surpassed even the most optimistic predictions creal-
alid"'Lti.oila1·id·;~nt~"'-··Hcnceins ~;"c f~1 to consider the m~rits and special -.
features olTered by optical fib er communications , over more conventiona l
electrical communications. I.ne&awontc'lf we c~wJW..l!l'?..-Q!J&!~llY -,. ' ,
foreseen advantages and then co nsider additional features which have become i "<"..!
~eflt as the technolog y developed" ._.. _. _

(a) Enormous potential bandwidth

The o ptical carrier frequency in the ran ge 10 13 to I Q l b Hz (generally in the
near infrared around 10 14 Haor lOS G Hz) yields a far greater potential
transmission bandwidth than metallic ca ble systems (i.e. coaxial cable band-
width up to around 500 M Hz) or even millimeter wave radio systems (i.e.
systems currently ope rating with mod ulation bandwidths of 700 M Hz). At
present. th e band width available to fi ber systems is n OI fully utilized but
- modulation at several gigahertz over a few kilometers. and hundreds. of
megahertz over tens of kilo meters .....ithout intervening electron ics. (repe aters) is
possible. Therefore. the information--earrying capacity of o ptical fiber systems
, Is already proving far superior to the best copper cable systems. By com .
parison the losses in wideband coaxial cable systems restrict the transmission
, distance to only a few kilometers at bandw idths over a hundred megah ertz.
M oreover, it is certain that the usable fi ber sy stem ba ndwidt h will be ext ended
runher towards the optical carrier frequency in the future to provide an
inform atio n-carrying capacity far in excess of th at obtained using copper
cables or a wideband radio sy stem.
,

()) Small .be _00 wela:ht

J>ptical fiber s have very small diameters which a re often no greater than the
~iameter of a human hair. Hence, even when such fi bers are covered with
:protective coatings they are far smaller a nd mu ch lighter than corresponding
~cop pe r cables. This is a tremendous boon towards the alleviation cof duct con-
I auon in cities, as well a s allowing fo r a n expansion of signal tran smission
thin mobiles such as aircraft, satellites and even ships.

. BJe.trfDa! IlGfatioft
I Obert which are (abricltod (rom alallll or sometimes a plastic polymer
-Vo' ~"

,
•
 8 OPTICAL FIBER COMMU NICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRA CTICE

a re electric al insulators a nd therefore. unlike their metallic co unterpa rts. they

do not exhibit earth loo p and in terface pro blem s. Fu rthermore. this property
ma kes optical ti ber trunsmis...io n ideally suited for communication in
electrically hazardo us environments as the fi bers create no arcing or spark
hazard at a bra..ion .. or short circuits.
I
(d) Immunity to Interference and crosstalk
O ptical fibers form a dielectric wa veguide and are t herefo re fr ee fro m
electromagnetic interference (EM I ), radiofrequency interference (R r l ), o r
sw itching transients giving electromagnetic pulses (EM P). Hence the o peratio n
of an o ptica l fi ber communication system is unaff ected by tra nsmission
th ro ugh an electrically noisy environmen t and t he fi ber cable requires no
shield ing fro m EMf. The fiber cable is also not suscepnbk to lightning strikes if
u sed overhead rather th an un dergrou nd . Mo reo ver. it i ~ fai rly easy to ensure
that there is no o ptical interfere nce bet ween fi ber s and hence. unlike com -
m un ic ation using electrical cond uctors. crosstalk is negligible. even when
many fi bers are cabled togethe r.

(e) Signal ~urity

T he light from optical fibers does not radi ate signjficanrly and therefo re they
pro vide a hig h d egree of signal security" U nlike the situation with copper
cables, a transmitt ed optical signal cannot be obtained from a fiber in a non -
inva sive manner (i.e. without drawing optica l power from the fi ber). T herefo re.
in theo ry. any attempt to acq uire a me ssage signal transmitted o ptic ally may be
detected. This featu re is obviously attractive fo r military. banking a nd general
d ata transmission (i.e. com puter network) applications .

(0 Lew transmi. ,lon loss

T he develop ment of opti cal fibers o ver the last 15 years ha s resulted in the
productio n of optical fiber cables which exhibit very low attenuatio n or
tra nsmission lo ss in comparison with the bes t copper con ductors. F ibers have
been fa bricated with losses as lo w a s 0 .2 d B krrr" (sec Section 3 .3.2) and this
feat ure has become a major ad va nta ge of optical fiber co mmunica tions. It
facilitate'S the impl em entation o f comm unication links with extremel y .... ide
repealer spacing (long transmission d istances without intermediate elec -
tro nics), th us reducing both system co st and complexity. To gether with the
already proven modulation bandwidth cap ability of fi ber cable this pro perty
pro vid es a totally compelling case for the adoptio n of optical fi ber commu nica -
tion in the majority o f lo ng-ha ul teleco m munic atio n application s.

(g) Ruggedness and nexiblllly

Although pro tective co atings are essential, o ptical fibers may be manufactured
with very h igh tensile str engths (see Section 4.6. J). Perhaps surprisini ly for a
gla ssy substance. the fi bers rna)" also be bent to q uite small radii or twilled
INTRODUCTION
•
without da mage, F urt hermore. cable str uct ures have been developed (see
Section 4 .7.4) which have proved fle xible, compact and e xtremely rugged.
Tak ing the size and weight advantage into account, these optic al fi her cables
are generally superior in terms of storage. tra nsportatio n. hand ling a nd
installation th an corre spo nding copper cables whilst exhibiting at least com-
parab le strength and durability.

(h) System reliabmty aed ease of maintenance

T hese features primarily stem from the low loss propert y of optical fi ber cables
which red uces the req uirement fo r intermediate repeaters o r line amplifi ers to
boo st the transmitted signal strength. Hence with fewer repeaters. system
reliability j" generally enhanced in comparison with convention al electrical
conductor systems. Furt her more, the rcliabilit)<of the o ptical components is no
lo nger a problem with pred icted lifetimes of 20-30 yea rs now quite com mo n.
Both- these factors also tend to red uce maintenance time and costs.

0) Potential low cost

The gla ss whic h generally provide.. the o ptical fi ber tra nsmission med ium is
made from sand- not a scarce resource. SlJ. in comparison with co pper con-
d ucto rs, optical fiber.. offer the potential for low co st line com munication. As
yet this potential has not been fully realized because of the sophisticated. a nd
therefo re expen sive, processes required to obta in ultra-pure glass , and the lack
of production vo lume. At present, o pticet Ilber cable is reasonably competitive
with coaxial cable. but not with simple copper wires (e.g. twisted pairs).
Ho w ever. it is likely that in the future it .....ill become a s cheap to use o ptical
fibers with their superior perfo rm ance th an almost any t ype of electric al
conducto r.
Moreover. ove rall system costs when utilizing optical fi ber communication
on long-hau l linb are generally redu ced to those for equivalen t electrical line
systems because of the I\lw 10"" and wic eband properties. of the o ptical
transmissio n medium. As ind icated in (0. the requiremen t for intermed iate
repeaters and the a ssociated elect ronics is red uced . giving a significant cost
advantage. However, altho ugh this cost benefi t gives a net gain for long -haul
links this is nOI usual ly the case in short-ha ul applicatio ns where the add itional
co st incurred, d ue to the electrical-optical conversion (and " ice versa). ma y be
a deciding factor. Nevertheless, there a re other possible COSI advan tages in
relation to shipping, handling, installation an d main tenance, as well as the
featu res indicated in (c) an d (d) which ma y prove signifi cant in the system
choice.
The low COSt potential of optical tiber commu nications no t only provides
Itrong com petition with electrical line tran smission system!'. bu t also with
microwave and millimeter wave radio trans mission systems. Although these
I)'Jteml lie reawnably wideband the relatively short span ' line o f sight'
ulnlmlilion neccuitltes expen sive aerial towers at intervals no greater than a
1ft lt1II of kl1omtt,,~
 10 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

M a ny ad vantages are therefo re pro vided by the us c of a light wa ve carrier

wit hin a transmivsion med ium consisting of an optical fiber. The fundamental
principles gh 'ing rise to these enha nced performance c ha racteristics, together
with thei r practical realizatio n, are described in the following ch apters.

I H owever, a ge neral understandin g o f the basic nature a nd prope rt ies of light is

assu med . If this is lac king, the reader is di re cted to the m any excellent te xts
enco m pa..sing the topic, a few o f which are indicated in Refs. 16- 22.

i
REFERENCES

1 A . G . Bell, ' Selenium and the photophone'. The Electrician, pp. 2 14 . 2 15. 220,
22 1, 1880.
2 W. S. lI uxford and J. R . Platt, ' Survey of ncar infra -red com munication
systems', J. Opt. Soc. Am., 38. pp. 253-268.. 19411.
3 N. C. Beese, ' light sources for o ptical com munication', b ifra red Phys.. I.
pp. 5- 16, 1961.
4 R. M. Gagliardi and S. Karp, Optical Commsmcanons, J ohn Wile) , 1976.
5 T. H . M afmen. 'Sti mulated optical radiation in ruby', No/ure, Land.: 117,
pp. 493-494. 1960.
6 A. R . Kra emer, ' Free-space o ptical comm unicat ions', S ignal, pr. 26-32, U 77.
7 K. C. K ao and G . A . Hoc kha m, ' D ielectric-fiber surface wa veguides for optical
freq uencies', Proc. lEE. 113(7), pp. 115 1- 1158. 1966.
8 A . Werts. ' Propagat ion de la Iumiere coherente da ns les fibres c puques', L '0 '1011'
Electrique, 46, pp. 967- 980, 1966.
9 R . l. Hartman, J. C. Dyment, C . J. Hwang a nd H, Kuh n. ' Conne co cs o perMion
of G aAs-Ga_, Al,_.• A.., double heterostruct ure lasers with 30 °C half lives
exceeding IOOOh' , .-lppf. Ph)'s. t.en.. 13 (4 ), pp. 18. 1- 183. 1973.
10 A . R. Goodwin, J. F. Peters, M. Pion and W. O . Bourne, 'G aAs lasers \O'ith con-
sistently low degradat io n ra te" at roo m lem peratu re', App l. Ph.l·S. Leu: 30( 2), pp.
110- 113, 1977.
11 P . Ru sser, "Introd uction to op tical communicatio n' , M . J . Howes an d D. V.
Morgan (Eds.), Optical Fibre Communications. pr. 1- 26. J ohn Wiley. 1\l!l O.
12 J . E. Midwinter, Opl lcal t"ibre~ f or Transmission, John Wiley, 1979.
13 R. C osta. "Histo rical remark s', in Optirol Fibre Communication by the Tech nica l
Stalf of CS El T, McG ra w-Hili, 1981.
14 C . P. Sandban k ( Ed.). Op/k al Fibre Communication Systems , J c hn Wiley. 19i1O.
15 H. F. Wolf (EJ.). Handbook ofFiber 0 p/IC!;, Theory and ApplicD/ions, G ranada.
11)8 I.
16 ,". A . Jenk ins and H . E, While . Fundamentals Qf Opric~' (4th cd n.), McG raw · H ill ,
1976.
17 E. H echt a nd A. Z aj ac, Optics. Addis onWesley, 1974.
18 G . R . Fowles, Introduction to M odern Opttcs (2nd cdn .j, Holt, Rineha rt &
winston. 1975.
19 R. S. Longhurst. Geomev tca t and Physical Optics, (J rd cdn.), Longman. 19 73.
20 F . G . Smith and J. H . Tho mso n. Optics, Jo hn Wiley. 1980.
21 S. G. Lipson and H . LiJXOO . Opttcal Physics, (2nd edn.), Cambridge Uni\'mity
Press. 1981 .
Z2 M. Born a nd E. Wolf, Principle:> of Opncs, (6th ed n.), Per gamon Press. 1980,
 2
Optical Fiber Waveguides

2.1 INTRODUCTION

T he: tra ns mis sion of light via a dielectric waveguide structu re was f'ir st
proposed and investigat ed at the beginni ng of the 20th Century. In J9 10
Ho nd ros and Debyc IRef. I I conducted a theoretical stud y li nd experimenta l
work wa... report ed by Sch riever in 1920 IRef. 2 1. However. a transpa rent
dielect ric rod. typically of silica gla ss with a refractive index of aro und 1.5. sur-
ro unded by air. proved to be an impr actical waveguide d ue to its unsu pported
structure (especially when very thin wa veguides were considered in order to
limit th e number of opt ica l mod es propagated) and the excessive losses at any
discontinuities of the glass-air interface. Nevertheless, interest in the applie s-
tion of dielectric optical waveguides in such areas as optical imaging and
medica l diagno sis (c.g. endoscopes) led to proposa ls IRefs. 3 a nd 4 1for a clad
dielect ric rod in the mid 1950s in order to o vercome these problems. This
structu re i ~ illust rated in Fig. 2. 1 wh ich shows a transparent core with a refrac-
live index n l surro unded hy a tran sparent cladd ing o f !<olightly lo wer refractive
index n2 • The cladding suppo rts the waveg uide str uctu re wh ilst ab o, when suf-
ficiently thic k, substantially reducing the radiation ross into the surrounding
air . In essence, the light energy tra vels in bot h the core and the clad"
din g allowing the associated field s to decay (0 a negligible value at the
cteocing-air interface.
The inventio n of the clad waveguide structure led to the first serious
proposal" by Kao and Hockham [Ref 51. a nd w ens I Ref. 61 in 1966 to utilize
o ptical fibers as a co mmunications medium even though t!ley h ad to ocs in
excess of JOOO d8 km -". These pro posals stim ulated tremendo us e ffon-, to

.,.,
,,-. z., Ootlc" 1'l ber w h agu1d!l showil\Q tre Corti of ..fnCI;~ ind!l_ n. St.lrmu nCl~ by
t PW c1.cfeting of a1lghtlv low!lr ,. Ire: ll" Inde~ 17. >

11
 12 OPTICA L FIBER COMM UNICATIONS: PRI NCIPLES AND PRACTICE

redu ce the a ttenuation by pu rification o f the materials. T his has res ulted in
I imp roved conventional glass relining techniques gi\"ing fi bers with losses of
a ro und -l.2 d B km' " [Ref. 71. Also progress in glas s relining proce sses such as
depositing vapor-phase reagents (0 fo rm silica IRef. 8 1ha s allowed fi bers with
los..cs below I d B km 1 (0 be fabricated.
Most of this work. was focused on the 0.8-0.9 um wavelength ba nd because
the first ge neration optical sou rces fabricated from ga lfi um aluminum ars enide
alloy .. ope rated in this region. However. as silica fibers were stu d ied in further
detail it became a pparent that tra n...mission at longer wavelengths ( 1. 1- 1.6 urn)
wo uld result in lower lo sses and reduced signal dispersion. T his produced a shift
in optical fiber source and detector tech nology in o rder to provide operation at
these lo nger wavelen gths. lienee at longer wa vclcngths, es pecially a round
1.55 urn, fi bers With losse s as lo w a s 0 .2 d B km"! ha ve been repo rted 1Ref. 9 1.
In o rd er to apprec iat e the tr an smission mechanism o f o ptica l fi bers with
dimensions ap proximating to tho se of a hum an hair. it is necessary to con sider
" the op tical wavcguiding of cylindrical glass fibers, Such a fibe r ac ts as a n open
optical wa veguide, which may be analyzed utili zing sim ple ray theory.
However, the concepts of geometric optics are not sufficient when considering
alt types of optical fiber and elect romagnetic mode theory mu st be used to give
a complete picture. T he following sections will therefore ou tli ne the transmis
sian of light in optic al fi bers prio r 10 a more detailed discussion llf t he various
ty pes o f fi ber.
In Section 2.2 we continue the discussion of light propaga tion in o ptica l
fibers using the ray theory a pproach in o rder to develo p some o f the funda-
me ntal parameters associ ated with optical fiber tra nsmission (accepta nce
angle. numerical aperture. erc.). F urthermore. this provides a b asi s for the
discussion of electr omag netic wa ve p ropagatio n presented in Section 2.3. In
this sec tio n the electromagnetic mode theory is developed for the plan ar
(recta ngular) wa veg uide prio r to considera tion of the cylindrical fi ber. Follow-
ing. in Section 2.4. we discu ss o ptical propagation in step index fi bers (roth
rnultimode and single mode). Finally, Section 2.5 gives a brief account of the
waveguiding mecha nism within g raded index fi bers.

2. 2 RAY THEORY TRANSMISSION

2.2,1 Total Internal Reflection

T o consider the propa gation {If light within an optical fiber utilizing the ray
theory model it is necessary to take account of the refractive index of the
d ielectric medium, T he refractive index of a medium is delined as the ratio or
the velocity of light in a va cuum to the velocity of light in th e med ium. A ra y of
light travels more slowly in an o ptically dense medium than in one that is less
dense, and the refractive index gives a measure of this effect. W hen a ra y is

. _~ __<_' - -.' " '.' :0 ."

OPTICAL FIBER WAVEGUIDES 13

incident on the interface between two dielectrics of differing refractive indices

(e.g. glass-air), refractio n occurs as illustrated in F ig. 2.2(a). It may be
ob served that the ray approach ing the interface is pro pagating in a dielect ric of
refractive index n J an d is a t an a ngle ~. to the normal a t the surface o f the
interface. If the dielectric on the other side of the interface has a refractive
inde x n 2 which i'i less than n l then the refraction is such th at the ray path in
this lo wer index medium is a t a n angle ' 2 to the normal. where 9l i!> grea ter
than $ ). T he angles of incidence ~ 1 an d refra ction ~: are related to each other
and to the refractive ind ices of the dielectrics by Snell's law of refraction IRef.
IOJ. wh ich states thai:

0'

sin ~ I
(2. 1)
sin ~:
".
It may also be o bserved in F ig. 2.2(a) that a small amount of light is
reflected back into the o riginat ing dielectric medium (pa rtial internal reflec-
tion). As n l is greater than nl , the angle of refraction is always greater th an the
angle of incidence. Thus when the angle of refraction is 90° and the refracted
ray emerges parallel to t he interface between the dielectrics the angle of
incidence must be less than 90 ° . This is the limiting cas e of refraction and the
angle o f incidence is no..... kno wn a s the c ritical angle ~~ as ..bo wn in Fig.

"

lii! l l ;n ~ " " ,

¢
I' ,
, hrti,l i " "r " , 1
\ ~I"' )
l I , "' Il, ,,~,,,

\
I
", '"
I
I

fig . 2.2 Light rays incid ent on high to low refract ive onde" inl ertace (e g glass- air):
(a; 'relractioo; lbl the limiting cue 01 refractiOfl show ;I1Q the cri tical ray OIl an
angl. ~ o : Ic) totll Intern.1 reflect ion where ~ > ~.

,
 14 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

2.2(b). F rom Eq . (2. 1) the value of the critical angle is given b)' :
. III
sm. c = - - (2.2)
n,
At a ngles of incidence greater tha n the cr itical angle t he light is reflected
back into the originating d ielectric medi um (total intern al reflection) with high
effi ciency (around 99.9%). Hence it may be observed in Fig. 2.2(c) that total
internal ref lection occurs at the interface between two dielectrics of d ifferi ng
refractive indices when light is incide nt o n the d ielectric of lo wer index from the
dielectric of higher index. and the angle of incidence of the ray exceeds the
critica l value. T his i.. the mecha nism by which light 11.1 a sufficie nlly shallo w
a ngle (less than 900 - ¢lJ may be considered to propagate down a n optical
fib er with low lo ss. Figure 2.3 illustr ates the tran smissio n of a light ray in an
optical fiber via a series of to tal intern al reflections at the interface of the silica
co re and th e slightly lower refrac tive index silica cladding. The ra y has an angle
of incidence ~ at the inter face which is greater than the critical angle and is
reflected at the same angle to the normal.

,
[", ,,, j"d.x c1aJJL~,

H~ indn co ,,·

f ig . 2.3 Th e t ra fl smiss ion of a lig ht ' a y ; 1\ a pe rfect opt -ee l libe'

T he light ray sho wn in Fig. 2.3 is known 8 !. a meridional ray a s it pa sses

thro ugh the axis of the fiber core . T hi.. type of ray is the simplest to describe
a nd i ~ generally used when iliuM ra ting t he fu ndamental tra nsmission properties
o f optical fibers. It must (llso be noted that the light tra n..mission illustrated in
Fig. 2.3 assume!'> a perfect fiber. and that any discon tinuities or imperfections
<It the core-cladding interface wo uld probab ly result in refraction rather than
tot al internal reflection with the subseq uent loss of the light ray into the
cladding.

2.2.2 Acceptance Angle

H aving co nsidered the propagation o f light in an o ptic-til fiber thro ugh total
intern al refl ection at the co re-cladd ing interface, it is useful to enlarge upon the
geometric o ptics approach with reference to light rays entering the fi ber. Since
o nly ray s with a sufficiently sha llo w gra zing angle (l.e. with an a ngle to the
normal greater th an ~~ ) at the core-cladding interfa ce are transmitted by total

i , ·i;t ;." ··-· .... , - ...... '?~- " .- ;,. , tt...• y

tllllll1llllllA
OPTICAL FIBER WAVEGUIDES 15

Conical
1>,11

(""<I'L~;c~gl~
ICun" /
"
/
, /
',

Fig.2.4 The acceptance angle Oa when launching light into an optical fiber.

internal reflection. it is clear that not all rays entering the fiber core will con-
tinue to be propagated down its length.
The geometry concerned with launching a light ray into an optical tiber is
shown in Fig. 2.4 which illustrates a meridional ray A at the critical angle ~c
within the fiber at the core-cladding interface. It may be observed that this ray
enters the fiber core at an angle 8. to the fiber axis and is refracted at the air-
core interface before transmission to the core-cladding interface at the critical
angle. Hence. any rays which are incident into the fiber core at an angle
greater than ell will be transmitted to the core-cladding interface at an angle
less than ~(' and will not be totally internally reflected. This situation is also
illustrated in Fig. 2.4 where the incident ray B at an angle greater than e., is
refracted into the cladding and eventually lost by radiation. Thus for rays to be
transmitted by total internal reflection within the fiber core they must be
incident on the fiber core within an acceptance cone defined by the conical half
angle ea. Hence ell is the maximum angle to the axis that light may enter the
fiber in order to be propagated and is often referred to as the acceptance
angle" for the fiber.
If the fiber has a regular cross section (i.e. the core-cladding interfaces are
parallel and there are no discontinuities) an incident meridional ray at greater
than the critical angle will continue to be reflected and will be transmitted
through the fiber. From symmetry considerations it may be noted that the
output angle to the axis will be equal to Lhe input angle for the ray, assuming
the ray emerges into a medium of the same refractive index from which it was
input.

2.2.3 Numerical Aperture

The acceptance angle for an optical fiber was defined in Lhe previous section.
However. it is possible to continue the ray theory analysis to obtain a

•e. II lomedmel rererred to II the mlll.lmum or total acceptance anile.

 ,. OPTICAL FI BER COMM UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLE S AND PR ACTICE

relationsh ip between the acceptan ce a ngle a nd the refracti ve indices of the

three media involved. na mely the co re, cladding a nd air. This leads to the
definition of a mo re generally used term. the numerical aperture (N A) of the
fiber. I I mu st be noted that wilhin this analysis. as with the previous discussion
of a cceptance angle. we are concerned with meridional r ays within the fiber.
Figure 2.5 show!'> a light fay incident on the fi ber core at an angle Bl to the
fi ber axis which is less than the accept ance angle fur the fi ber B• . Th e ray
enters the fi ber from a medium (a ir) of refra ctive index n.. . an d the fiber core
has a refracti ve index n l • which is slightly greater tha n the cladding refractive
index n z. Assuming the entra nce face at the fiber core LO be no rmal to the allis.
then co nsiderin g the refrac tion at the a ir-co re interface an d using Snell's law
given by Eq. (2.1):
no sin &1 = 11 1 sin ~ (2.3)
Considering the righ t-angled triangle A BC indicated 10 Fig, 2.5, then :

(2.4)

where 9 is greater th an th e critica l ang le at the core-cladding interface. Hence

Eq. (2. 3) becomes
"1,1 sin 9 1 = " I cos ~ (2.5)
Using the trigonometrical relation ship s i n ~ 0 + cos! .. = I . Eq. (2.5 ) may be
written in the form :
(2.6)
W hen the limiting case for total internal retlection is con sidered ¢ becomes
+.
cqcal to th e critical angie fo r the core-cladding interfa ce an d is given by Eq.
(2.2). Also in this limiting ca se 6 1 beco mes the accepta nce unglc for the fiber
6~ . Combining these limiting cases into Eq. (2 .6) gives :
I, . 0. (nj, ' )'
no sm """' - "1 ~ (2.7)
Equation (2.7). apart from relating the a cceptance an gle to t he refractive

'"
",
" ,
"
Ag.2.5 The rav pal h tor 8 ITlerid i0l'l81rll V lauoctled into an o p lica l l ibel i n ai' at lin inp ut
angle less t h an t he ecceptenc e ang~e tor t he f ,b er.

_-_ " 'L~_._._~ _~

OPTICAL FIBER WAVEGUIDES 17

indices, serves as the basis for the definition of the important optical fiber
parameter" the numerical aperture (N A). Hence the N A is defined as:
NA -.. no sin SOl == (117 - n~)~ (2.8)

Since the N A is often used with the fiber in air where no is unity ~ it is simply
equal to sin 9a . It TI1ay also be noted that incident meridional rays over the
range 0 ~ 9 ~ 93 will be propagated within the fiber.
1

The numerical aperture may also be given in terms of the relative refractive
index difference 6. between the core and the cladding which is defined as:
2 "1
III ~ n2.
2nf
(2.9)
J"otJ _
for A <{ 1

Hence combining Eq. (2.8) with Eq. (2.9) we can write:

NA ~ III (2li)~· (2.10)

The relationships given in Eqs. (2.8) and (2.] 0) for the numerical aperture
are a very useful measure of the light-collecting ability of a fiber. They are
independent of the fiber core diameter and will hold for diameters as small as
8 urn, However ~ for smaller dia meters they break down as the geometric optics
approach is invalid. This is because the ray theory model is only a partial
description of the character of light. It describes the direction a plane wave
component takes in the fiber but does not take into account interference
between such components. When interference phenomcn a arc con sidercd it is
found that only rays with certain discrete characteristics propagate in the fiber
core. Thus the fiber will only support a discrete number of guided rnodes.. This
becomes critical in small core diameter fibers which only support one or a few
modes. Hence electromagnetic rnode theory must be applied in these cases
I Ref. 121..

Example 2.1

A sulca optical fiber with a core diameter large enough to be considered by ray
theory analysis has a core refractive index of 1,50 and a cladding refractive index of
1.47.
Determine: (a) the critica I a ngle at th e core-cladd i ng inte rfa ce: (b) lhp. NA fo r tho
fiber; (c) the acceptance angle ina ir for the fi ber. o.
Solution: (a} The critical angl e 4-(; at the core-claddi ng interface is give n bV Eq.
(2.2) where:

na 1,47
4-G =..:.: sln-' - == sln" ~-
n, 1,50

== 78.5 C1
 18 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

{bl From Eq. 12.8) the numerical aperture is:

NA = (ni -- n~rJ: (1.50 2 - .47'1)

12.25 2,161;
0,30
lel Considering Eq. 12.81 the acceptance angle in air 80 is given by
sin"! 0,30

17.4 0

Example 2.2

A typical relative refractive index difference for an optical fiber desigrled for lonq
distance transmission is 1%. Estimate the NA and the solid acceptance angle in air
for the fiber when the core index is 1.46. Further calculate the critical angle at the
core-cladding interface within the fiber. It may be assumed that the concepts of
geometric optics hold for the fiber.
Solution: Using Eq (2101 with A=O.Ol gives the numerical aperture as:

NA ::= n, IZAr1- = '.46 10.02r;

= 0.21

For small angles the solid acceptance angle in air ~ is given by:

Hence from Eq. 12.8):

110,04

0.13rads

Using Eq. 12,9) for the relative refractive index difference ll. gives:

I Hence

0,
.- __ 1 A 1-0.01

'"
= 0,99

From Eq, 12,21 the critical angle at the core-cladding interface is:

0,
e, = sin 1 _ = sin 1 0.99
0,

,- 81.9 0
,
,I
OPTICAL FIBER WAVEGUIDES 19

2.2.4 Skew Rays

In the previous sections we have considered the pro pagatio n of meridional rays
in the optical waveguide , However. an other category of ray exists .... hic h is
trans mitt ed without passing thro ugh the fiber axis. T hese r ays, whieh gr eatly
o utnumber the meridion al rays, follow a helical path th ro ugh the fi ber as
illus trated in F ig, 2.6 and a re called skew rays. It is not ea sy to visualize the
skew r ay pat hs in t w o dime ns ions but it may be observed from Fig. 2.ft(b) that
the h elical path traced th rough th e fiber gives a change in d irection of 2..,. at
each reflection where v is the angle between the projection o f the ra y in two
di me nsions a nd the radius o f the fiber core at the point o f reflectio n. Hence.
unlike meridional rays. the point uf emergence o f skew ra ys fro m the fi ber in
air will depend upon th e number of reflections they undergo rather than the
inp ut condit ions to the fiber. Wh en th e light inp ut to the fi ber is non unifo rm.
skew rays will thercfore lend to hav e a smoothing effect on the distribut ion of
the light as it is transmitt ed. giving a more uniform output. The amou nt of
smoothing is depe nden t on the number of reflections encountered by the skew
rays.
A further possible adva ntage o f the transmission of s kew rays becomes
apparent when their acceptance cond itions arc considered. In o rder to
calculate th e acceptance angle for a skew r ay it is nece ssa ry to define the d irec-
tion of th e ray in two perpendicular planes. T he geometry of the situation is
ltlustra ted in Fig. 2.7 where a skew rll y is shown incident on the fiber core at
the point A . at an angle 9. to the no rmal at the fiber end fucc. T he ray is
refracted at the air-core int erface before trave lling to the point B in the same
plane. T he angles of incidence and reflection at the point B arc ~ which IS
greater tha n the critical angle fo r the core....c ladding interfa ce .

'"
.... I.' Th. t\e UcIIIl I t+l t ' ltl" by III ski U v in IlIll optical fiber: lal stew ray palh down
Ih. lIbtr; (bl ere.....ctlonel vi of the tibeor.
20 OPTICAL FIBER CO MM UNICATIONS: PRINCI PLES AND PR ACTICE

- - - - - ~

U \110.1
-- -.- ( lao:J .....

Ag.2.7 The ray pa th wilh in the fiber core tor a aeew ray inc ide nl a t a n a n gle 9" to the
normal at the air-core interface.

When considering the ra y between A and B it is necessar y to resolve the

d irectio n of th e ray path AB to the cor e radius at the point B. As the in cident
and reflected rays at the point B are in the same plane, this is simply cos Ijl.
H owever, if the two perpendicular planes through which the ray path AB
traver ses are considered, then y is the angle between the core r adius and the
projection o f the ray on to II plane BRS normal to the co re axis. an d 9 is the
angle between the ray and a line A T d rawn parallel to the core ax is. Thu s to
reso lve the ray path AD relative to the radius BR in these two perpend icu lar
planes. requires rnuhiplica non by co !'> y a nd sin O.
Hence. the reflection at point B at an angle ~ may be given by :
cos y !'>in 9 =cos + (2. 11 )
Using th e trigonometr ic at rela tionship sin l • + cos! ¢ = I , Eo. (2.1 1)
becomes :
cos r sm e = cos , = ( I - !'>in l ~)+ (2. 12)
If the limiting case for total interna l reflection is now conside red then +
becomes eq ual to the critical Angle ¢.; for the core-cladding interface and
following E4. (2.2) is given by sin +~ = "11" 1' Hence E4. (2. 12) may be written
as :

eos y sin O(,co s <pc = ( 1 - n' ) ' nf . (2. 13)

F urthermo re, using Snell's law at the point A following Eq. (2.1), we can write:
_ (2. 14)

where 9a represents the maximum input a xial angle for meridio na l ra ys a s

expressed in Section 2.2.2. a nd 0 is the interna l axial angle. Hence substituting
for sin 9 from Eq. (2. 13) into Eq. (2. 14) gives :

" .. ' ,. ',

OPTICAL FIBER WAVEGUIDES 21

n J cos
sin 8.. - - - ----''-
"<l co s 'f
c,
"
"0 cos 'f ( 1- -
.,.', ), (2. 15 )

e
where a, now represents the m ax imum input a ngle o r acceptance a ngle for
skew rays. It rna)' be noted that the inequality shown in Eq. (2. 1.1) is no longer
necessar y as all the terms in Eq. (2.1 5) are specified for the limiting case. Thus
the acceptance co nditions for sk ew rays are:

1111 si n 8.. cos 'f = (Ili - nD! - NA (2. 161

a nd in th e case of the fi ber in air (flo = I):

e
sin a< cos 'f = N A (2.17)
T herefo re. by comparison with Eq. (2.8 ) derived for m erid ional rays. it may be
noted th at skew rays are accepted a t larger axial a ngles in a given fiber than
merid io nal ray s. depend ing upon the va lue of cos y. In fact for meridional rays
cos v is equal to un ity and 0", beco mes eq ual to e•. Thus a lthough eo is the
m aximum conical h alf angle for th e acceptance of meridional rays. it defines
the mi nimum input angle for skew rays. H ence as may be observed from
Fig. 2.6. xkcw rays lend to propagate on ly in the annu lar region near the outer
surface o f the co re, and do not fully utilise the core as a transmission medium.
H owever. they are co mplementa ry to meridional rays and increase the light-
gathering capacity of the fibe r. T his increased light-gathering ability may br.:
sign ifica nt fo r la rge N A fibers. bu t for most communication design pu rposes
[he e xpressions given in Eqs. (2.M) and (2 . 10) fo r meridional rays are con -
sidered adequate.

Example 2.3

A n o pt ical fi Of!r in e,r has an NA 0 1 0.4 . C o m par e tile- accept an ce angle for
m e rid iona l re vs with thM to r s kew la ys wh ic h cha ng e d irectio n b y 100° a t eac h
refl eCt ion.
Solution: The a ccept a nce angle for me lidional la Yl> ir. g iv en t,., EQ. 12 81 w it h
" 0 = 1 as:
8. sin- ' N A = sin- I 0 .4

= 23 .6 °

The slo-ew ravs change direct ion by 100° et eec h retrecuon. t betetore ., = 50°
Hence usin g Eq. {2 .1 7f th e ac cept an ce angle for s ~ew revs is:

,•• =
.
Sin
-,
(..~ ) ~ ,; ,,_ ' ( _~A ..)
cos y cos 50 0

= 38 5 0
11'1 th l, BXll mp le. me ec ce cteoce a ng le fo r m e skew Illys IS a bout 15° g reat er th a n
tI'\tl CCll'Te lol)O l'1 dlng Il'1g le for f'T"e ridional rays. HoweYel , it must be noted that we h ave
o nly QClm plred I"" ICCeol. nc. I "gll 01 a nI oBrticlJ la r ~ew ra y pat h. ~e n the l igllt
22 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS . PAINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

inp u t 10 the fib" . is a t ,HI ..n g le to the tiber ,, ~i:; ,

it is poss ihle lt1dt y wil l va r.,.. from
0
zero fo r m erid Io n al rays to 90 for rays w h ich e nter ' hI:' fibe r .1t Ih Q co.e....dadd ing
inte rface giving accepta nce of s kew rays ove r a conical half a ngle 01 Jl I 2 rad ia ns.

2 ,3 ELECTROMAGNETIC MODE THEORY FOR OPTICAL

PROPAGATION

2.3 .1 Electromagnetic Waves

In o rder to o btain an impro ved model fo r the propagation ol light in a n o ptica l
fi ber. electromagnetic wa ve theory must be considered. T he basis for the st udy
of electrom agnetic wave prop agation is prov ided by Maxwell's equ ations IRef.
13]. For a medium with zero co nductivity these vector relationships may be
written in terms of the electric fiel d E. magn etic fi eld H , electri c nux density D
and magnetic flux density B as the curl equatio ns :

oR
V xE=- - (2. 18)
o{
oD
V xH = - (2, 19)

a nd the divergence cond itions :

"
v · D ,,-- O (no free charges) (2.20)
V . B = 0 (no free pole s) (2.2 1)
where V is <I vector opera tor.
The fo ur field vectors arc related b y the relatio ns :

(2, 22)

where E is the dielectric permittivity a nd }1 is t he magnetic permeability of the

medium.
Substituting fo r D a nd B and laking thc curl o f Eqs. (2. 18) and (2. 19) gives

(2,23)

(2,24)

T he n using the divergen ce co nd itio ns of Eqs. (2.20) and (2.1 1) with th e

••
OPTICA L FIBER WAVEGU IDES 23

vecto r identity
v )( (V x Y) = V( V · Y) - V1( y )

we o btain the nondispersive wave equations:

( 2.25)

and
• 3' H
V · H = ....E - (2.26)
af
where V 1 is the l aplacian operator. For rectangular Cartesian and cylindrical
po lar coordinates the abo ve wave eq uations hold for each component of the
fi eld vector. every component sa tisfying the scalar wave equation:

(2.27)

where \j1 may rep resent a com ponent of the E or H fiel d and ~'~ is the phase
velocity (velocity of propagation of a point o f constant phase in the wave) in
the dielectric medium. It follows that

I
(2.28)

where Il< and s, arc the relative permeability and permittivity fo r the dielectric
medium and ~ a nd ~ a re the permeability and perm ittivity of free space. The
velocity of light in free sp ace C' is therefore

(2.29)

If pla nar waveg uides. describe..d by rectangula r Cartesian coordinates

(x. y, z). or circular fi bers. described by cylindrical polar coordinates (r; " z)
a rc con sidered, t hen the l aplacia n operator takes the fo rm :

(2.30)

or

(2.3 1)

rllpoodvely, h il nocellUY to consider both these forms for a complete treat-

••
24 OPTICA L FI BER COMM UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRA CTICE

me nt o f optical propagation in the fiber a lthough many of the properties of

in terest may be dealt with using Cartesian coord inates.
T he basic solutio n o f the wave equation is a sin usoidal wave, t he most
im porta nt form o f whic h is a un iform plane wave given by :
1,jf = ..,~ expj(w( - k . r ) (2.32 )
wh ere w is the angular frequency o f the field. ( is the time. k is th e p ropagation
vector which gives the direct ion of propagation and th e ra te of ch ange of phase
with distanc e. whilst the components of r spccjf'y the coordinate point at which
t he field is observed. W hen). is the optical wavelength in a vacuum. the mag-
nitud e uf t he prop agatio n vecto r o r the vacuum propagation constan t k. (where
I
k. "" kl> is given by:

2n
k ~ ­ (2.33)
A

It sho uld be noted that in thi s case k is also referred to as th e free space wa ve
num ber.

2.3 .2 Mod•• in a Planar Guide

T he pla nar guide is the ..implest form of optical waveguide . We may assume it
consists of a sla b of dielectric with refractive index II I sa ndwiched betwee n two
regio ns of lower refractive index n2 ' In order to o btain an improved model fo r
optical propagation it is useful to consider the interference of pta ee wave co m-
ponents within th is dielectric waveguide.
T he conceptual transition from ray to wave theory may be aid ed by con-
sideration of a plane monochro matic wa ve prop agating in the directio n of the
ray p ath within the guide (see Fig. 2.8(a» . As th e refractive index within the
guide is n. _the optical wavelength in thi s region is reduced to "AJn. wh ilst the
vacuum pro pagation con sta nt is increased to n. k, Wh en 9 is the angle between
the wa ve propagation vector or the equivalent ray and t he guide a xis, th e pla ne
wa ve ca n be resolved into two component pla ne wa ves propagat ing in the z
an d .x d irections as shown in Fig. 2.8(a). T he co mpo nent of rbc pro pagatio n
con st ant in the z direction ~r is given by:

(2.34)

T he com ponent of the propagation constant in the x dir ect ion ~,- IS:

(2.31)

T he co mponent of t he plane wave in the x direction is reflected at the

interface between the higher and lower refractive index media . When the total
I,
OPTICAL FIBER W AVEGUIDES 25

, ., _"""" " ""'", t

C " i~ ,

." ( I:>J J 1ll3

(.,
x ,j ;«« ioA

,
r :«:
...... ....,,,tor,
' I I '
I I " : I
: .............. I : ......-l....... ~ : "'---';1" Ir" I,da
, - - 7'''' - "
L -,' , V "-
1

~'V ~", .
,

Fig .2.8 Th e form a tion o~ OJ m ode in OJ pla M t dielectric gui de : loll a p la(ll:! wa ve p rop ag lll-
;og in ' he gu;de s hown by its wave vec to r o r equ iva len t ray- the w a ve ve c to r is
resolved int o c o m po nents in the z and .. dire ct io ns ; (b)
t he interfereoce o f plane
w ave s in th e gu id e to rming the low es t ord e r mode (m '" 0 ).

phase c hange" after two successive reflections at the upper and lower
interfaces (between lite poin ts P and Q ) ;s equal to 2 m1t radians. where m ill a n
integer. then constructive interference occurs and a standing wave is obtained
in the x direction. This situation is illustrated in Fig. 2.8(b) where the
interference o f two plane waves is sho wn. In this illustration it i ~ assumed that
the interference forms the lo west o rder (where m . . .: 0) standing wave, where
the electric field is a maximum at the center of the guide decaying towards aero
at t he boundar y between the guide and cladding. However, it may he ob served
from Fig. 2.8(b) that the electric field penetrates some distance into thc clad-
di ng, a phenomenon which is discussed in Section 2.3.4.
Nevertheless the optica l wave is effectively confi ned within the guide a nd the
electric field distribution in the x direction docs not cha nge as the wave
pro pagates in the z direction. T he sinusoid ally va rying elect ric tield in the z
direction is also shown in Fig. 2.8(h). T he stable field distribution in the x
d irection with on ly a periodic z dependence is known as a mode. A specific
mod e is only o btained when the angle between the propagation vectors or the
rays and the interface have a pa rticular value a s indicated in Fig.2.8(b). Tn
effect Eqs. (2.34) and (2.35) define a group o r co ngruence o f ray s whic h in the

• It .hoold be noted thlt there is l pJ-.ase ~ hift on reflection of the plaee wive at the i nl ~rfllCC
u well II I phl tc cban.t with disunce ll'hdkd . The ph. se shift o n rene«ion .1.1a dielectric
Intm l ce " detit with in ~ 2.3.4.
 26 OPTICAL FIBE R CO M MUN ICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

case described represents the lowest order mode. Hence the light pro pagating
within the guide is formed into discrete modes eac h typified by a distinct value
of 9. These modes ha ve a periodic : dependence of the form cxp (-Jl3, z) where
~: becomes the propagation con stant fo r the mode as the modal lield pattern is
invariant except for a periodic: dependence. Hence for notational simplicity,
and in common with accepted practice. we denote the mode propagation con-
..taut by P. where p.. . , fI.: - If we now assume a time dependence for the mono-
chromatic electromagnetic light field with angular frequency 00 of CKp Urof).
I, then the combined factor exp j(OOf - ~z) describes a mode propagating in the z
direction.
I. To visualize the do minant modes propagating in the z direction we may con-
sider plane wa ves corresponding to rays at different specific angles in the
pla nar guide. These plane waves give constructive interfe rence to form stand-
ing wave patterns across the guide following a sjne or cosine for mula. Figure
2.9 shows examples of such rays for In = l , 2, 3 together with the electric field
distributions in the x direction . II may be obser ved that m denotes the number
o f zeros in this tr ansverse field pattern. In this way In signifi es the order of the
mode a nd is known as the mode numb er.
When light is described as an elect romagnetic wa ve it consists of a
periodically va rying electric field E and magnetic field H which are orientated

'" 1.,,,,"1
l l.o<ldi,'lI

• f,

,., ... ·3

Fig. 2 .9 P hvs ic a l model s howing the lay propag ation a nd ttle oo rrespolldillg tra nllV.~
etec roc (TEl fie ld pa tte rns 01 th ree lower o rd er mode s (m .. 1, 2, 31 ill th e pl,r"
d i@l ectr;C g l.lid e,
j ,i;
•
OPTICAL FIBER WAVEGUI DES 27

at right angle" to ea ch other. The transverse modes shown in Fig. 2.9 illustrate
the case when the electric fi eld is perpendicular to the d ire-ction of propagation
and hence E: = 0 , but a co rrespo nd ing component o f the magnetic fiel d H is in
the d irectio n o f propagation. In this insta nce rhe modes are said to be
t ransverse elect ric: (TE). A lternatively. when a component of tile J:: Iield is in
the direction of propagat ion. but H: = O. the modes form ed are called
tra nsverse magnetic (TM). The mode num bers are incorporated into thi s
nomencl ature by refer ring to the ,TE~r and T M", modes as illustrat ed for the
trans verse electric modes sho wn in Fig. 2.9. Wh en the total fi eld lies in the
tra nsverse plane.transverse electromagnetic (TEM ) wa ve!' exist where both E:
and H , arc zero. However. although TEM waves occu r in metallic conductors
(e.g. coaxial cables) the y a re seldom found in optical w aveguides.

2.3.3 Ph eee and Group Veloclty

Within all electro magnetic waves, whet her plan e or otherwise, there are points
of constant phase. F or plane waves these constant ph ase points form a surface
whi ch is referred to as a wavefront. As a monochromatic ligh t wave
propa ga tes along a wavegu ide in the r d irection the se points of co nstant phase
tra vel at a p hase velocity 1'1' given by :

v =-
, '" ~
(2.36)

whe re (t,) is the a ngular frequency of the wa ve. However. it is im possible in

practice to produce perfectly monochromatic light wave s, and light energy is
gen erall y compo sed of a sum of pla ne wave components of different fre-
quencies. O ften t he situation exists where a group of waves with closely similar
frequ encies propagate so that their resultant form s a packet of waves. The for-
matio n of such a wave packet re sulting from the co mbination of two waves of
slightly different frequency propagating together is illustrated in Fig. 2.10. T his
wave packet docs nOI travel at the ph ase velocity of t ile individ ual waves but is.
observed to move at a g roup velocity ) '1 give n b )'

0'"
t' =- (2.37)
• o~

The group velocity is of gre atest importance in the study of the trans mission
cha racteristics of optica l fi bers as it relates to the propagation characteristics
of o bserva ble wave group s or pa ckets o f light.
If propagation in an infinite medium of refract ive index n j is considered,
then the propagation constant ma y be written a s:
2n nlW
~="" -I. =c- (2.38)
2. OPTICAL FIBER CO MM UNICATIONS: PRINCI PLES AND PRACTICE

'. •'.
o,
0 0
• 0
0
•
•
•
' 0
•• •,, •• •
•• • •
•
• 0 •• • , •
• 0
,
0

, , • ,• • • •
0
e.
r '.
• 0
0
' 0
o•

• •.,•
0
• • •• 0 0 0
• , •• •• •d •
0

•••
0 0 0
"C. 0
• "• • C· '.J c· •

- --
- -
- - ,/

Flg.2 .10 The for matio n 01 a w ave pac ket Irom the co mbination of two w a ves w ith
nea rly e qua l rreq ue ocles. Th e e nve lop e of t he wa ve pa c ket o r gro up o! w a ves
trave ls a t a grou p velo c ity vg .

where c is the velocity of light in frce space. Equation ( 2.38 ) follo ws h o m Eqs.
(2.33) a nd (2.34) where we assume propagation in the z direction only and
hence cos e is equal to unity. Using Eq. (2.36) we obtain the following
relatio nship for the phase velocity:

c
vI' = - (2.39)
no
Similarly employing Eq. (2.37), where in the limit 5mlSP becomes dro /d~ . the
gro up velocity :

c
~ --
(2.40)
N,

T he parameter N I is known as the group index of the guide.

 OPTICAL FIBER W AVEGUIDES 29

2.3.4 Pha.. Shrtt with Total Internal Reflection and th.

Evane.cent Field
TIle discu ssion of electromagnetic wave propa g at ion in the planar waveg uide
given in Sect ion 2.3.2 d rew auen uon to certain phenomena that occur at the
guide-cladding interface which are not a ppa rent fro m ray theory considera-
tions o f optical propagation. 1:1 o rder to appreciate these phenomena it is
necessar y to use the wave theory model for total internal reflection at a plan ar
interface. T his is illustrated in Fig. 2 . 11, where the arr owed lines represent
wave propagation vectors and a compo nent of the wave energy is sh own to be
transmitt ed through the interface into the cladding. Th e wave equ ation in
Cartesian coord inates for the electric fi eld in a losslcss medium is :

i)2E cY E ~E i)IE
V2 t: -=- p£ - = - - +_ +- - (2.4 1)
ar i)r (}) 02 3zJ

As the gui de-cladding interface lies in the y- z plane and the w ave is incident in
the x-z pla ne onto the interface. then fJ/a)' may he assumed to be zero . Since
the pha se fronts m u st match at all points along the interface in the z di rection.
the th ree wave s shown in Fig. 2. 11 will have the sa me propagation consta nt ~
in thi s direction. Therefore fro m the discussion o f Sectio n 2.3.2 the wa ve
propagatio n in the z directio n may be described by exp}(wt - ~z). In addition.
the re will also be propagation in the x direction . Wh en the compo nents are
resolved in rh!s plane :

~_\ I = n l k cos ~I (2.42)

,,,,
If. ,,,, p ( -". , ,)
•

><, ,(;...1< 1 ,
~ p ! ("" ,1;;- - _ ._

I
c, .,,, ,( /~. , .,)

,,,

FlU. 2.11 A wave incident ltle guide--cladd ing interlace of a plana. d leleCl,ic
0 11
wa~g uide . The wave vectors of the incident. u e nseutted a nd refle Cle d waves
IIrll il'!dicilted (owlid ilrrowed lines) to ge lhe r w ith their components in tt-e r a r'ld
• dlrtctions ldashed " tOWN Ii nDs).

,
 30 OPTICAL FIBER COM MUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

~...l - n ~k cos ~~ (2.43)

where Po d a nd 13Xl a re p ro pagation constants in the x direction for the guide

and cladding respectively. T hus the three waves in the wa veguide ind ic ated in
Fig. 2. I I, the incident, the trans mitted and the reflected, with am plitudes A . B
and C respectively will have the fo rms :

A = Ao exp --U13,dX) exp ) «,>1 - pz) (2.44 )

B = By exp -(JP.2X) cxp ) (w - J:lz) (2.4 5)
C = Co exp (j'lJ.. r:t') exp j«(l)l - fiz ) (2 .46)
U.. ing the sim ple trigo no mcrric at relation ship cos: ~ + sin l ~ -= I :

~.~ I = -~t
2 1
( 2,47)
"'" (nt k - 13 )

and
I (2.48)
When an electromagnetic wave is incident upon a n interface between two
dielectric media, Maxwell's equat ions require th at both th e tangential corn -
pon enrs of £ and H a nd the normal com ponents o f D (=-0 EE ) a nd B (= flH) a re
continuo us across th e bo und ary. If the bo undary is defi ned at x -= 0 we may
consider the ca ses of the transverse electric (TEl and tr ansverse magnet ic
( T ~I) modes.
Initially let us consider the T E field at the bou ndary. When E4S. (2.44) a nd
(2.46) ace used to re pre..em the electric field components in the J' di rec tion E,
and the boundary conditions are app lied. the n the normal components of the E
, :' and H field s at the interface may be equated giving:
(2.49)
F urthermore it c an be shown (see Ap pendix A) that an electric field com-
ponent in the y direction is related to the tangential magn etic field component
H" following :

(2.50)

Applying the tangential bound ary cond ition s and cquaung III by
differentiating £.,. gives :
- P.>:i AO + ~ \'l CO = - ~ \ 2 B() (2.S I)
Algebra ic manipu lation of Eqs. (2.4 9) a nd (2.5 1) provides the following
results :

( 2.52)

, ..•...
'
OPTICAL FIBER WAVEGUIDES 31

(2.53)

where rur and rET are the reflection and transmission coefficients for the F:
field at the interface respectively. The expressions obtained in Eqs. (2.52) and
(2.53) correspond to the Fresnel relationships [Ref. 10) for radiation polarized
perpendicular to the interface (E polarization).
When both ~xl and ~x2 arc real it is elear that the reflected wave C is in
phase with the incident wave A. This corresponds to partial reflection of the
incident beam. However, as <PI is increased the component ~z (i.c.B) increases
and following Eqs. (2.47) and (2.48), the components ~\l and ~x2 decrease.
Continuation of this process results in ~.r2 passing through zero, a point which
is signified by <PI reaching the critical angle for total internal rel1ection. If <PI is
further increased the component ~_d becomes imaginary and we may write it
in the form -j~2' During this process ~_\I remains real because we have
assumed that n l > n2 • Under the conditions of total internal reflection Eq.
(2.52) may therefore be written as:

) = A o cxp 2jOE (2.54)

where we observe there is a phase shift of the reflected wave relative to the
incident wave. This is signified by 0E which is given by:

(2.55)

Furthermore the modulus of the reflected wave is identical to the modulus of

the incident wave (ICo 1= lAo I). The curves of the amplitude reflection
coefficient I r ER Iand phase shift on reflection, against angle of incidence 4' I ' for
TE waves incident on a glass-air interface are displayed in Fig. 2.12 I Ref. 141.
These curves illustrate the above results, where under the conditions of total
internal reflection the reflected wave has an equal amplitude to the incident
wave, but undergoes a phase shift corresponding to 0E degrees.
A similar analysis may be applied to the TM modes at the interface 'which
leads to expressions for reflection and transmission of the form I Ref. 141:

(2.56)

and

(2.57)
, .2 OPTICA L FIBER COMMUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AN D PRACTICE

'.O r~---,------,
'lO r~.", ...,1.
R<11<~<",,, " I) .,_ 1<1.." ""
, wind,'",
'", ---

Ag. 2 .' 2 Curve5 s howin g the re fle ctio n coeff,cie", a nd p hase s h ift o n re flectio n fol
transve rse ere ct nc .....ave s a ga inSl the a n gle of Indd e n.ce fIX a glass-a ir
Inte rface In, = 1.5 . " 1 = 1.01. Reproduced w il h perm ission from J . E. M <d -
w inte r. Optical Fibers fOf Transm ;ssion. J o hn W ile y & S o ns rnc., 19 7 9 .

where r HII and rn r are respectively the refl ection and tran smission coeffi cients
for the H field at t he interface. Again the expressions given in Eqs. (2.56) and
(2.5 7) co rres po nd to Fresnel relat io nships IRef. 101. but in th is C3 ~ they apply
to r adiation polarized pa ra llel to the interface (H polarization ). Furthermore.
considerations o f a n increasing angle o f incidence ~l ' such that 13.1 goes to
zero a nd then becomes imaginary. again results in a ph ase shift when to tal
internal reflectio n occurs, However, in this case a differen t phase shin is
obtained corresponding to

(2.58 )

w here

tan 0H = (''"" )' tan Of.

- (2. 59)

I
,
Thus the pha..e shift obtained on tot al internal reflection is dependent upon
both the angle o f incidence and the p olarization (either TE or T M ) of the
radia tion.
T he second pheno menon o f interest under cond itio ns of to tal interna l renee-
non is the fo rm of the electric Held in the cladding of the guide. Before the
critical angle for tota l intern al reflection is reached an d hence when there is
o nly partia l reflection, t he field in the cladding is of the form given by Eq .
(2.45). Ho wever. as indicated previo usly, when total internal reflection o ccurs.
~ A2 becom es imaginary and may be written a s -j~2. Substituting for 13 .2 in Eq.
I (I2.45) gives the transmitted W8,'e in the cladd ing as:

B = B o exp (-~j x) exp )((I)r - j3z) ( 2.60)

. _-~
OPTICAL FIBER W AVEGUIDES 33

". OaJd,"t
",> 11,

W• •", ',",,<1,
o f 'h" ."..1<01
pl. "" w.,,-

Fi9. 2 . 13 The t1~ ponemia lly decll ying eva nes ce nt fiald in lhe c ladd ing 0 1 the o ptica l
w ave g uide.

Th us the amplitude o f the Field in the cladd ing is ob served to d ecuy

exponentially" in the .r direction . Such a field. exh ibit ing an exponentially
decaying am plitude. is often referred to a s an eva nescent fi eld. Figure 2.1 3
shows a diagrammatic repr esentation o f the evanescent fie ld. A fi eld of this
rype ..teres energy and transports it in the direction o f propagation (.:::) but docs
no t tra nsport energy in the tra nsverse direction (x ). Nevertheless the existence
of an evanescent field beyo nd the plane of refl ection in the lower index med ium
indicates th at optical energy is transmitted into the cladd ing.
The penetration o f energy into th e cladding underlines the importance o f the
choice o f cladd ing mat erial. II give!' rise 10 the follo wing req uirements :
(a ) The cladd ing should be tran sp arent to light at the wavelengths m'CJ .... hich
the guide is to o perate.
(b ) Ideally the cladding sho uld consist o f a solid material in o rder to a ...oid
both d amage to the guide a nd the accumulatio n of foreign matter tin the
guide walls . These effects degrade the refl ection process by interaction with
the evanescent field. T his in part explains _the poor perfor mance (high
lo sses) of early o ptical waveguides with air cla dd ing.
(c) T he clad ding thicknc..s must he sufficient to allow th e evanescent field l(l
decay to a low value or losses from the penetrating energy may be
encountered. In man )' ca ses. however. the magnitude of the field fa/Is off
rapidl y with distance fro m the guide-cladding interface. Th is may occur
within distances equiva lent to a lew wavelengths of the transmitted light.
Therefo re the mos t widely used o ptical fihcrs consist of a con: and cl adding
both made of glass. T he cladding refractive index b thus higher than would be
the case with liquid o r gaseous cladding giving a lo wer numerical aperture for
Ihe fiber. but it provides a fa r more p ractical solu tion.

-It . oolild be not ed that .. e hl~ t cho~n the li l :1 of ~1 1lO th at the npo:lrnl ial fioekJ deca Yi
n ther Ull ll l ro.", ,.,.ft.; dilt ll.l\Ce inlo the c laCdil1 a:. In this eese I growin; exponen lial field ii
l phyrfcally Improbable IIOIvtion.
 34 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

2.3.5 Goos418enchen Shift

,i
The phase c hange incurred with the to tal internal reflection ( If a light hcam on
i, a pla na r dielectric interface may be understood from physical o bservation.
Careful examin at ion shows th at the refl ected beam is shifted laterally from the
traject ory predicted by simple ray theory a nalysis as illust rated in Fig. 2.14.
This lateral d ispl acement is kno wn as the Goos-Haencben shift after its fi rst
o bservers.
The geomet ric reflection a ppears to take place at a virtual refl ecting plan e
which is pa rallel [ 0 the dielectric interface in the low er index mediu m as
indicated in F ig. 2. 14 . Utilizing wave the ory it is possible to det ermine this
late ra l shift IRef. 141 a lthough it is very small (d ~ 0.06- 0.10 urn for a silvered
glass interface at a wa velength o f 0.55 urn) an d difficul t to ob ser ve. However.
this c once pt pro vides an importa nt insight into the g uida nce mecha nism o f
dielectric o ptical waveguides.

Fig.2.14 Th e te re eet d is p la ce me nt of a li ght bea m o n refl@ CI IOI'1 a t a d ielect ric tnt e rta ce
(Goo s- Haench en shift).

2.3.6 Cylindrical Rber

The exact solution of M axwell's equations for a .eylind rical homogeneous core
dielectric waveguide" involves much algebra and yields a co mplex result IRef
151. Although the presentation of this mathem atics is beyond the scope of this
text. it is useful to conside r the resulting modal field s. In common with the
pla nar guide (Section 2.3.2), T E (w here E, = 0 ) and Ttl.! (where H, = 0 )
modes a rc o btained with in the dielectric c ylinder. Th e cy lindrical waveguide.
how ever, is bounded in two di mensions ra ther th a n one. T hus two integers, I
a nd m, are necessary in order to specify the modes in contrast to the single
integer (m) requi red fo r the p lan a r guide. For the cylindrical waveguide we
therefore refe r to TE J", an d T MIlIl modes . T hese modes corres pond to
meridional rays (see Section 2.2.1) travelling within the fiber. How ever, hybrid

• This type of optiCal ll< 3vcguide with a con~lalll refractive inde x core 15 known U " I~ ind ex
fi ber (set: Stetion 2.4).
OPTICAL FIBER WAVEGUIDES 35

modes where E, and Hz are nonzero also occur within the cylindrical
waveguide. These modes which result from skew ray propagation (see Section
2.2.4) within the fiber are designated HElm and EH 1", depending upon whether
the components of H or E make the larger contribution to the transverse (to
the fiber axis) field. Thus an exact description of the modal fields in a step
index fiber proves somewhat complicated.
Fortunately the analysis may be simplified when considering optical fibers
for communication purposes. These fibers satisfy the weakly guiding approxi-
mation IRef. 161 where the relative index difference ~ <Sf, I. This corresponds to
a
small grazing angles in Eq. (2.34). In fact ~ is usually less than 0.03 (2%) for
optical communications fibers. For weakly guiding structures with dominant
forward propagation, mode theory gives dominant transverse field com-
ponents. Hence approximate solutions for the full set of HE, EH, TE and TM
modes may be given by two linearly polarized components IRef. 161. These
linearly polarized (LP) modes are not exact modes of the fiber except for the
fundamental (lowest order) mode. However, as 6. in weakly guiding fibers is
very small, then HE-EH mode pairs occur which have almost identical
propagation constants. Such modes are said to be degenerate. The superposi-
tions of these degenerating modes characterized by a common propagation
constant correspond to particular LP modes regardless of their HE, EH, TE or
TM field configurations. This linear combination of degenerate modes
obtained from the exact solution produces a useful simplification in the
analysis of weakly guiding fibers.
The relationship between the traditional HE, EH, TE and TM mode designa-
tions and the LP lm mode designations are shown in Table 2.1. The mode subscripts
1 and m are related to the electric field intensity profile for a particular
LP mode (see Fig. 2.15(d». There are in general 21 field maxima around thc
circumference of the fiber core and m field maxima along a radius vector.
Furthermore, it may be observed from Table 2.1 that the notation for labelling

Table 2.1 Correspondence between the lower

order linearly polarized modes and
the traditional exact modes from
which they are formed

Linearly polarized Exact

 38 OPTICA L FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRA CTICE

HI .,

TI:.••

1.P" I"'••

III "IL

HE"

(I j ,;) '.,11

FIg .2.15 The electric fie ld configura lions for t he n nee lowe s t l P modes illus tr ate d in
te rms of their COI15t'f ue N e xac t mode s : (a l l P mode d e s il:lnalions: (b) exa ct
mode d esig nat ions: Ic ] ele ct ric fi eld d iSt ribu t ion 01 tne exact mooll s:
ld l inu ms iry dist ribut lo"l of E. fOf t he e xact mode s indic ati ng t he erecu:c fie ld
intensilV profi le for the corresponding LP m odes.

the HE an d Ell modes has changed from that specifi ed for th e exact so lution
in t he cylind rical waveguide mentioned previou sly. The subscript I in t he LP
notation now corresponds to HE and E H modes with labels 1 + I and 1- 1
respecnvely.
The electric field intensity p rofile for the lowest three LP modes, together
with the electric field distrib ution o f their constituent exact modes, a re shown
in Fig. 2. 15. It may -be o bserved fro m the field co nfiguratio ns o f the exact
modes that the field strength in the transverse dir ection (1::, o r E,, ) is ide ntical
for th e mod es which belong to the sa me LP mode. Hence the ori gin of th e term
' linearly polarized' .
Using Eq. (2.31) for the cylindrica l homogeneou s core waveguide und er the
wea k guida nce co nd itions outlined abo ve. the sca la r wa ve equation can be
written in th e form IRef. 171:
2" 2
-d + -I -d" +I -
d-" + (n~ kl _ p,2)V' = 0 (2.61)
dr rdr r d+ 2

. .
rlJ::::;'.'
.
OPTICAL FIBER WAVEGUIDES 37

where IV is the field (1::; or H), III is the refractive index of the fiber core, k is the
propagation constant for light in a vacuum, and r and ~ are cylindrical
coordinates. The propagation constants of the guided modes ~ lie in the range
n2k<~<n,k (2.62)
where 112 is the refractive index of the fiber cladding. Solutions of the wave
equation for the cylindrical fiber are separable, having the form:

1jI~.E(r)
{ sm
co;
. l~
l~
exp(wl-~Z)
} (2.63)

where in this case IV represents the dominant transverse electric field com-
ponent. The periodic dependence on ~ following cos l~ or sin l~ gives a mode
of radial order t. Hence the fiber supports a finite number of guided modes of
the form of Eq. (2.63).
Introducing the solutions given by Eq. (2.63) into Eq. (2.6]) results in a

,-
i
J, (r)
,i,
""c., J,(r)
1><'
.I

0.2 .
u
X "
"-
. 0.4 - ,J,lri
J,(rj
-0 i> -' . , _ ' l _.
u - '"
zu
!
a
,
• -

• -

"r- - , -

, •

o. ,
K,I,r!
._- ---

, K,(r)
,- .\ i
, "2
u
H- - - --
,
. ~--

,
,oo

flle.I.1' (.l V.rl'llon of th. B"'II function J/(r) for /",,0, 1,2,3 (first four orders),
plotl.d .g.lnltr, ib) Qr,ph of thl modlfl.d B....I function K,(r) again8t r tor
/-0,1.
38 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

differential equation of the form:

d' E I dE
-,-+--+ [ (1l k 2 _~2) _ _ £=0
1
r] (2.64)
dr- r dr r
For a step index fiber with a constant refractive index core, Eq. (2.64) is a
Bessel's differential equation and the solutions arc cylinder functions. In the
core region the solutions are Bessel functions denoted by J/_ A graph of these
gradually damped oscillatory functions (with respect to r) is shown in Fig.
2.16(a). It may be noted that the field is finite at r= 0 and may be represented
by the zero order Bessel function J o_ However, the field vanishes as r goes to
infinity and the solutions in the cladding aTC therefore modified Bessel func-
tions denoted by K!. These modified functions decay exponentially with
respect to r as illustrated in Fig. 2.16(b). The electric field may therefore be
given by:
E(r) - GJ/(UR) for R < 1 (core)
(2.65)

~ GJ (U) K,(WR) for R >1 (cladding)

I K/(W)

where G is the amplitude coefficient and R = rto is the normalized radial

coordinate when a is the radius of the fiber core. U and W which are the
eigenvalues in the core and cladding respectively, are defined as:
U = a(nT k 2 _ ~2)+ (2.66)
W = a(~2 _ lJ~k2)+ (2.67)
The sum of the squares of U and W defines a very useful quantity IRef. 181
which is usually referred to as the normalized frequency" V where
(2.68)
It may be observed that the commonly used symbol for this parameter is the
same as that normally adopted for voltage. However, within this chapter there
should be no confusion over this point. Furthermore, using Eqs. (2.8) and
(2.10), the normalized frequency may be expressed in terms of the numerical
aperture NA and the relative refractive index difference Ll. respectively as:
,.
V~-a(NA) (2.69)
.A

.. When used in the context of the planar waveguide, V is sometimes known as the normalized
film thickness as it relates to the thickness of the gutde layer (see Section 11.7.1).
OPTICAL FIBER WAVEGUIDES 39

(2.70)

The normalized frequency is a dimensionless parameter and hence is also

sometimes simply called the V number or value of the fiber.
It is also possible to define the normalized propagation constant b for a fiber
in terms of the parameters of Eq. (2.68) so that:

(2.71)

Referring to the expression for the guided modes given in Eq. (2.62), the limits
of ~ are 1l1 k and n[k, hence b must lie between 0 and 1.
In the weak guidance approximation the field matching conditions at the
boundary require continuity of the transverse and tangential electrical field
components at the core-cladding interface (at r = a). Therefore. using the
Bessel function relations outlined previously, an eigenvalue equation for the LP
modes may be written in the following form IRef. 181:

(2.72)

Solving Eq. (2.72) with Eqs. (2.66) and (2.67) allows the eigenvalue U and
hence ~ to be calculated as a function of the normalized frequency. In this way
the propagation characteristics of the various modes and their dependence on
the optical wavelength and the fiber parameters may be determined.
Considering the limit of mode propagation when ~ = 1l 2 k , then the mode
phase velocity is equal to the velocity of light in the cladding and the mode is
no longer properly guided. In this case the mode is said to be cut off and the
eigenvalue W = 0 (Eq. 2.67). Unguided or radiation modes have frequencies
below cutoff where ~ < kn2, and hence W is imaginary. Nevertheless, wave
propagation does not cease abruptly below cutoff. Modes exist where ~ < kll 2
but the difference is very small, such that some of the energy loss due to radia-
tion is prevented by an angular momentum barrier IRef. 20] formed near the
core-cladding interface. Solutions of the waveequation giving these states are
called leaky modes, and often behave as very lossy guided modes rather than
radiation modes, Alternatively as ~ is increased above n2 k , less power is
propagated in the cladding until at ~ = n j k all the power is confined to the
fiber core, As indicated previously, this range of values for ~ signifies the
guided modes or the fiber,
40 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

LPn I L.P", LPJ ., -U'~ LP" L.P" I

0.5

nr., III ·n ilL." lIE" III·: " III '." III "
fM Ol ['M" Hi,_,
fl ., I E" TE"

Fig.2.17 The allowed regions for the LP modes 01 order I 0,1 against normalized fre-
quency {VI for a circular optical waveguide with a constant rotracnva index
core tstep index fiberl. Reproduced with permission from D. Gloge, Appl. Opt.,
10, p. 2552,1971

The lower order modes obtained in a cylindrical homogeneous core

waveguide are shown in Fig. 2.17 IRef. 161. Both the LP notation and the
corresponding traditional HE, EH. TE and TM mode notations are indicated.
In addition, the Bessel functions J o and J are plotted against the normalized
1

frequency and where they cross the zero gives the cutoff point for the various
modes. Hence the cutoff point for a particular mode corresponds to a distinc-
tive value of the normalized frequency (where V = Vc ) for the fiber. It may be
observed from Fig. 2.17 that the value of V, is different for different modes.
For example the first zero crossing J 1 occurs when the normalized frequency is
o and this corresponds to the cutofffor the LP ol mode. However. the first zero
crossing for J o is when the normalized frequency i~ 2.405, giving a cutoff value
V c of 2.405 for the LP 1 1 mode. Similarly, the second zero of J 1 corresponds to
a normalized frequency of 3.83, giving a cutoff value Vc for the LP 0 2 mode of
3.83. It is therefore apparent that fibers may be produced with particular
values of normalized frequency which allows only certain modes to propagate.
This is further illustrated in Fig. 2.18 I Ref. 16J which shows the normalized
propagation constant b for a number of LP modes as a function of V. It may
be observed that the cutoff value of normalized frequency V, which occurs
when p = n2 k corresponds to b = O.
The propagation of particular modes within a fiber may also be confirmed
through visual analysis. The electric field distribution of different modes gives
similar distributions of light intensity within the fiber core. These waveguide
patterns (often called mode patterns) may give an indication of the pre-
dominant modes propagating in the fiber. The field intensity distributions for
the three lower order LP modes were shown in Fig. 2.15. In Fig. 2.19 we
illustrate the mode patterns for two higher order LP modes. However, unless
OPTICA L FIBER WAv EGU IDES 41

Fig.2 .18 The rlOfm al;zec propa ga tion co ns tan t b a s a funct oo of norma lize d IreQul!'OCV
V f(ll' " ' M,ml)f!r of lP mod es Repr od uce d w;ll, pe rm ission from 0 G loge. A p pJ.
Opt.• 10. I) 2552. 19 1 1.

tP" U'",

Fig.2.19 S kc u:hcio o f fib!!r c ros s sectiollS illmlt.a tin9 t h" d istinctive li g ht lnte nsrtv
dis tr ib ut io ns lmoce p att ern s) gen erated by pro pag ati o n o f in di llid unl li nil arly
po la rized m odes

the fib er is designed for th e prop agatio n of a particular mod e it is li kely that the
superposition of many mod es will result in no distinctive pattern.

2.3.7 Mode Coupling

We have thus far considered t he propagation a spects of perfect dielectric
waveguides. However, waveguide perturbation s such as deviation s of the fib er
ax is fro m straiihlness, variations in the core diameter. irregularities at the
42 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICATIONS : PRI NCIPLES AND PRACTICE

1''''10,1'';1)

----------. ---- \
-'- ....- (~ I-
\. ~

",

/
;j ."
~,
" . ..--
."
--.. -
......... \'
-,"

Flg. 2 .20 Ray theory illll5t rllt ions s how ing: two of l tle po s s ible l ibe, pe rtu rba l ion$ w h ich
g iv e mode cou p li"g : la) irre g ula rit y at th e core- cI3(1l1 ing inte rfa c e ; lb ) fiber
bend .

co re-cladding interfa ce and refra ctive inde x varia tions may ch ange the propa-
ga tion cbaractcr istic v of the fi ber. These will have the effect of coupling energy
trav elling in one mode to an other depending on th e specific perturbation.
Ray theo ry aids the understanding of this phenomenon as shown in
Fig. 2.20 w hich illustrates two types of perturbation. II may be observed that
in both cases the ray no lo nger maintains the same a ngle with the a xis. In
elect ro magnetic wave theory this corre sponds to a ch ange in the propagating
mode fo r the light. T hus ind ividual modes do nO I norrnull y propagate
throughout the length of the fiber without large energy tra nsfers to adjacent
modes even when the fiber i ~ exceptionally good quality and no t strained o r
be nt by its surroundings. This mode conversion is known as mod e coupling o r
mixing . It is usua ll y a nalyzed using coupled mode eq uation s which can be
o bta ined directly fro m Maxwell's equations. However, th e theory is beyo nd the
sco pe of this text and the reade r is directed to Ref. 17 for a comprehensive
treatment. Mode cou pli ng affects the transmission prope rties of fibe rs in
sev era l important ways: a majo r one being in relat ion to the dispersive
properties of fibers over lo ng distances. This is pursued funbe r in Sections
3.7-3.10.

~ •. , J ,"..~
OPTICAL FIBER WAVEGUIDES 43

2 .4 STEP I NDEX FIBERS

The optica l fi ber considered in the previou s sections with a co re of constan t

refractive inde x n l and a cladding of a slightly lower refractive index n l is
known as st ep index fiber. T his is becau se the refractive index profil e for this
type of fibe r makes a step ch ange at the corc--cladd ing interface a s ind ic ated in
F ig. 2.2 1 which illustrates the two maj o r types of step inde x fiber. The rcfrac-
rive index profile may he defined as :

(core)
(2.73 )
(cladd ing)

in both cases.
F igure 2.21 (a) shows a rn ultimode step index tiber with a core diameter of
aro und 50 urn o r greate r. which is la rge eno ugh to a llow the propagation o f
many modes within the fi ber core. T his is illustrated in Fig. 2.2 1(a) by the
many different po ssible ray paths th rough the fi ber . F igure 2.2 I(b) sh ows a
single mode o r monomode step index fiber which allows the propagation of
only one tra nsverse electroma gnetic mode (typically H E ll )' and hence the core
diam et er mu st be of the order of 1. 10 urn . T he propagation of a single mode is
illu strated in Fig. 2.2 1(b) as corr esponding to a single ray path only (u sually
sho wn as the ax ial ray) thro ugh the fiber.

• r
,
R, f,,,,,I1,,,
""I" ~(f)

"
'"
• ,

ofr )
-'- ,•
:"
,,
( O TC
>
/ -r
(I ",",;" .

./ /
" ,
• .,
, ..2.21 The rel rll ct i ~ 1 inde. profil e lind ra v tr ansmi ssion ill ste p ;"d e ~ fi bers: la l mulli-
mod , '''P
Ind ll. fiber; (bl single mode step inde ~ fiber.

'; ,
 44 OPTICAL FI BER COM M UNICATIONS: PRINCI PLES AND PRACTICE

The single mode step index fi ber has the disnncr a dva ntage of low inter
. moda l dispersion (broad ening o f tra nsmitted light pub e s). 11 :0> on ly o ne mode is
,I transm itted. wherea s with multimode step index fi ber co nsiderable dispersion
ma y occur d ue 10 the d ifferin g gro up velocities of the pro pagating modes (see

I Sectio n 3.9). Th is in turn rest ricts the maximum band..... idth atta inable with
mu ltimod e step index fi hcrs . especially when compared with single mode
fibers. H o..... ever, for lower bandwidth applic ation s rnultimudc fi bers have
several ad van tages over ..ingle mode fibers. The se arc :
(a) The use of spatially incoherent optical sources (e.g. most light emitting
diodes) which cannot be efficiently coupled to single mode fi ber s;
(b) La rger numerical a pertures. as well as core d iameters. facilitating easier
coupling to o ptica l sources:
(c) Lower tolera nce requ irements 00 fi ber conn ecto rs.

2 .4.1 Multimode Step Index Fibers

M ult imode step ind ex fi bers allow the pro pagat ion of a fi nite number of guided

I modes along the channel. T he number of guided modes is. depe nde nt upon the
I physic al parameter s (i.e. relative refracti ve ind ex d ifference. core radius) of the

r fiber and the wavelen gt hs of the transmitt ed light whic h a re included in the
, no rm a lized frcquenc'i V for the fiber. It was indicated in Sect ion 2.3.6 that
there is a cutoff va lue o f no rmalized frequency Vc for guided modes below
which they cannot exist. H owever. mode propaga tion does nor entirely cease
below c uto ff Modes may pro pa gat e a-, u nguided o r leaky modes which can
travel co nsiderabl e d istances along the fi ller. Nevert heless it is the guidt...d
mod es wh ich are of para mo unt importance in optical fiber com munications as
these a re confi ned to the fiber over its full lengt h. It can be shown [R ef. 161
that t he tota l number of g uided modes or mode volume M . for a step index
fiber is related to the V value for the fi ber by the e pproxi mar e expression :

V'
M , -- - 2 (2.74 )

which. allo ws an estima te of the number o f guided modes prop agating in a

partic ula r multim ode step index fiber.

Example 2.4

A mu ltimod e ste p inde x fibe r wit r. 0 co re dia me te r of 8 0 urn a nd 8 re la till e ind e x

d iffe re n ce of 1.5% is operat ing ell 8 w allele ngt r. of 0, 85 wn . If th e COrle refractille
ind l!lll is 1.4 8 . e s tima te : la l the no rma li zed freq ue ncy for t he fiber ; Ib tttte nu mber 01
gl..lide d mode s.
S olution . la ) The nOl malizl:!d fre q ue ncy may be o bl;lined from Eq. 12 .70 ) w he re :
OPTICAL FIBER WA VEGUIDES 45

6xl,48
2, , 2nx40xl0 ,
,
V,-aIJI12D.!'
085x10
. _. - {2 x 0,015)'
H

= 75.8
(b) The total number of guided modes is given by Eq (274) as

v' 5745.6

2 2
2873
Hence this fiber has a V number of approxtrnatetv 76 giving nearly 3000 tlLJidnd
modes.

Therefore as illustrated in example 2.4, the optical power is launched into a

large number of guided modes each having different spatial field distributions,
propagation constants, etc. In an ideal multimode step index fiber with
properties (i.c. relative index difference, core diameter) which are independent
of distance, there is no mode coupling, and the optical power launched into a
particular mode remains in that mode and travels independently of the power
launched into the other guided modes. Also the majority of these guided modes
operate far from cutoff, and are well confined to the fiber core [Ref. 161. Thus
most of the optical power is carried in the core region and not in the cladding.
The properties of the cladding (e.g. thickness) therefore do not significantly
affect the propagation of these modes.

2.4.2 Single Mode Step Index Fibers

The advantage of the propagation of a single mode within an optical fiber is
that the signal dispersion caused by the delay differences between different
modes in a multimode fiber may be avoided (sec Section 3.9). Multimode step
index fibers do not lend themselves to the propagation of a single mode due to
the difficulties of maintaining single mode operation within the fiber when
mode conversion (i.e. coupling) to other guided modes takes place at both
input mismatches and fiber imperfections. Hence for the transmission of a
single mode the fiber must be designed to allow propagation of only one mode.
whilst all other modes are attenuated by leakage or absorption.
Following the previous discussion of multimode fibers this may be achieved
through choice of a suitable normalized frequency for the fiber. For single
mode operation, only the fundamental LPo, mode can exist. Hence the limit of
single mode operation depends on the lower limit of guided propagation for the
LP I I mode. The cutoff normalized frequency for the LP I I mode occurs at
Vc = 2,405 (see Section 2.3.6). Thus single mode propagation of the LPol
·6 OPTICAL FIB EA COMM UNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AN D PRACTIC E

mode IS possible over the range:

O ~V < 2 .405 (2.75)

as there i.. no cutofT for the fundamental mode. It must be noted that there are
in fact twu modes with orthogonal polarization over thi$ range, and the term
s ingle mode applies to propagation of light of a particular polarization.
Al so. it is apparent that the nonn alized frequency fo r the fibe r may be
adjusted to with in the ran ge Given in Eq . (2.75) by reduction of The core radi us.
and possibly the relative refractive index difference following Eq. (2.70).

bampe 2.6

Es tim a le Ille ma ",;mu m 0019 d iame te r lo r a n op nca t lihfo r w ith l" e s a me reta uve
r efrac t iv e il1d eJ<: d ifference ( 1 5%) and ce re r efr ac tive mde e (1 .4B l <If, t he fibe r (Jivef1
in 8_am ple 2.4 i n orde r th at u rn a,; b e sui tab le for single moa e op sranon. It m ay be
assumed t hat t he fib er is ope rat ing at th e same w ave len gth 10 ,65 ji m ). Further,
est imate th e nnw m axi m u m co re d iame te r f o r sing le mod e ope ratio n w hen th e rela-
t iv e ref ra ct iv e ind ex d iff ere nce is red uc ed by a fact o r of t en.
S olution : Co nsid eri ng t he relati on ship g ;v f!n i n Eq. 12 .75), t il e m aximu m V va luH
f o r a fiber w hich giv es single m ode op era tio n is 2.4 Hence f rom Eq. (2, 70) t he corp
rad ius a is:

v, 2. 4 )( 0 .85 )( 10 ' ~

•~ C
' -,-n-,-12-'C'" 211: x 1.48 x lO,0 3 j't

= 1,3 lim
Tl'1 e' e fore t he ma ximu m c o re d iame ter for $ingle mod e o pe. al io n IS a pwo.i m at ely
2.6 tim
Red ucing Itl e r eol ati"" re fractive ind e" d ifference by " teete r of 10 and ag ain lJ s;nl1
Eq (2 .1 0 1 g iv es

2.4 l( O.BS :.: 10 ----ll

4 ,0 ti m .

He nc e t l'1 e maxi m u m care dia m eter for sing le m ode o peration IS now ll Jll-'loxi m a l ely
8 11m .

It is clear from example 2.5 th ai ill order to obta in liing1c mode operation
with a maximum V number of 2.4 t he single mode ti ber must have a much
smaller core diameter than the equivalent multimod e step index fiber (in this
ca se by a fac tor of 32). However, it is possib le to achieve single mode opera-
tion with a slightly larger core diameter, albeit still much less than the diameter
of mult imode step index fi ber, by redu cin g the relative refractive index
difference of the fiber. Both these factors create diffic ultie s with single mode
fibers. The small core diamet ers pose problem s with launching light into the
fi ber and with Iieldjoi nting, a nd the reduced relative refractive index d ifference
presents d ifficul ties in the liber fabrication process,
l
•
OPTICA L FIBER WAVEGUIDES 47

A further pro blem with single mode fi bers with low relative refrac tive index
differences a nd low " \-'alues is that the electromagnetic field associa ted with
the L1),o mode extends apprecia bly imo the cladding. For insta nce, with V
values less than 1.4, over half the mod al power pro pagates in the cladding
[Ref. 20 ]. Thus the exponentially decaying evanescent field may extend sig-
nifica nt distances into the cladd ing. It is therefo re essenti al tha t the cladding is
of a s uita ble thickness, a nd has low absorption and scattering losses in order to
reduce attenuation of the mode. Estimates IRef. 2 J J show that .the necessary
cladd ing thickness is of the o rder of 50 urn to am id pro hibitive losses (greater
tha n I dB km-') in single mode fi bers, especially when additio na l losses result
ing from microbending (see Section 4.6.2) a rc tak en into accou nt. Therefore
the total fiber cross section for single mode fibers is of a com par able size ( 0
rnultimodc fi bers.
Anoth er approach to single mode fibe r design which allows the V value to
be increased above 2.405 is the W fiber IRef. 23 1. The refractive index profile
for this fiber is illustrated in Fig. 2.22 \\0 here two cladding regio ns ma y be
obse rved. Usc of such two step cladding allo ws the loss threshold between the
desira ble and undesirable modes to be substantially increa sed. The fu ada.
mental mode will be fully supported with small cladding loss when its propaga.
tion co nstant lies in the ra nge knJ < ~ < Ani'
If the undesirable higher order modes which are excited or converted to
have values or pro pagation co nstant ~ < kil l , they will leak through the barrier
layer between U 1 and U z (Fig. 2.22) into the outer cladding region "-, . Conse-
q uently these modes wi ll lose power by radiatio n into the lossy surro und ings.
This design can provide single mode fi bers with larger core diameters than the
con ventio nal single cla dd ing approa ch which proves useful for ea sing jointing
diffic ulties. W fi bers also tend to give reduced losses at bends in co mparison
with conventio nal single mode fibers.

-:

. , 'j
 48 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

2.5 GRADED INDEX FIBERS

-Graded index fibers do not have a constant refractive index in the core" but a
decreasing core index n(r) with radial distance from a maximum value of III at
~he axis to a constant value 11 2 beyond the core radius a in the cladding. This
Index variation may be represented as:

111 ( I 21::1(rla)u), , <a (core)

(2.76)
III ( 1 26.)' = 11 2 (cladding)
where 6. is the relative refractive index difference and n is the profile parameter
which gives the characteristic refractive index profile of the fiber core. Equa
tion (2.76) which is a convenient method of expressing the refractive index
profile of the fiber core as a variation of n allows representation of the step
index profile when n = 00, a parabolic profile when u -= 2 and a triangular
profile when u = I. This range of refractive index profiles is illustrated in Fig.
2.23.
The graded index profiles which at present produce the best results for multi-
mode optical propagation have a near parabolic refractive index profile core
with u ::::: 2. Fibers with such core index profiles are well established and conse-
quently when the term 'graded index' is used without qualification it usually
refers to a fiber with this profile. For this reason in this section we consider the
wavcguiding properties of graded index tiber with a parabolic refractive index
profile core.
I A multimode graded index tiber with a parabolic index profile core is
l nlustrated in Fig. 2.24. It may be observed that the meridional rays shown _~_
l,ijappear to follow curved paths through the fiber core. Using the concepts of .~.;/
,"
K,Ii"otivc I"dex (!t(r))

'"
,, .
,, 11/ %-
/
./
/ \

~'-l'\..
.
\..

\
]0' ,,
'
./ \
", "
, ,
, ,
, R.diol di"'"c, (r)
•
"
Fig.2.23 Possible fiber refractive index profiles for different values 01 u Igiven in Eq.
{2.76)l.

• Graded index fiber, are therefore sometimes referred to as inhomogeneous core fiberl.
OPTIC AL FIBER W AVEGUIDES 49

r,
,

1(.."..." .... 'rr:

•
0(lo..I.", I.It '
= "-+--''---1-1.
n ....... '!' !
Fi g . 2.24 The re frac tive inde~ profile and rll y t rans m issio n in a mu ttrm ode g raded inde x
fiber.

geo metric optics. the grad ua l decrease in refractive index from the cen ter of t he
core crea tes man )' refra ction s o f the rays as the)' are effectively incident on a
targ~ . number of h igh to lo ~_ ~~~_e_~.ll)le rra c es . T!!!_~me chanis m is illustrated in
Fig. i:TI--\''''her-e~a-r ay IS ~h(wm to he gradually curved.wit h a ll evcr-incrcasing
angle of incidence. until the conditions for to tal in tern al refl ectio n arc met. and
the .ray travels back towards the core axis, again bein g continuo usly refr acted.

F1g.2.25 An c~panded ray diag ra m sh o w ing l e frac t io n at t he v ario us h Ig h to lo w index

mteetac es w it hin a \j ra<!cd ind e ~ fIber giving an ovel all CUI Ved ray pam.

Multimode graded index Qbcrs exhibit fa r less interrnodal dispersion (sec

Sectio n 3.9.2) than !I!.ulti m.E~~. ,s,~ep ~ir:!9.~x fibers due to their refractive index
p.r.Q.file. Altho_ugh many different modes ar"e-exCited in the graded index fiber ,
the different group velocities or the modes tend to be normalized by the--ind ex
trading. Again considering ray theory, the rays travelling clo se to the fiber axis
have sho rter paths when compared with rays which travel into the outer
regio ns of the core. However. the near axial rays are transmitted through a
reaion of higher refractive index and therefore travel with a lower velocity than
the more extreme rays. This compensates for the sho rter path leng ths and
reduces dispersion in the fiber. A similar situation exists for skew ra ys whic h
rotlow tonier helical paths es illustrated in Fig. 2.26. These travel for the most
.-
•
50 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICAT IONS; PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

/ -, ,
-,,

<T ,
. l' _ . ('"". ...,. j(
('0 ..'

/ fll>JJ ir.t
\
F'og.2 .2 6 A heli<; al sk ew r;)v p illh wilh in a gr aded ;fld e .. fibe r.

part in the lower index regio n at greater speeds thus aiving the sam e
mechanism of mode t ran sit time equalization. Hence mul timude graded inde x
fi bers with parabo lic or nea r para bolic index profi le cores h ave tra nsmission
bandwidths which may be o rders. of magnitude greater than multimod e step
index fiber bandwidths. Consequently. although they are not capable of the
ba ndwid ths atta inable with single mod e fib ers. such rnultimcdc graded index
fibers have the advantage of large core diameters [greater th an 30 urn ) coupled
with bandw idths suitable for lo ng distance com munication .
The pa rameters defined for step index fibers (t.e. NA, ~ , V) may be applied
to g raded index fibers and give a com parison bet ween the two fi ber types.
However, it must be noted tha t fo r gra ded index fi bers th e situatio n is more
complicated since the n umerical aperture is a function o f the radial dista nce
from the tiber ax is. Graded index fi bers. therefore. accept less light than
corresponding step inde x fibers with the sa me relative refractive index
differen ce.
Elect romagnetic mode theory may also be utilized with the graded profiles.
Ap proxima te fi eld solutions of the same o rder as geometric optics are o ften
obtained employ ing the WKB meth od fro m q uantum mech anics aft er Wentzel,
Kramcrs an d Brillouin I Ref. 24 1. Using the W K B method modal solu tions of
the guided wave arc achieved by e ll pressing the field in the for m :

.
E . =- tl G I (r)eJ-S(·' + G ~ (r)e J·M I ('°'19
sin/¢ ) e-1l= ( 2. 77)

where G and S are assumed to be real functions o f the radia l d istance r.

Substitution of Eq. (2 .77) into the scalar wave equatio n of the for m given by
Eq. (2.6 1) (in which th e constant refractive index of th e Fiber core n l is
repla ced by n(r» a nd neglecting the secon d deriva tive o f Gi(r) with respect to r
pro vides appro ximate so lutions for the amplitude functio n G;(r ) and the phase
functio n S(r ). It may be o bserved from the ray diag ra m sho wn in Fig. 2.24
that a light ray pro pag ating in a graded index fiber does not necessarily reach
every point within the fiber core. The ra y is co ntained within two cylindrical
c austic surfaces and for most rays a c austic does not coincide with the
OPTICA L FIBER WAVEGUIDES 51

co re-cladding interface. Hence the ca ustics define the classical turning points
of the light ray within the graded fi ber core. These turning points defined by
the two caustics may be designated as occurring at r = ' 1 and' = '2'
The result of the W KB approximation yields an osci llatory field in the
region r c r < ' 1 between the caust ics where :
(2.78)
(where D is an am plitude coeffi cient) an d
', d, r.:
SIr) -
5•
,
I(n' (r )k' - P' l" - r II -r --
4
(2.79)

O utside the interva l ' 1<, < ' 2 the field solution must have an evanescent
form. In the region inside the inner caustic defined by r -c r and 'assuming ' I
is not too close to , = 0 , the field decays towards the fiber axis giving:
G1(r) = De1'~" / l fl - (n 2(rW _ p2)r It (2.80)
G1 (r) = 0 (2.81)
where the integer m is the radial mode number and

(2.82)

Also o uts ide the outer ca ustic in the region r > ' 2' the field decays a way
from the fiber axis and is described by the equations :
G , (r) = De "~ /1 1 2 _ (nZ(r )e _ ~ 2 ),J l j (2.83)

° 1( , ) = 0 (2.84 )

(2.85)

T he WK B met hod does not initially provide valid solutions o f the wave
equa tion in the vicinity o f the turning points. Fortunately this may be a mended
by replacing the actual refractive inde x profile by a linear app rox imation at the
loc ation of the caustic s. T he solutions at the turning points can then be
expressed in terms of H ankel functio ns of the first and seco nd kind of order i
IRef. 25J. This facilitates the joining together of the two separate solutions
described previously for inside and ou tside the interval 'I < r < ' 2' Thus 'the
WKB theory provides an approxi mate eigenvalue equation for the propagation
constant ~ of th e guided modes which cannot be dete rmined using ray theory.
The WKB eigenvalue equation of which ~ is a solution is given by [Ref. 251 :

' PI)" - r I' -d, 11

f ( n'(r)k' -
(, . r
~ (2m - 1) -
2
(2.86)

•
52 OPTICA L FI BER COM M UNICATIONS : PR INCI PLES AN D PR ACTICE

where the radial mode number m -'" I, 2, 3 . . . and determines the number of
maxima o f the oscillatory field in the radial directio n. Th is eigenvalue equation
can only be solved in a closed analytical fo rm for a few simple refractive index
profiles. Hence, in most cases it mu« be so lved approximately o r with the use
of numerical techniq ues.
F inally the amplitude coefficient D may be expressed in terms o f the total
optic al power Pc-. within the guided mode. Considering the power carried
between the turning points r, and'l gives a geometric optics approx imation of
IRef. 281.

(2.87)

where

I ~ f "~-,;,:~--,---;=
'. ,ia
xdx
. " x- - I ' I''
• )k'' - "p-)a-
I(n"(ax
(2 .88)

The properties of the WKB ..elutio n may be ob served from a graphical

represe ntation of the integran d given in Eq. (2.79 ). T his is sho wn in Fig. 2.27
together with the correspond ing WKB solutio n. Figure 2.2 7 illustrates the

~')

",,
,
,"
,

",

Fig . 2 .21 Gra phical repeese nt anc n o f Ihe functio ns lrr'lr)Al - ~l l i1nd (Nr') Ih81 a re
impo rta nt in th e W I( B SlJlulion .lnd wh ich d efine t he Ill,., ing poInt s , . a nd ' "
Also show n is a n e xarn ple 01 tn e co rre s po nding Wl< B soluilon for a guide d
mode w he re an o scill a tory w ave e~is11O in the ro,gion between the tu rning
points.
OPTICA L FIBER WAVEGUIDES 53

fu nc tions (N ~( r).(.': - 13~ ) and (f !r ). The two curves intersect at the t urning
poi nts r = r l and r= r2 • T he oscillato ry nature of the WKB solutio n between
the turning points (i.e. when P!r < n2(,.)},; 1 - PI) which changes into a decay-
ing e xponential (evanescent ) form o utside t he interval r l < ' < '2 (i.e. when
{1 / r 1 > n 2(r)k 2 - 13 2 ) ca n also be clearly seen.
It m ay be noted that as the azimuthal mode number I incre ases, the curve
l: /r ~ mo ...es higher a nd the region bet ....een the two turning points becomes
narrower. In addition. even when I is fixed the curve (n1 (r )A;2 - Ill ) is shifted up
and down ....-ith alterations in th e value of the propagation constant ~ .
T herefo re modes far fro m c utoff which have large values of ~ e xhibit more
closely spaced turning points. A s the value of Il decreases below n1k .
(n2( ,)k ~ - ~ 2 ) is no longer ne gative for large values of, and the guided mode
situ ati on d epicted in Fig. 2.27 changes to one co rr espo nding to Fig. 2.28. In
this ca se a th ird turn ing point r = r \ is created when at r = a the curv e
(tl l (r)k 1 - P2) beco mes co nsta nt. thus allowing the cu rve (P / r 1 ) to drop below
it. Now the field display s a n ev a nescent. exponenti ally deca ying form in the
reg ion ' 1- < r < r) as sho n in F ig. 1.28. M oreov er. for r > f ) the field
resum es an oscillatory beba ior and the refore carries po.....er away from the
fiber core. Unless mode cutoff occu rs atll = n ,k the guided mode is no longer
fully contained within the fiber core but loses power through leakage or tun -
nelling into th e cladding. T his situation corresponds to the leaky mod es
mentioned pr eviously in Section 2.3.6.

'. ,
",,

Ag . 2 .28 S imil,r g rep Mica l re plll!J9nll tion as Il'Iill illus tra led in Fi[l _2 2 7. Here th e c urve
(nJ j, 'tl _ jJl) no lo ng er goes "e ~alive and a third lum ing point r. OCCUIS Th is
cor'upona. CO I,a ll,y mode ~I ",tion$ in the WIl; 9 m etho d.

•
 54 OPTICA L FIBER COM M UN ICATIONS: PRI NCIPLES AND PRACTICE

T he \\18K method m ay be used to calculate th e propagation constants for

the modes in a parabolic refrac tive ind ex profile core Fiber where foll owing Eq.
(2.76),

(2.89)

Substitutio n o f Eq. (2 , I:W) into Eq. (2.86 ) gives:

(2.90)

T he integral shown in Eq. (2.';10) can be evaluated using a c hange o f va ria ble
from r to u --.- I"~. T he integral o btai ned may be found In a standard table of
indefinit e integrals IKef. 29 1. A s the sq ua re root term in the resulting cxprcs-
sio n goes to zero at the turning poi nt s n.e. I' = 1' 1 and r - r,}. then we ca n writ e

(2.91 )

Solving Eq . (2 .9 1) fo r ~ : gives :

. . .[ ' - 2v'(MJ
~ - -" i ~ · ~ - ( 2 m +l , (2.lJ 2)
II , ka

It is interesting to note that th e sol ution for th e pro pagation constant fOTthe
va rio us modes in a parabolic refractive index core fiber given in Eq. (2.92 ) is
exact even though it w as de rived fro m the ap proximate WKB eigenvalue eq ua-
tion [Eq . 2.86). H owever. a lthough Eq . (2.92) is an exact solution of the scalar
wa ve eq uatio n for an infinitely e xtended para bolic profile medi um. the wa ve
equation is only a n approx ima te representation o f M a xwell'!> equation.
Furthe rm ore, practi cal parabulic refractive index pr ofile core fi bers exhibit a
truncated pa rabolic d istributio n which m erges into a constant refractive index
at the cladding. Hence Eq . (2.9 2) is no t exact fo r real fibers.
Equat ion (2.92) docs, however, a llow us to co nsider th e mode num ber pla ne
spanned hy the radial and az im uthal mode number s m and I. This pla ne is
displa yed in Fig. 2.2 9 where each mode of the fiber de scribed by a pair of
m ode numbers is re presented as a point in the plane. The mode number plane
contains guided, leak y and rad iation modes. The mode boundary which
se parates the guided modes from the lea ky and radiatio n modes is indicated by
the so lid line in Fig . 2.2 9. It depicts a consta nt value of p follo wing Eq. (2.92)
a nd occurs whe n p = n1k. There fore. all the points in the mode number plane
lyi ng below the line p = nJ k are associated with gulded modes whereas the
region above thi s line is o ccupied by leaky and radiation modes. The concept

~i·'
, .,......&.0.. .'
OPTICA L FIBER W AV EGUIDES .5
of the mode plan e allows us to count the total number of gu ided modes with in
the fiber , For each pair of mode numbers m and I the corresponding mode fi eld
can hav e a zim uthal mode dependence cos l~ or sin 1$ and can exist in two
possible polarizations (see Section 3. 12). Hence the modes are said to be
fourfold degenerate." If we define the mode boundary as the funct ion m = j(1)
then the total number of guided modes M is given by :

M= 4 J~ Im~\ f (l) dl (2.93)

8 ..each representation poi nt corresponding to four modes occupies an element

o f unit are a in the mode plane. Equ atio n (2 .9 3) allows the derivat ion o f the
total number of guided modes o r mode vol ume ....1, supported by the graded
index fiber . It can be shown I Ref. 25) that:

F urthermore, utilizing Eq. (2.70), the normalized freq uen cy V for the fiber
when .6. <{ I is approximately given b y :
v = nl ka (2 .6.)~ (2.95)
Substituting Eq. (2.95) into Eq. (2 .94). we ha ve:

(2.96)

·
•
••
••
MM " b<>un,l " l'
~ ~ ~ ."

• ••
•• •
••••••
•••
••• •
,"
Flg. 2.29 Tile mo de nu mber plan e illuSlrafin g f" e mod e ooul1da f\l and file guid ed fIber
mo de, .

.1 COi l. blcomu unity I nd sin I.

• An u <:epl ion 10 thl~ art flte mod« that occur wilen / = 0 which are orlly doubly degenerate:
nnishe!o. However, these modes represent only a sman
minority and thererore may be nellected.

..
·6 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Hence for a parabolic refractive index profile core fiber (a=2), M~;::::: V 2/4
which is half the number supported by a step index fiber (u = 00) with the same
V value.

Example 2.6

A graded index fiber has a core with a parabolic refractive index profile w h ich has a
diameter of 50 1J.1Tl. The fiber has a numerical aperture of 0.2. Estimate the total
number 01 guided modes propagating in the fiber when it is operating at a
wavelength of 1 IJ.m.
Solution: Using Eq. (2,691, the normalized frequency for the fiber is

211 21lx25xl0 6x02

v= ---a(NAI =--c---:c:-;;--
6
A 1x10

~ 31.4
The mode volume may be obtained from Ell. (2 961 where for J parubotlc profile.
2
V 986
M -- 247
~ - 4 4

Hence the fiber supports approximately 247 !jujded modBs

Exampla 2.7

A graded index fiber with a parabolic refractive ind"x profil" ,,,,,p has" rpfrac!ivH
index at the core axis of 1.5 and a relative index difference of 1(l(" Estimate the
maximum possible core diameter which allows single mode oper~tion ilt a
wavelength of 1.3 IJ.m.
Solution: Using Eq. (2,971 the maximum value of normalized trequeocv for single
mode operation is

v = 2.4(1 + 2/ul; = 2.4(1f- 2/2);

= 24y'2

The maximum core radius may be obtained from Eq. 12.951 where,

2.4y'2 x 1 3 X 10- 6
. --------.. ---:------i-
211 x 1,5 x \0021'
= 3.3 urn

Hence the maximum core diameter which allows single mode operation is
approximately 6.6 urn.

Graded index fibers may also be designed for single mode operation
although there is no obvious advantage to this as in the step index case,
However, it may be shown IRef. 30] that the cutoff value of normalized fre-
quency Vc to support a single mode in a graded index fiber is liven by:
OPTICAL fiBER W AVEGUIDES 57

v~ = 2.40S ( I + 21aY (2.97)

T he refo re, as in t he step index c a se. it is poss ible to d etermine the fib er
p a r a m eters whic h give sin gle m ode o pe ra tio n .
It may be noted th at the c rit ica l va lue o f n o rm a lized freq uency for the
parabo lic profile g raded ind e x. fiber is inc reased by a facto r o f '1/2 o n t he s te p
ind e x case. This give s a core d ia m et er in creased by a similar fac to r for t he
graded ind ex. fiber over a step ind ex fi ber wit h the eq ui valent core refractive
inde x (eq u iva le nt 10 t he core axis index), a nd t h e sa me relative refrac ti ve index
d ifferenc e.
The m axi m um V nu m ber w h ich permits single m ode o pera tion c a n be
in creased still fu rth er when a gr a d ed index Fiber with a t r ia n gula r p r ofi le is
em ployed. It is a pparent from Eq. (2.'n ) t h at th e increase in t h is c a se is b y a
fa ctor of ";3 o ver co m parab le step ind ex fiber . Hence sign ificantly larger co re
di a m e t er s in gle mode fibers m a y be produced ut ilizing th is index p ro fil e. Such
fibers h ave recent I)' genera ted som e inte rest I R ef. 381 fo r use in s ing le m ode
transm ission at w avelen gt hs o f 1.5 5 pm:

PROBLEMS
2.1 U~mg simple ray theory. describe t he mechanism for the tra nsmissio n oflig ht
within an optical fiber. Briefly d iscuss \\it h the aid of a sueeble diagram what
is mea nt by the accepta nce angle for an op tical fib er. Show how this is relin ed
to the fi ber numerical aperture and the refractive indices for the fi ber core and
cladding.
A n oplical fiber has II numerica l a perture of 0. 20 and a claddin g refractive
inde_ of 1.59. Determine :
(a) the accept ance a ngje for the liber in water which has a refractive indcll o r
1.33;
(b) the criticet a ngle at the core-clad ding interface.
Comment o n any assu mptions made about the fiber.

2.2 T he velocity of light in the core of a step index fiber is 2.0 1 x I O~ m s- ' , and
the critical angle at the core-clad ding buertacc is ROg . Determine the
numerical a perture a nd the a cceptance angle for t he fiber in a ir. a ssuming it
has a co re dia meter suitable for considera tion by ray an alysis, Th e velority of
light in a vacuu m is 2.99R x 10' rn 5- 1.

2.3 Define the re unvc rerracuve inde ~ difference for an optical fi ber and show
how it may be related to the numerical aperture.
A step index fiber with a large core diameter compared with the wavelength
of the tra nsmitted light has ail. a cceptance angle in air o f 22° and II relative
refractive indell difference of 3%. E.~1 im au: the numerical aperture and the
critical a nile at the cere-cladding interlace for the Iiber .

2..4 A step indn fiber hu II solid acceptance angle in air o f 0. 115 rad ians and a
hI' ative refu rtive indu. dilTerence of 0.9% . Estimate the speed o f li,hl in the
fiber core,
58 OPTICAL FIBER COM MU NICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

2 .5 Briefly indicate with the a id o f suitable diagrams the difference between

meridional a nd skew ray paths in step indCll fiber s.
Derive an expression fo r the acceptance angle for a ~kew ra y which c ha nges
direction by an angle 3 y at each renection in a step index fiber in terms of the
fiber NA and y . It may be assumed that ra y theory holds for the fiber.
A step indel fi ber wilh a suitaNy large core diameter for ray theory con-
siderations has core and cladding refractive indices o f 1.44 and 1.41
res pectively. Calculate the acceptance angle in air for skew rays which change
directio n by 150 G at eac h reflection.

2.6 Ske w rays are accept ed inlO a large core diameter (compar ed to the
wa velength of t he tfansmiUed light ) step lodel fiber in air at a ma ximum aeial
a ng,k: of 41° _ Within the fiber t hey change direction by 90° at each reflection .
Determine the acceptance angle fo r meridional rays fo r the liber in a ir.

2 .7 Explain the concept or electro magnetic modes in relation 10 a planar optical

waveguide.
Discuss the rnod jflceo o ns t hat may be made to electro magnetic mode
t heory in a planar wave-guide in orde r to describe- optical propagation in a
cylind rical fibe r.

2.8 Briefly discuss, with the a id of suitable diagrams, the following con cepts in
optical fi ber transmission :
(a) the evanesce-nt field;
(b) G oos-H aenc ncn shift :
(c) mode couplmg.
Describe the effect s o f rncse phenomena on t he propagat ion of light in optical
fi~~.

•
2 .9 Define the eormehzed frequenc y (or an optical fibe r and explain in -use in t he
determ ination of the nu mbe r of guided modes propagating with in a step index
fi ber.
A step index fi ber in air has a numerical ape rtu re of 0 .\ 6. a co re refractive
index of 1,4 5 and a core diameter of 60 ~ . Deter mine the normalized fre-
quency for the fi ber when light at a wa~ ekngt h of 0 .9 )1 m is transmitted .
Further, estimate the num ber of guided modes propaga ting in the fiber .

2 .1 0 Describe .....ith the aid of s imple ray d iagrams :

(a) the multimode step indu fiber;
(b) the single mode step indCl. fiber.
C om pare the ad vant ages and disadv antages of these IWO types of fi ber for u se
as an optical ch an nel.

2.11 A multimode step Index fi ber ha s a relative refractive index difference of 1%

and a core refract ive Inde x of 1.5. The number of modes propagating at a
wavelength of 1.3 tJ.m is 1100. Estimate the diameter of the fi ber core.

2.12 A single mode step index tibe r has a core diameter of 4 urn and a core refrac-
tive index of I .49. Esti mate t he shortest wavelength of light which allows single
mod e o peration when the relat ive refractive Iedex d ifference fo r the fi ber is 2%.

2 .13 In problem 2. 12, it i' requ ired to increase the Ilber core d iameu:r to 10 jUTl
OPTICAL FIBER W AVEGUIDES 5.
w hil ~lmaintaining single mode operation at t he same wavelength. Estim ate the
ma x:imum possible relative refract ive index: difference fo r the fibe r.

2.14 Explain what is mean! by a gr aded inde x o ptical fi ber. giving an expression for
the po ssible refractive index profile. Us ing simp le ray theory concepts, discuss
the transmission of light thro ugh th e fiber. Indicate the major ad vantage of thls
t ype o f fiber with regard to multimode propagation.

2.15 The re lative refracti ve index difference between the core axis a nd the cladding
of a graded index fi ber is 0.7% whe n th e refractive index at the core a_'(is is
1.45. Estimate values fo r the numerical aperature of the fiber when :
[a } the index profile IS not taken into account ; and.
(b) the index profile is assumed to be triangular.
C omme nt on the results.

2.16 A multimodc graded index fiber has an acceptance angle in air of 8 0 • Estim ate
the relative refractive index difference between th e core ax i ~ and the cladd ing
when the refractive index a l the core aK is is 1.52.

2.17 A graded index fibe r wit h a parabolic inde x profile support s the propagation of
742 guided modes. T he fibe r ha s a num erical aperture in air orO.3 a nd I core
d ia meter o r 70 ~. Determine the wavelength of the IJght propagating in the
tiber.
Further estimate uic maxim um diameter o f the fiber Il.'hich gives smgle
mode operation at the sa me wa velengt h.

2.18 A gr aded index fi ber with a rotc axis re fra ctive index of 1.5 has a
characteristic index profile (0.) of 1.90. a relative refractive index d ifferen ce of
1.3% and a core diameter of ~O um, Estima te the number of guided modes
prop ag ating in the fibe r when the transmitted light ha s a wavelength of
I .SS pm. and d eterm ine the cutoff value o r the normalized freq uency for single
mode transmissio n in the fiber.

Answer. to Numerical Problems

2.1 ( a) 8.6° ; (b) 83.6 0 2.11 92 11m

2.2 0.26, 1S.2° 2.12 1.56 urn
2.3 0.37, 75.9° 2.13 0.32%
2.4 2.11 )( J()l' m S- 1 2.16 (11) 0. 172 ; (b) 0 .17 1
2.1 34.6° 2.18 0.4 2%
2 .8 28.2° 2.17 1.2 !JDl, 4.4 um
2.' 33.5. 561 2.1a 94. 3.4j

REFERENCES

1 D. Hondros and P. Debye ' Electrom agnetic wa...es along long cylinders of
didectric', A"noL Physik . 31(3). pp. 46.5-4 76. 1910.
Z O. Schriever, ' Electromagnet ic waves in dielectric wires', Annol. Physik, 63(7).
pp. ~ 5 -6 73 . 1920.
I A , C. S. van Heel , ' A new method of tn nsporting optical imag es without aberra-
tion,', NaJ~". Ltmd., In. p. 39, 1954.
60 OPTICAL FIBE R COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AN D PRA CTICE

4 H. H . Ho pkins and N. S. Ka pa ny, ' A flexible nbresccpe, using st auc scanning'.

Natu re. Lond .; In, pp . 39-4 1. 1954.
5 K . C. K ao and G. A . H ockt ia m, ' D ielectr ic-fibre surface waveguides for c pric at
frequ encies', Proc lE E. 113. pp. 1151 -1158,1966.
6 A. w erts, ' Propagation de la lumio.e cohereme daos Ics fibres cpnques', L 'Onde
E leclriq ue, 46, pp. 967-980. I ~M ,
1 S. Takahashi and T. Kaw ashima. ' Prepa ratio n orlow Ins.'; multi-component glass
fiber', Tech , Dig. l eu, CO/if.lm eg r. Opr. and Opt. Fiber Comm un., p. 6 21. 1977.
8 J. B. MacC hes ney, P. B. O 'Con nor, F. W. DiMarce llo, J. R. Simpson and P.O,
La zay, ' Preparation of low-loss optica l fibres using sim ultaneous vapou r phase
depositio n and fusion'. PrIX'. 101h Int. Con! on Glass , paper 6-40, 1974.
9 T. Miya , Y. Tcr unuma , T . Hc sak a a nd T. Miy ashita, ' Ult imate low -loss single-
mod e fibre at 1.55 urn', Ele ctron Lert.; 15(4), pp. 106-108, 1979.
10 M . Born and E. W olf, Pr inciples of Optics, 6th edn ., Pergamon Press, 1980.
11 W . B. Alla n. Fibre Optics, O xfo rd University Press, 1980.
12 D. C, Agar wal. ' Ray concepts in opucal fibres' . Indian J. Theoret, Phy s .. 21(1).
pp. 4 1-54. I<JRO.
13 R. P. Feyman, The Feyman Lectures on Physics, Vol. 1. Addison -Wesley, 1 9ti~ .
14 J. E. Mid.....inter. Op til-a l Fibers f or 1'rQflSm ission, Joh n Wiley. 1979 .
15 E. Sn itzer, ' Cylindrical d ielectric waveguide modes" J, Opt. Sue. .-t m., 51,
pp . 491~98 , 19t'i 1,
16 D . Gtogc, " "'ea kl)' guiding fibers' , Appl. Opl .. 10, pp. 2252- 2258. 1971.
11 D. Marcusc. Theory of Diel« trlc Optical Wareguides . Academic Press, Ne~
York , 1974.
18 A. W. Snyder, ' A sy mp to lic e xpressioos for eigenfunctions a nd eigenvalue'S cr e
di electric o r optical waveg uide'. Trans l EE£ Microwave Theory l 'et:h.•
MTT-I7, pp . 1130-1 138, 19b9.
19 D. G loge, 'O ptic al power now in multimode fibers" Bell Syst. Tech . J.. 51.
co. 1767- 1783, 1972.
20 R. O lshan sk y, ' Propagatio n in gla ss optical waveguides', Rev. Mod. Phys ., 51(2),
pp. 341-366, 1979.
21 D. Gtoge. 'The optical fibre a t> a transmission mellium', Rep. Prog. Phys.. 42.
pp. 1777- 18 24. 1979.
22 M. M. Ramsay and G. A. Hock ha m, ' Propa gation in opticalfibre wavegu ides' in
C . P. Sa ndba nk [ed.) Oplicol Ftore Comm u"icat«m SJ·Stems. pp. 2 5--41, Jllhn
Wiley, 1<J80,
23 S. K awak ami and S. Ni shida, ' Chara cteristics of a doubl y dad opticalFiber with
a low inccx clBdd ing ;. IEE £ J. Quam um Electro". QE-JO, p p. 879---887. 1974 .
24 P . M. Mor se and H . Fesbach, Met:hed s ol Theorencal Physics. Vol. n , McGraw·
H iD, 1953.
25 D. warcusc. Light Trommnston Optics, 2nd edn., Van NO!;lrand Reinhold,
198 2.
26 A. Ghatak and K. Thyaga rajan, ' G rad ed index optical waveguides ', in E. Wolf
(ed.], Pr ogress in Optics Vol X VIll, pp. 3-128, North-Holland 1980 .
21 D. B. Beck, 'O ptical Fiber Waveguides', in M. K . Ba rn oski (cd.), Fundamentals
of Op tical Fiber Commu nications , pp. 1-58, Academic Press, 1976.
28 D. Marcuse, O. Gloge, E. A. J. Marcatili, 'G uiding properties of fibe rs" in
Optical Fiber Telecommu ntcatlans; S. E. M iller and A. G . Chynowe th (cds).
Academic Press, pp . 37- 100, 1979.
29 l. S. Grad:.hteyn and I. M. R yzhik, Tobles of Irttegrols, S eries oruJ Products. 41h
edn•• Academic Press. 1%5.
OPTICAL FIBER W AVEGUIDES .,
30 K . O kamoto and T . Okoshi, ·A n a lp.i~ of W 8 \ 'C proplls atio n in opucal fibers
having co re with a-power refrecuve.lncex distrib ution and uniform cladding',
IEEE Trans . Mic rowave T heory Tech., MTT- z.+, pp,' 4 1f}-421, 1976.
31 C. W . Yeh, ' Optical waveguide theor y', I EEE Trans. Circuits and S.l'Sl.•
C AS--26 ( 121, pp. 101 1-10 19, 1919.
32 C. Pa.,k a nd R. A . Sammut, ' Develop ments in the theory o f fibre optics'. Proc.
IREI:.' Aus' ~ 40(31. pp. 89- 10 1, 19 79.
33 W. A . Gambling. A . H . Hartog and C . M. Ragd ale, ' Optical fibre transmission
lines', The Radio E lectron. Eng., 51 P / 8), pp. 313- 32 5, 198 1.
34 H . G. Unger, Planar Op tical Waveguides and Fibres, Clarendon Press, 1971.
35 M. J . Adams, An Introduction TO Optical Waveguides. J ohn Wiley, 1981.
36 Y. Suernat su and K.-1.1ga, Introduction to Optical Fibre Communications, J ohn
Wiley, 1982.
37 T . Ok o~h i , Optical Fibers, A cademic Press, 1982.
38 M. A . Saifl, ' Triangular index mc nomode fibres' in PfII('. SPI E 1111. Sue. Opl.
1::11;:. ( USA) . 31-4. pp, 13- 15, 19113.
 3
Transmission Characteristics of Optical
Fibers

3 .1 INTRODU CTION

The basic tran smissio n mechanisms of the various types of optica l fi ber
wa veguide have been discussed in C hapter 2. Ho wever. the Fa ct o rs which
affect the performa nce of optical fib ers as a tr ans mission med ium were not
dealt with in detail. These tra nsmission ch aracteristics are of utmost
importance when the suitability of o ptical fiber s for com munication purposes
is. investigated. The tran smission characterist ics of most interest a re those of
atten uatio n (or loss) and ba ndwid th.
The h uge potential bandwidth of optical commu nica tions helped st imulate
the birt h of the idea that a d ielec tric waveguide made of glass co uld be used to
ca rr y wideband telecommunication signals. This oc curred. a s indicated in
Section 2.1 in the celebr ated pape rs by Kao and Hockham. a nd Werts in 1966.
Ho wever, at the time th e idea rna} hav e seemed somewhat ludicro us a-, a
typica l block o f glass co uld support optical tran smissio n fo r at best a few tens
of meters before it was attenuated to an unaccepta ble level. Nevertheless,
ca reful investigation o f the attenuation showed that it was largely d ue to
absorption in the gla..s, ca used by impurities such as iro n. copper, manganese
and other tran sit ion metals which occur in the third row of the periodic table.
Hence. research was stimulated on a new generation orpure' glasses for use in
optica l fiber co mmunicatio ns.
A majo r breakthro ugh ca me in 1970 when the first fiber with an a ttenuatio n
below 20 d B krrr' was reported IRef. II. This level of attenuatio n wa s seen a..
the abso lute minimum that had to be achieved before an o ptical fi ber system
could in any way compete eco no mically with existing communication systems.
Since 19 70 tremendous imp rovements have been made leading to fi bers with
lo sses of less than I d B km ' in the laboratory. He nce, com parativel y lo w loss
fi ber s ha ....e been incorporated into optical communication systems th ro ughout
the world .
T he oth er characteristic of primary importance is the bandw idth of the fi ber.
T his is limited by the signal dispersion within the fiber. which determines the
number o f bits o f informatio n transmitted in a given time period. T herefore•

•2
TRA NSM ISSION CH ARACTERI STICS OF OPTICAL FIBERS 63

once the aucnuarton was reduced to accepta ble levels attention wa s d irected
to wa rds the d is persive properties of fi bers. Agai n this has led to substantial
im pro vements giving wideband fiber ba nd widths o f tens o f gigah ertz e ver a
number of kilometers IR ef. 2]. In order to appreciate these advances and
possible futu re developments, the optical transm ission cha racteristics of fibe rs
must be considered in greate r depth. T herefore in this chapter we discuss the
mec ha nism s within optical fi be rs which give rise to the majo r transmission
c haracteristics mentioned previo usly (attenuation and d ispersion). whilst also
co nsidering other perhaps le..~ obvious effects when light is pro pagating down
a n optical fiber (modal norse a nd pola rization).
We begin the di scussion o f attenua tio n in Sectio n 3 .2 with calcula tion of the
total lo sses incurred in o ptical fi bers. T he various a ttenuation mec hanisms
(ma terial absorption, linear scattering, nonlinear scatte ring, fi ber bends) are
then considered in detail in Sections 3.3 to 3.6. Following this. in Section 3.7.
di spe rsion in optical fibers is desc ribed, together with th e associ ated limitations
on fiber bandwidth. Sectio ns 3.8 and 3.9 deal with intrnmodal and intcrmodal
dispersion mechanisms. prior to a di scussion of overall fi ber dispersion (in both
mu hi mode and single mode fibers) in Section 3.10. Modal noi se in multimode
o ptical fibe rs is th en considered in Section 3. I J. F inally. Secti o n 3. 12 presents
a brief accoun t of polarizat ion within single mode o ptic al fibers .

3.2 ATTENUATION

T he atten uation or transmission loss of o ptical fiber s bas proved to be one of

the most im portant factors in bringing abou t their wide acceptance in telecom-
m un icat ions. A s cha nnel att enuatio n largely determined the ma ximum
tran smission dist ance prior to signal restoration, o ptica l filxr comm unic atio ns
becam e especia lly attractive when the transmission losses o f fibers were
red uced below those o f the compe ting metallic cond uctors (less than
5 dB km" ),
Signal attenuatio n within optica l Fibers, a s with metallic cond uctors . is
usuall y e xpressed in the logarith mic u nit o f t he decibel. T he decibel which is
used for comparing two power levels may be defined ro r a particu la r optical
wavelength as the ratio of the input (transmitted) optical power Pi into a fiber
to the o utput (received) o ptical power P" from the fiber as :

e.
num ber of decibels (dB) = 10 loglo - ' (3.1)
p,
Th is logarithmic unit has the advan tage that the o peration s of multi plication
and division reduce to add ition and subtractio n. whilst powers a nd roots
reduce to multiplication and di vision. However, addition and subtraction
require I conversion to numerical values which may be obtained using the
 64 OPTICAL FIBER COM MUNICATIONS; PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

relationship:

P
- ' = J d dB/IOJ (3. 2)
Po
In optical fiber communications the attenuation IS usually expressed in
dec ibels per unit length (i.e. dB km-') Icttowing:

P,
i I UdllL = 1010&10 - (3.3)
P,
where a d S is the signal attenuation.per unit length in decibels and L is th e fiber
length .

t Ex...... 3 .1

wh en til e mean opl i c ~ 1 pow er lau nched in t o an 8 krn l eng th of fib er is 12 0 J,l W , I he
I m ea n o pt ic al po w er at the f ib er o ut pu t is 3 1lW
Det er m ine :
la l t he overa ll s igna l a tl e nu a lio n O' loss in deobers th ro ug h Ihe fib e r IIssum illg
t here i1(e no connectors o r splices :
\b l the Sig fl at a tt en u atio n per ki lom e ter lo r the tibe r.
l eI rt-e ove ralll>iQr'lal iln en ulll lon f o r a l O k m o puca r ~in k using t he same flt.~, w il h
sp lices at 1 ~m i... t ervals eac h g ivnl g 11'1 attenu at ion of 1 d B;
Id ) the num eriC/lI inp u LfoutP\, t pow er -a uo In (d .
Solution: ( .1) U sin g Eo (3 . 1 f, th e ov er all ~jgn ill at tenua tio n in rh:c ib el s th t,n ,gh tI 'e
fiber is :
P, 1 20 ~. 10-'
s ig na l illUm ual ion 10 log ,o - . 10 109 ,0 - - -
P, 3 x 10-'

10 IoG, e 40 = 16.0 o a

{bj The sig na l atte nuation pitt t<.ilomel... fot t he fi bet may b e s imp ly " bt.' ined by
d ividing the resu lt in [al by t he f,ber leng th w h ic h cot-e..~onds usin n Eq , (3,3 l where ,

allBL ., 16 .0 dB
hen ce .

16 0
8
= 2 .0 ee km - '
(c) As adB 2 dB km-" . t he loss in c urred alo ng 10 k.m of th e fib" ,- is q iv!l" by

Q,jeL 2 x 10 20 dB

However. t he link e lse has nine splices {at 1 k.m in terva lsl e ac h w ith an a u enua ti on
o f 1 d B. T!'lerefore. l t1e lo ss du e 10 l h@ spli ces is 9 d B.
He eca, the overall signal a tl e n u a l~)fl l or the lin k is,
signal a tte nuation ,"" 20 .. 9

, 29 d B
TRA NSMISSION CHARA CTERI STICS OF OPTICAL FIBERS 65

(dl To obtain a nu m c flCfI' value fo r tto.. inpu t/ou tpu t powe. 1111;0 , Eq (3 2i rnav he
\I",.. d w" c rc:

P, ,,'
- = 10 .1° = 7 9 4 3
p.

A num ber of me chanisms are respon sible for the signal attenuation within
optical fibers. These mechanisms are infl uenced by the materi al composition,
the preparatio n and purification tech nique, and the waveguide structure. They
may be catego rized within several major areas which include material absorp-
tio n. material sca ttering (linear and nonlinear scattering), curve and
microbending losses. mode coupling radi ation lo sses a nd losses due to leaky
modes. There are also lo sses at connector s and splices as illustr ated in example
3.1. However. in this chapter we are interested solely in the ch aracteristics of
the fiber; connecto r and splice losses are dealt with in Section 4.8. It is instruc-
tive to con sider in so me detail the loss me chanisms within optical fibers in
order to o btain an underst anding of the problems associated with the design
a nd fabrication of low lo ss waveguides.

3 .3 MATERIAL ABSORPTION LOSSES

Material absorption is a lo ss mecha nism related to the material composit ion

a nd the fabrication process fo r the fiber. which results in the dissipation of
some of the transmitted optical power as heat in the waveguide. The absorp-
lio n of the light may be intrins ic (caused by the interaction with one or mo re of
the major components of (he glass) or extrin sic (caused b)' impu rities within
the glass).

3.3.1 Intrinsic Absorpt ion

An absolutdy pure glass has litt le intrinsic absorptio n due to its basic material
structure in the near infrared region. Ho wever. it does have two major intrinsic
a bsorption mechanisms a t optical wavelengths which lea ve a low intrinsic
absorption window over {he 0.8- J. 7 J1m wavelength range as illustrated in
Fig. 3. 1. which shows a p ossible optic al attenuation against wavelength
characteristic for absolutely pure glass [Ref 3 1. It may be observed that there
is a fundamental absorption edge, t he pea ks of which are centered in the
ultraviolet wavelength region. Thi s is due to the stimulation of electron transi-
tions within the gla ss by higher energy excitations. The tail of this peak may
extend into the window reg ion at the shorter- wavelengths as illustrated in Fig.
J. L. Also in t he infrared a nd far infrared, normally at wavelengths above 7 urn,
fundamentals or absorption bands from the interaction o f photons with
molecular vibradora within the &lus occur. These give abscrpncn peaks which
 66 OPTICAL FIBER CO MM UNICATIONS: PRI NCIPLES AND PRACTI CE

1\ . ' d , n ~ 1D ( ~"')

U~ 0 <> 1.0 11 UUI'~_ II

-
,
0 ) ... ........ ........ ,
, ~I
"
atI""l'tooft
'~ ....
l l ,••• ~ ""1
.......
h..' ....-~
':'-, .......

O.oJ ,, .~""l''''''' .,
,, I
, , , !

Fig . 3 .1 Th e atten uat io n sp e ct ra for th e intr ins ic los s me ch ~ni sm s in pu re GeO,- SiO,
glass [Ref. 31.

ag ai n extend into the window region. The strong absorption bands occur due
to oscillations of struc tural units such as Si-O (9.2 j.lm), P-O (8.1 um),
8 - 0 (7 .2 um) a nd G e- O ( 11.0 urn) within the glass. Hence, above 1.5 urn
the ta ils or these largely fa r infrared absorption peaks tend to ca use most of the
pure glass losses.
However. lite effects of both these processes may be minimized by suitable
choice of both core and cladding compositio ns. For in stance in some nonoxide
glasses such as fluor ides a nd chlorides, the infrared absorption pea ks o ccur at
much longer wav elengths which are well into the far infrared (u p to 50 ~m)
givi ng less att enuatio n to lo nger wavelength transmission co mpared with oxide
J glasses.

3 .3.2 Extrin sic A b s orp tfo n

In practic al o ptical fi bers prep ared by conventiona l melting techniq ues (see
Section 4.3), a major source o f signal attenuation is extrinsic abs orption from
transition metal element impurities. Some of the more common metallic
impurities found in glasses are sho wn in the Table 3.1, together with the
absorption losses caused by one p art in 109 [Ref. 41. It may be noted that
certain of these impurities namely chromium and copper in their worst valence
state can c ause attenuation in excess of 1 dB krrr' in th e near infrared region.
Tran sition element contarninatioo may be reduced to acceptable levels (i.e. one
pa rt in 1010 ) by glass refin ing techniques such as vapor phase oxidation
[Ref 51 (see Section 4.4) which largely eliminates the effects ofthcsc metallic
impu rities.

.' " .. "

.'. - c.',_" ........... " ..,'. '.' . .'

TRANSMISSION CHARACTERI STICS OF OPTICA L FIBERS 67

TDblD 3.1 Abso. ptio n tosses ca used by some 01the me re

com mon m e tallic ioo impurities in glasses loge t" e r
w ith the absorptio n pea k wilvele ng th

Peak wavele ngth ln ml One part in 10- Ida km - ' l

ce- 6,. 16
c" 685 o. 1
C II>' 850 1. 1
F~ ' 11 0 0 0 .68
Fo" 400 0. 15
NP+ 650 0 .1
Molt 460 07
V'. 72 5 7 .7

However, another major extrins ic loss mechanism is caused by absorption

due to water (as the hyd roxyl or OR ion) dissolved in the glass. These
hydroxyl groups are bonded into the glass structure and have fundamental
stretching vibrations which occur at wavelengths between 2.7 and 4.2 urn
depending on group position in the glass network. The fundamen tal vibrations
give rise to overtones appearing almost harmonically at 1.38, 0.95 and
0.72 urn as illustrated in Fig. 3.2 (Ref. 6]. This shows the absorption spectrum
for the hydroxyl group in silica. Fu rthermore, combinations between the over-
tones and the fundamental Si01 vibration occur at 1.24, 1. 13 and 0.88 11m
completing the absorption spectrum shown in Fig. 3.2.
It may also be observed in Fig. 3.2 that the only significant absorption band
in the region below a wavelength of J JL'11 is the second overtone at 0.95 urn
which causes attenuation of about l dB km' for one part per minion (ppm) ci

.1.11,"" " 'I0Il

. ,.
hl6 krn- I)

w·

Fill. J .t The 8b.orplion spectrum for the " vdfOl(VI (OHI group in silica. Reproduced with
pemliNlon from D. 8. K_clt. K. D. Maurer a<'ld P. C. Schu1tz. Appl Pfrvs. Len.. 22 .
D. 307, 1t73.
.'
·8 OPTICAL FIBE R CO M MUNICATIONS: PR INCIPLES A ND PRACTICE

A.""'....tion
lJIJ l m - I )
,

,
e.s

' .0 1.1 1.4 t c ,.•

"' ,,' <le ,, ~ 1h 'I'm )

Flg.3.3 T he m eas ured attenu ati on spect rum fo r an u ltra low loss si ngle mod e floo r
(sol id li nel with t he ca lculat ed atten uenon spect ra f o r so me of t he loss mechan -
isms con t ributi ng 10 th e overa ll fiber attenu atio n Id a s hed a nd dotted lines)
[Ref. 31.

hyd roxyl. At longer wavelengths the first overtone at 1.38 u rn and its sideband
at 1.24 urn are strong ab sorbers giving attenuation of abo ut 2 d B krrr' pp m
a nd 4 dB km- ' ppm respectively. Since most resonances are sharply pealed,
narro w windows exist in the longer wa velengt h region around 1.3 and 1.55 p m
which are essentia lly unaffected by O H absorption once the impurity level has
been reduced below one part in 10'. This situation is illustrated in Fig. 3.3
wh ich shows the attenuation spectrum of an ultra low loss single mode fiber
(R ef. 3). It may be observed that t he lowest attenuation for this fi ber occurs at
a wavelength of 1.55 I-lITI and is 0.2 dB km"". This is approaching the mini-
mum possible attenuation of around 0.18 dB km- I at this wavelength [Ref 8J.

3.4 LINEAR SCATTERING LOSSES

Linear scattering mecha nisms c aus e the transfer of some o r all o f the o ptical
power contained within o ne prop agating mode to be transferred linearly
(proportionally to the mode power) into a different mod e. T his process tends to
r esult in attenuation of the transmitted light as the transfer may be to a leaky
or r adiation mode which does not continue to propagate with in the fiber core,
b ut is radiated from the fi ber. It m ust be noted that as with all linear processes
there is no change of freq uency on scattering.
Linea r scattering may be categorized into two major type s : Rayleigh and
Mie scattering. Both. result from the no nideal ph ysical properties of the
man ufactured fiber which are difficult and in certain eases impossible to
cradicate &t present.

. ,."." .....
- ;
,
TRA N SMISSION CHA RACTERISTICS OF OPTICA L FIBERS 6.

3 .4.1 Rayleigh S catte ring

Rayleigh scattering is the dominant intrinsic loss mechanism in the lo w
absorption window between the ultraviolet an d infrared absorption tails. It
res ults fr om inhomogeneities of a rando m n ature occurrin g on a small scale
compared with the wavelength of the light. Th ese inh omogeneities manifest
themselves as refr active index fluct u ation s and arise from density and com-
positional vari ations which are frozen into the glas s lattice on cooling. The
compositional variations may be red uced b y irr.proved fabrication. but the
index fl uctuations ca used by the freezing-in of density inhomogeneities are
fu ndamental and cannot be avoided. The subsequent scattering due to the
density Iluctuerions, which is in almost all directions. prod uces a n attenuation
proportional to in:
4 following the Rayleigh scattering form ula IRef. 91. For a

single component glass this is given by :

Sit ;
'V II .- 3}. ' l1 ~pc p, K rl (3.4 )

where YR is the Rayleigh scattering coeffi cient, Ais the optical wavelength. n is
the refractive index of the medium, p is the average photoelastic coefficient, Pc
is the isothermal compre ssibility at a fict ive temperature TF • and K is Boltz-
mann's constant. T he fictive temperature is d efined as the temperature at
whic h the glass can reach a state of thermal eq uilibriu m and is closely related
to t he a nneal temperature. F urthermore. t he Rayleigh sca ttering coefficien t is
related to the transmission loss factor (transmissivity) of t he fiber followiog
the relation IRef. ]OJ :
i: = exp (-Yll. L ) (3.5)
where L is the length of the fiber . It is ap parent from Eq . (3.4) that the funda-
mental component of Rayleigh scatt ering is strongly reduced by operating at
the longest possible wavelength. This point is iIIusuated in example 3.2.

Sili ca has a n estimated flcti...e tem perature of 14 00K Wilh a" is othe rma l co m-
p rellsib ili ty of7 x 10-" 11'11 N-' IR'lf I II The refractive inde x .111d tho pbc tc elas tic
co e ff icie nt for silica are 1,46 a nd 0.2 86 respectivel y IR,,1. 11]. Determ ine th"
t heor etic al a tte nuati o n in d e cibe ls pe r ki lome te r dU f! to thr, tund erne ntu! RJ ylf! iqh
ecette nnc in silica at o ptical wavelengths of 0, 63 , '.00 and 1.30 urn . 8oll1 ma nn·s
con stant is 1,381 x 10- " J x-'.
Solution: The Rayleigh sca ttennq coetncten t mav be o b l~ in fl d from Eq , 13 .4 ) for
eac h wavelen gth. However . t he Ol'lly va ria ble in each c ase i ~ the wlIve len<Jl h Jrld
thlHltforit th e constant of p roportlo n a litv o f Eq. j3 .41 app lie s in dll ~,1S ", ~. H"",,,c·

..
•
70 OPTICAL FIBE R COM MU NICATIONS : PRINCIPLES A ND PRACTICE

248 15 ~ 20.65 )( 0 .0 8 2 )( 7 x 10-" x 1. 38 1 )( 10-'" x 140 0

3 x l.'

1 89 5 x 10 - '"
,.
AI a w Bv elt>ngth o f 0 .6 3 11m :
1.8 9 5 )( 10- :-
y, --,------,'""" = 1. 19 9 x 10 - 1 m- '
0.1 5 8 )( 10- : <

T he t ra nsmi ssion lo ss f acto r fo r e r- e kilom et er of fib er m ay he obt ain ed l lsi ng Eq

(3 .5),

t. km ',- exp (-'fALl = e><p 1- 1. 19 9 x 10-' J( 10"1

= 0 30 1
The a tte n ua tio n due to Ra ylei~'" scatte ring in dB k,,,- ' m.l y be obta ined from
Eq. (3 . n w tlere :

Att en uation = 10 109,ol1 /l... .... 1 = 10109 ,0 3 32 2

_ 5 .2 d B km - '

A t a w BW'le nijth of 1.0 0 pm :

1.8 9 5 " 1O -~
YR - -- - - ""- .,... 1.8 9 5 x 10- ' m- '
10-"

Using Eq. 13 .5):

.(. ~m = exp 1- 1.89 5 )( 10 ..... )( 10» = e xp (-0 . 18 9 5 )
0. 8 2 7
and Ea . (3 11 :
I
A u en uat ian = 10 IOIl ,o 1.209 = 0.8 d B krn -

At a w av ele"\I t h M 1.3 0 j.l m :

1.89 5 x I O-bli
fR= 0 6 6 4)(1 0-
24
2.8 56 )( 10 -

Using Eq (3 .5 ):

"'" e xp l-Q.6 6 4 )( 10- " )( 10 ' 1 '" 0 ,9 3 6

a nd EQ. (3 , 1) :

Atte n uatio n = 10 109,0 1.069 = 0,3 dB ~m- '

The theoretical attenuation due to Rayleigh scattering in silica at

wavelengths of 0.63. 1.00 and 1.30 11JTI-. from example 3.2. is 5.2. 0.8 and
0,) dB km- l relpective1y. These theoretical moults are in reasonable .,reemenl
TRANSM ISSION CHARACTERISTICS OF OPTICAL FIBERS 71

with experimental work. For instance the lowest reported value for Rayleigh
scattering in silica at a wa velengt h o f O.6328 1JlJ1 is 3.9 d B km" IRef. LI t
Ho wever. values of 4.8 d B k m " ! Ref. 121a nd 5.4 d B km-' IRef. 131ha ve also
been reported . Th e predicted atten uation d ue to Rayleigh sca ttering against
wa velength is indicated by a broken line on the att enuation characteristics
shown in Figs. 3.1 and 3.3.

3 .4.2 Mis Scattering

Linear sca ttering may also occur at inho mogeneities which a rc compa rable in
size to the guided wa velength . T hese result from the nonpcrfect cylind rical
st ructure of the waveguide and may be caused by fi ber imperfection s such as
irreg ularities in the core-cladding interface. core-clad ding refractive index
differences a long the fiber length. diameter fl uctu at ions, strains and bubbles.
W hen the scattering inhomogeneity size is greater than ))10, the scattered
intensity which ha s an angular dependence can be very large.
The scattering created b y such inhomogeneities is mainly in the forwa rd
direc tion a nd is called Mie scattering. Depending upon the tiber material,
de sign and manufacture Mie scattering can cause significan t lo sses. The
inhomo geneities may be red uced by :
(a ) remo ving imperfectio ns due to the glass manufacturing process ;
(b) carefully controlled extrusio n a nd coat ing o f the fi ber;
(c) increasing the fi ber g uida nce by increasing the relati ve refractive index
difference.
By these means it is possible to reduce Mie scattering to insignifi cant levels.

3.6 NONLINEAR SCATIERING LOSSES

Optical wa veguides do not always behave a.s completely linear channels .....hose
increase in outp ut o ptical power is d irectly proportiona l to the input o ptical
power. Several non linear effects occur, which in the ca se o f scatt ering cause
disproportion ate attenuatio n, usually at high optical power levels. Th is non -
linear scattering causes th e optical power from one mode to be transferred in
either the forward or backward direction to the same, or othe r modes, at a
different frequency. It depend s critically upon the optical power density wit hin
the fi ber and hence only becomes significant above threshold p ower levels.
T he mo st important types of no nlinear scattering within optica l fibers a re
stimulated Brillouin a nd Raman scattering, both o f which are usually only
obser ved at high optical power d ensities in lo ng single mod e fi bers. These
&Cattering mechanisms in fact give o ptical gain but with a shift in frequency
lhua contributin, to attenuation for light transmission at a specific wa velength.
.. •
72 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS' PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

However, it may be noted that such nonlinear phenomena can also be used to
give optical amplification in the context of integrated optical techniques (see
Section 11.8.4).

3.5.1 Stimulated Brillouin Scattering

Brillouin scattering may be regarded as the modulation of light through
thermal molecular vibrations within the fiber. The scattered light appears as
upper and lower sidebands which are separated from the incident light by the
modulation frequency. The incident photon in this scattering process produces
a phonon" of acoustic frequency as-well as a scattered photon. This produces
an optical frequency shift which varies with the scattering angle because the
frequency of the sound wave varies with acoustic wavelength. The frequency
shin is a maximum in the hack ward direction reducing to zero in the forward
direction making Brillouin scattering a mainly backward process.
As indicated previously, Brillouin scattering is only significant above a
threshold power density. Assuming the polarization state of the transmitted
light is not maintained (see Section 3.12), it may be shown IRef. 161 that the
threshold power P E is given by:
(3.6)
where d and A are the fiber core diameter and the operating wavelength
respectively, both measured in micrometers, Clem is the fiber attenuation in
decibels per kilometer and v is the source bandwidth (i.c. injection laser) in
gigahertz. The expression given in Eq. (3.6) allows the determination of the
threshold optical power which must be launched into a mono mode optical
fiber before Brillouin scattering occurs (sec example 3.3).

3.5.2 Stimulated Raman Scattering

Stimulated Raman scattering is similar to stimulated Brillouin scattering
except that a high frequency optical phonon rather than an acoustic phonon is
generated in the scattering process. Also. Raman scattering occurs in the
forward direction and may have an optical power threshold of up to three
orders of magnitude higher than the Brillouin threshold in a particular fiber.
Using the same criteria as those specified for the Brillouin scattering
threshold given in Eq. (3.6), it may be shown [Ref. 16] that the threshold
optical power for stimulated Raman scattering P R in a long single mode fiber is
given by:

* The phonon is a quantum of an elastic wave in a crystallattice. When the clastic wave has a
frcquencyj. the quantized unit of the phonon has energy /if joule" where h i~ Planck's con-
stant.
TRA NSMISSION CH ARACTERI STICS OF OPTICA L FIB ERS 73

PI/. = 5.9 X lO- l d l Mr.t R wan s (3.7)

where d. }. a nd «.sa a rc a s specifi ed fo r Eq. (3.6).

A IOfl9 sing le mode op lic1l l l ibe . has a... enenceuco o f 0 .5 ri b km - ' w h.m ope ri'll;"'Il .1 '
a w a....e le" 9 ttl of 1.3 IJ.m Th~ l iber core d iam " t ",r is 6 IIJTl and tile 1<lSE'r ~,"ro ,,,
ba ndwid t h is 600 MHz, Ca mpafE' the thr"shold op tic a l powers fnr '1.;",,, lalc<!
81ill o uin ;Ind Ram an scat teeinq w i thin ue fibe r e t t he w .1Ylc'I"" lJ111 sloCcl fic d.
5 0 {I,II;on' The tt ue shord OP1kai llOWer tor st im u lflled Brill ou in sca llell(lg is gi ven
hy EQ. (3 .6 ) as :

PB 4 .4 ~ 1 0-~0'1FIl,:B V

= 44 x ' O -~ x 6 1 ~ 1.3 1 ~ 0 5 x 0 .6

80 .3 mW
T il e th resho ld o ptica l pow er f o r st imu lat ed Ram al) scatt erin g mClY be o btJ i.wd
f ro m Eq. (3. 71, w here:

P R . 5 .9 )( 1 0 - ldl }.q.cIB
'" 5 .9 x 10 - 2 X 6 2 X 1 3 x 0 .5

= 1 38 W

In exam ple 3.3. the Brillo uin threshold occurs a t an optical power level of
a ro und 80 mw whilst the Ra ma n threshold is approximately 17 t imes larger.
11 is therefore appa rent thai the losses introduced by nonlinear scattering may
be avoided by usc of a suitable optical signal level [i.e. wor king belo w the
t hreshold optical pow ers). However, it must be noted that thc Brillo uin
threshold has been reported IRef. 171as occurring at optic al power!'> as low as
LO mW in single mode fibers. Nevertheless. this is still a high p ower level fo r
optical communications and may be easily avoided. Brillouin a nd Ra man
scattering are not usually observed in multimode fibers becau se their relatively
large core diameters make the threshold optical power levels extremely high.
Moreover it should be noted that the threshold optical powers for both these
scattering mechanisms may be increased by suitable adjustment o r the other
param eters in Eqs. (3.6) a nd (J .7). In this context. ope ration at the lo ngest
possible wavelength is advantageous altho ugh this may be offset by t he
reduced fi ber attenuation (fro m Rayleigh scattering and material a bsorption)
normally obtained.

3.8 FIBER BEND LOSS

Optic. 1 fibers suffer radiation losses at bends or curves 00 their paths. This is
due to the eoerlY in tbe evanescent field at the bend exceeding the velocity of
7. OPTICAL FIBER CO M MUNICATIONS: PRINCI PLES AND PRACTICE

( bdd llll: ,

Fig. 3 .4 An mustra non 01 the I<uliill;o ll lo ss a t 11 fi be r be nd . The part of the mode in the
cladding o utside t he d ll sh ed arrow ed li ne mill y b e reQuired 10 t rave l faster th an
the v elocity of li g ht in o rder 10 maint ai n 11 p lane w ave l rOll1. Since it c annot 00
this , the e nergy conta ine d in Ihis p a rt of t he mode is radia le d away.

light in the cladding an d hence the guidance mech anism is inhibited, which
causes light energy to be r ad iated from the fiber. An illu stration of this situa-
tion is sho wn in Fig. 3.4. T he part of the mode which j ~ on t he o utside of the
bend is required to travel faster than that on the imide so that a wavefront
perpendicular to the dir ectio n or propagation is mainta ined . Hence part o f the
mode in the cladding need s to travel fa ster than the vetocuy o f light in tha t
medium. As this is not po ssible. the energy associated with this part o f the
mode is lost thro ugh rad iat ion. T he loss can genera lly be represented b~. . a
rad iatio n attenuat io n coefficient which h as the fo rm IRef. 19 1:

where R is the rad ius o f curvature o f the fi ber bend and f l _ ' 1 arc constants
wh ich a re independent of R. F urthermore, large bending lo sse s lend to occu r at
a critica l radius o f c urvature R, which may be estimated from IRe f. 10 1:

(3.8)

It may be o bserved fro m the expression given in Eq. (3.8) th at po ssible bend ing
lo sses ma y be red uced by:

(a) d esigning fi bers with large relative refractive index differences ;

(b) operating at the shorte st wavele ngt h possible.

Both these factors therefore have lhe effect o f reducing the critical bending
radius a s illustrated in the fo llo wing example.

~.."," ~
TRANSMISSION CHARACTERISTICS OF OPTICAL FIBERS 75

Example 3.4

Two step index fibers have the following characteristics:

{a) A core refractive index of 1.500 with a relative refractive index difference of
0.2% and an operating wavelength of 1.5511m.
(b) A core refractive index the same as lal but a relative refractive index difference
of 3% and an operating wavelength of 0,82 urn.

Estimate the critical radiu~ of curvature at which Iarqe bending losses occur in both
cases.
Solution: [a} The relative refractive index difference 8. is qiven by Eq 12 91 as'

n', _ n' ,
2c',

Hence

nj = n~ - 2"'tJ~ = 2,250 0,004 x 2.250

_ 2,241

Using Eq. 13.81 for the critical r~d;us of ClJfvalurc:

3njA 3 x 2,250 x 1,55 x 10-"

R ::::; --.- - - - _..._._-_. __.._---_..
e
411111; - n~I]'" 41110.009)''-'

- 975 11m

(hi Again, from Eq. 12,9):

ni = nj - 2"'n; = 2.250 0,06 x 2.250

= 2,115

Substituting into Eq. 13,81:

3 x 2.250 x 0.82 x 10-"

R ~_ ..
e
4Jt X 10.1351 3 , 2

- 9 urn

Example 3.4 shows that the critical radius of curvature for guided modes
can be made extremely small (e.g. 9 11m), although this may be in conflict with
the preferred design and operational characteristics. Nevertheless for most
practical purposes. the critical radius of curvature is sufficiently small (even
when considering case (a) which characterizes a long wavelength single mode
fiber, it is approximately 1 mm) to avoid severe attenuation of the guided
modets) at fiber bends. However, modes propagating close to cutoff, which arc
no longer fully guided within the fiber core, may radiate at substantially larger
radii of curvature. Thus it is essential that sharp bends, with a radius of
76 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS' PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

curvature approaching the critical radius, are avoided when optical fiber cables
are installed. Finally, it is important that microscopic bends with radii of
curvature approximating to the fiber radius are not produced in the fiber
cabling process. These so-called microbends, which can cause significant
losses from cabled fiber. arc discussed further in Section 4.6.2.

3.7 DISPERSION

Dispersion of the transmitted optical signal causes distortion for both digital
and analog transmission along optical fibers. When considering the major
implementation of optical fiber transmission which involves some form of
digital modulation, then dispersion mechanisms within the fiber cause broaden-
ing of the transmitted light pulses as they travel along the channel. The
phenomenon is illustrated in Fig. 3.5 where it may be observed that each pulse
broadens and overlaps with its neighbors. eventually becoming indistinguish-
able at the receiver input. The effect is known as intersymbol interference (ISI).
Thus an increasing number of errors may be encountered on the digital optical
channel as the lSI becomes more pronounced. The error rate is also a function
of the signal attenuation on the link and the subsequent signal to noise ratio
(SNR) at the receiver. This factor is not pursued further here but is considered
in detail in Section 10.6.3. However, signal dispersion alone limits the
maximum possible bandwidth attainable with a particular opticalfiber to the
point where individual symbols can no longer be distinguished.
For no overlapping of light pulses down on an optical fiber link the digital
bit rate B T must be less than the reciprocal of the broadened (through disper-
sion) pulse duration (21l Hence:

1
BT~­ (3.9)
2,
This assumes that the pulse broadening due to dispersion on the channel is r
which dictates the input pulse duration which is also r. Hence Eq. (3.9) gives a
conservative estimate of the maximum bit rate that may be obtained on an
optical fiber link as l/2t.
. Another more accurate estimate of the maximum bit rate for an optical
channel with dispersion may be obtained by considering the light pulses at the
output to have a Gaussian shape with an rms width of G. Unlike the
relationship given in Eq. (3.9), this analysis allows for the existence of a certain
amount of signal overlap on the channel, whilst avoiding any SNR penalty
which occurs when intersymbol interference becomes pronounced. The
maximum bit rate is given approximately by (see Appendix D):

0.2
B T (max) ~-bit s' (3.10)
o
TRAN SM ISSION CHARACTERI STICS OF OPTICAL FIBERS 71

T"o .-

, i: !

""'l,I,'~~"
c
,.../r~--

" ,)

,' ", pIi Ll" '"

Fig.3.5 An ill"Slr al io n usin g the 0 '9;la l b~t pa tt em 10 \1 of the broa den ing of ligh t
pu lses as the y a re t re nsrmtt ed a lon g a fibe r: (al fibe r il1 p<J I; (bt fiber o utp ut a t a
dista nc e L,: icl f,h er Cll,lIP'Jl al a distanc e L. >L."

It must be noted th at certain source s [Refs. 25. 26 \ give the con stant term in
the numerat or of Eq. (3. 10) as 0 .25. However, we la ke the sligh tly more con .
servauve estimate given, fo llo w ing O lshansky IRef. 91 and Gambling et 01.
IRd . 27J. Equation (3. 10) giv es a reasonably good approximation for other
p ulse shapes which may o ccu r o n t he ch annel resulting from the various
dispersive mechanism s withi n the fiber. Also (I" may be ass umed to represent
th e rms im pulse res pon se for the channel as discussed furth er in Section 3.9.1.
The conversion of bit rate 10 bandw idth in hertz depend s on the digital
coding format used, For metall ic conductors wh en a non return to zero code is
em ployed , the binary one level is held for t he whole bit period t . In this case
there are two bit periods in o ne wavelength (i.e. twobits per second per hertz),
II illus tr ated in Fig. 3.6(a ), Hence the maximum bandwidth B is one half the
muimum dati rate or
Brlmu) - 2B (3. 11 )
.. •
78 OPTICAL FIBEA COMM UNICATIONS' PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

c , u
'" , , --- , ,
----
,
, --- ,
, ,
,
,
--- ,,
, ---- , ,
- -
, 11M ...' k ,n

,, •,, ,, •,
•
,, , •,, ,, •, ,
,, ,
,, •, ,,
, , ,,
,,
, ,, ,, ,,
,
,
, , - -! -
Fi g . 3 .6 ScI,ema t ;c; ilhrstr ation 0 1 t he relat io n ships of t he en rete 10 w aveleng t h fo r
d ig ital code s: (8) no n re tu rn to l ew (N RZ); (bl re tu rn to zero (RZ).

However, when a return to zero code is considered as show n in F ig. 3.6(b),

the binary one level is held for only part (usuall y half) the bit period . For thi s
signalling scheme t he data rate is eq ual to the bandwidth in hertz (i.e. on e bit
pe r second pe r hertz) and thu s B J = B.
The bandwidth B for metall ic cond uctors is also usually defined by the
electrical 3 d B point s (i.e. the freq uencies at which the electrical power has
dropped 10 one ha lf of it" constant maximum va lue). However, when the 3 d B
o ptical band width o f a fi ber is considered it is significantly la rger th an the
correspond ing J d lJ electrica l bandwidth for the rea sons discussed in Sectio n
7.4.3. Hence. when the hm itationv in the bandwid th o f a fi ber d ue to dispersion
are stated {i.e. optical bandwid th B"'f'I )' it is usua lly with re gard to a retu rn to
zero code where the bandwidth in hert z is considered equal to t he digital bit
r ate. Within the context of dispersion the bandwidth s expressed in this cha pter
will follow this general criterion unless otherwise stated. However, a v is made
clear in Sect ion 7.4.3. wh en electro -optical device!' and o ptical fiber system s
arc considered it is more usual to state the electrical 3 d B ha nd width, this being
the more useful mea surement when interfacing an optica l fi ber link to electrica l
terminal eq uipment. Unfo rt una tely the terms of bandwidth measu rement a re
not always made clear and the read er must be warned tl1ft t this omission may
lead l O verne confusion wh en specifying components and materials for optical
fiber com munication systems.
Figure 3.7 shows the th ree co mmon optical fiber structures, multimode
step index, multimode grad ed index and single mode step index, whilst
diagram matically illustrating the respective pulse broadening a ssociated with
each fiber type. It may be ob served that th e multimod e step index fiber exhibits
,
the greatest dispersion of a tran sm itted light pu lse and that the rn ultimode
graded inde x fiber gives a considera bly improved performance. F inally. the
single mode tiber gives the minimum pulse broedening and thus is capable of
• -,

-.
 TRANSMISSION CHARACTERISTICS OF OPTICAL FIBERS 79

the greatest transmission bandwidths which arc currently in the gigahertz

range, whereas transmission via multimode step index fiber is usually limited to
bandwidths of a few tens of megahertz. However, the amount of pulse broaden-
ing is dependent upon the distance the pulse travels within the fiber and hence
for a given optical fiber link the restriction on usable bandwidth is dictated by
the distance between regenerative repeaters (i.e. the distance the light pulse
travels before it is reconstituted). Thus the measurement of the dispersive
properties of a particular fiber is usually stated as the pulse broadening in time
over a unit length of the fiber (i.e. ns km").
Hence, the number of optical signal pulses 'which may be transmitted in a
given period, and therefore the information-carrying capacity of the fiber is
restricted by the amount of pulse dispersion per unit length. In the absence of
mode coupling or filtering, the pulse broadening increases linearly with fiber
length and thus the bandwidth is inversely proportional to distance. This leads
to the adoption of a more useful parameter for the information-carrying

Multimooc ,101' ;[1(1", ,,!x, In"u' 1"11;0 Gulput pul se

, , CI"hli"g
COT<'
""' /'L ,m,,!
R,f"otlvc'
;,~k, "V)
'lL L"--.... ,
Multimodo grodcd ;Lldcx lib,',
,
"'
ntr)

.J
'llL~ ' "1
1\ "
Slnlll. mode ,tol> Index m""

r--_--,Am,

It(fl
"lJL,
PtIl.3.7 Schemetlc diagram showing a multimode step index fiber, multimode graded
Index fiber and single mode step index fiber, and illustrating the pulse broaden-
Ing due to Int"model dispersion In eech fiber type,

... ".',
 80 QPnCAL FI BER COM MU NICAT IONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

capacity o r all optical fi ber which is known as the bandwidth- length product
(i.e. B",p' x L). The typical best bandwidth-length products for the three fi bers
shown in Fig. 3.7. are 20 MH z km. 1 G ha km and 100 G Hz km for multimodc
step index, multimodc graded index and ..ingle mode step index fibers
respectively.

ullmple 3.5

A mu ltimo de g rad ed ind e x fi be r e d l,bils tota l pu lse b ro «de n;n o of 0 .1 ~~ over a

d ' s ' aoce of 15 km . Es tima te :
la l the maximu m p ossib le b a ndwid th on the link a s su ming no rotc rsvmbot
tmerterence:
lb) the p u lse dispersion p er umt len91h :
Ie ) t he bandw idlh~ le ngt h p roduct lo r 1he liber.
S Olution: (a) The m axi m lJ m pc s stble op tica l band w id th w hich is e quival ent to tI,e
ma xlrnu m possib le bit rat e (fo r ret urn t o zero pulses } essum in 9 no l SI may he
ob t ai ned fro m Eq, (3 ,9 ], wh ere ·

, 1
B"f)t = B T =-~--~ . - 5 MH z
0
2t 0 ,2 x1 0 -

(bl The di sper sion p er \J ni t len gt h m a y be acq ui red s im pl v bv c1ivifiil1 l.J the rora t
i d ;sp elsion b v th e tota l le ng th of the fi b er

0 . 1 X lO --lI

I <1ispe rsl o n _
15
6 .67 ns km -

Ic) The b andwidth-Ie ngl h p roouCI may be obtainedin rwlJ ways. Fi ,stly by s implv
I

m u ltiplying II>" ma. iml.lm banc!w idl" for Ina f iber linl:. by its le'lg' " He nce :
B"... L = 5 MHz ~ 15 I:.m 75 MHl km
Alterna tive ly it may O'l obta ined from the d is pers,on I "'" unit le l19 th using EQ.
13 .9 1 where :

1
:---::-:::---::-0 = 7 5 MHl km
2 " 6.67 x to" 9

In order to appreciate the reasons for the different amounts of pulse

broadening within the variou s type s of optical tiber. it is: necessa ry to consider
the dispersive mechani sms involved. These include material dispersion,
waveguide dispersion, intcrmodal dispersion and profile dispersion which are
-
considered in the follo wing sections.

3 .8 INTRAMODAL DISPERSION

Intramodal or chromatic dispersion may occur in all types of optical fi ber and
"
TRANSMISSION CHARACTERISTICS OF OPTICAL FIBERS 81

results from the finite spectral linewidth of the optical source. Since optical
sources do not emit just a single frequency but a band of frequencies (in the
case of the injection laser corresponding to only a fraction of a per cent of the
center frequency, whereas for the LED it is likely to be a significant
percentage), then there may be propagation delay differences between the
different spectral components of the transmitted signal. This causes broaden-
ing of each transmitted mode and hence intramodal dispersion. The delay
differences may be caused by the dispersive properties of the waveguide
material (material dispersion) and also guidance effects within the fiber
structure (waveguide dispersion).

3.8.1 Material Dispersion

Pulse broadening due to material dispersion results from the different group
velocities of the various spectral components taunchedsinto the fiber from the
optical source. It occurs when the phase velocity of a plane wave propagating
in the dielectric medium varies nonlinearly with wavelength, and a material is
said to exhibit material dispersion when the second differential of the refractive
index with respect to wavelength is not zero (i.e. d 2 n/d;J.,,1 -=t- 0). The pulse
spread due to material dispersion may be obtained by considering the group
delay 1:g in the optical fiber which is the reciprocal of the group velocity r~
defined by Eqs. (2.37) and (2.40). Hence the group delay is given by:

1:" =~!=~ (n] _A dn]) (3.12)

C dm c dA

where 11 1 is the refractive index of the core material. The pulse delay r., due to
material dispersion in a fiber of length L is therefore:

1: m=!:..c (n1-A dn])

d1.
(3.13)

For a source with rms spectral width a~ and a mean wavelength A, the rms
pulse broadening due to material dispersion am may be obtained from the
expansion of Eq. (3.13) in a Taylor series about A where:

+ ... (3.14)

As the first term in Eq. (3.14) usually dominates. especially for sources operat-
ing over the 0.8-0.9 urn wavelength range. then:

(3.15)
82 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Hence the pulse spread may be evaluated by considering the dependence of Tm

on A. where from Eg. (3.13):

dA c

(3.16)

Therefore substituting the expression obtained in Eq. (3.16) into Eq. (3.15), the
rms pulse broadening due to material dispersion is given by:

oIL d 2n]
om "'-' - '- A "cc'-I (3.17)
C d}..2
•
The material dispersion for opticalfibers is sometimes quoted as a value for
1)'}(d 2 n j /u'A' )1or simply Id 2 n l/d),,,lI.
However, it may be given in terms of a material dispersion parameter M
which is defined as:

(3.18)

and which IS often expressed in units of ps nm"! km".

Example 3.6

A glass fiber exhibits material dispersion given by I FlcI'n,,'d)..?11 of 0,025, Dercmunn

the material dispersion parameter at a wavelength of 0,85 urn. and estimate the rrns
pulse broadening per kilometer for a (Jood LED ~()urce with ~n rms spectral width of
20 nm M this wavelength.
Solutioll. The material rJispf1rsion parameter may be obtained from Eq. 13.181'

'A d'n 1 (j2n 1

M - - - •_ - }.'--
c dF c'A d'A1

0.025
--
2,998 \ 105 x 850

98,1 ps nm- 1 km- 1

The rms pulse broadening is given by Eq, 13.17) as:

TRAN SMISSION CHARACTERISTICS Of OPTICAL FIBERS .3
Th erefor e In te l ms 01 t he m ate rial d i, pe rs io n pa ra mete r M de fined by EQ. (3 .1 8 1;

Henc e. th'" m1 S pulse broadentrH;j pe r Io;;rometer d ue to ma terial dispersion:

<'1 m t1 kml = 20 )( I " 9 8 1 x 10- 12 = 1.9 6 ns km- '

Figure 3.8 shows the variation of the mat erial dispersion parameter At with
wavelength for pure silica [Ref 28 1. It may be observed that the material
dispersion tends to zero in the longer wavelength region a round 1. 3 urn (for
pure silica). This provides an additional incentive (other than low attenuation)
for operation at longer wavelengths where the material dispersion may be
minimized. Also the use of an injection lase r with a narrow spectral width
rather than an LED as the optica l source leads to a substa ntial reduction in the
pulse broadening due to mate rial dispersion, even in the shorter wavelength
r egion.

R.:1'l0ll pI
11' '''';0]
~1 .....-mP"
'" "" lI"l>lr
",.",,;.1
J''''''';PD
J'I!l",n,''''
1;00 "",,-I ,_., ..., ) '""
"f-- - --"'...."'""-- - - --
so

',."""'
' OC0-;' o. ~ ''''o',
1 0 U "",
1.4 1';--;';:--!;,--7'
.. l .~ ~" "
",• • , 1,,,.,,,1, I"",,)

fig . 3 .8 T he m ateriil t dispe rsio n p aram et er for smca as a l unCl ion of wa velengt h.
Re produ ced with pe rm ,ssi<ln trom O. N. Pay ne and W . A , Gambling, ElecrrDI1.
L ~ lr .. 11. c . 176. 19 7 5 .

Estim ate t he rms pu lse bro ad e ning p er kilo me ter lor th.. fibe r in exa m p le 3. 6 w h.."
the optic al s o urce us ed is an inje ctio n l (l ~ p. r w ith a relative ec e cna r w id th r1 ~ il. of
0.00 12 at a we ve length of 0.85 11m.
S olution: The rms s pe ctra l wid th mily be c btaln e d fro m the re lative spectral w idth
by:
0), '" a .OD ln .. 0 .00 12 x 0, 8 5 )( to-'
= t .0 2 nm
' TIl. rml pu l.. b rOl de 'llng In te rlTlS of t he met e ' ;11dispers ion paramet e r fo llow ing
lX. mpl. 3.8 II S1 hrtf't by:
84 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUN ICATIONS : PRINCI PLES AND PRACTICE

Om ::::- 0 lLM

T herefo re t h e rms pu lse b roadeni ng p er k ilomet er du e to m a ,~ri<l l I lispe r<;io n is:

Om :::: ' .0 2 " 1 )( 98.1 )( 10 - n = 0 .10 ns I<m - '

Hen ce , in t hi s exam ple t he rm s pulse b roade ning is reooc ec by a facIo. o f arou nd
20 u,e. equivale nt to t he recccee , m5 spf>(:l ral widt n of Ih'" mjltct;on Ies er sou rce]
comp ared w il h t hat ob t ain ed Wil h me LED sou rce of Il ll.lml.llC 3. 6 .

3 .8.2 Waveguide Dlaperaion

The waveguiding of the fi ber may also crea te intr amodal dispersion. This
results from the va riation in gro up velocity with wa velength fo r a particular
mod e. Considering th e ray theo ry approach it is equiva lent 10 the angle
between th e ray and the fiber axis varying with wavelength which subsequently
leads to a variation in the transmission times for the ray s, and hence dispc r-
sion Fo r a single mode whose propagation constant is ~. the fi ber exhibits
v
waveguide dispersio n when (d2 ~)/(dj,} ) -=I=- O. Multimod e fibers, where th e
majorit y of modes propagate far fro m cutoff. are a lmost free of waveguide
dispersion an d it is generally negligible compared with material dispersion
(::::0. 1-0.2 ns km I ) [Ref. 281. Ho wever, with single mode fibers where the
effec ts o f the different d ispersion mecha nisms a rc not easy to separa te,
waveg uide d ispersion ma y be significant (see Sectio n 3. 10.2).

3.9 INTERMODAL DISPERSION

Pulse broadening due to intermodal d ispersion {sornerirncs referred to simply

as modal o r mode dispersion) results from the pro pagatio n d elay d ifferences
between modes within a muhimode fiber. As the different model' which con-
stitute a pulse in a rnultimode fi ber travel along the channel a t d ifferent group
velocit ies. t he pulse width at the o utput is d ependent upor. the transmissio n
times o f th e slowest a nd fastest modes. Thi s dispersio n mechanism creates the
fundamental difference in the ove ra ll dispersio n for the three types of fiber
shown in Fig. 3.7. T hus muhimode step index fibers exhibi t a large amount of
intermodal dispersion which gives the greatest p ulse b ro adening. However,
intermodal dispersion in rnultimcdc fi bers may be reduced by adoption of an
optimum refractive index profile which is provided by the near parabolic
profile of most graded index fibers. Hence the overall pulse broadening in mul-
timode graded index fibers is far less than that obtained in multimode step
index fibers (ty pically by a fact or of 100). Thu s graded index fibers used with a
multi mo de so urc e give a tremendou s bandwidth advantage o ver multimode
step index fi bers.
Under purely single mode o pera tion there is no intermodal di spersion and
tberetcre pulse broademng i5 solely due to the intr. modal dilperaion
'.
TRANSM ISSION CHARACTERISTICS OF OPTICAL FIBERS 85

mechanisms. In theory this is the ca se with single mode step index fibers where
only a single mode is allowed to propagate. Hence t hey exhibit the least pulse
broadening and have the greatest possible bandwidths, but may only be
usefully operated with ~in g !e mode sources.
In o rder 10 o btai n a simple comparison for intermodal pu lse broadening
between rnultimod e step index a nd multimode graded index fi bers it is useful 10
consider the geomet ric optics picture for the two types of tiber.

3.9.1 Multlmode Step Inde x Fiber

Using the ray theory model, the fastest and slowest modes propagating in the
ste p index tiber may be represented by the axial ra y an d the extreme
meridio nal ray (which is incident <It the core-claddin g interface at lite critical
an gle 9~ ) respectively. T he paths taken by these IWO rays in a perfectly
structured step index fiber are shown in Fig. 3.9. The delay difference between
these two r ays when travelling in the fiber core allows estimation of the pu lse
broadening resulting: fro m inte rmodal dispersion within the fiber. As both ray s
are tra velling at the sa me velocity within Ute constant refra ctive ind ex fiber
core then the delay difference i.. di rectly related to their respective path lengths
within the fiber. Hence the time taken fo r the a xial ray to travel along a fiber of
length L gives the minimum delay time T M iQ and :

distance
T Min = , (3.1 9)
velocit y

where n l is the refractive index of the core and c is the velocity o f light in a
vacuum.
The extreme meridional ray exhibits the maxi mu m delay time TM u where :

Ln,
(3.20)
c cos II

"'ir "J". I) f---- 7":-- - - - - - - - -- - - - ,--

CQ"' \" , I
... , i,) ,."

.... a.. Th. ".tt', tlklfl by tI'a IX', I !lY ,nd I n elttre me me ridiOt1 . 1 ray in a perfect
multlmod. IUI p Incl• • fItI.r,
88 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIO NS: PRINCIPLES A ND PRACTICE

U<;ing Snell's law o f refraction at the core-cladding interface following Eq.

( 2.2) ,

n,
sin Q< - - " "-'- cos e (3.2 1)
n,
where 111 is the refr act ive index o f the cladding. F urthermore, substituting into
e
Eq . 0 .20) for em gives :

(3.22)

The del ay difference ST, between the extreme me ridional ray and the axi al
ray may be obta ined by subtracting Eq. (3.19) from Eq. (3.22). Hence:

. L l1 j" L il t
ST, = T~l ". - 7 M ill = -- - -
('n2 c

(3.23)

when 6. «I (3.24)
en,
where ~ is the relative refractive index difference. However , when A -e I. then
from the dcfininon given by Eq . (2.9). the rel ative refractive index difference
may a lso be given ap proximately by :

(3 .25)

Hence rearranging F..q . (3.23):

(3.26)

Also substituting for .1. from Eq . (2.10) gives:

(3.27)

where N A is the numerical aperture for the fiber. The approximate expressions
for the d elay diffe rence given in Eq . (3.26) and (3.27) a re usually employed to
esti mate the maximum pulse broadening in time due to intermodal dispersion
in multimode step index fibers. It rnU Ii{ be noted that this simple an alys is only
TRAN SMISSION CHARA.CTERISTICS OF OPTICAL FIBERS 87

considers pulse broadening due to mcridional rays and totally ignores skew
ra ys with ac cepta nce angles e:>< > e. (see Section 2.2.4).
Again considering the perfect step inde x fiber, a no ther useful q uantify with
regard to intcrmodal dispersion on a n optical fiber link is the rms pulse
broadening resulting from this dispersio n mecha nism along the fi ber. When the
optical input to the fiber is a pulse p,(I) of unit area . as; illustrated in Fig. 3.10,
then IRef. 3 IJ :
(3.28)

It may be noted that p ;(t) has a consta nt amplitude o f Il l)]: o ver the ra nge

The rms pulse broadening at the fi ber output du e to intermodal dispersion

for the multimode step index fiber 0 , (i.e. th e stan dard deviation) may be given
in terms of the varian ce 0;
as (see Appendix B):
(3. 29)
where M I is the first temporal moment which is equiv alent to the mean value
of th e pulse and ,'"f! the second tem poral moment is equivalent to th e mean
squ are value of the pulse. Hence:

M. = J'•" tp,(t)dr (3.30)

and

M! =
r ~
/2 p ;(t) dr (3.31)

.l· .on.,l1fW<:

-'er, --.-+---,

I c T""' (II
",
,
Pig. :1.10 Arl lllullrlllDrl of I t>. lig 'lt inOl,ll tCllhe ml,llt imode step inde.. fiber consisting of
. n lelI.1 1lU1i. or rKt.~ u ·. r NnlOtlon with \I n;! lrea.

.' .'
•
 ss OPTICAL FIBER COMMU NICATIONS: PR INCIPLES A ND PRACTICE

T he mean value All for the unit input pulse o f Fig_3. 10 is zero, a nd assum-
ing this is mainta ined fo r the o utput pulse, then fro m Eqs. (3.29) a nd (3.31):

cr. = M ] = J<O r p,{t) dt (3.3 2)

~

Integrating over the limits o f the input pulse (Fig. 3.1 0) and subs tituting for
p ,(t ) in Eq. (3.3 2) o ver this range gives:

[~ ]"" ~ ~ (o
r, )'
I
- (3.33)
sr, 3 -5J ,/2 3 2
Hence substituting from Eq . (3.26) for oT, gives:

Ln, 6. L(NA)2
o - - 7 -,;: -- (3.34)
•- lV) ' 4V 3 ""
Equation (3 .34) allows estimatio n of the rms im pul se respons e o f a multi-
mode step indcKfiber i f it is assu med that intermodal dispersio n dominates and
there is a uniform distribution of light rays over the ra nge 0 (. e" 9~ . The
p ulse broader.ing is direct ly proportio nal to the rela tive refractive index
difference !!J. and the length of the fiber L. Thc lat ter emphasizes the
bandwidth- length trade-off that exists. especially with muhimode step index
fi be rs, and which inhibits their u se for wideband long haul (betwee n repe aters)
sy ste ms. F urthermore, the pulse b roadening is reduced by reduction of the
rela tive refractive ind ex difference !!J. for the fi ber. This suggest s that wea kly
guiding fibers (see Secnon 2.3.6) with small !!J. are best for lo w dispersion
transmission. However. a s may be see n from Eq. (3.34) this is a lso subject to a
trade-orr as a reduction in !!J. red uces the acceptance angle a~ and the NA, lhu s
wo rse ning the la unch conditio ns.
I
"
,
"
E1Il8mpie 3 .8

I A 6 km optical lirok cons is ts of mu ltimode ste p ind ex fibe r w ith a c o re re fra ct ive
I,
1 ind ex of 1.5 and a re lat ive refra ctive inde x differe nce 01 1%. Estlm e te :
(81 t he del ay differe nce betwe e n t he s lowe s t and fast est mod", al th e fibe r outp ut :
lb ) the rms p ulse broad en in g d ue to inte rmod al d ispers io n on th e li f1 k:
ic l the ma ximum bit rate tn a t ma y be obta ined witt-o ut s ubSlal'1 , ia l e reoes o n the link
a ss u ming onlv ;n termod a l d ispersion;
!d l th e bandw id th--Ie ng lh p roduc t c ooe spond in g to ic ).

S olulio,,; (81 The delay diH8't1nce is g ive'! b y Eq. 13 .2 61 u :

.., .", :...

TRANSMISSION CHARACTERISTICS OF OPTICAL FIBERS 89

Ln ,!'1 6" 1Q3 x 1.5)( 001

6T, ~ - =
c 2.99 8:-: 10-

= 300 n5.
lbl The rms pu lse bro ad eni ng dU6 10 lm e rm oo e r d is f)Crsion m ay be obtemed from
EQ. (3. 341 w here :

Ln ,!i. 1 6 )( 10 3 x 1,5:-:0,0 1
, r -r-r-:
I 2";3 c 2";3 2, 9 98 x 10'

8 6.7 os

lei The m ax imu m bit rate may be estima ted in two ....e vs. Firs tly, to a c t eln Idea of
t he ma ~i m lJ m b it ral e w he n assu m ing eo pu lse ove rl ap EQ. 13 9J m ay be usee W hef C:
I ,
8[ (max) = - ~ -
21 26Ts 600 x 10 t

= 1.7 Mtlit s - '

A lt ern ative ly an im prov ed esti m at e may be obt ained lI sing t he calcu lat ed rrns pul se
br o ad ening i n Eq . (3 , 10) w here :

0 .2 02
8, [m ax) "'-= -~---:-O
O~ 8 6 .7 :-: 10- t

= 2 ,3 M b't 9-'
ld l U siny t he m os t accura te eSl imate <:I f t he m a"im u m hit rate " o m k t and
assu m ing ret urn to zero p ulses, t he b':lI'Iowidth -length produ ct is

Bop, X L 2 .3 MHl l< 6 km = 13 8 M Hz krn

lnterrnodal di spersion may be reduced by propagation mechanisms with in

practica l fibers. For instance, there is different ial attenua tion o r tile vario us
modes in a step index fiber. T his is d ue to the greater fieJ d penetration of the
higher order modes into the cladding of the waveguide. These slower modes
t herefore exhibit larger losses at any core-cladding irregula rities which tends
to co ncentrate the transm itted optical power into the raster lower order modes.
Thus the d itTerential a ttenua tio n of modes red uces intermodal pulse broaden-
ing o n a multimode o ptical link .
Another mechanism which reduces intermodal pulse b roadening in non -
perfect (l.e. practical) m ultimodc fibers is the mode coupling or mixing
discussed in Section 2.3.7. The coupling bet ween guided modes tran sfers
optical power from the slower to the ra ster modes and vice versa. Hence with
stronl coupling the optical power tends to be tra nsmi tted at an average speed ,
which is It mean of the various propagating modes. This red uces the inter-
modal d ilpcrsion on the link and makes it advantageo us to en courage mode
c:ouplln. within muitimode fibers.
.. •
90 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICATIONS: PRINC IP LES AND PRACTICE

T he expressio n for delay d ifference given in Eq. (3.26) fo r a perfect step

index fiber may be mod ilied for the fi ber wit h mode co upling among all guided
modes to [Ref. 32 J:

(3.35)

where L c is a c haracteristic length for the fiber which is inversely propo rtio nal
to tbc coupling strength. Hence the delay difference increases at a slower r ate
pro portional to (L L c) f instead of the d irect proportion ality to L given in Eq.
(3.26). Ho wever. the most successful tec hniq ue fo r reduc ing intermodal dis per-
sia n in m ultimodc fibers is by grad ing the co re refractive index to follo w a near
parabolic profile. This has the effect of equalizing the transmissio n times of the
various modes as discussed in the fo llowing section.

3 .9.2 Multimode Graded Index Fiber

Intcrrnodal dispers ion in multimode fibers is mini mized with the use of graded
index libers. Hence mu ltimode graded index fiber s show substantial bandwidth
im pro veme nt o ver multimode step index fibe rs. T he reason for the im pro ved
perfo rma nce o f graded ind ex fibers may be ooscrved by co nsidering the ray
d iag ra m for a graded index fiber shown in Fig. 3. 11. The fi ber shown has a
parabolic inde x profile with a maxi mum a t the core axi s as illustra ted in Fig.
3. l l(a). Analytically, the index profile i!i given by Eq. (2.76) with 0 =2 as :
nCr) = " . (J - 2.:\(rl af r r <a (core)
(J.36)
= nl (l - 2.6.)! = nz r ;) a (claddi ng)
F igure 3. I I(b) shows several meridio nal ra y path s withi n the fiber core. It
may be o b served that apart fro m the axial ray the meridional ra ys follow
sinusoida l traject ories of d ifferent path lengths which result fro m the index

"
~~~=f -
R. f,·,,' i... '"
l"~,· , Ilt , )

-- - ------ ~ (lao"I".

.... iol '0'

R IJ. 3 .1 1 A multimooe Oll d ed inaell fi ber: 1.1

'" '
parobo llc retr.ctlve Ind Oi profile;
lbl mendional ,• v patl", wahl" t'll f.oe, cor• .
TRANS MI SSION CHARACTERISTICS OF OPTICAL FIBERS 91

grad ing as was discussed in Sec tion 2.5. However, following Eq . (2.40) the
local grou p velocity is inversely proportional to the local refractive index and
therefo re the longer sinusoidal paths are compensated for by higher speeds in
the lower index medium aw ay from the axis. Hence there is an equalization of
the tra nsmission limes of the vario us trajectories towards the transm ission
time of the axial ray which tra vels exclusively in the high index region at the
core axis. and at the slowest speed . As these vario us ray paths may be con-
sidered to represent the different mode s propagating in the liber, then the
graded profile reduces the d isparity in the mode transit times.
T he d ramatic improvement in multimod e tiber ba ndwidth ac hieved with a
pa rabo lic o r near parabolic refractive index profile is highlighted by considera-
tion of the red uced delay difference between the fastest and slo west modes for
th is gr aded index fiber oT~ . Using a ray theory approac h the delay difference is
given by (Ref. 331:

(NAY
(3.37)

As in th e step index. case Eq . (2. 10) is used for conversion bet ween the two
expressions shown.
However. a mo re rigorou s a nalys is using electromagnetic mod e theory gives
a n absolute temporal width a t the fi ber o utput of (Ref. 34, 35 1:

(3.38)

wh ich correspo nds to an increase in transm ission time for the slowest mode of
6 1/ 8 over the fastest mode. T he expression given in Eq. (3.38) does not restrict
the bandwidth to pulses with time slots corresponding to oT8 as 70'*.> of the
optical power is concentrated in the first half of the interval. Hence the rm s
pulse broadening is a useful parameter for assessment o f intermoda l dispersion
in munimode graded index fibers. It may be shown [Ref. 35 1that the rms pulse
broadening of a near parabolic index profile graded index fiber 0"1 is reduced
compared to the similar broad ening for the corresponding step ind ex fiber 0 ,
(l,e. with the same relative refractive index difference) following:

~
a = - 0 (3 .39)
g D '

where D is a constant between 4 and 10 depend ing on the precise evaluatio n

and the exact optimum prol1le cho sen.
The ben minimum theoretical intermodal pulse broadening for a graded
index nbCf with an optimum characteristic refractive index profile for the core

•
 92 OPTICAL FIBE R COM M UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES A ND PR ACTICE

{l"" of IRefs. 35. 361 :

12,1.
~ ~ 2 - ~ (3.40)
s
is given by combining Eqs. (3.26) a nd (3.39) a s [Refs. 27. 361:

Lf/ 1 t12
" . ~ ~2;;-
OVc,.3-C (3.4 1)

Example 3 .9

Com pare t he rm s pulse brolId enir'lg per ki lom eler d ue 10 inter rno dal d isilersion for
the mutlimo de s te p ind e>! f ib e' 01 e xa mple 3 ,8 w ilh the corresponding rm s p ulse
broadening l o r an o p tim u m near Pdrabolic p rofile g rarlfld indel< f iber w it h the sam e
core al<is refractiv e ind el< and relativ e re'rac tive indel< d ifference.
S olutio": In e l< am p le 3.8, 0 . ovel 6 1.m o f f iber is 8 5 .7 ns HE.'nce the rms pu lse
broa d en ing per kil ometer f or the /TI\J lt imod e st ep ind el< fiber Is:

0. 11 km l 86,7
-'---,-- = - '" 14.4 ns km - '
L •

U sing Eq. 13 .4 1I, me rm s pu lse broade ning per kilo m eter for t he corr espo nd ing
graded in del< ilbet is :

= 14 .4 ps km-"

Hence. from example 3.9. the theoretical impro vement factor o f the graded
ind ex fiber in relation to intermodal pulse broadening is lOOO. However, this
level of improvement is not usually achiev-ed in practice due to d iffi culties in
co ntrolling the refractive index p rofile radially o ver long lengt hs of fiber . Any
I deviatio n in th e refractive ind ex profile from the optimu m results in increased
intermodal pulse broadening. This may be observed from the curve sho wn in
Fig 3. 12 which gives the variation in lntermodat pulse b roadening (oT.) as a
function of the c haracteristic refractive index profile a for typical graded index
fibers (where A = 1%). The curve disp lays a sh arp minimum at a characteristic
refr active index profile slightl y less than 2 (u = 1.98). Th is corresponds to the
optimum value of a in order to minimize intermodal d ispersion. F urthermo re,
the extreme sensitivity of the intermodal pulse broadening to slight variations
Ii in a from t his optimum value is evide nt. T hus at present imp rovement (actors
for practical graded index fi bers over correspond ing step index fi bers with
regard to intermodal dispersion are around 100 [Ref. 341.
j Another import ant factor in the determination of the optimu m refractive
TRANSM ISSION CHARACTERI STICS OF OPTICAL FIBERS 93

'00

-• .• - -co
lo-!';;-- - -t,-----:"-- ....,,,-- 3.0
"
FIV.3. 12 The i nt ermc dal pu lse b ro adening o Tg f or graded inde x f ibe rs having A = 1%.
versu s the charact eristi c refra ct ive ind ex profile (1,

index pro fi le for a graded index fiber is the dispersion incurred due to the
difference in refractive index between the fiber core and cl adding. It results
fro m a variation in the refra ctive index profile with op tical wavelengt h in the
grad ed fi ber and is often given by a pro file dispersion parameter ~ /dA . Th us
the o ptimized profile at a given wavelength is not necessarily optimized at
anothe r wavelength. As a ll o ptical fiber sources (e.g. injection lasers and light
emitting diodes) ha ve a finite spectral width. the profile shape must be altered
to compensate for this dispers ion mechanism . Moreo ver the minim um overall
dispersion for graded index fiber is also limited by the other intr amod al disper-
sion mechanisms (i.e. material and waveguide dispersion]. The se: give temp oral
pulse: bro adening of aro und 0 .08 and I ns km"! with injection lasers and light
emitting diodes respectively. Therefo re practical pulse broadening values for
graded index fibers lie in the ra nge 0.2-1 ns km-" . This gives bandwidth-
length product.s of between 0.5 and 2.5 GHz km when using lasers
a nd o ptimum profile fibe r.

3 .10 OVERALL FIBER DISPERSION

3.10.1 Multimode Fib.r.

T he overall dispersion in multimode fibers comprises both intramod al and
intermodal terms . The total rms pulse broadening O'T is given (see Appendix C)
by:
Or = (~ + o;;)t (3.42)
whert 0c Q the inuamodal or chromltic broadening and e , is the intermodal
•
 94 OPTICAL FIBER CO M M UN I CATlO N S ~ PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

broade ning caused by dela y differe nces between the modes (i.e. 0 . for multi-
mode step index fiber and 0 , for multimode graded index fi ber). The intra-
mod al term 0c consists of pulse broadening due to both mat erial and wave-
guide dispersion. However, s ince waveguide dispersion is generally negligible
compared with mat erial dispersion in multimcde fi bers. [hen 0, ~ 0 ",.
I

II
I
El<ample 3 .1 D

A multi mo de st e p index libe r h a s a n ume rica l a perlllm 01 0 ,3 a nd a co ra .efraI'1 i" a

iJ1de ~ of 1.4 5 . The ma le ria l d ispersio n pa ra mete r '01 Ihe fiber is 250 ps nm- 1 km •
w hic h rne kes me tena t d ;spe~ ion th e to ta lly do m ina tin9 ;nll amoo.,1 d is p.." ion
me cha n ism. Est ima te (a) Ine tota l , ms ptJls e b'08rJe" ing PC' ~i ~me l "' r w he n lhe
t iber is u sed w it h a n LED sou rce of rm 'l spectra l w id t h 5 0 ....m and Ib! the
cor' espo ndi ng ba ndwidth -l e ng ll1 prod uc t lo r '''e fiber.
,I S olution: (i1) Th e r ms p ulse broa d emnp p er kuo m eter du e to mat eriel disp ersion
m ay be ob t a ined fr o m Eq. 13 . 17). wh ere

G).U. dI n ,
(1 m ( 1 km l :::;- - - - - .: <fI. LM 5 0. 1 X 2 50 ps l<m - '
c <lA'
= 12 .5 ns km - '

Th e rm s pu lse b ro arj en in g per k ilo me t er d ue to hvterm oda l dis persion f o r th e st ep

in d ex f ibe r is g iven by Eq. (3 .3 4 ) as .

L (NA IZ 10' x 0 .09

e, ( 1 km. :::;- -,---;;:--
4y'3 n1c 4 y'3 x 1.4 5.2.9 9 8 . 10"

= 2 9 9 ns ~ - .

,I The to t al r m s pulse bro ad ening pe r kilo m ete r m ay be o bt ained u sing Eq. 13 .42 1,
whe re (Ie "= Om as t he wav egu i(IA d isp ersion is n eg ligible and (I" = G. f o r t ile m ul ti ·
mode st ep index fi ber Hence :

CIT = td'm ~ ~ I i _ (1 2. 5· ... 29 . 9 ·l ~

-= 3 2 .4 ns km - '
(b ) T he bandw id t h-1 eng t h prod uct rn ev be esti m at ed fr o m t he rel at io nship given
In Eq. 13. 10 1 w here:
02 02
BOPl " L = - = .. ~
er 32.4 )( 10--
= 6 .2 MHI ~m

3.10.2 Single Mode Fibe,..

The pulse bro aden ing in single mode fibers is solely d ue to intramodal disper-
sion a s only a single mode is allowed 10 propagate. Hence the bandwidth is
limited by th e finit e spectral width of the source. Unlike the situatio n in multi-
mode fibers, the mech anisms giving intramodal dispersion in single mode fibers
tend to be interrelated in a complex ma nner. The transit timc or .roup delay f •

.. /
- -.-
TRANSMISSION CHARACTERISTICS Of OPTICAL FIBERS 95

for a light pulse propagating along a unit length of fiber may be given as
[R,f. 371 ,

(3.43)

where c is the velocity of light in a vacuum, ~ is the propagation constant for a

mode within the fiber co re of refracti ve index n l and k is the propagation con-
scant for the mode in a vacuu m.
The fi ber exhibits intramodal dispersio n when ~ varies nonlinea rly with
wavelength. From Eq. (2.71) ~ may be expressed in terms of the relative
refractive index difference .6. and the normalized propagation constant bas:
0 .44)
Th e rrns pulse broadening ca used by intramodal dispersion down a fi ber of
length L is given by the derivative of the group delay with re spect to wave-
length as IRef. 27 J:

dt,
Total rms pulse broadening = 01 L -
dl,

(3.45)

where 0 1 is the source rms spectra l linewidth cen tered at a wavelength J...
When Eq. (3.44) is substituted into Eq. (3 .4.5), detailed calculation of the
first and second derivatives with respect to k gives the dependence of the pulse
broadening on th e fiber material's properties and the nor malized propagation
constant b. This gives rise to three interrelated effects which involve com -
plic ated cross-product terms. However. the fina l expression may be sepa rated
into th ree composite dispersion components in such a way thai one of the
effects dominates each term IRef. 381. The dominating effects are:
(a) the material dispersion parameter defined by J../cld 1 n/d).,11 where fI = n l
or "1 for the core or cladding respectively;
(b) the waveguide dispersion parameter defined as Vd ] (b V )/d v! where V is
the normalized frequency fo r the fiber;
(c) a profile dispersion para meter which is proportional to d6./dA.
This situation is different from multimode fi bers where th e majo rity of
modes propagate far fro m cutoff and hence most of the power is transmitted in
the fiber core. In the multimode case the composite dispersio n components
may be siniplifted and sepa rated into two intramodal terms which depend on
either material or wevegulde dispersion as was discussed in Section 3.8. Also,
.lpeciaIly whee conaideril1J step index multimode fi bers. the effect of profile
..
96 OPTICA L FI BER COMMU NICATION S: PRINCIPLES AND PRA CTICE

dispersion is negligible. Ho wever, al thoug h m at eria l and waveguide d ispersio n

tend to be do mi na nt in single mode fibers. the composite p rofile dispersion
term c annot be ignored.
figure 3.8 shows the materia l di spersion paramete r for pure silica plotted
against w avelength. It may be o bserved that t his characteristic goes th rough
zer o at a wavelength of 1.27 urn. T his zero m aterial dispersion (Z MD) point
can be shifted anyw here in the wavelength range 1.2-1 .4 u rn by the addition of
suita ble do pants [Ref 39 1. For instance. the ZMD point shifts from 1.271J.m
to a ppro xima tely 1.31 11m as the GeO: dopant concentra tion is inc reased from
o to 15%. Ho wever, the Z~t D point (al though of great interes t in single mode
fiber'» doc!'> not represent a poi nt o f zero pulse broadening s ince the p ulse
dispersion is influenced by bo th wa veguide and prof iledispersion. With .zero
materia l d ispersion the pulse ...prcading is dictated by the waveguide pa rameter
V d ~(b V )/d V I which is illustrated in Fig. 3. 13 as a fun ctio n of normalizcd Ire-
qucncy fo r the LP o, m ode. It may be seen that in the sin gle mode region whe re
the no rmalized frequ ency is less than 2.405 (see Section 2.4.2) the waveguide
dispersion is always posit ive and has a maxim um at V = 1. 1S. In t hi ... case the
waveg uide dispersion ge es to zero o utside the true sing le mode re gion at
V = 3.0. H owever, a change in the fiber parameters (such as core radius) or in
th e o perating wavelength al ters the no rmal ized frequency an d there fore the
wa veguide d ispersion.
T he total fiber dis persion which depends on both the fi ber m ateria l composi-
t io n and d imensions m ay be m inim ized by trad ing o lT m at erial and wa veguide
d ispersio n w hilst limiting the profile dispersion (i.e. restricting the variation in
refractive index with wavelen gth). The wa ve length at which the first order
dispersion is zero Ao may be selected in the range 1.3-2 um by careful control
of the core diameter and profile ( Ref. 38 1. This is illustrated in Fig. 3. 14 w hich

l\-"'qllidc
panuDCl«

Vd'l bY)
d V'
" :
I
I
!

r.
J',orm. ljz<XI r" '(I" ' '' e;' v

flg.3.'3 The w ave guide parameter lId'!b Vj!dV' as a function 01 the oorm 81i18d
trequencv V for tne LPo. mode, Reproduced with perml" siof'l from W . A ,
Gambling, A. H. Hartog af'ld C. M . Ragda1e<Th6 R8dlo 8tld E/8ctrrm Ellg . 81,
c. 3 13. 198 1.

• ~ - ~;< ," ....-.. -,

TRANSMI SSION CHARACTERISTICS OF OPTICAL FIBERS .,
To!.1
in".. <H>d.1
J""",_ k'"
{ roo . ... ~ ' ~'I
:1l

1,1> I .K
.... ~k"'''' ("", I

Flg.3.14 The t ota l f irst order int rtim o dal disper sion as a tcn cnon of wa vel engt h for
sing le mo de' fib ers w ith co re d iam ete rs of 4 , 5 and 6 1Jm . Reproduced w i l h p er-
m ission from W. A. Gambling. A . H. Ha rt og and C M . Ragdale, The R, di o find
Etec tron: Eng, . 51 . p . 3 13, 1981 .

shows the to tal fi rst order dispersion as a function of wavelength fo r three

single mode fibers with core diamet er s of 4 . 5 and 6 urn.
The effect Dr the inter action of material and wav eguide dispersion on An is
de mo nstrated in the dispersion against waveleng th characteristics fo r a
singl e mode silica co re fibe r sh own in Fi g. 3. 15. It m ay be noted tha t the ZMD
point occurs at a wavelength of 1.27 um b ut that the infl uence of wa veguide
dispersio n shifts the total dispersion minim um towards the lo nger wa velength
giving a ~ of 1.32 urn,
T he wavelength at whic h the First order dis persion is zero ~) m ay be
extended to wavelengths beyond 1. 55 /lID by a combination of th ree tech .
n iq ues. These a re:
(a) lo wering the norma lized freq uency ( V value) fo r the fiber;
(b) incre asing the relative refractive index difference t1 for the fiber;
(c) su itable doping o f the silica with germanium.
This should allow bandw idth- length products for single mode fibers in ex cess
of 100 G Hz km [Ref 401 at the slight disad vantage (If increased anen uanon
d ue to R ayleigh scattering within the duped silica. H owever, it must be noted
that although there Is zero firs t order di spersion at ' {j,
higher order chromatic
effects im pose limitations on the possible band width for single mode fibers. At
pnsent these give 8 fund amental lower limit to pul se sprea ding in silica-based
Obert of. for example, around 2.~O x 10-1 ps nm- ' km' ' in fused silica at a
 98 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

IJ['I',]'<ion
'1" "m-'j

.IIo'"i,,[ J i'I',,>100
...
\ -~
TQ"lJi,pcrsion '.\...->-,
,,// ,,"" ....
/
/

10' - 1
\
\ "
",
/

.-..
-\
"

'.
.
....1 I Wa\',~uid'
.." \ d"pmioll

.... I
.. I
10' \. U
I
"-\
I
\ I
,, :: ,
I
::
....
I
I
'.0 1.5 :',0

Fig.3.15 The pulse dispersion as a function of wavelength in 11 km single mode fiber

showing the major contributing dispersion mechanisms (dashed and dotted
curves] and the overall total dispersion (solid curve) Reproduced with permis-
sion from J, I. Yamada. M. Saruwalari. K, Asatanf. H. Tsuchiva. A. Kawana. K.
Sugiyama and 1. Kimura, 'High speed optical pulse transmission at 1,29 urn
wavelength using low-loss single-mode fibers', fEEE J. Quanwm Hectron., QE-
14, p. 791,1978. Copvriqht v 1980, IEEE.

wavelength of 1.273 urn 1Ref. 411. These secondary effects such as birefrin-
gence arising from ellipticity or mechanical stress in the fiber core are con-
I.
• sidered further in Section 3.12. However, they may cause dispersion, especially
in the case of mechanical stress of between 2 and 40 ps km-! . If mechanical
stress is avoided pulse dispersion around the lower limit may be obtained in the
longer wavelength region (i.e. 1.3-1.7 urn). By contrast the minimum pulse
spread at a wavelength of 0.85 urn is around 100 ps nm-' km" 1Ref. 331.

3.11 MODAL NOISE

The intermodal dispersion properties of multimode optical fibers (see Section

3.9) create another phenomenon which affects the transmitted signals on the
optical channel. It is exhibited within the speckle patterns observed in multi-
TRANSMI SSION CH ARACTERISTICS OF OPTICAL FIBERS 99

mode tiber as fl uctuatio ns which ha ve characteristic times longer than the

reso lution time o f the detecto r. a nd is known as mod al o r speckle noise. The
speckle patterns are formed by the interference of the modes from a coherent
source when the coherence time of the source in greater tha n the inte rmodal
dispersion time 5T within the fiber. The coherence time for a source with
uncorrelated source frequency width 5f is sim ply II&/. Hence. modal noise
occurs when:
I
0/ > - (3.4 0)
oT
Disturbances alon g the fi ber such as vibra tions. discontinuities, connectors,
splices and source/detector coupling may cause fl uctua tions in the speckle
patte rns and hence modal noise. It is generated whe n the correla tion between
two or more modes wh ich gives the o riginal interference is d ifferentially
delayed by these disturbances. The conditions which give rise to mo dal noise
are therefore speci fied as :
(a) a coherent source with a narrow spectral width and long coherence length
(propagation velocity mu ltiplied by the coh erence time);
(b) d isturbances along the fibe r which give differential mode delay or modal
a nd spatial filtering ;
(c ) pha se correlation between the mod es.
Measurem ents (Ref. 46( o f rms signal to modal noise ratio using good narrow
linewidth injection lasers sho w large signal to noi se ratio penalties under the
previously men tioned cond itions. T he measurements were carr ied out by mjs-
alii-Ding connectors to create d isturbances. They ga ve carrier to noise ratios
reduced by around 10 dB when the attenuation at each connecto r was 20 dB
d ue to substa ntial axial misalignment.
Mod al noise may be avoided by remo ving one of th e conditions (they must
all be present) which give rise to this degradation. Hence mod al noise free
tran smi ssion may be obtained by :
(a) T he use of a broad spectr um source in ord er to elimina te the modal
in terference effects. This may be achieved by either 0) increasing the width
of the single longitudinal mode and hence decreasing its coherence time or
(2) by increasing the n um ber of longitudinal modes a nd averaging out of
the interference patterns [Ref. 47 1.
(b) In co nj unction with (aX2) it is fo und that fi bers with large numerical
apertu res support the tran smission of a large number of modes giving a
greate r number of speckles. and hence reduce the mod al noise generating
efTect of individual speckles [Ref. 4 8J.
(e) T he use of single mode liber which does nOI suppo rt th e tran smission of
different modes and thus there is no intermodal interference.
Cd) The nmO\'al or diu urb ancel along the fiber. This has been investigated

•
100 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

with regard to connector design lRef. 491 in order to reduce the shift in
speckle pattern induced by mechanical vibration and fiber misalignment.
Hence, modal noise may be prevented on an optical fiber link through suitable
choice of the system components. However, this may not always be possible
and then certain levels of modal noise must be tolerated. This tends to be the
case on high quality analog optical fiber links where multimcde injection lasers
are frequently used. Analog transmission is also more susceptible to modal
noise due to the higher optical power levels required at the receiver when
quantum noise effects are considered (see Section 9.2.5). Therefore it is
important that modal noise is taken into account within the design considera-
tions for these systems.

3.12 POLARIZATION

Cylindrical optical fibers do not generally maintain the polarization state of the
light input for more than a few meters, and hence for most applications invol-
ving optical fiber transmission some form of intensity modulation (see Section
7.5) of the optical source is utilized. The optical signal is thus detected by a
photodiode which is insensitive to optical polarization or phase of the light
wave within the fiber. Nevertheless. recently systems and applications have
been investigated 1Ref. 521 (see Section 10.8) which do require the polarization
states of the input light to be maintained over considerable distances, and
fibers have been designed for this purpose. These fibers are single mode, and
the maintenance of the polarization state is described in terms of a
phenomenon known as modal birefringence.

3.12.1 Modal Birefringence

Single mode fibers with nominal circular symmetry about the core axis allow
the propagation of two nearly degenerate modes with orthogonal polarizations.
They are therefore bimodal supporting HEll and HEYI modes where the
principal axes x and yare determined by the symmetry elements of the fiber
cross section. Thus the Fiber behaves as a birefringent medium due to the
difference in the effective refractive indices and hence phase velocities for these
two orthogonally polarized modes. The modes therefore have different
propagation constants ~x and ~y which are dictated by the anisotropy of the
fiber cross section. When the fiber cross section is independent of the fiber
length L in the z direction then the modal birefringence B F for the fiber is given
by [Ref. 53],

(3.47)
TRANSMISSION CHARACTERISTICS OF OPTICAL FIBERS 101

where A. is the optical wavelength. Light polarized along one of the principal
axes will retain its polarization for all L.
The difference in phase velocities causes the fiber to exhibit a linear retarda-
tion 4I(z) which depends on the fiber length L in the z direction and is given by
IRef. 531:
(3.48)
assuming that the phase coherence of the two mode components is maintained.
The phase coherence of the two mode components is achieved when the delay
between the two transit times is less than the coherence time of the source. As
indicated in Section 3.11 the coherence time for the source is equal to the
reciprocal of the uncorrelated source frequency width (lIof).
It may be shown [Ref 54J that birefringent coherence is maintained over a
length of fiber Lbc- (i.e. coherence length) when:

(3.49)

where c is the velocity of light in a vacuum and 6A. is the source lincwutth.
However, when phase coherence is maintained (i.e. over the coherence
length) Eq. 3.48 leads to a polarization state which is generally elliptical but
which varies periodically along the fiber. This situation is illustrated in
Fig. 3.16(a) [Ref 531 where the incident linear polarization which is at 45°
with respect to the x axis becomes circular polarization at 41...,... n12, and linear
again at c1l = n. The process continues through another circular polarization at
cJi = 3nl2 before returning to the initial linear polarization at c1l = In. The
characteristic length L s corresponding to this process is known as the beat
length. It is given by:

(3.50)

Substituting for SF from Eq. (3.47) gives:

2.
L. ~ -;;c-"'-;,-, (3.51)
(~. - ~.)

It may be noted that Eq. (3.51) may be obtained directly from Eq. (3.48)
where:
(3.52)
Typical single mode fibers are found to have beat lengths of a few
centimeters [Ref. 55], and the effect may be observed directly within a Fiber via
Ray1eiih scattering with use of a suitable visible source (e.g. He-Ne laser)
[Ref. :561. It appears BS a series of bright and dark bands with a period
102 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Fig.3.16 An illustration of the beat length in a single mode optical fiber [Ref. 531: {a) the
polarization states against illizI; Iblthe light intensity distribution over the beat
length within the fiber,

corresponding to the beat length as shown in Fig. 3.16(b). The modal birefrin-
gence B 1 may be determined from these observations of beat length.

Example 3.11

The beat length in a single mode optical fiber is 9 ern when light from an injection
laser with a spectral linewidth of 1 nm and a peak wavelength of 0.9 urn is launched
into it. Determine the modal birefringence and estimate the coherence length in this
situation. In addition, calculate the difference between the propagation constants for
the two orthogonal modes and check the result,
Solution: To find the modal birefringence Eq. {3.501 may be used where:

A 0.9 x 10-"
SF ~~= 1 x 10-'
LB 0.09

Knowing SF' Eq. (3.491 may be used to obtain the coherence length:

1.2 0.81 X 10- 12

L be ~-- '·C', = 81 m
BFIiJ.. 10'x 10 g

The difference between the propagation constant for the two orthogonal modes
may be obtained from Eq, {3.51) where,

271 211
13. -13 y =- ~ - - = 69.8
La 0.09

The result may be Checked by UIln; Eq, 13.47) whirl:

_..... _.. _~ ~
TRANSMISSION CHARACTERISTICS OF OPTICAL FIBERS 103

211B F 211 X 10-0

~ 69.8

In a nonperfect tiber various perturbations along the fiber length such as

strain or variations in the fiber geometry and composition lead to coupling of
energy from one polarization to the other. These perturbations are difficult to
eradicate as they may easily occur in the fiber manufacture and cabling. The
energy transfer is at a maximum when the perturbations have a period A,
corresponding to the beat length, and defined by [Ref. 52J:
).
A~- (3.53)
B,
However, the cross-polarizing effect may be minimized when the period of
the perturbations is less than a cutoff period A..: (around 1 mm). Hence
polarization-maintaining fibers may be designed by either:
(a) High (large) birefringence: the maximization of the modal birefringence,
which following Eq. (3.50), may be achieved by reducing the beat length
L H to around 1 mm or less; or
(b) Low (small) birefringence: the minimization of the polarization coupling
perturbations with a period of A. This may be achieved by increasing A..:
giving a large beat length of around 50 m or more..

Example 3.12

Two polarization-maintaining fibers operating at a wavelength of 1 ,3 lim have beat

lengths of 0.7 mm and 80 m. Determine the modal birefringence in eJch case and
comment on the results.
Solution: Using Eq. (3.50~, the modal birefringence is giverl by:

Hence, for a beat length of 0.7 mm:

1.3 x 1O-~
BF = =1,86xlO- 3
0.7 X 1O~3

This typifies a high birefringence fiber.

For e beat length of 80 m:

1,3 x 10-'
BF= =1.63x10----ll
80
whIch IndlCltll 8' low birefringence fiber.
104 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES ANO PRACTICE

Techniques are being developed in order to produce both high and low
birefringence fibers in-order to facilitate coherent optical fiber communication
systems. Fibers may be made highly birefringent by deliberately inducing large
asymmetric radial stress. This may be achieved through thermal stress by
using materials with widely different expansion coefficients coupled with an
asymmetrical elliptical structure. A linear polarization state has been
maintained over a kilometer of fiber with an extinction ratio of 30 dB using this
technique !Ref. 571. Further investigation of the optimal cross section
geometry for high birefringence has suggested [Ref. 57] fiber core cross sec-
tions shaped as a bow tie (bow tie fiber).
To design low birefringence fibers it is necessary to reduce the possible
perturbations within the fiber during manufacture. Therefore extreme care
must bc taken when jacketing and winding these fibers in order to reduce
bands or twists that may contribute to birefringence. It is also necessary to use
materials which minimize the thermal effects that may create birefringence.
One technique used to minimize the temperature dependence of birefringence
which has proved successful is to spin the fiber preform during manufacture
[Ref 581. This method, which reduces the linear retardation within the fiber,
has produced fibers with no birefringent properties and variations in output
polarization result only from fiber packaging. However, even with these low
birefringence spun fibers some form of polarization controller IRef. 591 is
necessary to stabilize the polarization state within the fiber.

PROBLEMS

3.1 The mean optical power launched into an optical fiber link is 1.5 mW and the
tiber has an attenuation of 0.5 dB km I. Determine the maximum possible link
length without repeaters (assuming losslcss connectors) when the minimum
mean optical power level required at the detector is 211W.

3.2 The numerical input/output mean optical power ratio in a I km length of

optical fiber is found to be 2.5. Calculate the received mean optical power
when a mean optical power of I mW is launched into a 5 km length of the tiber
(assuming no joints or connectors).

3.3 A 15 km optical fiber link uses fiber with a loss of 1.5 dB km I. The tiber is
jointed every kilometer with connectors which given an attenuation of 0.8 dB
each. Determine the minimum mean optical power which must be launched
into the fiber in order to maintain a mean optical power level of OJ jJ W at the
detector.

3.4 Discuss absorption losses in optical fibers comparing and contrasting the
intrinsic and extrinsic absorption mechanisms.
TRANSMISSION CHARACTERISTICS OF OPTICAL FIBERS '05

3.5 Briefly describe linear scattering losses in optical fibers with regard to:
(a) Rayleigh scattering;
(b) Mie scattering.
The photoclastic coefficient and the refractive index for silica arc 0.286
and 1.46 respectively. Silica has an isothermal compressibility of
7 x 10- 11 m' N- 1 and an estimated fictive temperature of 1400 K. Determine
the theoretical attenuation in decibels per kilometer due to the fundamental
Rayleigh scattering in silica at optical wavelengths of 0.85 and 1.55 lim.
Boltzmann's constant is 1.381 x 10-23 J K.

3.6 A K 20-Si0 2 glass core optical fiber has an attenuation resulting from
Rayleigh scattering 01'0.46 dB km I at a wavelength of I urn. The glass has an
estimated fictive temperature of 758 K, isothermal compressibility of
8.4 x 10- 11 m' N- 1, and a photoelastic coefficient of 0.245. Determine from
theoretical considerations the refractive index of thc glass.

3.7 Compare stimulated Brillouin and stimulated Raman scattering in optical

fibers, and indicate the way in which they may be avoided in optical fiber com-
munications.
The threshold optical powers for stimulated Brillouin and Raman scattering
in a long 8 IJ.m core diameter single mode fiber are found to be 190 mW and
1.70 W respectively when using an injection laser source with a bandwidth of
I GHz. Calculate the operating wavelength of the laser and the attenuation in
decibels per kilometer of the fiber at this wavelength.

3.8 The threshold optical power for stimulated Brillouin scattering at a wavelength
of 0.85 IJ.m in a long single mode fiber using an injection laser source with a
bandwidth ofSOO MHz is 127 mW. The fiber has an attenuation of2 dB km- I
at this wav elength. Determine the threshold optical power for stimulated
Raman scattering within the fiber at a wavelength 01'0.911n1 assuming the fiber
attenuation is reduced to I.S dB km I at this wavelength.

3.9 Explain what is meant by the critical bending radius for an optical fiber.
A single mode step index fiber has a critical bending radius of 2 mm when
illuminated with light at a wavelength of 1.30 urn. Calculate the relative refrac-
tive index difference for the fiber.

3.10 A graded index fiber has a refractive index at the core axis or 1.46 with a
cladding refractive index of 1.45. The critical radius of curvature which allows
large bending tosses to occur is S4 urn when the fiber is transmitting light of a
particular wavelength. Determine the wavelength of the transmitted light.

3.' 1 (a) A multimode step index fiber gives a total pulse broadening or 95 ns over a
5 km length. Estimate the bandwidth-length product for the fiber when a non
return to zero digital code is used.
(b) A single mode step index fiber has a bandwidth-length product of
10 GHz km, Estimate the rms pulse broadening over a 40 km digital optical
link without repeaters conslsttng of the fiber. and using a return to zero code.
106 O PTICAL FIBE R COM MUNICATIONS : PRINCIP LES AND PRACTICE

3.12 An 8 km optical fiber link witho ut repeaters uses multimode grad ed index fiber
which has a bandw klth-lengrh product of -400 MH z km. E stima te :
(al the total pulse broadening o n the link :
(bl the rm s p ulse broadening on the link.
It may be a ssu med that a return to zero code is used .

3.13 Brie fly expl ain th e reasons for pulse br oadening d ue to material dt-oer sion in
optical fibers .
The group d elay T~ in an optical fiber is given by :

T ~ .: (n,-",",)
" dJ.

where c is me velocity of light in a vacuum, n , is rhe core refracti ve index a nd

). is th e wa vele ngth o f the transmit ted light. Dcnve an expression for the rm s
pulse broadening due 10 mater ial dispersion in an optical fiber and define the
m at erial dispcrslun para meter.
T he material dispersion param eter for a gla ss tiber is 20 ps n m " ! km " at a
wavelength of I.S urn. Estimate the pulse broadening due to m aterial disper-
sion within the fiber when light is launched from an injection la ser source with
a peak wa velength of 1.5 J1D1 and an rm s spectra l wid th of 2 nm into a 30 km
length of the tiber.

3.14 The mater ial di spe rsion in an optical fiber ddined by 1d 2 " lId). 21is 4. 0 x
10-2 IJ1T1 2. Estimate the pu lse bro ad ening per kilo meter due 10 mal erial dis-
persion wit hin the fiber when it is illuminated with all LE O source with a pea k
wavcjength of 0.9 11JT1 and a n rms spectral wid th o f 45 nrn.

3.15 Describe t he mechanism of inrermodal dispersio n in a roultimode step index

fibe r.
Show th at the total bro aden ing of a light pulse oT, du e to interm odal disper-
sion in a mu ltimodc step index tibe r may be given by :

where L is the fibcr lengt h, NA is the numer ic al apert ure o f the fil:>er , n I is the
co re refractive index and c iii the velocity o f light in a vac uum.
A muhim ode step index fiber has a nume rical ape rture of 0 .2 a nd a core
refractive index o f 1.47. Estimate the ba ndw id th- length prod uct for the fiber
assuming only intermodal dispersion and a ret urn to zero code whe n:
(a) there is no mode coupling between t he guided modes;
(b) mode co upling between the guided modes gives a ch aracteristic length
eq uiva lent to 0.6 o f the act ual fiber length .

3 .16 U sing the rela tion for (iT, gi\'en in problerr. 3.15. derive an ekpression for
th e rms pulse broadening due to lntermoda l di spersion in a mufl imode step
inde x fiber. C ompare th is expression with a similar expression whic h may be
o bt ained for an optimum near para bolic profLie I raded index. fiber.
TRAN SMISSION CHA RACTERISTICS OF OPTICAL FIBERS 101

Estimate the bandwidth-length product for the step index fiber specificd in
problem 3. 15 eon r.idcring thc rms pulr.e broad enin g. d ue to interrnodal disper-
sion within the fiber and comment on the result. Indicate the poMibk improve-
men t in the band widrtr- Icngrh product when an optimum near pa raboli..:
profile graded index fibe r with the same relative refractive index difference and
core axis refractive ind ex is used . In both ca ses a ssume only intermodal dis per-
~ iOD .....ithin the fiber and the U ~ o f a return to zero code.

3 .17 An 11 km o ptical fiber link consisting o f o ptimum nea r parabolic pro r:J e
grade d inde x fi ber exhibits rms intermodal pulse bro adening of 346 ps over its
length . If the fiber ha s a relative refractive index difference of 1.5 %, e stimate
Ihe core SKis refractive index. Hence determine the numerical ape rture fo r the
fiber .

3 .18 A multtmode, optimu m near par abolic profile graded index fiber ha s a material
dispersion par amet er of 30 ps nm I km- ' when used with a good LED so urce
o f r rns spec tral width 25 nm. T he fiber hac a numerical ape rture o r O.4 and a
core axis refr active index o f 1.48. E stimate the tot al rms pulse broadening per
kilomtter within the fiber assuming waveguide dispersion 10 be negligible.
Hence estimate the b and width-length prod uct for the fiber .

3 .19 A m ultimoot step indelt fiber ha s a relative refractive index difference of 1%

and a core refractive index o f 1.46. The maximum optical band....-idth that may
be o btained with a pan icul ar source o n a 4.5 km link is 3.1 MHz.
(3) Determine the r ms pulse broadeni ng per kilometer resulting from
intram od al di<;rersiu n mecha nisms.
(b) Assuming waveguide dispersion may be ignored , estimate the rms
spectral width o f the source used, if Ihe material dispersion parameter
for the fibe r at th e operating wa velength is 90 ps nm' km'.

3 .20 Discu ss dispersion mecha nisms with regard 10 single mode libers indicating
the dominating effect s. Hence describe how intramodal disper sion may be
minimized within the single-mode region.

3.21 Describe the phenome non of modal noise in optical fi bers and suggest how it
may be e volced.

3 .22 Explain what is meant by:

(a) mod al birefringence;
(b) the beat length;
in single mode fiber s.
The difference between the propagation constants for the IWO on hogonal
modes in a single mode fibe r is 250. It is illuminated with light of peak
wavelength 1.55 um fro m an injection laser so urce .....ith a spcctr allinewldth of
0 .8 nm . E."timate the coherence length within the fiber .

3 .23 A single mode fiber maintain s b irefr ingent coherence over a length of 100 km
wh en it is illuminated with an injection laser so urce with a spectrallin ewidth of
1.5 nm IlItd a peak. wa velength of 1.32 urn. Esti ma te th e beat len gth within the
fiber and co mment on the !"e§uIL
108 OPTICA L FIBER COMMUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Answer. to Numerical Problems

3.' 57.5 km 3 .13 1.2 ns

3 .2 10.0 uw 3.14 5,.1 ns km- l
3.3 703 ..,W 3 ,15 (al 11.0 M Hz k m; (b) 14. 2 MHz
3." 1.5 7 dB km- l , 0 . 14 d B km- l km
3.8 l.49 3.16 15.3 M Hz km ; improvement to
3.7 1.50 IJ.m, 0.30 dB km- l 10 .9 GHI. km
3 .8 2.4 W 3.17 1.45, 0 .25
3." 0.1 7% 3.18 774 ps km ", 258 MH z km
3 ,10 0.86 )1m 3.19 (a) 2.8 2 n s km- l : (b) 3 1 n m
3 ,11 (a) 13.2 M H7 k m : (b) soo ps 3.22 48.6 m
3 ,12 (a ) 10 ns: (b) 4 ns 3 .23 113.6 m

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A. W. Snyde r and R. 1\. Sammut. 'Dispersion in graded single-mode fi bres',
, Electron, L ett; 15(10 ). pp. 269- 270. 1979.
45 W. A. Gambling. H. Matsumura li nd C. M. Ragdale, ' z ero mode dispersjun in
s ingle mode fibre : . Electron, Leu.; 14 ( 19), pp. 618-6 20, 1978.
4. R. E. Epwort h, ' The pheno meno n of modal noise in analogue and digjtal optical
fi bre systems', in PrucwdillXS of tne 4lh European Conference 011 Ointeat
Communicauon, Italy, pp. 492 - 50 1. 1978.
47 A. R. G od win, A. W. Da vit... P. A. K jrkb y. R. E. Ep.....onb and R. G . Plumb.
\ ' N arrow stripe and semicond uctor la ser for improved performance of opt ical

I 48
comm unicat ion systems' , Proc . 5th Euro pean Conf Opt. Comm ., Thc Nether-
land s. paper 4-3. 19 7':1.
K. Sato and K. Asamni. 'A nalogue baseband T V tran smission experiments using
semiconducto r laser diod es', Electron. Lett.. 1~ ( 2 4 ) . pp. 794- 795, 1979.
4" B. C ulshaw, 'Minimisation o f modal noise in optical- fi bre connectors', Electron,
L ett., 1~ (l 7) , pp . 529 - 53 1, 1979.
50 G. D e M arc his, S. Piazzo lla and B. Dain u, ' Modal noise in optical fi bres ', in
Proceed ings oj ' he 61h Eu ropean Confer ence on Optical Commumcction, UK ,
pr. 76--79, 1980.
51 M. Monerie. D. Moutonnet a nd L. Jeunhomme, 'Polarisatio n studies in long
lengt h single mode fi bres'. in Proceedings of the 61h European Cortference on
Opncat CommunicOl ;fl n. UK, pp. lO7- I I I, 1980.
52 l. P. Kaminow, ' Pola rlzanon in fi bers', L aser Focus, 16(6). pp. gQ---i! 4, 1980.
153 1. P. K amino w, ' Polariz ation in optica l fibers', I EEE J . Qua nl w11 Electron.. Q E-
mn, pp. 15- 22, 198 1.
54 S. C. Ras hleigh and R. Ulrich , ' Polarization mod e dispersion in single-mode
fibe rs', Opt. L eu.; 3. PI', 60-62. 1978.
55 \T. R am aswamy, R. D. Stan dley, D _Sze and W. G . f rench, ' Pola risation effects
in ..hort length. single mode fibres', Bell SySI. Tech . J., 57, pp. 635---f>5 1, 1978.
56 A. Papp a nd H . Harms, -pola r iaat io n optics of inde x- gradient opncal waveguide
fi bers'. Appl. Opt.• 14. pp. 2406-24 11, 19 75.
57 A. J. Ba rlow. D. N. Payne . M. P. va rnham and R . D . Birch, ' Po larisation
c haracteristics o f fi bres fo r coherent detect ion systems', l E E Co lloq. on
Co herence in Opt. F ibre S)'f.t., Londo n, 25th Ma y 19 1(2,
58 D . N. Payne, A. J. Barlow and J. J. Ramskov H ansen, ' D evelopment o f low and
high birefringence optica l fibres'. I EEE J. Quant um Elettro n.; QE- 18(4), pp.
477-487, 1982.
59 R . Ulrich, 'Polarisat ion sta bilisation on singl e-mode fi bre' , Appt, Phys. Leu., 35 ,
pp. 840-842, 1979.
60 M. J. Adams, D. N . Payne and C. M. Ragdale, ' Birefringence in o pt ical fibres
with elliptica l cros s-section ', Electron . Len., 1~ ( IO), pp , 298- 299, 197 9.
61 T . K at suyama , H. Matsu mu ra and T. Sug anuma. ' Low lou single-polarisation
fibre s', E lectron. Lett" 17(1 3), pp. 4 73-474 , 1981. '
 4
Optical Fibers, Cables and Connections

4.1 INTRODUCTION

Optical fiber waveguides and their transmission characteristics have been con-
sidered in some detail in Chapters 2 and 3. However, we have yet to discuss
the practical considerations and problems associated with the production,
application and installation of optical fibers within a line transmission system.
These factors arc of paramount importance if optical fiber communication
systems arc to be considered as viable replacements for conventional metallic
line communication systems. Optical fiber communication is of little use if the
many advantages of optical fiber transmission lines outlined in the previous
chapters may not be applied in practice in the telecommunications network
without severe degradation of their performance.
It is therefore essential that:
(a) Optical fibers may be produced with good stable transmission charac-
teristics in long lengths at a minimum cost and with maximum repro-
ducibility.
(b) A range of optical fiber types with regard to size, refractive indices and
index profiles, operating wavelengths, materials, etc., be available in order
to fulfill many different system applications.
(c) The fibers may be converted into practical cables which can be handled in
a similar manner to conventional electrical transmission cables without
problems associated with the degradation of their characteristics or
damage.
(d) The fibers and fiber cables may be terminated and connected together
{jointed) without excessive practical difficulties and in ways which limit the
effect of this process on the fiber transmission characteristics to keep them
within acceptable operating levels. It is important that these jointing tech-
niques may be applied with ease in the field locations where cable connec-
tion takes place.
In this chapter we therefore pull together the various practical elements
alSociated with optical fiber communications. Hence the various methods for
preparina optical fibers (both liquid and vapor phase) with characteristics suit"
able for telecommunications applications are outlined in Sections 4.2 to 4.4.
112 OPTICAL FIBER COM MUN ICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Th is is followed in Section -t.5 with consideration of commercially a vaila ble

fibers describing in general terms both the type s and their cha racteri..tics. The
requ irement.. for optical fi ber cabling in relat ion to fi ber prote ction are then
disc ussed in Section 4.6 prio r 10 con siderat ion of cable design in Section 4,7.
In Section 4.8 we deal with the losses inc urred when optical fibers a re con-
nec ted together. This disc ussion provides a basis for consideration of the
techniq ues employed for jointing optical fibers. Permanent fiber joints (or
splices) a rc then dealt with in Section 4.9 prior to discussion of the various
types of demountable fi ber connector in Sections 4.10 to 4.12.

4.2 PREPARATION OF OPTICAL FIBERS

From t he considera tions of o ptical waveguidmg of C ha pter 2 it is clea r that a

variation of refractive index inside the optical fiber (i.e. between t he core and
the cladding) is a funda mental necessity in the fabrication of fi bers for light
transmission . Hence at least two different materials which a re tran sparent to
light over the operating wavelength range (0.8- 1.6 1Ufl) arc required. In
practice these materials rnust exhibit rela tively low optical attenuation and
they must therefore have low intrinsic absorption a nd sca ttering losses. A
number of organic and inorganic insulating substances meet these conditions
in the visible a nd ncar infrared regions of the spectr um.
Ho wever. in order to avoid scattering losses in excess of the fund amental
intrinsic losses. scattering centers such as bubbles. strains and grain
boundaries must be eradicated. This tends to limit the choice of suitable
materials for the fabrication of optical fi bers to either glasses (or glass-like
ma terials) a nd monocrystalline structures (certain plastics).
It is also useful, a nd in the case of graded index fibers essential, that the
refracti ve index of the material may be varied by suitable doping with another
com patible material. Hence these two materials ..hould have mutual solubility
over a relatively wide range of concentrations. This is. only achieved in glasses
or glass-like materials. and the refore monocrysta lline materials are unsuitable
for the fabrication of graded index fi bers. but may be used for step index
fi bers. H owever, it is apparent tha t glasses exhibit the best overall material
characteristics for use in the fa brication of low loss optical fibers. They a rc
therefore used almost exclusively in the preparation of fibers for telecom-
m unications applications. Plast ic cl ad IReI'. 1] and all plastic fibe rs fi nd some
use in short-haul, low bandwidth applications.
In this section the discussion will therefore be confi ned to the prepa ration of
gla ss fi bers. This is a two stage process in which initially the pure glass is
produced a nd con verted into a form (rod or preform) suitable for making the
fiber. A dra wing or pulling technique is then employed to acquire the end
product. The methods of preparing the extremely pure optical glas ses aeneraJly
fall into two major categories which are :
OPTICAL FIB ERS. CABLES A ND CONN ECTI ONS 113

(a ) conventional glass refi ning techniques in which the glas!> is processed in

the molten Mate (melt ing methods producing a mulncompon ent glass
structure:
(b) vapor phase depositio n methods producing s ilica-rich glasses which have
melting temperatures that a re too high to allow the conventional melt
process.

These processes. with th eir respective dra wing techniq ues. are described in the
fo llo wing section s.

4.3 LIQUID PHASE (M ELT IN G) TECHNIQUES

T he first stage in thi s process is the preparation of ultra pure material powders
which are usu ally oxides or carbonates of the required con stituents. These
include oxides such as SiO• • GeO" 8 2 0 1 and A 2 0 J • and carbo nates such as

w.< i old

1 - - 1-- - 1..... ..."

+---t--\i<dl" " ~I",

~ ," (" 1'\"'_- lIn,.,-

, .. ..., G'lItI1l.ldng lu rn. e- fot t!'le prod uction ~ hlgil c•.riW gl.. ,n l ~. 4).
•
 114 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

-----------

~h)ltcll ~hm

(n",Ne-----

Fig. 4.2 High purity glass melting using a radiofrequency rooucuon tumace [Refs. 6-8].

Na, CO" K 2 CO" CaCD) and BaCD.] which will decompose into oxides
during the glass melting. Very high initial purity is essential and purification
accounts for a large proportion of the material cost: nevertheless these com-
pounds are commercially available with total transition metal contents below
20 parts in 109 and below 1 part in 109 for some specific impurities IRef. 21-
The purification may therefore involve combined techniques of fine filtration
and coprecipitation, followed by solvent extraction before recrystallization and
final drying in a vacuum to remove any residual OH ions (Ref. 31.
The next stage is to melt these high purity, powdered, low melting point
glass materials to form a homogeneous, bubble-free multicomponent glass. A
refractive index variation may be achieved by either a change in the composi-
tion of the various constituents or by ion exchange when the materials are in

'. '~,.'-'
OPTICAL FIBERS, CABLES AND CONN ECTIONS 115

the molten phase. The melting of these multicomponent glass systems occurs
at relat ively lo w tempera tures between 900 and 1300 °C and may tak e place
in a silica crucible as shown in Fig. 4. 1 [Ref. 4]. However. conta mination can
arise du ring melting from several sources including the furnace environment
and the crucible. Both fused silica and platinum crucibles have been used with
some success although an increa se in impurity content was observed when the
melt was held in a platinum crucible at high temperatures over long periods
IRef. 51.
Silica crucibles can give dissolution into the melt which may introduce
inhomogeneities into the glass especially at high melting temperat ures. A
technique for avoiding this involves melting [he glass directly into a radio-
freq uency (RF approxima tely 5 MHz) induction furnace while cooling the
silica by ga s or water flow a s shown in Fig. 4.2 IRefs. 6-81. The materials are
p reheated to around 1000 ClC where they exhibit sufficient io nic conductivity
to enable cou pling between t he melt and the RF fi eld. The melt is also
protected from any impu rities in the crucible by a thin layer of solidifi ed pure
glass which forms due to the temperature difference between the melt and the
cooled silica crucible.
In both technique s the glass is homog enized and dr ied by bu bbling pure
gases through the melt. whil st protecting agai nst any airborne du st particles
either originating in the melt furnace or present a s atmospheric conta mination.
Arter the melt has been suita bly processed. it is cooled a nd formed into long
rods (cane) o f multicomponent glass.

4 .3.1 Fiber Drawing

The trad itional technique for producing fine optical fi ber waveg uides is to
make a preform using the rod in tube pro cess. A rod of core glass is inserted
into a lube o f cladding glass and the preform is drawn in a vertical muffle
furnace as illustrated in Fig.4.3 IRef.91. This technique is useful for the
production o f step index fi bers with large core and cladding d iameters where
the achievement o f low attenua tion is not critical as there is a danger o f includ-
ing bubbles and particulate mailer at the core-cladding interface.
Another technique which i!i a lso suitable for the prod uction o f large core
dia meter step index fibers. and red uces the core-cladding interface pr oblems,
is called the stratified melt precess. This process, develop ed by Pil kington
Labor atories [Ref. 10J, involves pour ing a layer of cladding glass over the core
glass in a platinum crucible as sho wn in Fig. 4.4 [Ref. I ll . A bait glass rod is
dipped into the molten combination and slowly withd rawn giving a composite
ce re-clad preform which may be then drawn into a fibe r.
Subsequent development in the d rawing of o ptical fi bers (especially graded
lndell) produced by liquid pha se techniq ues has concentrated on the double
crucible method. In this method th e core and cladding glass in the fonn of
IIp&rate rods Is fed i;nto two concentric platinum crucibles as illustrated in
•
 116 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLE S AND PRACTICE

----- ~,-

[• I '<I.~ m. I~" , o<.

I
I, I
~- -_.
Hi""

Flg.4.3 Opti cal fiber from a oretc-m lRef. 9].

Fig. 4.5 IRef. 41. Tbe assembly is usually located in a muffle furnace capable
of hea ting the c rucible co ntents to a temperature of between 800 a nd 1200 °C.
Th e crucibles have nozzles in their bases from which the clad fiber is drawn
directly from the melt as sho wn in Fig. 4.5. Index gradi ng may be achieved
through the diffusion of mobile ions across the core-cladd ing interface within
the molten glass. It is possible to achieve a reasonable refractive: index profile
via this diffusion process, although due to lack of precise control it is not
possible to obtain the optimum nea r paraboli c profil e which yields the

t, I'~'" p"""rm

r
,/
~ PJ .I",um '''''''\>Ie

fig . 4.4 The sU"lItifi ttd me1t proce ss (gl.. ~~ on glass technique' for prOClt.IClnll ;rU' ~.d
rod. or preform. [Ref. 11 I.

•
OPTICA L FIB ERS, CA BLES AN D CON NECTIONS 117

Cc ~ · ~I" ...
( ·', d,!i n~ .d ....

_ _ r~' tin~b.I IL

FiG.4.5 The dou ble crucible m et h<ld for f; OO f d raw ing IRef. 4).

mi nimu m pulse dispersion (see Section 3.9.2). Hence graded inde x fi bers
produced by this technique arc substantially less dispersive tha n step index
fi bers. b ut do not ha ve the bandwidth-length prod ucts of optimum profi le
fi bers. Pulse dispersion of 1- 6 ns km J [Refs, 12. 13J is quite typical.depend-
ing on the material system used.
Some of the material systems used in the fabrication of multicornpo nent
glass step index and graded index fibers are given in T able 4.1.
Using very high purity melting techniques and the double crucible drawing
method, step index and graded index fibers with atten uations as low as
3.4 dB krrr ' [Ref. 14) and 1. 1 dB km' " [Ref 2J respectively have been
produced. However. such low losses c annot be consistently obtained using
liquid phase techniques and typical lo sses for multicompon ent glass fi bers
prepared continuo usly by these methods are between 5 and 10 d B km 1 .
Therefore, liquid phuc techniques have the inherent disadvantage of obtaining
118 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS; PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Table 4.1 Material systems used in the fabrication

of multicomponent glass fibers by the double
crucible technique

Step Index
Core glass Cladding glass

Na,,-B,O,-Si0 2 Na20-B20~-Si02
Na,-LiO-CaO-SiO, Na,O-Li,O-CaO-SiO,
Na,-CaO-GeO, Na20-CaO-Si0 2
TI,O-Na,O-B,O,-GeO,-BaO-CaO-Si0 2 NalO-B10~-Si02
Na,O-BaO-GeO,-B,O~-SiO, Na,O-B,O,-Si0 2
P,O.-Ga,O,-GeO, P,O.-Ga,O,-SiO,

Gradadindex
Base glass Diffusion mechanism

R,O-Ge0 2-CaO-SiO, Nat '" K+

R,O-B,O,-SiO, T!" .. Na"
Na,O-B20~-SiO, Na20 diffusion
NalO-B10~-Si02 CaO, BaO diffusion

and maintaining extremely pure glass which limits their ability to produce low
loss fibers. The advantage of these techniques is in the possibility of continuous
production (both melting and drawing) of optical fibers.

4.4 VAPOR PHASE DEPOSITION TECHNIQUES

Vapor phase deposition techniques are used to produce silica-rich glasses of

the highest transparency and with the optimal optical properties. The starting
materials are volatile compounds such as SiCI4 , GeCI 4 , SiF 4 , Bel), O 2 , BBr)
and POcl, which may be distilled to reduce the concentration of most transi-
tion metal impurities to below one part in 109 giving negligible absorption
losses from these elements. Refractive index modification is achieved through
the formation of dopants from the nonsilica starting materials. These vapor
phase dopants include Ti0 2 , Ge0 2 , P205 , A1 20 3 , 8 20 3 and F, the effects of
which on the refractive index of silica are shown in Fig. 4.6 [Ref. 21. Gaseous
mixtures of the silica-containing compound, the doping material and oxygen
are combined in a vapor phase oxidation reaction where the deposition of
oxides occurs. The deposition is usually onto a substrate or within a hollow
tube and is built up as a stack of successive layers. Hence the dopant con-
centration may be varied gradually to produce a graded index profile or
maintained to give a step index profile. In the case of the substrate this directly
results in a solid rod or preform whereas the hollow tube must be collapsed to
give a solid preform from which the fiber may be drawn.
OPTICAL FIBERS, CABLES A ND CONNECTIONS "9

~",o, ~,o ) (bulk )

b, D, (fiber)

, ,440 1 4 110 t 10 1~ l4 16
Dop.nt ,o""'nlnltion (mnal

Fig.4.6 The va riation in t he re fr;lcl ive ind ex of since us ing va r;ous dopan ts, Reproduced
with perm iss ion from t he p ub lisners. sccje tv of Gl aSli Te chnolo gy_ Ph ys. Chem.
Glasses, 21. p 5, 19 80 ,

There are a number of variations of vapor pha se deposition which have been
successfully utilized to produce low loss fibers. The major techniques are
illustrated in Fig. 4.7, which also indicates the plane (horizont al or vertical) in
which the deposition lake s place as well as the fo rmation of the preform. These
va por pha se depositio n techniques fall into two broad ca tegories: fl ame
hyd rolysis and chemical vapor d e pos itio n (C V D ) m ethod s. The individual
tec hniques are con sidered in the fo llowing sections.

'erial.---- - --;==i._--.
Sl o:rh "l ...

r-r-_ _ -'1 IL- •

1 1 1 1
VOF'" .. 1Ol (),>lsId. ._ .."",r"d _ .. ~4<\"~tod
I\ql<>lioo. pt>ul: <».il»1"'" ' ''1'<'' d<r- h.... <lo<",nr, OI'Of
(\'Alll ~ IO\'fQ' mcvr» <1<,.,...""" lKVD ,
1

U
Coll' l' " '0
l' ,.d Qr n\ =
~

r;1.",,;n~

~\\ II~:
h, " ><JU'Q<
t'ihft dm ' ;IIJ

I
PI,. 4.7 Sc hltm. tIc W",l t r. tio n of t he .... ~ Of' ph ss., d epos llion teck1nique s used in m e
prIIPII1I d on CI' low ION Ol'tic. 1 fibera.
..
120 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

4.4.1 Outside Vapor Phase Oxidation (OVPOI Process

This process which uses flame hydrolysis stems from work on 'soot" processes
originally developed by Hyde IReI'. 171 which were used to produce the first
fiber with losses of less than 20 dB km-' IReI'. 181. The best known technique
of this type is often referred to as the outside vapor phase oxidation process. In
this process the required glass composition is deposited laterally from a 'soot"
generated by hydrolyzing the halide vapors in an oxygen-hydrogen flame.
Oxygen is passed through the appropriate silicon compound (i.e. SiC~) which
is vaporized, removing any impurities. Dopants such as GeCI 4 or TiCI. are
added and the mixture is blown through the oxygen-hydrogen flame giving the
following reactions:

heat
SiCl4 + 2H l O •
sio, + 4HCI (4.1)
(vapor) (vapor) (solid) (gas)
and
heat
SiC~ + 0, • sio, + 2CI! (4.2)
(vapor] (gas) (solid) (gas)

heat
GeCl 4 + 0, • GeO! + 2CI! (4.3)
(vapor) (gas) (solid) (gas)

0'
heat
TiCI. + 0, • no, + 2CI l (4.4)
(vapor) (gas) (solid) (gas)

The silica is generated as a fine soot which is deposited on a cool rotating

mandrel as illustrated in Fig. 4.8(a) [Ref. 19 J. The flame of the burner is
traversed back and forth over the length of the mandrel until a sufficient
number of layers of silica (approximately 200) are deposited on it. When this
process is completed the mandrel is removed and the porous mass of silica
soot is sintered (to form a glass body) as illustrated in Fig. 4.8(b). The preform
may contain both core and cladding glasses by properly varying the dopant
concentrations during the deposition process. Several kilometers (around
10 km of 120 11m core diameter fiber have been produced fRef. 2]) can be
drawn from the preform by collapsing and closing the central hole as shown in
Fig. 4.8(c). Fine control of the index gradient for graded index fibers may be
achieved using this process as the gas flows can be adjusted at the completion
of each traverse of the burner. Hence fibers with bandwidth-length products
as high as 3 GHz km have been achieved [Ref. 201 through accurate index
grading with this process.
The purity of the glass fiber depends on the purity of the feedina: materials
OPTICAL FI8ERS, CA BLES AND CONNECTION S 121

,
" , ',

ro

l
] [-
I

fig. 4 .8
'" '"
Sche matic d iagra m of th e OVP O precess far m e pre pa ration of optica l fibe rs :
(a) soot deposition, Ib) prefor m einte rmq: (c) nb er dra w ing IRef. 191.

and a lso upon the amount of OH impurity fro m th e exposure of the silica to
water vapor in the flame following the reactio ns given in Eqs. (4. 1) to (4 .4).
T ypicall y the O H content is between 50 and 200 parts per million a nd this
contributes to the fiber atte nuation. It is possible to reduce the OH im purity
content by employing gaseous chlorine as a d rying agent during sinrering. This
has given losses a s low as I d B km- ' a nd 1.8 d B km- ' at wavelength s of 1.2
and 1.55 um respectively [Ref. 2 1 J in fibers prepared using the OVPO process.
O ther problems stem from the u se of the m and rel which ean create some
diffi culties in the fo rm ation of th e fiber preform. C racks may fo rm due to
stress concentratio n on the surface of the inside wall when the mandrel is
rem oved . Also the refract ive index profil e has a central depressio n d ue to th e
collapsed hole when the fiber is drawn. Therefore a lthough the OV PO process
is a useful fiber prepara tion technique, it has several drawbacks. Furthermore
it is a batch process which limit'! it.. use for the volume production of optical
fibers.

4 .4.2 Vapor Axial Deposition (VA D)

This pr ocess was developed by lzawa et at. IRef. 22J in t he se arch for a con-
tinuous (rather th an batch) technique for the production of low loss o ptical
fibers . The VAD technique uses an en d-on deposition onto a rot ating fused
silica ta rget as illustrated in Fig. 4.9 IRef. 23 1. The va porized constu ucnts are
injected from burners and react to form silica soot by name hyd rolysis. This is
deposited on the end of the sta rtin g ta rget in the axial direction fo rming a solid
pcrcue alau preform in the shape of a boule. The preform which is growing in
the axial direction i. Pulled upwards It a rate which corresponds to the growth
..
122 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

_ _ CarbOll I"ur",,,<

Pow", prcfur:T1

=_-0,

SO("l,

sm,
/~o:='
BBr, t •
s-o,
( ;0(1,
0, + II,
POCI,
0, + II,

Fig.4.9 The VAD process [Ref. 231.

rate. It is initially dehydrated by heating with SOCl 2 using the reaction:

heal
H2 a + SOCl 2 • 2HCl + S02 (4.5)
(vapor) (vapor) (gas) (gas)

and is then sintered into a solid preform in a graphite resistance furnace at an

elevated temperature of around 1500 "C. Therefore, in principle this process
may be adapted to draw fiber continuously, although at present it tends to be
operated as a batch process.
A spatial refractive index profile may be achieved using the deposition
properties of Si02--GeOl particles within the oxygen-hydrogen flame. The
concentration of these constituents deposited on the porous preform is con-
trolled by the substrate temperature distribution which can be altered by

',"
OPTICAL FIBERS, CA BLES AND CON NECTIONS 123

changing the gas flow conditions. Fibers produced by the VAD process still
suffer from some O H imp urity content due to the flam e hydrolysis and hence
very lo ll.' loss fibers have not been achieved using this method. Ne vertheless,
fibers with atte nuation in the range 0.7-2.0 d B km- l a t a wavelengt h of
L1 8 1J.rn have bee n reported IRef. 24 1.

4.4.3 Modified Chemical Vapor Deposition (MCVD)

Chemical va por d epo sitio n techniques are oommonly used at very low deposi-
tion rates in the semicond uctor ind ustry to produce protective SiO! films on
silicon semiconductor devices. Usually an easily oxidized reagent such as SiH,
diluted by inert gas es an d mixed with oxygen is brought into contact with a
heated silico n surface where it forms a glassy tran sparent silica fil m. Th is
heterogeneous reaction (i.e. req uires a surface to take place) was pioneered for
the fabrication of o ptical fibers using the inside surface of a fused quartz tu be
[Ref 25 J. However, these processes gave low deposition rates and were prone
to O H contamination due to the use of hydride reactants. Th is led to the
de velopment of the modified che mical vapor deposition (MC VD) process by
Bell Telephone La boratories t Ref. 261and Southampton Un iversity, UK [Ref.
2 71. which overcomes these problem s a nd has found widespread application
throughout the world.
T he MC VD process is also an in side vapor phase oxidation (I VPO ) tech-
nique taking place inside a silica tube as sho wn in Fig. 4 ,10. However, the
vapor phase reactants (halide and o xygen) pas." through a hot zo ne so that a
substantial part o f the reaction is ho mogeneous {i.e. involves only one phase; in

1)"p o,iteJ core

.11(! d ." (l ; ,, ~

'.j (hI

- - - - - - - - - - - - ~ ~ ~".,

,,'
ptll.4.10 Scl1emat ie di'gr. m sh ow ing the M CVD method for the P!'e p. r't ion of ccrc et
f l ~ !1I : (I I dtp Oli tiOtl; (ol coI1I P" to prod..lce a pt'eform; (el fl ber dr, winij.

..
124 OPTICAL FIBER COM MU NICATIONS: PRINCI PLES AN D PRACTICE

th is case the vapor phase). G lass pan icles formed d uring this reaction travel
with the gas now and are deposited o n th e wa lls of the silica tube. The tube
ma y form the cladding material but usually it is merely a supporting structu re
which is heated on the outside by an o xygen- hyd ro gen name to tem peratures
between 1400 °C and 1600 vC . Thus a hot zone is created which enco urages
high temperature o xid ation react io ns such as tho se given in Eqs. (4 .2) and (·U )
or (4.4) (not Eq. (4.1)). These react ion s reduce the OH impurity co ncentration
to levels below those found in fibers prepared by hyd ride oxidation or fl ame
hydrolysis.
The hot zone is moved ba ck and forth along the tube allowing the pan icles
to be deposited o n a layer by layer ba sis giving a sm tered transparent silica
film o n the walls o f lhe tube. The film may be up to 10 ....m in thickness and
un iformity is maintained by ro tating the tu be. A graded refractive index profile
c an be created by changing the composition of the la yers as the glass is
deposited . Usually when suffi cient thickness has been fo rm ed by successive
traverses of the burner for the cladding, vaporized chlorides of germa nium
(GeCI4 ) or phosphoru s (POCI.1 ) are added to the gas fl ow. The core glass is
then formed by the deposition of successive lay ers of germanosilicatc or
pho sphosilicate glass. T he cladding layer is important a s it acts as a barrier
which sup presses OR ab sorption losses due to the diffu sion of O H ions from
the silic a tube into the core glass as it is deposited. After the deposition is com-
pleted the temperature is increa sed to between 1700 and 1900 °C. The tu be is
then collapsed to give a solid preform which may then be drawn into fiber at
temperatu res of 2()()(}..- 2200 ° C a s illustra ted in Fig. 4. 10.
This technique is the most widely used at present as it allows the fabrication
of fi ber with the lo west lo sses . Apart from the red uced on impurity con -
tamination the MC YD process ha s t he advantage th at deposition occ urs
within an enclosed reacto r wh ich en sures a very clean environ ment. Hence
gaseo us and p articulate impurities may be avoided du ring both the layer
deposition and the preform collapse phases. The process also allo ws the use of
a variety of materi als and g lass compositions. It h as prod uced G eO] doped
silica single mode fibe r with minimum losses of o nly 0.2 d O krrr' at a
wavelength o f 1.551J.1l1 (Ref. 281. More generally the GcO l - 0 10) -Si0 2
system (° 1 0 ) is added to reduce the viscosity and assis t fining) has shown
minimum losses of 0.34 d B krr r ' with multimode fi ber at a wavelength of
1.55 um IRef. 291. Also graded index germa nium phosph ostltcatc fibers have
exhibited losses near the intrinsic level for their composition of 2.8, 0.45
and 0.35 dB km-' at wavelengths of 0.82, 1.3 and 1.5 lim respectively
[Ref. 301.
The MCVD process has also demonstrated the capability of producing
tibers with very high bandwid ths. although sti ll well below the theoretical
values whic h may be achieved. Multimode graded ind ex fibers with measured
bandwidth-length products of4 .3 GHz km and 4.7 G HL.km at wavelengths of
1.25 and 1.29 fU11 h ave been reported [Ref J 11. LarI e-tcaJc bitch production

., -.... .-..
OPTICAL FIBERS, CABLES AND CONNECTIONS 125

( 30,000 km} of 50 urn core graded index fiber has maintained bandwidth-
length products of 8 25 Mll z km and 735 MH z km at wavelengths o f 0.825
a nd 1.3 urn respectively IRef. 30}. The median att enuation obtained with this
fiber was 3.4 d B km -' at 0.825 11m and 1.20 dB km I at t J 11m. Hence,
although it is not a con tinuo us pro cess, the M C VD technique has proved suit-
able for the mass production of high performance o ptical fi ber .

4.4.4 Plasma-activated Chemical Vapor Deposition (PCVD)

A variation on the MCVD technique is the use of various types of plasma to
supply energy for the vapor phase o xidatio n of halides. This method, fi rst
developed by Kuppers and Koenings [Ref 32 J. involves plasma-induced
chemical vapor deposition inside a silica tube as shown in Fig, 4, 11. The essen-
tial difference between this technique and the MCVD process is the stimulation
of o xide fo rmation by means of a nonisothermal plasma maintained a t low
pressure in a microwave ca vity (2.45 G Hz) which surrounds the tube. Volatile
reactants arc introd uced into th e tube where they react heterogeneously within
the microwave ca vity a nd no partic ulate matter is formed in the va por phase.
The reaction zone is moved backwards a nd fo rwards along the tube by
control of the microwave cavity and a circularly symmetric layer growth is
formed. Rotation of the tube is unnecessary and the deposition is virtually
!()()q(, efficient. Film dep osition can occur at temperatures as low as 500 °e,
but a high chlorine content may ca use expansiviry a nd crac king of the film.
Hence the tube is heated to around 1000 °C du ring deposition using a
stationary furn ace.
The high deposition efficiency allows the composnion of the layers to be
accurately varied by con trol of the va por phase reactants. Also when the
pla sma zon e is moved r apkll~' back wards and forward s a long the tube very
thin layer deposition may be achieved giv ing t he formation of up to 2000
individual layers. This enables very good graded index profil es to be realized
which are a close appro ximation to the o ptimum ncar pa rabolic profile. Thus
low pulse dispersion of less th an 0.8 ns km"" , for fibers with attenuations of
between 3 an d 4 dB km- ", at a wavelength of 0.85 11m have been reported
[Ref. 21.

\l"""t
~ """" Ih,·, "",I
,""""~'""
,,,,, " ------.-...-1;] rl",,,,.

.'

TtI4• 'llP.r.l u, ulllized in me PCVD process.

•
•
to,· '"
126 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

A furt her PC VD technique uses an inducti-..e1y coupled radiofrcq oency

argon plasma which operates at 3 frequency of 3.4 M Hz IRef. 331. The
deposition ta kes place at I atmosph ere pressure and is predominant ly a
hom ogeneous vapor phase reaction which, via the high temperature discharge.
causes the fu sion of the deposited material into glass. This technique has
proved to have a reaction rate five times faster than the conventional MCVD
process. However. fiber attenuation is somewhat higher with losses of
6 dB km-' at a wavelength of 1.06 urn. Variations on this theme operating at
frequencies of 3- 6 MHz and 27 MHz have produced Gc Ol - P1 0 ~ -S i 01
fibers with minimum losses of 4-5 dB km' at a wavelength of 0.85 urn
(Rer. 341.

4 .4.5 Summary of Vapor Pha... Depo.ition Technique.

The salient features of the major vapor phase deposition techniques are sum-
marized in Table 4.2 IRef. 351.

T.bl.4.2 S ummar" 01 vapo r phase depositio n l echn iq ves

used ;n the pre paration of lo w lOSS o ptical n be-s

Reaction type
Fla me t1 ~ d ro l y si s OV ~O . VAD
Hig h temperature o . ida tio n MCVD
l ow le mpe ra ture o..ida ti o n pevo
Deposit iOf1 a l d ire ct ion
OUlsk1e la ve r de pcelncn OVPO
Inside la ye r deposilion MCVD. pew
A ..ial la yer d epo sjllOrl VAO
Refract ive Index profi le for mati o n
laye r a pproxima tion ow o. MCVD. PCVD
Simulta neous toema uon VAO
Process
Ba tch oveo. MCVD. PCVD
Conl inuous VAO

4.8 OPTICAL FIBERS

In order to plan the use of optical fibers in a variety of line communication

applications it is necessary to consider the various optical fibers currently
available. The following is a summary of the major optical fiber types with an
indication of their aeneral characteristics. The performance ch.r.cteristic8 or
the v.rloul flbor typel dllculled var)' consider.bl>- depen upon the
OPTlCAL FIBERS. CABLES AND CONNECTIONS 127

materials used in the fabrication process and the preparation techniq ue

involved. The values qu oted are largely based upon manu fac turers' and
suppliers' data {Refs. 4Q---44 J for commercially a vailable fi bers. presented in a
gene ral fonn rather than for specific fi bers . Hence the fibers may appear to
have somewhat poorer perfo rman ce cha racteristics than those stared for the
eq uivalent fiber types prod uced by the best possible techniq ues and in the best
possible cond itions which were indicated in C hapter 3. However, it must be
remembered tha t the high performance va lues qu oted in C hapter 3 were
generally for fibers prod uced and tested in the laboratory. T here the pu rsuit of
enhanced performance was the predominant criterion, whereas the fibers COII-
sidcrcd in this section are those already man ufactured in bulk for the com -
mercial market.
T his section. therefore, refl ects the time delay bet ween the achieveme nt o f
fi ber performan ce in th e laborato ry (and possibly achieved in a work ing
environment by orga nizations which have a fiber prod uction capability and are
also in a position of servicing the telecommunications networks), and the
general co mmercial availability o f such fi bers. Nevertheless. it is certain that as
the momentum generated in this field increa ses, fibers with much imp roved
performance characteristics will become mo re generally available. especially
those in the longer wavelength regio n ( 1.1 - 1.6 um]. It must be noted that the
performance values given thro ugho ut this section are for the sho rter
wa velength region (0.8-0.9 urn) un less otherwise stated , as comme rcially
availa ble fib ers are more frequently specifi ed at wavelengths in thi s region .
However. although these fibers are not predominantly designed for use in the
longer wavelength region it is generally th e ca se th at the silica glass fibers
o perate more effi ciently over this wavelength range. Finally, the bandwidths
quoted are specified over a I km length o f fiber (i.c. 8 up[ x L ). These a re
generally o btained from man ufacturer s' data which does not always indicate
whet her the electrical or th e optical bandwidth has been meas ured. It is likely
that these arc in fact optical bandwidths which a re signifi cantly greater than
their electrica l equivalents (see Section 7.4.3 ).

4.5.1 Muftimode Step In de. Flber1l

Multimode step index fibers ma y be fabricated fro m either multicomponer u
glass compounds or doped silica. T hese fibers can have reasonably large core
diameters and large numerical apert ures to facilit ate efficient coupling to
inc oherent light sources such as light emitting diodes (LEDs). The perform-
ance characteristics of this fiber type may vary considerably depending on the
materials used and the method o r preparation: the doped silica fi bers exhibit
the best perfo rma nce. M utt lcomponent gjass a nd do ped silica fi bers are often
rcrerred to as multicomponent glass/glass (glass-d ad glass) a nd silica/silica
(. IIIc:a-c11d .ilica) respectively, altho ugh the glass-clad glass terminology is
lomeUmll pMd aomewhat vaguely to denote both types. A ty pical structure
far • mp index nbtr ~ tbown in Fil. 4.12.
128 OPTICAL FIBER COM MUNICATIONS: PR INCIPLES A ND PRACTICE

--- ---,'---,
r;::---' "

<3 ~,·1. . S
~ ,. 1 _ ~ 1

F"eg.4.12 Ty piGaI structure fOl a g lass m ult im o de step imle R t iber.

Structure
Core diameter: S().....4()() JUTl.
Cladding diameter: 125- 500 urn.
BuITer j acket diameter: 250- 1000 urn.
Numerical aperture: 0.16-0,5.
Perf ormance characteristics
Attenuation : 4-50 d B krn-' limited by absorption or scattering. The wide
V3Tl3t10n in attenua tion is d ue to the large diffe renc es both
within and between the two overall preparation method s

"l<...
(dB k", "
t,<>~
100

sc

'"
."
' till ace 000 ,~,

~ • • • I.,, ",~ I~ "' j

'"
,\U'"",,;,,"
(J ~ ~'"--' )

,r~~,--,;t;;~~~:;;::~~~~;~
t>OU h l(1 SIJO <>00 IUOO I l OCI
\\-. , """ ~lh , " "' )

FIg.4.13
'"
AnenUllllo n spectr, lor mvltirnode ste p index fiber,: III multleom ponenl gl...
titll' ; lbl cIo~ .1Ile. t iber. P:' Olrod uc:' d wit'" p, rml,,1on of e , tIlog ~, Ltd.
OPTICAL FIBERS, CABLES AND CONNECTIONS 129

(melting and deposition). To illustrate this point Fig.4.13

shows the attenuation spectra from suppliers' data IRef. 431 for
a multicomponent glass fiber (glass-clad glass) and a doped
silica fiber (silica-clad silica). It may be observed that the
multicomponent glass fiber has an attenuation of around
40 dB krrr ' at a wavelength of 0.85)lm whereas the doped
silica fiber has an attenuation of less than 5 dB krrr ' at a
similar wavelength.
Bandwidth: 6-25 MHz krn.
Applications: These fibers are best suited for short-haul, limited bandwidth
and relatively low cost applications.

4.5.2 Multimode Graded Index Fibers

These multimode fibers which have a graded index profile may also be
fabricated using multicomponent glasses or doped silica. However, they tend
to be manufactured from materials with higher purity than the majority of
multimode step index fibers in order to reduce fiber losses. The performance
characteristics of multimode graded index fibers are therefore generally better
than those for multimode step index fibers due to the index grading and lower
attenuation. Multimode graded index fibers tend to have small core diameters
than multimode step index Fibers although the overall diameter including the
buffer jacket is usually about the same. This gives the fiber greater rigidity to
resist bending. A typical structure is illustrated in Fig. 4.14.
Structure
Core diameter: 30-60 urn, a standard of 50 11m has been established
for telecommunications applications.
Cladding diameter: 100-150 urn, a standard of 12511m has been
established for telecommunications applications.
Buffer jacket diameter: 250-1000 urn.
Numerical aperture: 0.2-0.3.

Buffer j,ek,,'

PrimoI)' coating

(:0''-

",
'"
,,~, "; ' 1.48
"j" 1.46

.......14 '1';VPICII Itructure for a glass multi mode graded index fiber .
,,
130 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTIC E

Performance characteristics
Attenua tion : 2- 10 dB km J . gene rally a scattering limit.
Bandwidth : 150 MH z km to 2 G Hz krn.
Applications : These fibers a re best suited for medium -haul, medium to high
bandwidth application!' using incoherent and coherent multi-
mode sources {i.c . LED!' and inject ion lasers respect ively).
It is useful to note (hat the re are a number of partially graded index Fibers
commercially a vailable. T hese fibers generally exhibit slightly better perform-
ance cbarecterisrics than co rre spond ing muhimode step index fi bers bu t are
so mewhat inferior to the fully graded index fibers described above.

4 .6.3 Single Mode FiberB

Sing le mode fi ber s can have eit her a step ind ex o r gra ded index profile.
Howev er. the benefits of using a gr aded index profile arc by no means as sig-
nificant as in the case of multimode fi bers (see Section 2,5). The refore at
present commercially available single mode fibers are almo st exclusively step
ind ex. They are high quality fi bers for wideband, long-haul tran smission and
a re gener ally fa bricated fro m do ped silica (silica-cl ad silica ) in order to reduce
a ttenuation.
Although single mode fi ber" have small core dia meters to allow single mode
propaga tion . the cladding d ia meter must be at least ten times the core diameter
to avo id lo sses from the eva nescent field. Hence with a bu ffer jacket to provide
protec tion and strength. single mode fibers h ave simila r o verall diameters to
mult imode fi bers. A typ ica l example of a single mode step index fiber is shown
in Fig . 4. 15.
Structure
Core d iameter: 3- 10 am.
Cladd ing diameter : 50- 125 Jim.
Buffer jack et diameter : 250-1000 urn.
Nu merical a perture : 0 .08--0.15. usually a ro und 0 . 10.

",

<.J N, - I."r.o
". -I."'"
fl• . 4 .1 8 Typlc,l IrrUC1u ' l for I Imea lingle moae s le p i nde.. fibirr.
OPTICA L FIBERS, CABLES AND CO NNECTIONS 131

Performance characteristics
A ttenua tion : 2-5 dB km- ' with a scattering limit of a ro und I d B km' a t a
waveleng th o f 0 .85 urn . Significantly lower lo sses a re possible
in the lo nger wavelength region.
Bandwidth : Greater than 500 MHz km, In th eo ry the bandwidth is limited
by waveguide and materi al dispersion to approximately
40 G Hz km at a wavelength of 0.8 5 urn .
Applica tions : These fiben are idea lly suited for hi gh bandwidth very lo ng-
ha ul applicat ion.. using single mode injection laser sources.

4.5.4 Plaltic-elad Fibers

Plasti c-clad fibers are m ultirnode and have either a step index or a graded
index profile. They have a plast ic cladding (often a silicone rub ber) and a glass
core whic h is frequentl y silica (i.e. pla stic clad silica- Pe S fibers). The pes
fiber s exhibit lower radiation-induced losses than silica clad silica fibers an d,
therefo re. have an im proved performance in certain environments. Plastic-clad
fibers arc gene rally slightly c heaper than the corresponding gla ss fibers, but
usually have more limited performance characteristics . A ty pical structure for
a ste p index plastic-clad fibe r (which is more common) is shown in Fig. 4. 16.
S tructure
C o re d ia meter : Step index 100-500 .... m.
G raded index 50- 100 u m.
C ladding diameter: Step Index 300-800 urn.
Graded index 125- 150 um
Buffer j ac ket diameter : Step index 500-1 000 g m .
Graded inde x 250-1 000 urn .
N umerical ape rture: Step index 0 .2-1).5 .
G raded index 0 .2-1).J.
Performance characteristics
Attenuation; Step index 5-50 dB/km.
G raded index 4-1 5 dB/km.

CI.~ 'li n ~ -f­

(p l "tlo)

Cu" _

r-r-r-":
"
'•.0:- ~, . , ~,

~ , . ' j"

....." .
132 OPTICA L FIBER COMMU NICATIONS : PRINCIP LES AND PRACTICE

Bandwidth : Step ind ex 5-25 M Hz km.

G raded index 200-400 MHz km.
Applications: These fi bers are genera lly used o n lower band wid th. shorter-
haul links where fiber costs need to be limited. They also have
the advan tage o f easier termination over glas s-clad multimod e
fibers.

4.5.5 All-plastic A be...

All-plastic fibers are exclusively of the multimode step index type with large
core a nd cladding diameters. lienee there is a reduced requ irement for a buffer
jac ket for fi ber protection a nd st rengthening. These fibers are chea p to produce
And are ea sier to handle than the corresponding glass v ariet)'. However, their
performance (especially for optical transmission in th e infrared) is severely
restricted, giving th em very limited use in communication applications. A ll-plastic
fibers generally have large nu merical apertures which allow easier coupling of
light into the fiber from a multimode source. A typical structure is illustr ated in
Fig. 4.1 7.
S tructure
Core d iameter : 200-600 urn.
C ladding diameter : 450- I000 urn.
Numerical aperture: 0.5-0.6.
------
Performance characteristics
Att enuation : 3So-l000dB km-' at a wavelength o f 0_65IJrn.
Bandwidth : This is not usually specified as tra nsmission is generally
limited to tens of meters .
Applicatio ns : Th ese fi bers ca n only be used for very short-haul (i.e. 'in-
bouse') low cost links. However, fi ber coupling and termina-
tion a rc relatively easy and do not require so phisticated tech-
mques.

-
~ ""." o; ,· .. """"

8
( 0 ' '' -

",
' - -"""-
- - - - - --- - ., .. n o- 1.50
»v- 1.40
flI .4.t7 Typical structu r. for ." I II-pintle fiber.
 L
OPTICAL FIBERS, CABLES AND CONNECTIONS

4.6 OPTICAL FIBER CABLES

It was indicated in Section 4.1 that if optical fibers arc to be alternatives to

electrical transmission lines it is imperative that they can be safely installed and
maintained in all the environments (e.g. underground ducts) in which metallic
conductors arc normally placed. Therefore when optical fibers arc to be
installed in a working environment their mechanical properties are of prime
importance. In this respect the unprotected optical fiber has several
disadvantages with regard to its strength and durability. Bare glass fibers are
brittle and have small cross-sectional areas which makes them very susceptible
to damage when employing normal transmission line handling procedures. It is
therefore necessary to cover the fibers to improve their tensile strength and to
protect them against external influences. This is usually achieved by surround-
ing the fiber by a series of protective layers which arc referred to as coating
and cabling. The initial coating of plastic with high clastic modulus is applied
directly to the Jiber cladding as illustrated in Section 4.5. lt is then necessary to
incorporate the coated and buffered fiber into an optical cable to increase its
resistance to mechanical strain and stress as well as adverse environmental
conditions.
The functions of the optical cable may be summarized into four main areas.
These are:

(a) Fiber protection. The major function of the optical cable is to protect
against fiber damage and breakage both during installation and throughout
the life of the fiber.
(b) Stability of the fiber transmission characteristics. The cabled fiber must
have good stable transmission characteristics which are comparable with
the uncabled fiber. Increases in optical attenuation due to cabling are quite
usual and must be minimized within the cable design.
(c) Cable strength. Optical cables must have similar mechanical properties to
electrical transmission cables in order that they may be handled in the
same manner. These mechanical properties include tension, torsion. com-
pression, bending, squeezing and vibration. Hence the cable strength may
be improved by incorporating a suitable strength member and by giving
the cable a properly designed thick outer sheath.
(d) Identification and jointing of the fibers within the cable. This is especially
important for cables including a large number of optical fibers. If the fibers
are arranged in a suitable geometry it may be possible to use multiple joint-
ing techniques rather than jointing each fiber individually.

In order to consider the cabling requirements for fibers with regard (a)
(0
and (b), it is necessary to discuss the fiber strength and durability as well as
an)' pOlliblc sources,of degradation of the fiber transmission characteristics
which,
art
. I
likely to occur
,
due to cabling.
134 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

4.6.1 Fiber Strength and Durability

Optical fibers for telecommunications usage are almost exclusively fabricated
from silica or a compound of glass (multicomponent glass). These materials
are brittle and exhibit almost perfect elasticity until their breaking point is
reached. The bulk material strength of flawless glass is quite high and may be
estimated for individual materials using the relationship 1Ref. 44]:

s ~
,
(y,E)!
4/
(4.6)
•
where 8 1 is the theoretical cohesive strength, Yp is the surface energy of the
material, E is the Young's modulus for the material (stress/strain), and fa is the
atomic spacing or bond distance. However, the bulk material strength may be
drastically reduced by the presence of surface flaws within the material.
In order to treat surface flaws in glass analytically, the Griffith theory
I Ref. 491 is normally used. This theory assumes that the surface flaws are
narrow cracks with small radii of curvature at their tips as illustrated in
Fig. 4.18. It postulates that the stress is concentrated at the tip of the crack
which leads to crack growth and eventually catastrophic failure. Figure 4.18
shows the concentration of stress lines at the crack tip which indicates that
deeper cracks have higher stress at their tips. The Griffith theory gives a stress
intensity factor K 1 as:
(4.7)

where S is the macroscopic stress on the fiber, Y is a constant dictated by the

shape of the crack (e.g. Y = 1tt for an elliptical crack as illustrated in Fig. 4.18)
and C is the depth of the crack (this is the semi-major axis length for an
elliptical crack). Further, the Griffith theory gives an expression for the critical
stress intensity factor K rc where fracture occurs as:
(4.8)

fib<:r ""0" kn,iQIl

--i- U "" of ,onstall[ ,t",",

FlII.4.18 An elliptical surfaca crack in a tensioned optical fiber,

, ,,'
OPTICAL FI BERS , CABLES AN D CONNECTIONS 135

Combining Eqs. (4.7) and (4.8) gives the Griffith equation for fracture stress or
a crack Sr as :

(4.9)

It is interesting to note that Sf is proportional to C-+. Therefore Sf decreases

by a factor of 2 for a fourfold increase in the crack. depth C.

bamfM 4.1
The S i--O bond has a theore tica l co hesive st .ength of 2.6" 10 6 \lsi which
ccnesponos to 11 bond di st ance of 0. 16 nm. A sil ic a opt ical f iber has an ellipt ical
crac k of dep t h 10 nm at a p oint alo ng its leng t h. Estimate:
(a) the frac t ure stress in p si f or the f iber II it is dependen t upon th is crack.
(0) the perc ent ag e st rain at t he break.
The Younqs modulu s f o r si lica is i1 p p ro ~ ; m il t e l y 9 X 10 ' 0 N m- 2 and 1 ps i ...
689 4. 76 N m 2
Sotu tton, lei Us in g Eq. 14 .61 . t he t heo ret ical cohesive st rengt h for t he 5 i- O
bo nd is:

5,=(Y
'E)'
4',
Hence

= 2 29 J
The fracture stress f or me si lica fiber may be ob lainoo from ec. 14 91 w here:

s, ~ (2Fy'TC, )'
For an e llipt ica l crac k:

2 X 9 \ 10 10 X 2 .2 9 ) '
( ll x1 0 8

.". 3.62 x 10 9 N m · l
= 5.25 x 10 5 psi

It may be noted t hat the f ractu re stress is reduced from th e theor 91l c al va lu e fo r
' Is wilis silica of 2 ,6 x 10 6 psi by a f ac to r of e pp roximat efv 5.
(b ) Yool'g', modulu s ;, defined as:

E _stress
_""
/ anein

•
136 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Therefore

stress s, 3,62 x 10 9
strain = ---cc-- ~ - ~ --c-:c:>c
E E

= 0.04

Hence the strain at the break is 4%, which corresponds to the change in length over
the original length for the fiber.

In example 4.1 we considered only a single crack when predicting the fiber
fracture. However, when a fiber surface is exposed to the environment and is
handled, many flaws may develop. The fracture stress of a length of fiber is
then dependent upon the dominant crack (i,c. the deepest) which will give a
fiber fracture at the lowest strain. Hence the fiber surface must be protected
from abrasion in' order to ensure high fiber strength. A primary protective
plastic coating is usually applied to the fiber at the end of the initial production
process so that mechanically induced flaws may be minimized. Flaws also
occur due to chemical and structural causes. These flaws are generally smaller
than the mechanically induced flaws and may be minimized within the fiber
fabrication process.
There is another effect which reduces the fiber fracture stress below that pre-
dicted by the Griffith equation. It is due to the slow growth of flaws under the
action of stress and water and is known as stress corrosion. Stress corrosion
occurs because the molecular bonds at the tip of the crack are attacked by
water when they arc under stress. This causes the flaw to grow until breakage
eventually occurs. Hence stress corrosion must be taken into account when
designing and testing optical fiber cables. It is usual for optical fiber cables to
have some form of water-protective barrier as is the case for most electrical
cable designs.
In order to predict the life of practical optical fibers under particular stresses
it is necessary to usc a technique which takes into account the many flaws a
fiber may possess, rather than just the single surface flaw considered in
example 4.1. This is approached using statistical methods due to the nature of
the problem which involves many flaws of varying depths over different
lengths of fiber.
Calculations of strengths of optical fibers are usually conducted using
Weibull statistics [Ref 501 which describe the strength behavior of a system
that is dependent on the weakest link within the system. In the case of optical
fibers this reflects fiber breakage due to the dominant or deepest crack. The
empirical relationship established by Weibull and applied to optical fibers
indicates that the probability of failure F at a stress S is given by:

(4.10)

"y
OPTICA L FIBERS, CABLES AN D CONN ECTION S 137

where m is the Weibull distribution parameter, So is a scale parameter, L is the

fiber length and La is a constant with dimensio ns of length .
T he expression given in Eq. (4. 10) may be plotted for a fiber under test by
breaking a large number of 10-20 m fiber lengths and measuring the strain at
the b reak . Th e various strains are plotted against the cu mulative probability of
their occurrence to give the Weibull plot as illustrated in Fig. 4.19 IRef. 5 11. It
ma y be observed from Fig. 4. 19 that most of the fiber tested brea ks at strain
due to the prevalence of many shallow surface fl aws. However, some of the
fi ber tested contains deeper flaws (possibly d ue to external damage) giving the
failure a t lower stra in depicted by the tail o f the plot. T his red uced strength
region is of greatest interest when determining the fiber's lifetime under stress.
F inally the additional problem of stress co rrosion must be added to the
informa tion on the fiber under stress gained from the Weibull plot. The stress
co rrosion is usually predicted using an empirical relationship fo r the crack
velocity "c in terms of the a pplied stress intensity facto r KJ , where (Ref. .5 1]:
.." -- AK"I (4.1 1)

T he constant n is called the stress corrosion susceptibility (typically in the

range 15- 50 for glass), and A is also a constant for the fiber material. Equa-
tion (4. 11) allows estimation of the time to failure of a fiber under stress corro-
sio n co nditions. Therefore from a combinatio n of fi ber testing. (Weibull plot)
a nd stress corrosio n information estimates o f the ma ximum allowable fiber
strain can be made available to the cable designer. T hese estimates may be
co nfirmed by straining the fiber up to a specified level (p roof testing) such as
1% st ra in. F iber which survives this test can be a ccepted. However, proof
testing presents further problems. as it may cause fiber damage. Also it is
necessary to derate the maxi mum allowa ble fiber strain from the proof test
value to increas e confidence in fiber survival under stress cond itio ns. It is
suggested lRef. 5 11 that a reasonable derating for use by th e ca ble d esigner for
fiber which has survived a I % strain proof lest is around 0.3% in order that the
fiber has a reasona ble chance of surviving with a continual strain for 20 years,

~ •. Son. ll ~ . ,,~

'11,4.1' A I chemat!e ~'ualltatiOl'l of a We ibull ~OL Reproduced wit ... ce-mjssion

hm M. H. RH~ . TM Radio . "d EI.crfOfl. E" g., 11, p. 327. 1981 .
..
138 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

4.6.2 Stability of the Fiber Transmission Characteristics

Optical fiber cables must be designed so that the transmission characteristics
of the fiber are maintained after the cabling process and cable installation.
Therefore increases in the optical attenuation and reduction in the bandwidth
of the cabled fiber must be avoided. A problem which occurs in the cabling of
optical fiber is the meandering of the fiber core axis on a microscopic scale
within the cable form. This phenomenon, known as microbending, results from
small lateral forces exerted on the fiber during the cabling process. Such
random bending of the fiber axis causes coupling of power between modes (see
Section 2.3.7) which results in losses due to radiation in both multimode and
single mode fibers. Thus excessstve micro bending can easily create additional
fiber losses to an unacceptable level. To avoid deterioration in the optical fiber
transmission characteristics resulting from mode coupling induced by micro-
bending, it is important that the fiber is free from irregular external pressure
within the cable. Carefully controlled coating and cabling of the fiber is
therefore essential in order to minimize the cabled fiber attenuation. Further-
more the fiber cabling must be capable of maintaining this situation under all
the strain and environmental conditions envisaged within its lifetime.

4.7 CABLE DESIGN

The design of optical fiber cables must take account of the constraints
discussed in Section 4.6. In practice these constraints may be overcome in
various ways which are, to some extent, dependent upon the cable's applica-
tion. Nevertheless, generally cable design may be separated into a number of
major considerations. These can be summarized into the categories of fiber
buffering, cable structural and strength members, and cable sheath and water
barrier.

4.7.1 Fiber Buffering

It was indicated in Section 4.6. that the fiber is given a primary coating during
production in order to prevent abrasion of the glass surface and subsequent
flaws in the material. The primary coated fiber is then given a secondary or
buffer coating (jacket) to provide protection against external mechanical and
environmental influences. This buffer jacket is designed to protect the fiber
from microbcnding losses and may take several different forms. These
generally fall into one of three distinct types which are illustrated in Fig. 4.20
[Ref. 52]. A tight buffer jacket is shown in Fig. 4.20(a) which usually consists
of a hard plastic (e.g. Nylon, Hytrel, Tefzel) and is in direct contact with the
primary coated fiber. This thick buffer coating (0.25-1 mm in diameter)
provides stiffening for the fiber against outside micro bending influences, but it
must be applied in such a manner as not to cause microbending losses itself.

'. i'e" -
OPTICAL FIBERS, CABLES AND CONNECTIONS 139

Ti ~:lt !luff" Loose [,ull., Fill'd luo,"

j,,,k('L j,chl hufrcr jackot

'"
f,) lei

fig.4.20 Techniques for buffering of optical fibers fRef. 52J: (a) tight buffer jacket;
(bl loose buffer jacket; lei filled loose buffer jacket.

An alternative approach which is shown in Fig. 4.20(b) is the use of a loose

buffer jacket. This produces an oversized cavity in which the fiber is placed
and which mechanically isolates the fiber from external forces. Loose buffering
is generally achieved by using a hard, smooth, flexible material in the form of
an extruded tube, or sometimes a folded tape with a diameter between I and
2 mm.
Finally Fig.4.20(c) shows a variation of the loose buffering in which the
oversized cavity is filled with a moisture-resistant compound. This technique,
which combines the advantages of the two previous methods, also provides a
water barrier in the immediate vicinity of the fiber. The filling material must be
soft, self-healing and stable over a wide range of temperatures and usually con-
sists of specially blended petroleum or silicone-based compounds.

4.7.2 Cable Structural and Strength Members

One or more structural member is usually included in the optical fiber cable to
serve as a core foundation around which the buffered fibers may be wrapped,
or into which they may be slotted as illustrated in Fig. 4.21 [Refs. 51 and 52].
The structural member may also be a strength member if it consists of suitable
material (i.e. solid or stranded steel wire or Kevlar (DuPont Ltd.) yarns). This
situation is shown in Fig. 4.21(a) where the central steel wire acts as both a
structural and strength member. In this case the steel wire is the primary load-
bearing element. Figure 4.21(b) shows an extruded plastic structural member
around a central steel strength member. The primary function of the structural
member in this case is not load-bearing, but to provide suitable accommoda-
tion for the bulTered fibers within the cable.
Structural members may be nonmetallic with plastics, fiberglass and Kevlar
often being used. However, for strength members the preferred features include
a hiah Young's modulus, high strain capability, flexibility and low weight per
,unit lenath. Therefore although similar materials are frequently utilized for
both Itrenath and Itructural members, the requirement for additional tensile
Itrln.th- of the lu.nlth member must be considered within the cable design.
140 OPTI CAL FIBER COM M UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES A ND PRACTICE

S,«;I '''m, :!. 5 nUD, 2() k~ k,. - '

\. llodd tJII: b ye:r 3. 2 DUD

T~I .,.j r,.....

; " "'. 1! , _ h,-'

'......e"'."'_
H -Hut b&mu

<>'
1
/ !.. tlull .... ," ."." ... ' ~ k& W"'-·
f oly" h,I ," , >bo.th
4l Wj k ", - ', II mm
I.)

Fig . 4 .21 Structural an d s tre ng th m e mbe rs in optical fibe r clIb!@s : (8) ce nt ra l steel wire
structural lind s tren gth membe r fRef. 511: (b) No rthe rn Teleco m unit co re cable
w ith ce ntral steel streng th membe r and e xtruded pintle: str uctural member
[Ref, 521.

FIe....ibility in strength members formed o f materials with high Young's

moduli ma y be improved by using a stranded or bunched asse mbly of smaller
units a s in the case of steel wire. Sim ilar techniques are also em ployed with
other materials us ed fo r strength mem bers which include plastic m onofila-
merits (i.e. specially processed polyester). textile fiber (Nylon, Terylene,
Da cron and the widely used K evler} and carbon and gla ss fibers . These
ma teri al s provide a variety of tensile strength s for d ifferent cable ap plicat ions.
H owever. it is worth noting th ai Kevlar, an aromatic polyester. ha s a very high
Young's modulus (up to 13 x 10 10 N m" } wh ich gives it a stre ngth to weight
ratio ad vantage four limes tha t of steel.
It is usual when utilizin g a stranded strengt h mem ber to cover it with a
coating of extruded plastic , o r helically applied tape. This is 10 p rovide the
strength member with a s mooth (cushioned) surface which is especi ally
im portant for the prevention of microbending lo sses when the member is in
contact with the buffered optical fibers.

4 .1.3 Cable Sheath and Water Barrier

T he cable is normally cov ered with a substantial outer pla stic sheath in order
to reduce abra sion and to provide the cable with extra protection a gainst exter-
nal mechanical effects such as crushing. The cable sheath is said to contain the
cable core and may vary in complexity fro m a single extruded plastic jacket to

, \ _ .-
OPTICAL FIBERS, CABLES AND CONNECTIONS 141

a multilayer structure comprising two or more jackets with intermediate

armoring. However, the plastic sheath material (e.g. polyethylene, poly-
urethane) tends to give very limited protection against the penetration of water
into the cable. Hence an additional water barrier is usually incorporated. This
may take the form of an axially laid aluminum foil/polyethylene laminated film
immediately inside the sheath as used by British Telecom [Ref. 53] and
illustrated in Fig.4.21(a).
Alternatively the ingress of water may be prevented by filling the spaces in
the cable with moisture-resistant compounds. Specially formulated silicone
rubber or petroleum-based compounds are often used which do not cause
difficulties in identification and handling of individual optical fibers within the
cable form. These filling compounds are also easily removed from the cable
and provide protection from corrosion for any metallic strength members
within the fiber. Also the filling compounds must not cause degradation of the
other materials within the cable and must remain stable under pressure and
temperature variation.

4.7.4 Examples of Fiber Cables

Many different cable designs have been proposed and a large number have
been adopted by different organizations throughout the world. At present there
are no definite standards for optical fiber cables incorporating either a
particular number of fibers or for specific applications. However, as discussed
previously there is a general consensus on the overall design requirements and
on the various materials that can be used for cable construction IRef. 521. In
this section we therefore consider some further examples of optical fiber cable
construction in order to give the reader a feel for the developments in this
important field.
Figure 4.22 [Ref 40] shows two examples of cable construction for single
fibers. In Fig. 4.22(a) a tight buffer jacket of Hytrel is used surrounded by a
layer of Kevlar for strengthening. In this construction the optical fiber itself
acts as a central strength member.

Oplic:u fil>cr-==;{:
Buffcrlube_

Inner jacket--j
Fi ber cl.ddiLl ~
\Inn" jack«,
Outet j.. ket, Outer j acket
Hytrel
Hytrol

'0>
PIg.4.21 Slngll flblr clble8 [Ref. 40J: (e} tight buffer jacket design; (b) loose buffer
Jlcklt dnlgri.
142 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

The cable co nstructio n illustra ted in Fig. 4.22(b) uses a loose t ube buffer
a round the central optical fi ber. This is s urrounded by a Kevlar strength
mem ber which is protected by an inner shea th or j ack et before the o uter sheath
layer . Thc strength mem bers of single optical fi ber cables are not usually
incorporated at the center o f the cable (u nless the fi ber is acting a s a strength
member) but are placed in the surround ing cable form as illustrated in Fig.
4 .2 2(b ).
Cable designs for multifi ber cables may also take this general form with the
strength member surro unding the fibers at the center of the cable. Examples of
th is construction are illustrated in Fig. 4 .23 [Ref. 521. F igure 4.2 3(a) shows
se ven fibers at the cab le center surro unded by a helically laid Kevla r strength
mem ber . Figure 4 .23(b) shows a ribbon cable configuration with a strength
mem ber of polyp ropylene yarn s in the surrounding cable form. It may also be
noted thai this d esign utilizes a rmo ring o f stainless steel wires placed in the
o uter shea th.
Two more ca ble designs which allow the incorporatio n o f a larger num ber of
fiber-s are sho wn in Fig. 4 .24 {R ef. 52 1. The configuration illustrated in Fig.
4 .24 (a) is a stranded d esign where the buffered fiber s are arranged in on e or
more layers. Alt ernatively, Fig. 4 .24(b) shows 8 multi-unit design wh ere each
u nit contains seven buffered fi bers. In this case the design al lows 4 9 fibers to
be included within the cable.
F inally a c able d esign which has proved successful in install ations in the
United States is shown in Fig. 4.25 [Ref. 54]. T he cable has a central copper
wire for strengthening and also to provide possible electrical conouttc n sur-
ro und ed by a pla stic structural memb er. Up to 12 optic al fi bers are placed in a
flat rib bon between plastic tape s and in corpo rated into a helical groove in the
extr uded pla st ic str uctural mem ber. A nother diamet rically o pposite groove is
designed fo r the placement o f up to seven plastic insula ted metallic pairs o r
a lterna tively the incorpo ratio n o f o ther ribbon o r o ptical fibers. T he princ ipal
stre ngth mem ber i... a loose aluminu m tu be litted over the c able core which also
acts a s a water barrier. T his is surrounded by an inn er pol yeth ylene jacket or

"'.\-- l'~l' ptoy rl",,' ~ .ll"

H IWI '. inner , h, " h
_ I'nly u r" h. " ,
ino " j :><k. t III+ + - GI,,, cor< (rLhhO,,, l
, - T Fl "I'"
_ _ PoI)·"" lh, n. ·- HDPE prc......•.. l ru<\od
""".. j. , ko, w I•• "",.u.

'0'
Ftg.4.23 Multffiber ca bles w ;thout centla. &Intngtll arK! Str\J ctural m emb ar [R, f. 1521:
la! ITT ISV111n fibe r e ~ l8 rf'l al lfflmg l l1 member ea bl,;(bl AT &. Tribootl cabl,.

•• .,
 OPTICAL FIBERS. CABLES AN D CON NECTIONS 143

,.
•
,
r ·---

-
l.1ontfOl ......1>of
.- ..... _ 1'£

~~::=Ol'lO;lII
Crntral momb«

Ii\,.,.-
v-- (.'"... fi""~

... _..-
--,<_Bu'I.,.ja.:l("
.....
...... "'"-
'

., '"
Fig.4.24 b a mp les of mullifiber cable deslg 'l [Ref. 521: fa) S illCOl ' 18 fiber d uct ca ble ;
fbI s secc r 49 tibe r ...n it c a ble.

sheat h followed by armoring con sisting of corrugated steel tape with longi-
tudinal overlap. A second polyethylene jacket acts as an cuter cable sheath
givinj;t the cable an overall diameter of around 2.5 em. The use of the
alum inum tube also allows the ca ble to be operated under pressurized condi-
Hom which gives the addit ional advantages of:
(a) an alarm in the event of sheath perforation ;
(b) s heath fault location;
(c) the exclusion or reduction of water ingress et a sheat h fault.
Trials of various optical fiber cable designs have taken place t hro ughout the
world since J977 with little indication of failure due to the possible degradation

_ u~ '0 7 -.1010<..
<opp<' . ",- ......

,J""" ",,,",,,,,",
- - _
. ,....... '"....., ....... ,
_ lh ld' <!

........ A a.ntnl cabl~ Cotpalltlon mu ltifiber cable IRel. 641.

•
 144 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

mechanisms. It is therefore suggested [Ref. 51 j that there is a possibility that

current commercial optical fiber cables manufactured for telecommunications
purposes have been 'over-engineered' and are thus working very successfully.
Hence it is likely that the future development of optical fiber cables will con-
centrate on simpler designs which will bring both production and cost benefits
as optical fiber systems are utilized more fully in telecommunication networks.

I 4.8 OPTICAL FIBER CONNECTION

,, Optical fiber links, in common with any line communication system, have a
requirement for both jointing and termination of the transmission medium. The
number of intermediate fiber connections or joints is dependent upon the link
length (between repeaters), the continuous length of fiber cable that may be
produced by the preparation methods outlined in Sections 4.2--4.4, and the
length of fiber cable that may be practically or conveniently installed as a con-
tinuous section on the link. Current practice allows single lengths of fiber cable
of around 1 km to be installed. However, it is anticipated [Ref. 56] that this
will be increased to several kilometers, especially for submarine systems where
continuous cable laying presents fewer problems.
Repeater spacing on optical fiber telecommunication links is a continuously
increasing parameter with currently installed digital systems operating over
spacings of up to 30 km together with the prospect of repeater spacings of
many tens and even over 100 kilometers for the long wavelength single mode
systems of the near future. (For example, 100 km operation without repeaters
was achieved by British Telecom in the laboratory (uncabled fiber) at the
beginning of 1982 with a 140 M bit s 1 single mode system operating at a
wavelength of 1.55 11m. In this case the fiber produced by a MCVD process
was jointed (spliced) at 6 km intervals.) It is therefore apparent that fiber-fiber
connections with low loss and minimum distortion (e.g. modal noise with multi-
mode fibers) is of increasing importance within optical fiber communications
in order to sustain the repeater spacings required for developing systems.
However, in this context optical fiber jointing has to a certain extent lagged
behind the technologies associated with the other components of optical fiber
communication systems (fiber, sources, detectors, etc.). Nevertheless in recent
years there has been an increasing interest in this topic and significant
advances have been made. Therefore in this and the following sections we
review the theoretical and practical aspects of fiber-fiber connections with
regard to both multimode and single mode systems. Fiber termination to
sources and detectors-is not considered as the important aspects of these topics
are discussed in the chapters covering sources and detectors (Chapters 6, 7
and 8). Nevertheless the discussion on fiber jointing is relevant to both source
and detector coupling, as many manufacturers supply these electro-optical
devices already terminated to a fiber optic pigtail in order to facilitate direct
I_;;;;;;;:::~fi~'b~e;r=fi;'b~e_r_connection to an optical tiber link,

J '.":~!~~~:
 OPTICA L FIBERS, CABLES AND CONN ECTION S 145

Before we consider fi ber-fiber connection in fu rther det ail it is necessary to

indicate the two maj or ca tegories o f fiber joint c urrentl y both in use a nd
development. These a re :
(a) Fiber splices : these are semipermanent o r permanen t j oin ts which find
major use in most o ptical fiber telecommuni cation systems (analogous to
electrical soldered joints),
(b) D emo untable fiber connectors o r simply connectors : these are removable
joints which allow eas y fa st manual coupling and unco upling of fiber s
(a nalogous to electrical plugs and sockets).
A majo r consideration with all types of fiber-fiber connection is t he o ptical
loss e ncountered at the interface. Even when the two jointed fiber ends are
smooth and perpendicular to the fiber axes, and the two fi ber axes are perfectly
aligned, a small proportion o f the light may be reflected back into the
transm itting fiber causing att enuatio n at the joint. Thi s phenomenon, known as
Fresnel reflection, is as sociated with the step changes in refract ive index at the
j oi nted interface (i.e. glass- air -glass). The magnitude of this partial reflection
of the light transmitted through the interface may be estimat ed using the
classical Fresnel formul a fo r light o f normal incidence and is given by [Ref.
l7):

r~ (n,-n
n, n
+
)
' (4. 12)

where r is the fraction of the ligh t reflected at a single interface,"I is the refrac-
tive ind ex o f the fiber core and n is the refractive ind ex o f the medium between
the two jointed fi bers (i.c. for a ir n = 1). H owever in orde r to determine the
amount of light reflected at a fiber joint, F resnel refl ection at both fiber
interfaces must be taken into account . The loss in decibels due to Fresnel
reflection at a single interface is given by :

Loss-,... = - 10 loglo ( I - r) (4.13)

H ence using the relation ships given in Bqs. (4.12) and (4 .1 3) it is possible to
determ ine the optical attenuatio n due to Fresnel reflection at a fiber-fiber j oint.
Jt is apparent that F resnel refl ection may give a significant loss at a fiber
joint even when all other aspect s of the connection are ideal. However, the
effect of Fresnel reflection at a fiber-fiber connection can be reduced to a very
low level through the use of an index matching fluid in t he gap between the
jointed fibers . When the index matching fl uid has the same refractive index as
the fiber core, losses due to Fresnel reflection are in theo ry er adi cated.
Unfortunately F res nel refl ection is only one possible so urce of optical loss at
• Aber joinL A potentia lly gre ater source of loss at a tiber-fiber connection is
" Ililolid by m!I&llpmenl o f the two jointed fibers. In o rder to appreciate the
' ~ _ ....e tue:en' DC vuioulJ connection techniques it is useful
, n-.. l.lll: dmll,
 146 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Example 4.2

An optical fiber has a core refractive index of 1 5. Two lengths of the fiber with
smooth and perpendicular {to the core axes] end faces are butted together. Assum-
ing the fiber axes are perfectly aligned, calculate the optical loss in decibels at the
joint {due to Fresnel reflection) when there is a small air gap between the fiber end
tecaa.
Solution: The magnitude of the Fresnel reflection at the fiber-air interface is
given by Eq. (4,12) where:

,~ ("' -" )'

n, + n
1.5- 10 )'
( 1.5+1.0

(~
2.5
)'
0,04

The value obtained for r corresponds to a reflection of 4% of the transmitted light at

the single interface. Further, the optical loss in decibels at the single interface may
be obtained using Eq. {4.13) where:

Los5fre. = -10 10910 {1 - r) = -10 IOg10 0.96

=0.18dB
A similar c~lculation may be performed for the other interface (air-fiber). However
from considerations of symmetry it is clear that the optical loss at the second
interface is also 0.18 dB.
Hence the total loss due to Fresnel reflection at the fiber joint is approximately
0.36 dB.

4.8.1 Fiber Alignment and Joint Loss

Any deviations in the geometrical and optical parameters of the two optical
fibers which are jointed will affect the optical attenuation (insertion loss)
through the connection. It is not possible within any particular connection
technique to allow for all these variations. Hence there are inherent connection
problems when jointing fibers with, for instance:
(a) different core and/or cladding diameters;
(b) different numerical apertures and/or relative refractive index differences;
(c) different refractive index profiles;
(d) fiber faults (core ellipticity, core concentricity, etc.).
The best results are therefore achieved with compatible (same) fibers which are
manufactured to the lowest tolerance. In this case there is still the problem of
the quality of the fiber alignment provided by the jointing mechanism.
Examples of possible misalignment between coupled compatible optical fibers
are illustrated in Fig. 4.26 [Ref. 581. It is apparent that misalignment may

_'.,f
... j -
"'.•
. . . ,. . .
OPTICAL FIBER S. CABLES AN D CONNECTIONS 147

..,
rlg.4.28 The tr se e poS$ible t'IPe ~ of misalignme nt w hich may c cc ur when jo'ming com-
patible optical fibe rs IRef. 58 J; (a) longitudinal m isalignme nt; (bI la te ral mis-
alig nment; Ie! ang ula r misalig nme nt .

oc cur in three d imensions, the separation between the fibe rs (longitudinal mis-
alignment), the offset perpendicular to the fiber core 3llCS (lateral/radial/axial
misalign ment) and the angle between the core axes (angular misalignment).
Optical losses resulting from these three types of misalignment depend upon
the fiber type, core diameter and the distribution of the optical power between
th e propagating modes. Example s of the measured optical losses d ue to the
various types of misalignment are shown in Fig. 4.27. Figu re 4.27(a) [Ref 581
sho ws the attenuation cha rac teristic for both longitudinal and lateral misalign-
men t of a 50 um core diameter graded index fiber. It may be observed that the
lateral misalignment gives s ignilk a ntly greater losses per unit displacement
tha n the lo ngitudinal misalignment. For instance in this case a latera l displace-
ment of 10 urn giv·es a bout I dB insertion loss whereas a similar longitudinal
displacement gi v'es an insertion loss of around 0 .1 dB. Figure 4.27(b) lRef. 59 1
shows the attenuation characteristic for the an gular misalignment of two mul-
timode step index fibers with n umerical a pertures of 0.22 and 0.3. An inser -
tion loss of a rou nd 1 d B is o btained with ang ular misalignment of 4 0 and 5 0
for the 0.22 NA and 0.3 NA fibers respectively. II may also be observed in
Fig. 4.27(b) that the effect of an index mat ching flu id in the fiber gap cau ses
increased losses with angular misalignment. Therefore it is clear that relatively
small levels of lateral and/or angular misalignment can cause significan t
attenuation at a fibe r joint. This is especially the case fo r small core d iameter
(less than 150 urn) fibers which are currently employed for most telecom-
munication purposes.
Theoretical and experiment al studies of fiber misalignment in optical fiber
connections [Refs. 60- 721 allow approximate determination of the losses
encountered with the various misalignments of different fi ber types . We con-
elder here some of the expressio ns used to calculate losses d ue to lateral and
Inlular misalignment of optical fiber joints. Longitudinal misalignment is not
dl.cuned in detail 8!1 it tends to be the least important effect and ma y be
larlof)' avoU!td Ie Abet cceeeeooe. Also there is some disalreemenl over the
Mlp1tudI ol-tbt-lOlili chat to lonaftudlnaJ mluJi,nment when it is calculated
. "
148 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

In,mion
1o," (<lB) La«,,]

2.0

o ·5 10 15 20 25 311 35 4(1 45 ;;0

lli'l'h""",,,,' i~,n)
,,,'
Inde, ","clL," g"l'
HI ~A'IJ.2'

I"""ioll
10>1 uno
Air l'l'P
lil ~'A = (J,22

2.0

3 4 5 b 7 g 9 10

Fig.4.27 Insertion loss characteristics for jointed optical fibers with various types of
misalignment: (a) insertion loss due to lateral and longitudinal misalignment
for a 50 IJ.m core diameter graded index fiber. reproduced with permission
from P. Mossman, The Radio and Electron. Eng., 51. p. 333, 1981: (bl inser-
tion loss due to angular misalignment for joints in two multlmode step index
fibers with numerical apertures of 0.22 and 0.3. Reproduced with permission
from C. P. Sandbank Iedl, Opticaf Fiber Communication Systems, John Wiley
& Sons, 1980.

theoretically between Miyazaki et al. [Ref. 61J and Tsuchiya et al. lRef. 62].
Both groups of workers claim good agreement with experimental results which
is perhaps understandable when considering the number of variables involved
in the measurement. However, it is worth noting that the lower losses predicted
by Tsuchiya et at. agree more closely with a third group of researchers
[Ref. 63]. Also all groups predict higher losses for fibers with larger numerical
•
OPTICAL FIBERS, CABLES AND CONNECTIONS 149

apertures which is consistent with intuitive considerations (i.e. the larger the
numerical aperture, the greater the spread of the output light and the higher the
optical loss at a longitudinally misaligned joint).
Theoretical expressions for the determination of lateral and angular mis-
alignment losses are by no means definitive although in all cases they claim
reasonable agreement with experimental results. However, experimental results
from different sources tend to vary (especially for angular misalignment losses)
due to difficulties of measurement. It is therefore not implied that the expres-
sions given in the text are necessarily the most accurate, as at present the
choice appears somewhat arbitrary.
Lateral misalignment reduces the overlap region between the two fiber
cores. Assuming uniform excitation of all the optical modes in a multimode
step index fiber the overlapped area between both fiber cores approximately
gives the lateral coupling efficiency TlI'I' Hence the lateral coupling efficiency
for two similar step index fibers may be written as [Ref. 62J:

_
Tllat- 16(n,/n)' I { 2cos _,(y)
- - (Y)
- [1 -(Y)']'}
- (4.14)
(I + (n l/n))4 rt 2a a 2a

where n l is the core refractive index, n is the refractive index of the medium
between the fibers, y is the lateral olTset of the fiber core axes, and a is the fiber
core radius. The lateral misalignment loss in decibels may be determined using:

Loss lat = -10 loglo T\lat dB (4.15)

The predicted losses obtained using the formulae given in Eqs. (4.14) and
(4.15) are generally slightly higher than the measured values due to the
assumption that all modes are equally excited. This assumption is only correct
for certain cases of optical fiber transmission. Also certain authors [Refs. 61
and 7l] assume index matching and hence no Fresnel reflection which makes
the first term in Eq. (4.14) equal to unity (as nl/n = 1). This may be valid if the
two fiber ends are assumed to be in close contact (i.e. no air gap in between)
and gives lower predicted losses. Nevertheless, bearing in mind these possible
inconsistencies, useful estimates for the attenuation due to lateral misalignment
of multimode step index fibers may be obtained.
Lateral misalignment loss in multimode graded index fibers assuming a
uniform distribution of optical power throughout all guided modes was
calculated by Gloge [Ref. 65]. He estimated that the lateral misalignment loss
was dependent on the refractive index gradient (l for small lateral offset and
may be obtained from:

Ll=~ e) (::~) forO~y~O.2a (4.16)

whlre the Iltltll cOUpllnl efficiency was given by:

150 OPTICAL FIBER COMMU NICATIO NS : PRINCIP LES AND PRACTICE

(4. 17)
H ence Eq. (4. 17) may be utilized to obtain the lateral misalignment loss in
decibels . With a parabolic refract ive index profile where a = 2, Eq. (4.16)
grves :

(4. 18)

A further estimate includ ing the leaky modes, gave a re vised expression for
the lateral misalignment loss given in Eq. (4.17) of O.7S(y l a). This an alysis was
also extended to step index fibers (where a = co) and gave lateral misalign ment
losses of O.64(y/a) and O.5(y/ a) fo r the cases of guided mo des only an d both
guided plus lea ky modes respectively.

Example 4 .3

A step irnJell f ib er h as a core ref ract iv e inde ll of 1.5 and a 0C\f 8 dia m et er 0 1 SO 10m .
The fi b e r IS jolnle d w it h a lilt!!' ''1 m i5alig nment b etwe e n t he c ore ..xe s of 5 I' m.
Esti m at e t he insertio n 10S5 at t he join t d ue to t ne I,n e ral m isalignm enT assumi ng a
un ilo rm d islfibut ion of powe r b etw een all g u;ded modes w hen '

(a) t here is a sm a ll air g ap at ttle join t;

(b l th e join t is con si dered in de~ ma t ctled ,
S olutio n ' (a) Th e co upl in g efficienc y for a m u lt im od e st ep i ndex f iber w ith
uniform ill u m inat io n of all pro pli gat in g mod es is gi ven by ECl. 14 ,14 1 as:

2
16 (1. 51 1
~

tI + l, 5 j4 l':

= 0.293 12(1.47 1) - 0.210 99 1; 1

- 0.804
The i nsertio n loss due to l at era l m isalignmen t is g iven b y ECl ' (4 . 151 w tle'e

Lo sSj., = - 10 lo g , o '1')1 ., = - 10 10910 0 ,804

= 0 ,9 5 dB

Hence assu mi ng a sm al l a ir gap at t he joint the insert io n lo ss is ap pro xi m ate ly 1 dB

whe n th e lat era l offset is 10"'£ of t hO!! fi ber d iameter.
(bl W hel'l til e jo int is co nsid ered inde x m at ched u.e. 1'10 ai r gap l t he c ou pti ng
efficien cy m ay b e aga in o bt ained f ro m Eq. 4,14 where :
OPTICAL FIBER S. CA8 LES AN D CO NNECTIONS 151

= 0 3 16 1211.47 1) _ O.2!O.99IJ }
= 0.8 72
Therefore the insertio n 10 $$ is :

Loss,•• = - 10 IOg lO 0 .8 72 = 0 .5 9 dB

With index matching the in sertion loss at the joint in exa mple 4.3 is red uced
to approximately 0.36 d B. It may be noted that the difference between the losses
obta ined in parts (a) a nd (b) corresponds to the o ptical lo ss due to F resnel
ref lection at the similar fiber-air-fiber interface determined in e xa mple 4.2.
The result may be checked using the formulae derived by G loge for a
muhimode step index Fiber where the lateral misalignment loss assuming
uniform illumination of all guided modes is obtained using:

t; = 0.64 ( ~) = 0.64 ( : 5 ) =0. 128

Hence the lateral coupling efficiency is given by Eq. (4.17) as:

111"l = I - 0.128 = 0.872

A gain using Eq. (4. 15), the insertion loss d ue to the lateral misalignment
a ssuming index matching IS:

LosslM = - 10 log lo 0.872 = 0.59 d B

H ence using the expression d erived by Gloge we o beain the same value o r
approximately 0.6 d B fer the insertion loss .....i th the inhere nt assum ption that
there is no change in refractive index at the joint int erface. Altho ugh this
est imate or insertion loss may be shown to agree with certain experimental
res ults IR ef. 6 Il a value of around I d B insertion loss for a )0% lateral
d isplacement with regard to the core diameter (as esti mated in example 4.3(a)
is more usually found to be the case with m uhimode step index fi bers (Refs.
59. 72 and 731. Further it is generally accepted that the lateral offset must be
kept below 5% of the fiber core diameter in o rder to reduce insert ion loss at a
j oint to below 0.5 d B IRef. 721.

A grl ded Index fiber h ~, a cerebcnc refractive index profile (a = 2) and a core
dllmeter of 50 11m. ESl imil te th e lnsertlon loss due to a 3 urn lateral misalignment at
I flblr Joint when there I, index matching and ~ ssu m i n ll :

(.1 Ih erl !I unifor m illumination 01 a ~ guided modes only:

fbI th ere rl uniform lilum lnal ion ot all guided and leaky modes.
J oIIJrkJn: I_I Anuf¥llnV uniform II!urnll'\ltion of gu id~ mod" ooly. the m isalign-
ment lOll mlf be OOt_lned \IIin; Eq. 14.181, where
.•
, . - - -

152 OPTICA L FIBER COM M UNICATIONS: PRINCIP LES AND PRACTICE

i , = 0.85 e) 3
= 0 8S ( 2 5 ) = 0. 102

H UI coupling ~ffitie"(:v i, g iven b V Eq, (4.1 7) a s :

11,,! "':" 1 - L , = 1 - 0 .10 2 = 0 89 8
Hence t ne inse rti <:>n loss due to th e l at era l m isa lign ment is g;ve " by Eq. 14 .1 51.
w he re :

l~ .. = - 10 10910 0 .898 = 0 47 d B
lb l When assu ming t he u nifo rm illumi na tio n 01 both g uided lind lea ky modes
Gloge"s formu la becomes :

it = 0 75 (: ) = O.7S( :5 ) =0,090

Therefo re the coupling efficiency is

111_1 = 1 - 0. 0 9 0 _= 0,91 0
and t he in sertion loss d ue 10 lat eral m isa lign m ent is:

los~ . t "" - 10 lo g 10 0 9 10 = 0 .4 1 dB

It ma y be noted by observing Fig. 4 .27(a) w hich sho ws the measured lateral

misal ignment loss fo r a 50 J.U1l diameter graded index tiber that the losses pre--
dicted above are very pessimistic (the loss for 3 tJ.I11 offset shown in Fig. 4 .27(.1)
is less than 0 .2 d B). A model whic h is found to predict insertion loss due to
lateral misalignment in graded index fibe rs with greater accuracy was
proposed by Miller and Mettler {Ref. 661. In this model they assumed the
po wer distribution at the fiber ou tpu t to be of a G aussian form. U nfortunately
the analysis is too detailed for this text as it involves integratio n using
numerical techniques. We therefore limit estimates of insert ion losses d ue to
lateral misalignment in multimod e graded index fibe rs to the use o f Gloge's
formula.
Angul a r misalignment losses at joints in multimode step index fibers may be
predicted with reasonable accuracy using an expression fo r the angular coupl-
ing efficiency "an ~ given by (Ref. 621:

(4.19)

where 9 is the ang ular displacement in radian s and .6. is the relative refractive
index difference for the fibe r. The insertion loss due to angular misalignment
may be obtained fro m the a ngu la r coupling efficiency in the same manner as
the lateral misalignment lo ss following :

Loss.... - - 10 loalO 1'1u, (4.20)

. .
OPTICAL FIBERS, CABLES AND CONNECTIONS 153

The formulae given in Eqs. (4.19) and (4.20) predict that the smaller the
values of d the larger the insertion loss due to angular misalignment. This
appears intuitively correct as small values of d imply small numerical aperture
fibers which will be more affected by angular misalignment. It is confirmed by
the measurements shown in Fig. 4.27(b) and demonstrated in example 4.5.

Example 4.5

Two multi mode step index fibers have numerical apertures of 0.2 arid 04
respectively, arid both have the same core refractive index which is 148. Estimate
the insertion loss at a joint in each fiber caused by a 5° angular misalignment of the
fiber core axes. It may be assumed that the medium between lhe fibers is air.
Solution: The angular cOlJpling efficiency is given by Eq. {4. 191 as

The numerical aperture is related to the relative refractive index difference following
Eq. (2.10) where:

Hence
2
16(n,lnI [ n ]
TJ ol1g ~ 4 1 ---
(1 + In! /n)) llNA

For the 0.2 NA fiber.

16(148)2
1 - 5ll/180 ]
TJ a ng ~ 4
(1+1.481 [ II 0.2

= 0.797
The insertion loss due to the angular misalignment may be obtained from Eq.
{4.20), where:

Loss. ng = -10 109'0 TJono ., -10 log10 0.797

0.98 dB
For the 0.4 NA fiber:

TJang ~ 0.926 [1 . :ll/180 ]

110.4

::= 0.862
The tneerncn loss due to the angular misalignment is therefore:
LOSS.~g = -10 10910 0.862
_ 0.64 dB
154 OPTICAL FI BER COMM UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES A ND PRACTICE

Hence it may be noted from exa mple 4. 5 th at the insertio n loss due to
a ngula r misalignment is reduced by u sing fi bers with large nu merica l
a pertures. This is t he o pposite trend to the increasing insertion lo ss with
numerical a perture for fiber longitudinal misalignm ent at a joint.
Misalignment losses at co nnection s in single mode fi bers have been
theoretically co nsidered b y Marcu se IRef. 681 and Gam bling 1'1 a L [Refs. 69
and 701. The theoretical anal ysis which was instigated by Marcusc is based
upon the G aussian or near G au ssian shape of the modes prop agating in single
mode fi bers regardless of the fiber type (i.e. step ind ex or graded index).
f urther d evelopment of this theory by G ambling 1'1 at. I Ref. 70J gave
sim plified fo rmulae for both th e lateral a nd an gula r misalignment losses at
joi nts in single mode fi bers. In the abse nce o f a ngula r misal ignment G am bling
el ttl. calculated tha t the loss T j due to lateral. offset y was given by:

Y ) ' dB
1', = 2.17 ( 000 (4.21)

where roo is the spot size of the fundamenta l mode. T he spot size is usually
defi ned as t he width to Il l' inte nsity of the LP OI mode, or in terms of the spot
size of an incident G a ussian beam which gives maxim um launc hing effi ciency
IRef. 141. However, the spot size fo r the LPOI mode (correspo nds to H E mode)
ma y be o btained from the e mpirical formula IRefs. 68 a nd 69 1:

1.6 2 V- ' 5 + 2.88V- 6 )

~ = o -
,, .6"-5_+--"'-----;;:;-_ _ ~
(0"- (4.22)
21

where ">0 is the spot size in 11m. a is the fiber core radius an d V is the nor-
malized frequency for the fi ber. Alternatively the insertion loss T. caused by
a
an angular mi salignment lin rad ians) at a j oint in a single mode fi ber may be
given b y:

V
T. = 2.17 ( eroonI ) ' dB (4.23)
aNA

where 11 1 is the fi ber core refract ive index and NA is the nume rical aperture of
the fibe r. It must be noted that the formulae given in Eq s. (4.21) and (4. 23)
assum e that the spot sizes of the modes in the two coupled fibers are the same.
G am bling es al. IRef. 70J also deri....ed a somewhat complicated fo rm ula which
gave a good approximatio n fo r the combined losses d ue to both lateral and
ang ular misal ignment at a fibe r joint. However they ind icate that fo r small
total lo sses (less than 0 .75 d B) a reasonable approximation is o btained by
sim ply c o mbining Bqs. (4.2 1) and (4.23).
OPTICAL FIBERS, CABLES AND CONNECTIONS 155

Exsmpls 4.6

A single mode fiber has the following parameters:

normalized frequency (VI = 2.40
core refractive index (n 1 ) = 1.46
core diameter (2a1 = 8).l.m
numerical aperture (NA) = 0.1
Estimate the total insertion loss of a fiber joint with a lateral misalignment of 1 um
and an angular misalignment of 1°.
Solution: Initially it is necessary to determine the spot size in the fiber. This may
be obtained from Eq. (4,221 where:

10.65+ 1,62V 15 +2,88V 6)

rou = a

10.65 + 1,62(2.41- 1 5 + 2.88(2.41- 5 1

~ 4----:cc-----
2'
The loss due to the lateral offset is given by Eq. 14.21) as:

71 = 2 . 1 7 ( - , - ) 2 =2.17(_'_)'
(l)o 3.12

= 0.22 dB
The loss due to angular misalignment may be obtained from Eq. l4.23) where:

(In/180)X3.12Xl.46X 2.4)
= 2.17
4 x 0.1

= 0,49 dB
Hence the total insertion loss is
TT ~ 7, + T» =0.22 + 0.49
0.71 dB

In this example the loss due to angular misalignment is significantly larger

than that due to lateral misalignment. However. aside from the actual mag-
nitudes of the respective misalignments, the insertion losses incurred are also
strongly dependent upon the normalized frequency of the fiber. This is
especially the case with angular misalignment at a single mode fiber joint
where insertion losses of less than 0.3 dB may be obtained when the angular
168 OPTICAL FI BER COMM UNICATIONS: PRIN CIPLES ANO PRACTICE

misal ignment is 1 D with fibers o f ap propriate V value. Nevertheless for low

loss single mode fiber jo ints it is im po rta nt that a ng ula r a lignment is better
than 1°.
We h ave considered in some detail the optical attenu ation a t fiber-fiber con-
nection s. H owever we have not yet d iscu ssed the pos ~ib le distortion of the
transmitt ed signal at a fiber joint. Although work in this area is in its infancy,
in creased interest h as been generated with the use of highl y coherent sources
(inj ection lasers ) and very low d ispe rsion fibers. It is apparent that fiber con-
nections strongly affec t the signal transmission causing modal noise (see
Sectio n 3. 1 1) and nonlinear distortion (Ref. 76 ] when a coherent light source is
u tilized with a multimode fi ber. A lso it h as been reported IRef. 77) th at the
transmission I~ of a connection in a coherent multimode system is e xtremely
wavelength-depend ent exhibit ing a possible 10% change in the transmitted
optical wa velength for a very small change (0 .001 nm ) in the laser emission
wavelength. Nevertheless it has been found that these problem s may be
red uced by the use of single mode o ptical fiber (R ef. 761 .
F urthermore the above modal effe cts become negligible wh en an incoherent
source (light em itting diode) is used with multimode fi ber. H owever, in this
ins tance there is often some mode conversion at the fiber joint which can make
the connection effectively a ct as a mode mixer o r filter [R ef. 781. Indication s
are tnat this phenomeno n which has been in vestigated (R ef. 791 with regard to
fiber splices, is more pronounced with fusion splices than with mecha nical
splices, both of whi ch are described in Section 4.9.

4, 9 FIBER SPLICES

A permanen t joint formed between tw o individual optical fibers in the field or

factory is kno wn a s a fi ber splice. Fiber splicing is frequently used to establish
lo ng-haul optical fiber link s where smaller fiber lengths need to be joined, and
there is no requirement for repeated connection and disco nnect ion. Splices may
be divided into two broad categories depending upon the splicing technique
utilized. These are fusion splici ng or welding and mechanical splicing.
F usion splicing is accomplished by applying localized heating (e.g. by a
n ame or an electric a rc) at the interface between two butted , p realigned fiber
ends c ausing them to soften and fuse, Mechanical splicing, in which the fibers
a re held in alignment by so me mechanical means, may be achieved by various
methods including the use o f tubes around the fiber ends (tu be splices) or
v-grcoves into which the butted fibers are placed (groove splices ). All these
te chniques seek to optimize the splice performance (i.e. red uce the insertion
loss at the joint) through both fiber end preparation and alignment of the two
j ointed fibers. T yp ical a verage sp lice insertion losses for multimode fibers are
in the range 0.1-0.2 dB IRef. 81) w hich is generally a better performance than
that e xhibited by demountable connections (see Sections 4.10-4.12). It may be
OPTICA L FIBERS. CABLES AN D CON NECTIONS 157

~ " " ~ . «I# i"i'i. .. ,

,..... ~ prop... tioo

'V

Fig .4..28 Op l'cal fi ber end prepSla llOfl : the principle of scribe e nd b re ak c utt in g [Re f. 821.

noted that the insertion losses of fiber splices are generally much less than the
possible F resnel reflection lo ss at a butted fiber-fiber joi nt. This is because
there is no large step change in refractive index with the fusion splice as it
forms a continuous fi ber connection, and some method of index matching (e.g.
a fluid] tends to be utilized with mechanical splices. However, fiber splicing
(especially fusion splicing) is at present a somewhat difficu lt process to
perform in a field environment and suffers from pract ical problems in the
development of field -usable tools.
A requirement with fibers intended fo r splicing is that they have smooth and
squa re end faces. In general this end preparation ma y be achieved using a su it-
able tool which cleaves the fi ber a s illustrated in Fig. 4.28 [Ref. 82). This
process is often referred to as scribe and break or score a nd break as it
involves the scoring of the fiber surface under tension with a cutting 1001 (e.g.
sapphire. d iamond, tungsten carbide blade). The surface sco ring creates failure
as the fiber is tensioned and a clean, reasonably square fi ber end can be
produced. Figure 4.28 illustrates this process with the fi ber tension ed around a
curved mandrel. However. stra ight pull, scribe a nd break tools are also
utilized , which arguably give better results [Ref. 83 1.

4 .9.1 Fusion Splice.

T he fusion splicing of single fiber s involves the heating o f the two prepared
fiber ends to their fusing point with the application of suffic ient axial pressure
between the two optical fibers. It is therefore essential that the stripped (of
cabling and buffer coating) tiber ends are adequately positioned and aligned in
order to ac hieve good continu ity of the transmission medium at the junction
point . Hence the fibers are usually positioned and clamped with the aid of an
Inspection microscope.
F lame heating sources such a s microplasma torches (argon and hydrogen)
IDd olhydric nucroburnetl (oxYlen, hydrogen and alcohol vapor) have been
utillzld wilh tome I\KlCtIi (Ret'. 841. However, the mon widely used heating
158 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

source is an electric arc. T his technique offers advantages of consisten t. easily

controlled heat with adaptability for use under field co nditions. A schematic
dia gr am of the basic arc fusion meth od is given in Fig. 4.29(a) IRefs. 8 J and
85 1illustrating how the two fibers are welded together. Figure 4.29(b) (Rer. 73 1
sho ws a developmen t of the basic arc fusion process which involves the ro und-
ing of the fiber ends with a low energy discharge before pressing the fi bers
together and fusing with a stro nger a rc. This tec hnique. known as prefusion,
removes the requirement for fiber end prepa ration which has distinct

I. )

",
o
Fig. 4 .29 Electric arc: fu Si on splicing : 1. 1 an examp le of fusi on lo Fcing IDl)trl tu. [R.f• .
81 . 00 851: lb) sc:t1emat lc il luetratio n of t ~ 1 p·efu.lon n" ethod for ICIMltl ly
spl 'cirog op tic, t fl be rl lRef. 731.

..--
 OPTIC AL FIBERS, CABLES AND CONNEc n ONS 159

Hb« ""'"
\ I ,
! ( •
I ! j
,
I I
)

• 1.1

, , '"
• I
( I

Fig . 4 .30
'"
Self- alignm ent phenom enon w hich tak es otace d u ri n ~ fusion splicing .
tal betc re fusion: Ib } du rin ~ fusion; (c) after fusion IRefs. B5. 67 and B8J.

ad vanta ge in the field environme nt. It has been utilized with multimode fibers
giving average splice losses of 0.09 d B I Ref. 86J.
F usion splicing of single mode fibers with typical core diam eters between 3
an d 10 u m presents problems o f more critica l fiber alignment (i.e. lateral
offsets o f less than I urn are required for low lo ss joints). However, splice
insertion losses below 0 .3 dB may be achieved due to a self-alignment
phenomenon which partially co mpensate" for an y lateral offset.
Self-alignment. illustrated in Fig. 4.30 IRefs. 85. 87 and 881. is caused by
surface tension effects between the two fiber ends during fusing. A recently
reported [Ref. 89J fi eld trial of single mode fiber fusion splicing over a 31.6 km
li nk gave mean splice insertion lo sses o f 0.18 and 0 .12 dB at wavelength s of
1.3 and 1.5 5 urn respectively.
A po ssible d raw back with fus ion splicing is thai the heat necessary to fuse
the fibers may weaken the fiber in the vicinity of th e splice. It has been found
that even with careful handling. the tensile strength ofthe fused fiber may be as
low as 3Q9(, of that of t he uncoated fi ber before fusion IRef. 9 11. The fiber
fractu re generally occurs in the heat-affected zone adjacent to the fused joint.
The red uced tensile strength is attributed [Refs. 9 1 and 92 1 to the combined
effects of surface d a mage caused by handling. s urface de fect growth during
healing and induced residential stresses due to changes in chemical composi-
tion . It is th erefore necessary th at the co mpleted splice is packaged so as to
red uce tensile loadin g upon the fiber in the vicinity of the splice.

4.9.2 Mech.nlcel Splice.

A number of mechanical techniques for splicin g ind ividual optical fibers have
been d eveloped. A common method invo lves the use of an accurately
produced rliid aHiRmenl lube into which the prepared fi ber ends are per-
manently bonded. TN. ll1ul tubc splice is illustrated in F ia. 4.3 1(a} [Ref 94)
and may udlhl .a ...... or otr&m!c: =apiUary with an inner diameter j ust larae
160 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Square ero» "'diun "pilla,)'

"

Opti",1 fiiler

(.) (Il)

Fig. 4.31 Techniques for tube splicing .ot optical fibers: lal snug tube splice [Ref. 941:
(b) loose tube splice utilizing square cross section capillary [Ref. 96J.

enough to accept the optical fibers. Transparent adhesive, (e.g. epoxy resin) is
injected through a transverse bore in the capillary to give mechanical sealing
and index matching of the splice. Average insertion losses as low as 0.1 dB
have been obtained IRef. 95] with multimode graded index and single mode
fibers using ceramic capillaries. However, in general, snug tube splices exhibit
problems with capillary tolerance requirements.
A mechanical splicing technique which avoids the critical tolerance require-
ments of the snug tube splice is shown in Fig. 4.31(b) IRef. 961. This loose tube
splice uses an oversized square section metal tube which easily accepts the pre-
pared fiber ends. Transparent adhesive is first inserted into the tube followed
by the fibers. The splice is self-aligning when the fibers are curved in the same
plane, forcing the fiber ends simultaneously into the same corner of the tube, as
indicated in Fig. 4.31(b). Mean splice insertion losses of 0.073 dB have been
achieved [Refs. 88 and 97] using multimode graded index fibers with the loose
tube approach.
An alternative method of obtaining a tight fitting splice is by use of the
collapsed sleeve splicing technique which is illustrated in Fig. 4.32 [Ref. 981.

Cullap",d ,h"
,

, ~c::=={"'~ . (oj Optical flber

Flg.4.32
'"
Th. eeuee.. d 11•• vt.pllcln" technique {Ref, B8],
 OPTICAL FIBERS. CABLES A ND CONN ECTIONS 'B'
T his method utilizes a Pyre's glass sleeve which ha s a lower melt ing point than
I- the fibers to be jointed. When the sleeve is heated to its softening point it
i
I collapses due to surface tension, eventua lly forming a solid rod . F igure 4_32(a)
shows a partially collapsed Pyrex sleeve formed by local heating of the sleeve.
I With t he collapsed sleeve splicing technique th e glass sleeve is collap sed
arou nd one of the prepared liber ends to form a tight lilting socket as shown in
Fig. 4.J U b). The second fiber is then inserted into the socket and the who le
a ssembly is bonded with epoxy resin a s illust rated in Fig.4.J2(c). Hence an
index matched splice is created . T his technique is useful in the splicing of two
fibers with different diameters. In this case the sleeve is collapsed over the
larger diameter fi ber before the insertion of the second. smaller diameter fiber.
The collapsing is the n continued to form a socket of an appropriate size for a
clo se fit to the smaller fiber. Collapsed sleeve splices are generally protected by
enclosure in a metal ferrule. They hav e exh ibited insertion losses in the range
O.2~. J d B IRef. 591 when using multimode graded index fibers with avera ge
tosses of 0.5 d B in the field.
Other co mmon mechanical splicing techniques involve the use of grooves to
secure the fibers co be join ted . A simple method utilizes a V-groove into which
th e two prepared Fiber ends are pressed. The v -groove splice which is
illustrated in Fig. 4.33(a) [Ref 99 1gives alignment o f the prepared fib er end s
thro ugh insertion in the groove. The splice is made permanent by securing the
fiber s in the v -grcove with ep oxy resin. Jigs for producing v -groove splices

,I
,
Fik" ~ .. n «l lOp" ':ll-~
V1ll'""" ,-d .......... l
T

,.,
 162 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

__ SpriLl~
, -----------------
,, -c.,
--
/ -----
-
/

(yliIlJri,,1 ;J""

,.,
Fig.4.34 The Scrinqroove" splice [Ref. 101J: la) expanded view of the splice;
Ibl schematic cross section of the splice.

have proved quite successful, giving joint insertion losses of around 0.1 dB
[Ref. 82].
V-groove splices formed by sandwiching the butted fiber ends between a V-
groove glass substrate and a flat glass plate as shown in Fig. 4.33(b) have also
proved very successful in the laboratory. Splice insertion losses of less than
0.01 dB when coupling single mode fibers have been reported [Ref. 100] using
this technique. However, reservations are expressed regarding the field imple-
mentation of these splices with respect to manufactured fiber geometry, and
housing of the splice in order to avoid additional losses due to local fiber
bending.
A slightly more complex groove splice known as the Springroovew splice
utilizes a bracket containing two cylindrical pins which serve as an alignment
guide for the two prepared fiber ends. The cylindrical pin diameter is chosen to
allow the fibers to protrude above the cylinders as shown in Fig. 4.34(a)
IRef. 101]. An elastic element (a spring) is used to press the fibers into a
groove and maintain the fiber end alignment as illustrated in Fig. 4.34(b). The
complete assembly is secured using a drop of epoxy resin. Mean splice inser-
tion losses of 0.05 dB [Ref. 88) have been obtained using multimode graded
index fibers with the Springroove'" splice. A similar mechanical splicing tech-
nique is illustrated in Fig. 4.35 [Ref. 941. In this case the spring is replaced

Hoot ,11I';llbhk ,hw_~

--
- ~.

-
-« --
- - - - - ~
.~.

-----=:::Cl'lindrical pin'

-,
Fig. 4.36 The precision pin splice [Ref. 94J.
•,
I
OPTICAL FIBER S, CABLES AND CO NNECTIONS 163

by a third cylindrical pin and the whole as sembly is held in place with a heat
shrinka ble sleeve. This precision pin splice has given mean insertion losses of
around 0.2 dB IRef. 881with multimode fibers.

4.9.3 Multiple Splice.

M ultiple simultaneous splicing ha s mainly been attempted using mechanical
splicing methods. Groove splicing techniques have been utilized for the
sim ultaneous splicing of an a rray of fibers within a nat ribbo n cable. F igure
4.36 IRef. 102] shows a groove splice for a five fiber ribbon cable. II utilizes a
grooved metal substra te with the groove spacing equal 10 the spacing of the
fi bers in the array. The plastic coating is removed from the fi ber ends and they
are prepared using a suitable scribe and break tool. Then the two ribbon ends
are placed into the grooves, the Fibers are pressed together and held in position
with a rubber sheet and 8. cover plate. Finally epoxy resin is added to provide
index matching as well as securing a permanent splice. A 12 fiber version of
this splice using an injection moulded plastic substrate gave an average splice
loss of 0.2 dB IRef. 97J.
A ribbon splice using etched silicon chips is shown in Fig. 4.37 [Ref. 103].
Sim ilar chips may be utilized to form a 12 x 12 array of 12 ribbon cables each
containing 12 fibers IRef. 821. The whole assembly is clamped together to
form a single multiple splice.
Multiple fiber splicing of a circular cross section cable has also bern
achieved. A splice or this type is shown in Fig. 4.38 1Ref. 1041 and consists of
matched sets of precision moulded circular collars (o ne shown) which contain
a series of groo....es around the circumference. The fi bers are inserted into the
precision grooves and bonded with adhesive. They are then cut. polished and
covered with index matching material at the jointing ends. before the two
collars are brought together and fastened with semicylindrical shells and pins.

,
,.-
K ul>i"t ~u" l

Multlpl. fiber IPllclng of f be, ribbon ClIble using a Qroon alignm6'f'11 techniQlle
I.... 1021./
 j!
I 164 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIP LES A ND PRAcnCE

Fig . 4 .37 Mul t ip le fiber sp licing of Slacked rib bon cables using precision mu tn-v-q roove
silicon chips [Ret 10 3 1.

•
Fig.4.38 Cro ss sect ion of the stet -core ca ble for mult i ple fiber mech anical So 'icing [Ref.
l 04J.

When the two grooved collars a re produced from a single piece of alumina,
average splice insertion losses of 0.3 dB [R ef 88J have been obtained with
multimode step index fibers.
I.
4.10 FIBER CONNECTORS
,,.
Demou nta ble fiber connectors are more difficult to achieve than optical tibet
splices. This is because they must maintain similar tolerance requirements to

•
OPTICAL FIBERS. CABLES AND CONNECTIONS 165

splices in order to couple light between fibers efficiently, but they must
accomplish it in a removable fashion. Also the connector design must allow for
repeated connection and disconnection without problems of fiber alignment
which may lead to degradation in the performance of the transmission line at
the joint. Hence to operate satisfactorily the demountable connector must
provide reproducible accurate alignment of the optical fibers.
In order to maintain an optimum performance the connector must also
protect the fiber ends from damage which may occur due to handling (connec-
tion and disconnection), must be insensitive to environmental factors (e.g.
moisture and dust) and must cope with tensile load on the cable. Additionally,
the connector should ideally be a low cost component which can be fitted with
relative ease. Hence optical fiber connectors may be considered in three major
areas, which are:

(a) the fiber termination which protects and locates the fiber ends;
(b) the fiber end alignment to provide optimum optical coupling;
(c) the outer shell which maintains the connection and the fiber alignment,
protects the fiber ends from the environment and provides adequate
strength at the joint.

The use of an index matching material in the connector between the two
jointed fibers can assist the connector design in two ways. It increases the light
transmission through the connection whilst keeping dust and dirt from between
the fibers. However, this design aspect is not always practical with demount-
able connectors, especially where fluids are concerned. Apart from problems
of sealing and replacement when the joint is disconnected and reconnected,
liquids in this instance may have a detrimental affect, attracting dust and dirt
to the connection.
There are a large number of demountable single fiber connectors, both com-
mercially available and under development, which have insertion losses in the
range 0.2-3 dB. Fiber connectors may be separated into two broad categories:
butt jointed connectors and expanded beam connectors. Butt jointed ccn-
nectors rely upon alignment of the two prepared fiber ends in close proximity
(butted) to each other so that the fiber core axes coincide. Expanded beam
connectors utilize interposed optics at the joint (i.c. lenses or tapers) in order to
expand the beam from the transmitting fiber end before reducing it again to a
size compatible with the receiving fiber end.

4.11 BUTT JOINTED CONNECTORS

Butt jointed connectors are the most widely used connector type and a sub-
Itantial number have been reported. In this section we review some of the more
common butt Jointed~ connector designs which have been developed primarily

.,,'.
166 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

for usc with multimode fibers. Nevertheless in certain cases as indicated in the
text, similar designs have been used successfully with single mode fibers.

4.11.1 Ferrule Connector

The basic ferrule connector (sometimes referred to as a concentric sleeve con-

nector), which is perhaps the simplest optical fiber connector design. is
illustrated in Fig.4.39(a) [Ref. 58]. The two fibers to be connected arc per-
manently bonded (with epoxy resin) in metal plugs known as ferrules which
have an accurately drilled central hole in their end faces where the stripped (of
buffer coating) fiber is located. Within the connector the two ferrules are
placed in an alignment sleeve which, using accurately machined components,
allows the fiber ends to be butt jointed. The ferrules are held in place via a
retaining mechanism which in the example shown in Fig. 4.39(a) is a spring.
It is essential with this type of connector that the fiber end faces are smooth
and square (i.e. perpendicular to the fiber axis). This may be achieved with
varying success by either:
(a) cleaving the fiber before insertion into the ferrule;
(b) inserting and bonding before cleaving the fiber close to the ferrule end face;

Forru!, R'laining
'PrL"~

~-:::;::::r=;==,,--I-~='

Ali~llnl<"'
,Icc" ('on""wr
~lCll
{,)

Staink" ""el
[erruk

I
AJhC'i\'e~
,
I k
.I,," , """ , Iii

L
Il
I T
I
IVatchj,wd
PI"", ,'o,t"'f
or fih,',
Fig. 4.39
'"'
Ferrule connectors: lal structure of a baSIC ferrule connector [Ref. 58);
lb) structure of a watch jewel connector ferrule [Ref. 59].
OPTICAL FIBERS. CAB LES AND CONNECTIONS ,.7
(c) using either (a) or (b) and polishing the fiber end face until it is fl ush with
the end of the ferrule.
Polishing the fiber end face after insert ion and bonding provides the best
results but it lends 10 be time-consumin g and incon venient especially in the
field.
T he fiber alignment accuracy of the ba sic ferrule connector is largely
dependent upon the ferrule ho le into which the fiber is inserted. Hence some
ferrule co nnectors incorporate a watch jewel in the ferrule end face (je welled
ferrule connector) as iIIuslrated in Fig. 4.39(b) [Ref. 59 1. In this ca se the fiber
is ce ntered with respect 10 the ferrule th rough the watch jewel hole. The use of
the watch jewel allows the close diameter and tolerance requ irements of the
ferr ule end face hole to be obtained more easily than simply th rou gh drilling of
th e ferrule end face alone. Nevertheless. typical concentricity errors between
the fiber core and the outside diameter of the jewelled ferrule are in the ran ge
2--6 urn giving insertion tosses in the range 1-2 dB with multimode step index
fibers.

4 .11.2 Blconical Connector

A ferrule type connecto r which is widely used as pan of jumper ca ble in a
variety of applications in t he Bell system is the biconical plug connector
(Refs. 81 and 105). The plugs are either transfer moulded d irectly onto the
fiber o r cast around the fiber using a $oiliea-Ioaded epox y resin ensuring con-
centricity to within 5 urn. After plug a ttach ment, the fiber end faces are
polished before the plugs are inserted and aligned in the biconical moulded
center sleeve as shown in Fig. 4.40 [Ref. 811. Mean insertion losses as low as
0.21 d B have been reported [Ref. 1051 when using this connector with SO urn
core di ameter graded inde x fibers. In the original design transparen t silicone
resin pad s were placed o ver the fiber e nd face s to provide index matching.
Ho wever, currently the polished fiber end faces are bu tted directly, the gap a nd

P....<I..Or. PI.., moul"'=d

h ;'.,,",< oliVI '! ok...<
_f

PVC Col" " I ~ .. tll

.... ...-0 Croll Hetlon of Ill. blcon lCi I connector [Refs. B1 I nd 105J.
/
168 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

parallelism of the end faces being controlled to a degree that gives insertion
losses better than the level normally exhibited by Fresnel reflection.

4.11.3 Ceramic Capillary Connector

An approach giving accurate ferrule alignment is used in the ceramic capillary
connector shown in Fig. 4.41 [Refs. 107 and 1081. The special feature of this
concentric sleeve connector is the mounting of the optical fiber in a ceramic
capillary which is set in the tip of the ferrule. This gives accurate positioning of
the fiber core and allows the fiber end face to take a good polish. Average
insertion losses 01'0.4 dB have been reported [Ref. 107] when using multimode
fibers. This connector has also been used for the coupling of single mode fibers
giving average insertion losses of 0.5 dB [Ref. 108J when using a 10 11m core
diameter step index fiber operating at a wavelength of 1.3 11m.

AJlti-rot>t;on
pin

Axi,] comp"",;on ,p'h,g

COUpli"! nn!
C"i~i"~ pipe

Slittod ,Icc", ho,,,ing

Slit!ed .Ji~nment ,keYC

Ad,p101

Fig. 4.41 The ceramic capillary connector showing the ferrule plug and the adaptor into
which two plugs are located [Refs. 107 and 108).

4.11.4 Double Eccentric Connector

The double eccentric connector does not rely on a concentric fixed sleeve
approach but is adjustable, allowing close alignment of the fiber axes. The
mechanism, which is shown in Fig. 4.42 [Refs. 58 and 62], consists of two
eccentric cylinders within the outer plug. It may be observed from Fig. 4.42
that the optical fiber is mounted eccentrically within the inner cylinder.
Therefore when the two connector halves are mated it is always possible
through rotation of the mechanism to make the fiber core axes coincide. This
operation is performed on both plugs using either an inspection microscope or
a peak optical adjustment. The mechanisms are then locked to give permanent
alignment. This connector type has exhibited mean insertion losses of 0.48 dB
with multimode graded index fibers: use of index matching fluid within the
connector has reduced these losses to 0,2 dB. The double eccentric connector-
OPTICA L FI BERS, CABLES AND CONN ECTIONS 16.

T",o <.<:«rtt" c ,..-

<rJi",I".

Fig . 4 .42 St ructure of the do ub le ecce ntric co nnecto r plug [Aels. 58 a nd 62 J.

design has also been utilized with single mode fib ers where its adjustable
nature has proved advantageo us for alignment of the sma ll core diameter
flbers.

4 .11 .5 Triple BaA Connector

T here are a number of connectors which utilize kinematic design principles. A
noteworthy example develo ped by British Teleco m is the triple ball connector
ill ustrated in Fig. 4.43 IRef. 10 91. Three accurately ground tungsten sphe re'S

~ F,t".-,

'/ <,
/ 7 ,,i ,,, -,
/
r ,
- - 1.1--
,,;,,
.- f- I
,
/'.
."

/ .- ~" ..
~
•
1 1SS4 ;.
; "If- ""1',"
/ .1
<' ./ ,-/ ;; '
-, I /
.
)'

~ I Fil>or

'lg.4.431
'"
The Iriple ball conneClo r [R, f. 10 91 : tal coonector cross secuco showing the
!oClIio n of tta fiber In I groove be lween three contacting balls ; lbl plan view
of thl ca nn.ctor lIhowln; the two In/erlockil'lg " III of th r" ba lls and t oo pest-
tlotl of tM MI« and..
 170 OPTICAL FIBE R COM MU NICATIONS: PRINCI PLE S AND PRACTIC E

gripping the fiber are ho used in a bush as shown in Fig. 4 .43(a ). Two sets of
the spheres a re nested together with a relative rotation of 60° ( Fig. 4.43(b»
bringi ng the two butt jointed fibers into align ment. The reported [Ref. 109]
a verage insertion loss using multimode step index fibers is 0.49 d B without
index matching and O.lg dB with matching. A recent improvement to this con-
nector is described in Section 4.12.

4 .11.6 Singl. Mod. Rbet COM.ctOt

Although t he cera mic ca pillarv and the double eccentric connector have been
utilized with single mode fibe rs they were no t initially designed for this
purpose. A connector which was designed specifically fo r use with single mode
fib ers is illustrated in Fig. 4 ,44 IRef. 1101. It consists of a pair of fi ber plugs
a nd a sleeve with ball bearing a rr ays o n its inside surface. These ball bearings
prov ide plug alignm ent ac curacy as well as smooth det achment. Each fiber
plug contains two eccentric tubes which by means of rotation allow the single
mode fiber to be accurately centered within the plu g.
Average insertion losses of 0.46 dB I Ref. IIOJ were encountered with the
co nnector when using 5.7 urn core diameter ( 150 urn cladding. diameter) single
mode fi ber. A development [Ref II Dl of this co nnector design using a simpler
cy lind rica l plug structure (not requiring eccentric tu bes) with a n accurately
machined hole to locale the fi ber exhibited simila r average insertion losses
(0.47 d B). Ho wever, th e simpler plug design makes co nnecto r assembly
possible without special equipment. making it far more co nvenient for practical
use.

_ _ _ _ (..~""" r....·'

1 lb., pb.

filii . 4 .44 S ing~e modeopl ical fibe rco nne etor stru ct u re [Re i. 1 10 ).

4.1'.7 Multiple Connectors

In comparison with th e large number of single fiber co nnecto rs few multiple
fiber connectors have been developed to date. Nevertheless two multiple con-
nector designs suitable for jointing ribbon fiber cable are illustrated in Fig. 4.45
[Refs. 11 2 a nd 1131. The connector shown in Fig. 4.45(a) employs plastic
moulded multiple termmadon s which a re jointed in an alignment sleeve con-
sisting of grooved silicon chips. This technique is very similar to the multiple
groove splicing methods for r ibbon c able de scribed in Section 4.9.3. 1:'l ln,"

' ,(f<.
 OPTICA L FIBERS, CABLES AN D CON NECTIONS 171

(. 1

....

~
r-, ~~-~.~
~>->~, ""'" ~"' Ul .od
'l<tal l>iod
("0 « . (" ~~ ....... .

,.,
. Ag.4.45 Mult iple fiber co nnectors: leI connector wit h g rooved i1 lignment sleeve a nd
mou lded fiber ribbon e nd le rminalio ns IRef. 11 21: (bl liber ribbon connector
using V-grooved ~ I i con c hip [Ref. 1131.

multimode graded index fib ers. insertion losses in the range 0.2-0.32 dB were
obtained [Ref. 11 2] with this device.
F igure 4.45(b) also shows a multiple connector design which utilizes
v-grooved silicon chip s. H owever, in this case ribbon fi bers are mounted and
bonded in the V-grooves in order to form a plug together with precision metal
,uidini rods and coil springs. The butt jointed fi ber co nnections are
I.ccomplished by butt jointing the two pairs o f guiding rod s in slitted sleeves
Joel.ted in the adaptor also shown in Fig. 4,45(b). This co nnector exhibited
IVlrl,. inu rtiotl Jonet of 0.8 dB which were reduced to 0.4 dB by the use of
I.... Il\IlOhlnl fluld•.
 172 OPTICAL FI BER COM MUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

4 .12 EXPANDED BEAM CONNECTORS

An alternative to connection via direct butt joints between optical fibers is

offe red by the principle of the expa nded beam . Fiber connection utilizing this
principle is illustrated in Fig. 4.4 6 which shows a con nector consisting of two
lenses for collimating and refocusing the light from one fiber into the other.
The use of this interposed optics makes the achievement of lateral alignment
much less critical than with a butt j ointed fiber connector. Also the
longil udinal separation between the two mated halves of the connector ceases
to be c ritical. However, this is achieved at the expense of more stringent
angular alignment. Nevertheless, e xpanded beam connectors a re useful for
multifiber connection and edge connection for printed circ uit boards where
lateral and longitudinal alignmen t are frequently difficult to achieve.
Two examples of lens coupled expanded beam connecto rs are illustrated in
Fig, 4.47 IRefs.1l 4 and 115J. The con nector shown in Fig. 4.47(a) utilizes
spherical microlenses for beam expansion and reduction. It exhibited average
' losses of I dB which were reduced to 0.7 dB with the application of an
antireflection coating on the lenses and the use of 50 11m core diameter graded
index fiber. Figure 4.47(b) shows an improvement on the triple ball connector
(Section 4.11.5) which utilizes a glas s bead lens formed on the end of each
fiber. This is achieved u ~ i n g an electric a rc discharge. and the beads assist the
centeri ng of the fi ber ends between the clusters of spheres. The bead lens
reduces the need for index matc hing within the connector a nd gives average
insertion losses of 0.8 dB with multimode fibers. It has also been used with
si ngle mode fibers [Refs. 116 and 1171 exhibiting losses in the range ]-2 dB
due to the greater alignment difficulties with the smaller core diameter fiber.
Tapers have also been utilized to provide expanded beam fiber connection.
A cladded fi ber taper is shown in Fig. 4.48 [Ref 118 1. It is fused to the end
face o f each of the fibers to be connected which increases tile o ptical beam
width at the connection by se veral limes. The two tapers a re butt jointed in
order to complete the expanded bea m connector. As with the lens connccnors,
the increased beam dia meter reduces the effect of d ust a nd dirt on connector
loss. However, the difficulties involved in producing accura tely dimensioned
tapers currently preelude wide use of this connector type.

Fig.4.4I Scl>ematlc Illustration of . n elq)ll'lCied beam conl'lK!or .howll'lV ttl. ortl'lel~

r:J ope.... tion.
OPTICAL FIBERS, CABLES AND CONNECTIONS 173

Micl'O""'" ,
,
,'r,r,',
,', " "
, " ,',
,-----------7~ " '-'_._--------,

1
,'
:
.
, '""--::')~~=~+---tJ' i -
''
~__
,
"
,

,,-
L.,
' ' ,

. .:
I

:
<,
Optkd fib';r IL. , " ,-
:: J' Opk,' rd",

," ,
, I, ,
,.~ ~.J

'"

Ibll emi,,·

],;Il,,' 1',,,,11<;><;,(,,,
Ell ball du,k,

'"
Fig. 4.47 Lens coupled expanded beam connectors: lal schematic diagram of a con-
nector with two mtcroranses making a 1 : 1 image of the emitting fiber upon
the receiving one [Ref. 114]; (bl triple ball. fiber bead connector [Ref. 115J.

Fu,ion ,pi,,, Fil>e'

Flg.4.48 Expanded beam connector using tapers [Ref. 118].

PROBLEMS

4.' Describe in general terms liquid phase techniques for the preparation of
, multloomponent Ilalies for optical fibers. Discuss with the aid of a suitable
dlqram Ont meltlnl method for the preparation of multicomponent glass.
174 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

4.2 Indicate the major advantages of vapor phase deposition in the preparation of
glasses for optical fibers. Briefly describe the various vapor phase techniques
currently in use.

4.3 (a) Compare and contrast, using suitable diagrams, the outside vapor phase
oxidation (OYPO) process and the modified chemical vapor deposition
(M.CYD) technique for the preparation of low loss optical fibers.
(b) Briefly describe the salient features of vapor axial deposition (YAD) and
the plasma-activated chemical vapor deposition (PCYD) when applied to
the preparation of optical fibers.

4.4 Discuss the drawing of optical fibers from prepared glass es with regard to:
(a) multicomponent glass fibers;
(b) silica-rich fibers.

4.5 List the various optical fiber types currently on the market indicating their
important features. Hence briefly describe the general areas of application for
each type.

4.6 Briefly describe the major reasons for the cabling of optical fibers which are to
be placed in a field environment. Thus state the functions of the optical fiber
cable.

4.7 Explain how the Griffith theory is developed in order to predict the fracture
stress of an optical fiber with an elliptical crack.
Silica has a Young's modulus of 9 x 1010 N m- 2 and a surface energy of
2.29 J. Estimate the fracture stress in psi for a silica optical fiber with a
dominant elliptical crack of depth 0.5 urn. Also determine the strain at the
break for the fiber (I psi = 6894.76 N m").

4.8 Another length of the optical fiber described in problem 4.7 is found to break
at I % strain. The failure is due to a single dominant elliptical crack. Estimate
the depth of this crack.

4.9 Describe the effects of stress corrosion on optical fiber strength and durability.
It is found that a 20 m length of fused silica optical fiber may be extended to
24 m at liquid nitrogen temperatures (i.c. little stress corrosion) before failure
occurs. Estimate the fr~c.ture. stress in ~si for the fiber u~der these conditions.
Young's modulus for silica IS 9 x 10 1 Nm-2 and I PSI= 6894.76 Nm- 2.

4.10 Discuss optical fiber cable design with regard to:

(a) fiber buffering;
(b) cable strength and structural members;
(c) cable sheath and water barrier.
Further, compare and contrast possible cable designs for multifiber cables.

4.11 State the two major categories of fiber-fiber joint, indicating the differences
between them. Briefly discuss the problem of Fresnel reflection at all types of
optical fiber joint, and indicate how it may be avoided.
A silica multi mode step index fiber has a core refractive index of 1.46. Deter-
mine the optical loss in decibels due to Fresnel reflection at a fiber joint with:
(a) a small alr aap;
(b) an index matchina epoxy which has a refractive Index of 1.40,
OPTICAL FIBERS, CABLES AND CONNECTIONS 175

It may be assumed that the fiber axes and end faces are perfectly aligned at the
joint.

4.12 The Fresnel reflection at a butt joint with an air gap in a multimode step
index fiber is 0.46 dB. Determine the refractive index of the fiber core.

4.13 Describe the three types of fiber misalignment which may contribute to inser-
tion loss at an optical fiber joint.
A step index fiber with a 200 urn core diameter is butt jointed. The joint
which is index matched has a lateral offset of 10 urn but no longitudinal or
angular misalignment. Using two methods, estimate the insertion loss at the
joint assuming the uniform illumination of all guided modes.

4.14 A graded index fiber has a characteristic refractive index profile (a) of 1.85,
and a core diameter of 60 urn. Estimate the insertion loss due to a 5 urn lateral
offset at an index matched fiber joint assuming the uniform illumination of all
guided modes.

4.15 A graded index fiber with a parabolic refractive index profile (a = 2) has a core
diameter of 40 jim. Determine the difference in the estimated insertion losses at
an index matched fiber joint with a lateral offset of 1 jim (no longitudinal or
angular misalignment). When performing the calculation assume (a) the
uniform illumination of only the guided modes and (b) the uniform illumination
of both guided and leaky modes.

4.16 A graded index fiber with a 50 urn core diameter has a characteristic refractive
index profile «(1) of 2.25. The fiber is jointed with index matching and the connec-
tion exhibits an optical loss of 0.62 dB. This is found to be solely due to a lateral
offset of the fiber ends. Estimate the magnitude of the lateral offset assuming the
uniform illumination of all guided modes in the fiber core.

4.17 A step index fiber has a core refractive index of 1.47, a relative refractive index
difference of 2% and a core diameter of 80 urn. The fiber is jointed with a
lateral offset of 21l-m, an angular misalignment of the core axes of 3° and a
small air gap (no longitudinal misalignment). Estimate the total insertion loss
at the joint which may be assumed to comprise the sum of the misalignment
losses.

4.18 Describe what is meant by the fusion splicing of optical fibers. Discuss the
advantages and drawbacks of this jointing technique.
A multimode step index fiber with a core refractive index of 1.52 is fusion
spliced. The splice exhibits an insertion loss of 0.8 dB. This insertion loss is
found to be entirely due to the angular misalignment of the fiber core axes
which is 7°. Determine the numerical aperture of the fiber.

••, . Describe, with the aid of suitable diagrams, three common techniques used for
the mechanical splicing of optical fibers.
A mechanical splice in a multimode step index fiber has a lateral offset of
16% of the fiber core radius. The fiber core has a refractive index of 1.49, and
an Index matchlnl fiuld with a refractive index of 1.45 is inserted in the splice
bttWItft thllNtt~ted fiber end•• AlluminS no longitudinal or angular mis-
.U.MItiIIl, ....... the InHrdon 10.. or the .pUce.
- .. ;., .',.L, ,;:- ;.,
176 OPTICAL FIBER COM MUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AN D PRACTICE

4 .20 Discu ss the principles of o peration of the two majo r ca tego ries of demo untable
o ptical fibe r connector. Desc ribe in detail a common techniq ue for ac hieving a
butt j ointed fi ber eonneoor.
A butt jointed fiber connecto r used on a m ultimode step mdex fiber with a
core refractive indet of 1.4 2 and a relative refract ive indt'll difference of 1%
has an angular misajignmem uf\}o . There is no longilUd inaJ Of' lateral misalign-
ment but there is a small a ir gap between the fi bers in the co nnector. Estimate
thc inser tion lo ss of the connector .

4 .21 Bridl y d escribe the t )·pe~ o f d emou ntable connec ter thaI may be used .....ith
single mode fibers. Furthe r, ind icate the problems in volved with t he co nnectio n
of single mode reers.
A single mode fi ber c on nector is used with a 6 u rn co re dia meter silica
(refractive index 1.46) step index. fi ber which h a.. a no rmalized freq uency of
2.2 a nd a numerica l aperture o f 0 .09. The connecto r has a lateral offset of
0 .7 gm a nd a n ang ula r misalign ment of 0 .8 ° . Estima te th e total ins ert ion loss
of the connector assu ming that the joint is index matched and tha t there is no
longitudina l mi salig nment .

4 .22 A 10 urn core diameter single mode fiber has a normalized freq uency of2.0. A
fusion splice at a point alon g its length exhibit s an insertion loss of 0.15 d ll .
A ssuming only later al misalign ment contributes to the splice insertion loss,
estim ate the m agnitude of th e late ral misalignment .

4 .23 A 5 g m core d ia meter single mode step index fi ber has a nor malized freq uency
of 1.7. a cor-e refractive inde>; o f lAS a nd a numerical a perture of 0 . 14-. The
loss in deci bels due to llngular misalignmen t a t a fus ion splice with a lateral
offset of 0.4 pm is twice t hat d ue to the lateral off~t. Estimale the m agnit ude
in degrees of the a ngula r misa lignment .

4 .24 Given the following parameters for a single mode step index fiber with a fusion
splice estimate ( a) t he fiber con: d ia meter; and (b) the numerical ap ertu re for
the tiber.
Fiber norm alized freq uency = I .t}
Fiber cere rd ract ive inde x - L. 46
Splice lateral offset = 0 .5 IJlTI
Splice latera l offset loss = 0 .0 5 d B
Splice a ngular misa lign ment = 0 .3 0
Splice a ngular misa lignment loss = 0 .04 d B

Answers to Numerical Problema

4 .7 7.4 3 x 10' pst, 0.6% 4.16 4.0 urn
4 .8 0.2 urn 4.17 0. 71 dB
4.' 2.6 1 x 1if psi 4.18 0. 35
4 .11 (a) 0.31 dB ; 4.19 0 .4 7 d B
(b) 3.8 x 10 4 dB 4.20 J.S J d B
4 .12 1.59 4.21 0.54 d B
4 .13 0 .29 d B 4.22 1.2 IlJ11
4 .14 0 .67 dB 4.23 0.6$ 0
4. •• (a) 0 . 19 dB ; 4..4 (a) 7.0 pm ;
( b) 0 .17 d B; ditTerence 0.02 d B (b) 0.10
OPTICA L FIBERS, CAB LES AN D CONN ECTIONS 177

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182 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

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 5
Optical Fiber Measurements

5.1 INTRODUCTION

In this chapter we aTC primarily concerned with measurements on optical

fibers which characterize the fiber. These may be split into three main areas:
(a) transmission characteristics:
(b) geometrical and optical characteristics;
(c) mechanical characteristics.
Data in these three areas are usually provided by the optical fiber
manufacturer with regard to specific fibers. Hence fiber measurements aTC
generally performed in the laboratory and techniques have been developed
accordingly. This information is essential for the optical communication
system designer in order that suitable choices of fibers, materials and devices
may be made with regard to the system application. However, although the
system designer and system user do not usually need to take fundamental
measurements of the fiber characteristics there is a requirement for field
measurements in order to evaluate overall system performance, and for func-
tions such as fault location. Therefore we also include some discussion of field
measurements which take into account the effects of cabled fiber, splice and
connector losses, etc.
There are a number of major techniques used for the laboratory measure-
ment of the various fiber characteristics. The transmission characteristics of
greatest interest are those of optical attenuation and dispersion (bandwidth),
whereas the important geometrical and optical characteristics include size
(core and cladding diameters), numerical aperture and refractive index prolile.
Measurements of the mechanical characteristics such as tensile strength and
durability were outlined in Section 4.6.1 and arc therefore pursued no further
in this chapter.
When attention is focused on the measurement of the transmission
properties of multimode fibers, problems emerge regarding the large number of
modes propagating in the fiber. The various modes show individual differences
with reiard to attenuation and dispersion within the fiber. Moreover, mode
coupllnl occun,lvinl transfer of energy from one mode to another (see
hctkm 2;3.7). Tht modi coupUn. which Is associated wtth perturbations in
 184 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

the tiber composition or geometry, and external factors such as microbcnds or

splices, is for instance responsible for the increased attenuation (due to radia-
tion) of the higher order modes. These multimode propagation effects mean
that both the fiber loss and bandwidth are not uniquely defined parameters but
depend upon the fiber excitation conditions and environmental factors such as
cabling, bending, etc. Also these transmission parameters may vary along the
fiber length (i.e. they are not necessarily linear functions) due to the multimode
propagation effects. making extrapolation of measured data to different fiber
lengths less than meaningful.
It is therefore important that transmission measurements on multimode
fibers are performed in order to minimize these uncertainties. In the
laboratory, measurements are usually taken on continuous lengths of uncabled
tiber in order to reduce the influence of external factors on the readings (this
applies to both multimode and single mode fibers). However, this docs mean
that the system designer must be aware of the possible deterioration in the fiber
transmission characteristics within the installed system. The multimode
propagation effects associated with fiber perturbations may be accounted for
by allowing or encouraging the mode distribution to reach a steady-state
(equilibrium) distribution. This distribution occurs automatically after
propagation has taken place over a certain tiber length (coupling length)
depending upon the strength of the mode coupling within the particular fiber.
At equilibrium the mode distribution propagates unchanged and hence the
fiber attenuation and dispersion assume well-defined values. These values of
the transmission characteristics are considered especially appropriate for the
interpretation of measurements to long-haul links and do not depend on
particular launch conditions.
The equilibrium mode distribution may be achieved by launching the optical
signal through a long (dummy) fiber to the fiber under test. This technique has
been used to good effect [Ref. 1] but may require several kilometers of dummy
fiber and is therefore not suitable for dispersion measurements. Alternatively
there are a number of methods of simulating the equilibrium mode distribution
with a much shorter length of fiber. Mode equilibrium-may be achieved using
an optical source with a mode output which corresponds to the steady-state
mode distribution of the fiber under test. This technique may be realized
experimentally using an optical arrangement which allows the numerical
aperture of the launched beam to be varied (using diaphragms) as well as the
spot size of the source (using pinholes). In this case the input light beam is
given an angular width which is equal to the equilibrium distribution numerical
aperture of the fiber and the source spot size on the fiber input face is matched
to the optical power distribution in a cross section of the fiber at equilibrium.
Other techniques involve the application of strong mechanical perturbations
I on a short section of the fiber in order to quickly induce mode coupling and
hence equilibrium mode distribution within I m. These devices which simulate.
mode equilibrium over a short length of fiber are known as mode scramblers-or
OPTICAL FIBER MEASUREMENTS 185

mode mixers. A simple method [Ref. 2] is to sandwich the fiber between two
sheets of abrasive paper (i.e. sandpaper) placed on wooden blocks in order to
provide a suitable pressure. Two slightly more sophisticated techniques are
illustrated in Fig. 5.1 [Refs. 3 and 41-
Figure 5.1(a) shows mechanical perturbations induced by enclosing the
tiber with metal wires and applying pressure by use of a surrounding heat
shrinkable tube. A method which allows adjustment and therefore an improved
probability of repeatable results is shown in Fig. 5.1(b). This technique
involves inserting the fiber between a row of equally spaced pins, subjecting it
to sinusoidal bends. Hence the variables are the number of pins giving the
number of periods, the pin diameter d and the pin spacing s.
In order to test that a particular mode scrambler gives an equilibrium mode
distribution within the test fiber, it is necessary to check the insensitivity of the
far field radiation pattern (this is related to the mode distribution, see Section
2.3.6) from the tiber with regard to changes in the launch conditions. It is also
useful to compare the far field patterns from the mode scrambler and a
separate long length at the test fiber for coincidence [Ref II. However, it must
be noted that at present mode scramblers tend to give only an approximate
equilibrium mode distribution and their effects vary with different fiber types.
Hence measurements involving the use of different mode scrambling methods
can be subject to discrepancies. Nevertheless, the majority of laboratory
measurement techniques to ascertain the transmission characteristics of multi-
mode optical fibers use some form of equilibrium mode simulation in order to
give values representative of long transmission lines.
We commence the discussion of optical tiber measurements in Section 5.2
by dealing with the major techniques employed in the measurement of fiber
attenuation. These techniques include measurement of both total fiber attenua-
tion and the attenuation resulting from individual mechanisms within the fiber
(e.g. material absorption, scattering). In Section 5.3 fiber dispersion measure-
ments in bot-h- the time and frequency domains are discussed. Various tech-
niques for the measurement of the fiber refractive index profile are then con-

________ ._____-Fikr
1,5,,,,,
_ _ Wire' '00 ~m

~--I{""t ~lTlllk"blc
llIbe

1'1 (hi

PI•••. , Mode Icremtilerl; (8) heel shrinking technique IRef. 31; Ib) bending technique
[AI'. 41, '
 186 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

sidered In Section 5.4. In Section 5.5 we discuss two simple methods for
measuring the fiber numerical aperture. Measurement of the fiber outer
diameter is then dealt with in Section 5.6. Finally, field measurements which
may be performed on optical fiber links, together with examples of measure-
ment instruments, are discussed in Section 5.7. Particular attention is paid in
this concluding section to optical time domain reflectometry (OTDR).

5.2 FIBER ATTENUATION MEASUREMENTS

Fiber attenuation measurements techniques have been developed in order to

determine the total fiber attenuation of the relative contributions to this total

I, from both absorption losses and scattering losses. The overall fiber attenuation
is of greatest interest to the system designer, but the relative magnitude of the
different loss mechanisms is important in the development and fabrication of
1
low loss fibers. Measurement techniques to obtain the total fiber attenuation
give either the spectral loss characteristic (see Fig. 3.3) or the loss at a single
wavelength (spot measurement).

5.2.1 Total Fiber Attenuation

A commonly used technique for determining the total fiber attenuation per unit
length is the cut back or differential method. Figure 5.2 shows a schematic

r.l L, Vkwing
Order L..Jopti" Cl,d~ing mode
Chopp"r ",
or mg
lilt«
!trippe'

I \1od,' "r,m~

wnn
" 0'"
lil'il!
'iHLr," -.. k , 1/ ~
-,
Len. LOll, Objo"i.o

~lQnochTOmalor

Rd,',,"c('
,i",,.1 Fiber'
/

lock·in
r-', /
){",'0.0'" /di, Pl.y ."'plif,er
1
I
,I -f "'
10000x m,!cb,d CI.ddlnl;
photod,tcotm InOode
stripper

Fig.6.2 A typical experimental arrangement for the measurement 01 Ipectral lOll In

optical fibers using the CUI back technique.

./
OPTI CAL FIBER MEASURE.M ENT S 187

diagram of the typical experimen tal set-up for measu rement of tbe spectra l le ss
to obta in (he overall attenuatio n spectru m for the fi ber. It co nsists o f a ' white'
light SO UTCt:. usually a tungsten halogen or xenon arc lamp. The focused light is
mec hanically cbopped at a low frequency of a few hundred hert z. This enables
the lock-in amplifier at the receiver to perform ph ase-sensitive de tection. The
chopped light is then fed through a monochromator which utilizes a prism or
diffrac tion grating a rrangement \ 0 select the required wavelength at which the
attenuation is to be mea sured. Hence the light is filtered before being focused
onto the fi ber by means of a microscope objective lens. A beam splitter may be
incorporated before the fi ber to pro vide light for viewing optics and a re fe rence
signa l used to compensate for o utput power fluctuations. As ind icated in
Section 5.1. when the measurement is performed on rnultimode fibers it is very
dependent o n the optical launch conditions. T herefore unless the la unch optics
are arranged to give the steady -sta te mode distribution at the fibe r input. o r a
d um my fi ber is used, then a mode scram bling device is attached to the fiber
within the first meter. T he fibe r is also usually put through a cladding mode
stripper, which may co nsist of an S-shaped groove cut in the T efl on and filled
with glycerin. Thi s device removes light launched into t he fiber cladding
thro ugh r adiation into the index matched (or-slightly higher refractive index)
glycerin. A mode stripper can also be included at t he fi ber outp ut end to
remo ve any optical power which is scattered from the co re into the cladding
do wn the fiber len gth. T his tends to be pronounced when the Iiber cladd ing
consists o f a low refra ct ive inde.. silicone resin.
The optical power at the receiving end of the fiber is detect ed using a p---i-n
or ava lanche phorodiod e. In order to o btain reprod ucible re!'ults the photo-
de tector surface is us ually index matched to the fiber outpu t end face using
epoxy resin or an index matching cell I Ref. 51. F inally the electrical outpu t
from the photodetector is fed to a lo ck-in amplifier ; the o utput of which is
reco rded.
T he cut back method invo lves taking a set of optical output power measure-
ments over the req uired spectrum using a lo ng length of fiber (usually at least a
kilometer). This fi ber is genera lly uncabled ha ...-ing only a primary protecti ve
co ating. Increased losse s d ue to cabling (see Section 4.6.2) do not tend to
cha nge the shape of the attenua tion spectrum as they a re entirely radiative,
which for multimode fi bers are almost wavelength independent. The fiber is
the n cut back to a point a few meters (e.g. 3 m ) from the input end and,
maintaining the same launch conditions, another set of power output measure-
ments are taken. The follow ing relationship for the optical atten uation per unit
length adB for the fiber may be obtained from Eq. (3.3):

(5.1)

L l and L 3 art the orfa1nI1lnd cut bult fiber lengths respectively, and POI and

•••
188 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

P02 are the corresponding output optical powers at a specific wavelength from
the original and cut back tiber lengths. Hence when L] and L 2 arc measured in
kilometers, ces has units of dB km I.
Furthermore Eq. (5.l) may be written 10 the form:

(5.2)

where VI and V2 correspond to output voltage readings from the original fiber
length and the cut back fiber length respectively. The electrical voltages VI and
V 2 may be directly substituted for the optical powers POI and Pm of Eq. (5.1)
as they arc directly proportional to these optical powers (see Section 7.4.3).
The accuracy of the results obtained for u JB using this method is largely
dependent on constant optical launch conditions and the achievement of the
equilibrium mode distribution within the fiber. It is indicated [Refs. 6 and 71
that for constant launch conditions IT.JB may be determined with a precision of
around ±O.l dB over 1 km lengths of fiber. Alternatively the total uncertainty
in the measured attenuation is quoted [Ref 81 as ±0.2/(L L 2 ) dB krrr ' J
-

where L 1 and L 2 are in kilometers. Hence the approximate uncertainty for a

I km fiber length is +0.2 dB km-".

Example 5.1

A 2 km length of multi mode fiber is attached to apparatus for spectral loss measure
men!. The measured output voltage from the photoreceiver lIsing the full 2 krn fiber
length is 2.1 Vat a wavelength of O.85I!m, When the fiber is thHn CuI back to IpaVA
a 3 m length the output voltage increases to 10.5 V. Determine the attenuation per
kilometer for the fiber at a wavelength of 085j,un and estimate the eccuracv of the
result,
Solution: The attenuation per kilometer may be obtained from Eq {5.21 where:

10 V. 10 10,5
cae ~ '-~--log'0-'= 109 10 - -
L, L, V, 1.997 2,1

= 3.5 dB km 1

The uncertainty in the meesurec Bttenuation may be estimat ed using:

±O,2 ±O,2
Uncertainty ~- :::: ±0.1 dB
L,-L 2 1 997

The dynamic range of the measurements that may be taken depends upon
the exact configuration of the apparatus utilized, the optical wavelength and
the fiber core diameter. However, a typical dynamic range is in the region
3~0 dB when using a white light source at a wavelength of 0.8S ~m and
multimode fiber with a core diameter around SO um. This may be lncreeaed to'
OPTICA L FIBER MEASUREM ENTS 189

aro und 60 d B by use of a laser source operating at the same wa velengt h. It

must be noted tha t a la ser source is only suita ble for making a single
wa velength (spot) measurement as it does not emit across a broad band of
spectral wavelengths.
Spot measurement s may be performed on an
experimental set-up similar to
that shown in Fig. 5.2. However interference filters are frequently used instead
of the monochrom ator in order to obtain a measurement at a particular optical
wavelength . T hese provide greater d ynamic range ( to- 15 dB improvement)
th an the monochromator but are of limited use for spectral measurements d ue
to the reduced number orwavelengrhs that a rc genera lly availa ble for measure-
ment. A typical optica l confi guration for spot attenuation measurements is
sho wn in Fig. 5.3. Th e interference filters are located on a wheel to allow
mea surem ent at a selection of dilTcren t wavelengths. In the experimental
a rrangement shown in F ig. 5.3 the source spot size is defined by a pinhole and
the beam angular width is varied by using different diaphragms. However, the
electro nic equipment utilized with this set-up is similar to that used for the
spectral loss measurements illustrated in Fig. 5.2. Therefore dete rm ination of
the optical loss per unit length for the fiber at a particular wavelength is per-
formed in exactly the same mann er, using the cut' back method . Spot attenua-
lion measurements are sometimes utilized after fiber c abling in order to o btain
info rmatio n on any degradation in the fiber attenuation resulting from the
cabling process. .
Altho ugh widely used, the c ut back measure-ment, method has the major
d rawback of being a destructive techniq ue. Therefore, although suita ble for

.' (1k>l>P<'

U (I
,,- -- ~ l"~
...... i
I •.,..

- "'
0 -
/

, I;f' <,
, ~. D
1JI Ic.k",n«
1'1...."" b ll<' .~, d
I« k " n,-,
~" ' F ,l>f,"-
, -, ./

R,corJ , r ' .I'l i' .1

1.<>ok-i, >mpJi r""
./
",U I1><' " I

11••1<, n•• « ll<>d

ph ~toeI<""'l<II

... ... Art ,~ "ment8 1 .rnn;-mlnt tor mallJog spot Isingle whelel'lgthl a ll8ouat ion
m " IlI~ "'tI ullng IMlrlI"'nl;1 flit." ancl e rnDloylng t he cut N ell tlchnique.
190 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES A ND PRACTICE

la boratory measu rement it is far from ideal for atten ua tio n measurements in
the field . Severa l nondestructive techniques exist wh ich allow the fiber lo sses to
be ca lc ulated th rough a single read ing of the optical o utput power at the far
end of the fiber after determination of the near end po wer level. The sim plest is
t he insertion loss techni que which utilizes the same experim ental configuration
as the cut b ack met hod. H owever, the fi ber to be tested is spliced, o r connected
by means o f a demo untable connecto r. to a fiber with a known optical output
at th e wavelength of interest. w hen all the o ptical power is co m pletel y coupled
between the two fibers, or when the insertion loss of the splice or connector are
kn ow n, then the measurement of the optical output power from the second
fiber gives the loss resulting from the insertion of thi s second fiber into the
system. Hence the insertion loss due to the second fiber provides measure ment
of its attenuation per unit length. Un fortunately the acc uracy of this mea su re-
ment method is dependent on the coupling between the two fiber s and is
therefore somewhat uncertain.
The most popular nondestructive attenuatio n mea surement techn iq ue for
both labora tory and field use only requires access to one end of the fiber. It is
the backscatter meas urement method which uses opti cal time domain refkc-
tometry and also provides measurement of splice and co nnector losses as well
as fault location. Optical time domain rellectometry fi nds major usc in field
mea surements a nd therefore is discussed in detail in Sectio n 5.7. 1.

5.2.2 Fiber Absorption Loss Measurement

It was indicated in the p revio us section that there is a requirement fo r the
optical fibe r manufacturer to be able to separate the total fiber atten uat ion into
the contributio ns from the major loss mechanism s. Material absorption lo ss
measurements a llow the level o f impurity content within the fiber material to
be checked in the manufacturing process. The measurem ents a re ba sed on
cal orimetric method s which determine the temperat ure rise in th e fiber o r bulk
m aterial resulting from the ab sorbed optical energy within the struc ture.
The apparatus shown in Fig. 5.4(a) [Ref. 121 wh ich is use d to mea sure the
absorption loss in o ptica l fibers wa s modified from an earlier version which
measured the a bsorption lo sses in bu lk glasses (Ref. 131. This temperature
measurement techniq ue, illustrated d ia grammatically in F ig. 5.4(b), has been
widely adopted for absorption lo ss meas urements. The two fiber sam ples
shown in Fig. S.4(b) are mounted in capillary tubes sur ro unded by a low
refractive index liquid (e.g. meth anol) for good electri cal conta ct, within the
same enclo su re of the apparatus sho wn in F ig. S.4(a). A thermocouple is
wo un d aro und the fiber c on tainin g capillary tubes using one of them as a
reference junctio n (d ummy fibe r). light is launched from a laser source
( Nd :YAG or krypton io n depending o n the wavelength of interest) th rough
the m ain fiber (not the dummy), and the temperature rise due to abso rption is
measured by the thermocou ple a nd indicated o n I nancvcltmeter. Electrical '
OPTICAL FIBER MEASUREMENTS 191

rc ".nomltme'el'
M."i,'c
ro I',fe",,,c<
,"dO'lLJ"
-, "mpl,'

Sili,'. L.""chi"~
Fib", /',uh" ,-011

rh<rrnopilc I ,
I
)'lode ,tripp..

//
/

llypoocrmic Ethyl
I
,",
,,,he ;,ic"hol objcc",',
,
111crmocollplo
jU"Cli<.><,

" ,
1101 jundion

\ Silica ",pill",;e, ! ThermocoUPle

I
Fig.5.4 Calorimetric measurement of fiber absorptionlosses: (a) schematic diagram of a
version of the apparatus Iner. 121: [b} the temperature measurement technique
using a thermocouple.

calibration may be achieved by replacing the optical fibers with thin resistance
wires and by passing known electrical power through one. Independent
measurements can then be made using the calorimetric technique and with
electrical measurement instruments.
The calorimetric measurements provide the heating and cooling curve for
the fiber sample used. A typicalexample of this curve is illustrated in Fig.
5,5(a). The attenuation of the fiber due to absorption a. b , may be determined
from this heating and cooling characteristic. A time constant te can be
obtained from a plot of(T", - T t ) on a logarithmic scale against the time t, an
example of which shown in Fig. 5.5(c) was obtained from the heating
characteristic displayed in Fig, 5,5(b) [Ref. 131. Too corresponds to the
maximum temperature rise of the fiber under test and T1 is the temperature rise
at a time t. It may be observed from Fig, 5,5(a) that Too corresponds to a
Itead)' ,tate tempUlture for the flber when the heat loss to the surrounding
 192 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICATIONS: PRIN CIP LES AND PRACTICE

-- - --.;;.-~
- -,
( .,

, 10)

,
,
,-
"!-----*----~,,--.,,
'0' : 00 , 1<)

: :

"" I (' )

Fig. 5.5 (a ) A typical h@al i"9andcooli ng curvefor a glass fiber sam ple. (bi A. hell ing curve
I a nd Ic) too corrlls pond lll9 plo t of (T - Tt l ltga irnJt time for I tllT'p t, gI ... rod
I-
I (bulk material measurement ). Reproduced with p41f1"'liulon from 1(. I. White Ind.
• J. E. Midwi'ller.ODto-elecrronlcs.I .p. 323, 19 73.
OPTICAL FIBER MEASUREMENTS 193

balances the heat generated in the fiber resulting from absorption at a

particular optical power level. The time constant Ie may be obtained from the
slope of the straight line plotted in Fig. 5.5(c) as:

(5.3)

where II and t2 indicate two points in time and to is a constant for the
calorimeter which is inversely proportional to the rate of heat loss from the
device.
From detailed theory it may be shown [Ref 131 that the fiber attenuation
due to absorption is given by:

(5.4)

where C is proportional to the thermal capacity per unit length of the silica
capillary and the low refractive index liquid surrounding the fiber, and Popl is the
optical power propagating in the fiber under test. The thermal capacity per unit
length may be calculated, or determined by the electrical calibration utilizing
the thin resistance wire. Usually the time constant for the calorimeter Ie is
obtained using a high absorption fiber which gives large temperature
differences and greater accuracy. Once t, is determined, the absorption losses
of low loss test fibers may be calculated from their maximum temperature rise
Tei:;' using Eq. (5.4). The temperatures are measured directly in terms of the
thermocouple output (microvolts), and the optical input to the test fiber is
obtained by use of thermocouple or optical power meter.

Example 5.2

Measurements are made using a calorimeter and thermocouple experimental

arrangement as shown in Fig. 54 in order to determine the absorption loss of an
optical fiber sample. Initially a high absorption fiber is utilized to obtain a plot of
(Tc>o - Ttl on a logarithmic scale against t. It is found from the plot that the readings
of (Tro- T~ after 10 and 100 seconds are 0.525 and 0,021 uv respectively.
The test fiber is then inserted ln.tha calorimeter and gives a maximum temper-
ature rise of 4.3 x 10-0 °C with a constant measured optical power of 98 mW at a
wavelength of 0.75 lim. The thermal capacity per kilometer of the silica capillary
and fluid is calculated to be 1.64 x 10' J °C-'.
Determine the absorption loss in dB km-". at a wavelength of 0.75 urn. for the
fiber under test.
Solution: Initially, the time constant for the calorimeter is determined from the
meaeurements taken on the high absorption fiber using Eq. (5.31 where:
 194 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

100-10

90
In (O.5251-ln 10.021)

= 28.0 s
Then the absorption loss of the test fiber may be obtained uslnq Eq. (54) whPrH:

CT"" 1.64 x 10' x 4.3 x 10-4

98x 10 )x28.0

= 2.5 dB km-'

Hence direct measurement of the contribution of absorption losses to the

total fiber attenuation may be achieved. However, fiber absorption losses are
often obtained indirectly from measurement of the fiber scattering losses (see
the next section) by subtraction from the total fiber attenuation, measured by
rit~{J, on, of the techniques discussed in Section 5.2.1.

5.2.3 Fiber Scattering Loss Measurement

The usual method of measuring the contribution of the losses due to scattering
within the total fiber attenuation is to collect the light scattered from a short
length of fiber and compare it with the total optical power propagating within
the fiber. Light scattered from the fiber may be detected in a scattering cell as
illustrated in the experimental arrangement shown in Fig. 5.6. This may consist
of a cube of six square solar cells (Tynes cell IRef. 141) or an integrating sphere

Soa"" ;,," cub, li",,1

with ,Ix ,olar ",II,

Chiliel ill~ mou, Cl.dd,n~ InO"'-

("h'~'I'" ",il'pe, "'Lrpcr
/
Los" sourc,'
•• \ \ \
1/ \ ••
/

nef"",I'" ,igndl
I ""
P,,- 0' "
. •
InJex ",,,ohi,

_ _ I"'"grating
-..,.-,,, '1'1""

Sign.] detce'o< P"

Fig. &.6 An experimental 50t-UP for measurement of fiber scattarlng loss Illustrating both
the solar call cuba and Integrating sphara scattering celli.
OPTICAL FIBER MEASUREMENTS 195

and detector IRef. 151. The solar cell cube which contains index matching fluid
surrounding the fiber gives measurement of the scattered light, but careful
balancing of the detectors is required in order to achieve a uniform response.
This problem is overcome in the integrating sphere which again usually con-
tains index matching fluid but responds uniformly to different distributions of
scattered light. However, the integrating sphere does exhibit high losses from
internal reflections. Other variations of the scattering cell include the internally
reflecting cell [Ref. 161 and the sandwiching of the fiber between two solar cells
IRef. 171.
A laser source (i.e. He-Ne, Nd: Y AG, krypton ion) is utilized to provide
sufficient optical power at a single wavelength together with a suitable instru-
ment to measure the response from the detector. In order to avoid inaccuracies
in the measurement resulting from scattered light which may be trapped in the
fiber, cladding mode strippers (see Section 5.2.1) are placed before and after
the scattering cell. These devices remove the light propagating in the cladding
so that the measurements are taken only using the light guided by the fiber
core. Also to avoid reflections contributing to the optical signal within the cell,
the output fiber end is index matched using either a fluid or suitable surface.
The loss due to scattering Usc following Eq. (3.3) is given by:

u," = 10 loglo
{(km)
(P",)
p,"
P,>pt -
dB km , (5.5)

where {(km) is the length of the fiber in km contained within the scattering cell,
Po pt is the optical power propagating within the fiber at the cell and Psc is the
optical power scattered from the short length of fiber l within the cell. As
P o Pt ;t> P,o, then the logarithm in Eq. (5.5) may be expanded to give:

Usc =
4.343 (P,c ) dB km'
- '- (5.6)
{(km) Po pt

Since the measurements of length are generally in centimeters and the

optical power is normally registered in volts, Eq. (5.6) can be written as:

5
4.343 X 10 (. V'o ) -r
.~ --dBkm (5.7)
'0 {(em) VUp l

where V", and VOPI are the voltage readings corresponding to the scattered
optical power and the total optical power within the fiber at the cell. The rela-
tive experimental accuracy {i.e. repeatability) for scatter loss measurements are
quoted as ±O.2 dB [Ref. 6J using the solar cell cube and around 5% [Ref. 81
with the integrating sphere. However, it must be noted that the absolute
accuracy or the measurements is somewhat poorer, being dependent on the
cIllbrldon Or the ICiatterina cell and the mode distribution within the fiber.
 196 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Example 5.3

A He-Ne laser operating at a wavelength of 063 J.lm was used w it h a solar cell cube
to measure the scanering loss in an optical fiber sample. With a constant optical
,I output power the reading from the solar cell cube was 8 14 nV. The optiGal power
I measurement at the cube without scattering was 153.38 ).IV. The length of till! filwr
in the cube was 2.92 em. Determine the loss due to scattering in dB krn 'for the
fiber at a wavelength of 0.63 urn.
Solution: The scattering loss in the fiber at a wavelength of 0.63 J.lm may be
obtained directly using Eq. 15.71 where:

I (em I

4.343 x 10" 6.14XlO-')

(
2.92 153.38x 10 "

= 6.0 dB km-"

&.3 FIBER DISPERSION MEASUREMENTS

, Dispersion measurements give an indication of the distortion to optical signals

,,I! as they propagate down optical fibers. The delay distortion which, for
example, leads to the broadening of transmitted light pulses, limits the
information-carrying capacity of the fiber. Hence as shown in Section 3.7 the
measurement of dispersion allows the bandwidth of the fiber to be determined.
Therefore besides attenuation, dispersion is the most important transmission
characteristic of an optical fiber. As discussed in Section 3.7 there are three
major mechanisms which produce dispersion in optical fibers (material disper-
sion, waveguide dispersion and intermodal dispersion). The importance of
these different mechanisms to the total fiber dispersion is dictated by the fiber
type.
For instance, in multimode fibers (especially step index), intermodal disper-
sion tends to be the dominant mechanism, whereas in single mode fibers inter-
modal dispersion is nonexistent as only a single mode is allowed to propagate.
In the single mode case the dominant dispersion mechanism is intramodal (i.e.
material dispersion). The dominance of intermodal dispersion in multimode
fibers makes it essential that dispersion measurements on these fibers are only
performed when the equilibrium mode distribution has been established within
the fiber, otherwise inconsistent results will be obtained. Therefore devices
such as mode scramblers must be utilized in order to simulate the steady-state
mode distribution.
Dispersion effects may be characterized by taking measurements of the
impulse response of the fiber in the time domain, or by measuring the
OPTICAL FIBER MEA SUREMENTS 197

baseband frequency response in lhe frequency domain. If it is assumed that the

fiber response is linear with regard (0 power IRef. 191. a mathemati cal descrip-
tion in the time domain for the optical output power Po(t) from the fiber may
be o btained by convoluting the power impulse respon se h(t) with the o ptical
input po wer Pj(t) a s:
(5.8)
where the asterisk • denotes conv olution. The conv olution of h(t) with P,(t)
sbo wn in Eq. (5.8) may be evaluated using the convolution integral IRef. 201
where:

P,«(l ~ .r: P,«(- x )h(xl dx ( 5.9)

In the frequency domain the power transfer function l1 (w) is the Fo urier
transform of h(t) and therefore by taking the Fourier tran sforms of all the
fu nctions in Eq. (5.8) we obtain.
'1'0(0)) = H (ro)Pj(m) (5.10)
where w is the base band angular frequency. The frequency domain representa-
tion given in Eq. (5.10) is the lea st mathematically complex, and by performing
the Fou rier tran sformation (or the inverse Fourier transformatio n) it is possible
to switch between the time and frequency dom ains (or vice versa) by
ma thema tical means. Hence. independe nt measurement of either h(l) o r H (ro)
allows determinatio n of the o vera ll d ispersive properties of the o ptical fiber.
Thus fiber dispersion measu rements can be made in eit her the time o r Ire-
qucncy domains.

5 .3.1 Time Domain Me.surement

The most common method fo r time dom ain mea surement of pulse dispersion
in optical fibers is illustrated in Fig. 5.7 [R ef, 2 11. Short o ptical pulses
.....t. ...1..
Ilea... <pIj tt« pM t<>d_

-1"'k ,/ /
>U-

L,n.
V., •• ol,
dto"" rsll,n
•
"
Fober

Pulsed
dnYc,

.....I.n'lw ph<>l<>di<ok: ] 0

.... L7 bptrlm.nla l .,..~ .m.nt tor melti"o fib er dlsD. rsiol'l mM 'Ur&m&nts in t oo
lima dOflllln {Rtf. 2 11. .
.'
198 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

(100-400 ps) are launched into the fiber from a suitable source (e.g. AIGaAs
injection laser) usmg fast driving electronics. The pulses travel down the length
of fiber under test (around I km) and are broadened due to the various disper-
sion mechanisms. However, it is possible to take measurements of an isolated
dispersion mechanism by, for example, using a laser with a narrow spectral
width when testing a multimode fiber. In this case the intramodal dispersion is
negligible and the measurement thus reflects only intermodal dispersion.
The pulses are received by a high speed photodetector (i.e. avalanche photo-
diode) and are displayed on a fast sampling oscilloscope. A beam splitter is
utilized for triggering the oscilloscope and for input pulse measurement.
Alternatively, after the initial measurement of output pulse width, the long
fiber length may be cut back to a short length (1-2 m) and the measurement
repeated in order to obtain the effective input pulse width. The fiber dispersion
is obtained from the two pulse width measurements which are taken at any
convenient fraction of their amplitude. However, unlike the considerations of
dispersion in Sections 3.7-3.10 where rms pulse widths are used, dispersion
measurements are normally made on pulses using the half maximum amplitude
or 3 dB points. If Pi(t) and Po(t) of Eq. (5.8) are assumed to have a Gaussian
shape then Bq. (5.8) may be written in the form 1Ref. 201:

(S.ll)

where 'ti(3 dB) and t o (3 dB) are the 3 dB pulse widths at the fiber input and
output respectively and 't(3 dB) is the width of the fiber impulse response again
measured at half the maximum amplitude. Hence the pulse dispersion in the
fiber (commonly referred to as the pulse broadening when considering the 3 dB
pulse width) in ns km-' is given by:

(t;(3 dB) - t! (3 dB»'

't(3 dB) = ns km I (5.12)
L

where 't(3 dB), 't;(3 dB) and 'to (3 dB) arc measured in ns and L is the fiber
length in km. It must be noted that if a long length of fiber is cut back to a
short length in order to take the input pulse width measurement then L
corresponds to the difference between the two fiber lengths in km. When the
launched optical pulses and the fiber impulse response are Gaussian then the
3 dB optical bandwidth for the fiber Bo pl may be calculated using [Ref. 22]:

B o pt X 't(3 dB) = 0.44 GHz ns

(5.1 J)
= 0.44 MHz ps

Hence estimates of the optical bandwidth for the fiber may be obtained from
the measurements of pulse broadening without resorting to rigorous mathe-
matical analysis.
 OPTICA L FIBER M EASU REM ENTS 199

Pulse d isp ersiOf"t mea su rem en ts are t ake n Ower a 1.2 1ml leng th o l l.ar1ia l1v gr <loed
f ibe r. T he 3 d B w idtns. of t he optical in put pulse s are 3 0 0 p s. .. rId t nc co " pspo" c!i ng
3 d B widths f o r t he o ul put p .... jses are fou nd 10 be 12 6 ns. Ass.um ,ng t he pul"p
shapes ilnd fib er im pulse response are Gaussian cerc utere:
la) Ihe JdB p ulse broaden in g for Ine fi ber in ns km · l •
[b] the f ibe r b il l'ldwi tl l ll--l englh p roduc t
Solulfon : (iI) Th e 3 d B p ulse broad en ing mil y be ob t ained u ~in g Eq.:S. 12 ) w her e :
(12 .6~ _ 0.321 t 11 58 .7 6 _ 0 09 ) l
«a dB I = =-- c-::- -
1.2 1.2

_ 1 0 .5 ns . m- 1

(b) The o pt ical bal'ldwidt h for It>e liber is g iv en by rc, !S. 131 as:
0. 4 4 0 44
-- G Hz ~ m
BOfJ' ." era dB) 10 5

= 4 1.9 MHz km

T he v alue coreioeo for B opt corresponds 10 the b ,md w kft h-l.m g th product f o r the
fi ber bec ec se t he pulse broad ening in part (a) w as c alculated o v er a 1 1<m fih.::! r
leng th . Also i l ma y be 1'1 0100 th at in t his case t he n a"ow input pu lse w id th m a1<f's
litt le d iffer ence 10 t he calc ulaiion o f t he pu lse broa denin g The inp ut pu lse w il1th
bec om es s ign if ica nt w hen m eas ure rnant s are ta ken on low d i~ pA rs i o n f ib ers re.o.
si ng le mod e l .

The dispersio n measurement tech nique discussed above'ls reasonably simple

and gives a direct measurement of the pulse broadening: However. it bas some
dra wbacks when performing measurements o n lo w dispersion fi bers. At
present the time resolutio n of commercially a vailable detectors is limited to a
few tenths of a nanosecond. Hence inaccuracies occur in th e measurement
when the pulse broadening a long the fiber is less than 0.5 ns, For low disper-
sion fibers this may dictate the testing of a considerable length of fiber.
A more convenient method of measuring t he tempora l dispersion of an
optical pulse within a fiber whic h does not require a long fi ber" length is the
shuttle pulse technique. T he experi mental set-up reported by Cohen [Ref 23J
is shown in Fig. 5.8. Both ends of a short fiber length are terminated with
partially transparent mirrors and a pulse launched from a GaAs injection laser
travels through o ne mirror into the fiber and then shuttles back and forth
between the fiber ends. This technique has an added adva ntage in that it allows
the length dependence of the impulse response to be st udied by sampling t he
pWH tJ\er each 2N - 1 (where N = I, 2. J. etc.I transits. The pulse a t the
'., OQtput end it diJplayed on a sampling oscilloscope through the partially trans-
panat mirror. Htnoethe
,
puJs. broadcnina may be meuured by comparing the
200 OPTICAL FI BER COMM UNICATIONS : PRI NCI PLES AND PR ACTICE

."
;o n

Fig.5.8 S che m at ic diagra m s how ing the a ppa ra t us used in the s hutt le pulse technique
fo r ti me do main dispe rsion measure m e nts in o ptica l fi be rs IRef . 2 31.

widlh s of the observed o utput puls es. To ensure symm etrica l reflectio n at the
mirrors it is importa nt that they a re perpendicular to the fi ber a xis. T he mirrors
a re therefore mounted in cylind rical holde rs which ha ve g rooves precisely
milled to a ccurately mach ined faces. A n index matchin g fluid is also utilized
between the fiber end faces and the mirrors in order to ach ieve o ptimum
optical t ransm ission. Nevertheless t he techniq ue does have drawba cks includ-
ing o ptica l loss at each end reflection, T herefore accurate measurements over
multiple refl ections cannot always be en sured.

5 .3.2 Frequency Domain Measurement

F req ue ncy do main measurement is the preferred method fo r acqumng the
band wid th of optica l fiber s. This is because the ba seband frequ ency response
lI(w ) of the fiber may be o btai ned directly from these measurements using Eq.
(5.10) without the need for any as su mptions of Gaussian sh ape, or alter-
n atively. the mat hematically complex deco nvolution of Eq . (5.8) which is
necessary with measurements in the time domain . Thus the optical ba ndwidth
of a fiber is best obtained fro m frequency domain me asurements.
O ne of two frequency domain measurement technique s is generally used .
Th e fi rst utilizes a simila r pu lsed so urce to th at employed for the time dom ain
measurements shown in Fig. (5 .7). However, the sampling oscilloscope is
rep laced by a spectrum analyzer which takes the Fourier transform of the
pu lse in the time d omain and hence d isplays its constituent frequency com-
ponents. T he experimental arrani ement is .illusteeted in Fl,. 5.9.
OPTICA L FI BER M EAS UREMENTS 201

", .aun.o-~ . r hOIW lOJ<

~- , J
'< / = I
t>
'I "
Fli><.

r.,',.od J .....
o . . ,"," "';'~' '-

lli:J
S p" O t ""~ . ,,,,Ly, ..

Fig.5.9 Ex pl!lime"Tal set-u p fo r makirlQ tibe r dis pe rsion meas ure ments in the fre qu l! n.c ~
do ma in using a pulsed lase r source .

Comparison of the spectrum a t the fiber output '1',,(00) with [he spect rum at
the fiber input 'P,(ro) provides the baseband frequency response for the fi ber
under tes t following Eq. (5.10) where:

(5. 14)

The second technique involves launching a sin usoida lly modulated optical
signal at different selected fr equencies using a sweep oscillator . Therefore the
signal energy is concentrated in a very narrow frequency band in the baseban d
region, unlike the pulse measurement method where the signal energy is sp read
over the entire baseband region. A po ssible experime ntal arrangement for this
swept frequency measurement method is shown in F ig. 5.10 [Ref. 24J. The
optical sou rce can be an LED o r an injection laser. both of which may be

.-.
_1lIo"" - Op' ir" ~~I."'"

""-"
~.
... 1, ;.

"
,~
"./
f 11<01.:':"«><'"''

.d,c,i" ,
1 ~IIJi''''"~ ~"''1 '' ' '' 'Y
. m ~ l i f i ..
./
"'"'
Sp,,,,,~," ' ''111~"r .~ " I. "d . phot odiod .

N<,_ _ ." ol ~ ..., Iol' ''' '''l' a nd

l'oor_UIIOI

~.. '.10 Block 1CM'l'IIllc ,how'"il lin ellj)8"mentar 3lTanv" ment fat' the fo~l fIe-
qUincy m . ..urlrnenl mlt l'lod to provide fiber dll ~ion measu rements in me
frtqllt"ICY ltOm' ln (Rtf. 2.].
,
202 OPTICAL FIBE R CO MMU NICATIONS: PRI NCI PLES A ND PRACTICE

d irectly mod ulated (see Section 7.5) from the sweep oscillato r. A spectrum
a na lyzer may be used in order to obtain a contin uou s display of the swe pt fre-
quency signal. Again, Eq. (5. 14) is utilized to ob tain the baseband frequency
response. However, th e spectru m a nalyzer pro vides no info rmation on the
phase of the received sign al. T herefore a vector voltmeter or ideally a network
analyzer can be employed to give both the frequ ency and phase information
(Ref. 71.

5.4 FIBER REFRACTIVE INDEX PROFILE MEASUREMENTS

T he refractive index profile of t he fi ber core pla ys a n important role in

c ha racterizing the properties o f o ptical fibers. It a llows d etermination of the
fiber' s numerical aperture and the nu mber o f mode s propagating within the
fibe r core, whilst largely de fining any intermodal an d/ or profi le dispersion
ca used by the fiber. Hence a detail ed knowl edge of the refractive index pro file
enables the impulse respon se of the fiber to be predicted. Also as the impulse
response and consequently the information-carrying capacity of the fiber is
strongly depend ent on the refractive index profil e, it is essentia l t hat th e fiber
manufa cturer is a ble to produce particular profiles with great accuracy,
e specially in the C.1.SC of gra ded index fibers (i.e. o ptimu m profile). There is
therefore a requirement for accu rate measurement o f the refractive index
profile. These measurements. may be performed using a number o f different
techniques each o f which exhibit certain advantages and drawback s. In this
sectio n we will discu ss. some of th e more popular meth od s which may be
relati vely easily interpreted theoretically, without attempting to review all the
possible techniques which have been developed.

5.4.1 Interferometric Method.

Interference microscopes (e.g. Mach-Zehnder, Michelson) ha ve been widely
used to determine the refractive index profiles of o ptical fi bers. The technique
usua lly involves th e prepa ration of a thin slice of fiber (slab method) which has
both ends acc urately polished to obta in sq uare (to th e tiber a xes) and optically
fl.a t surfaces. T he slab is often im mersed in an index matching fl uid, and the
assembly is examined with a n interference microscope. T wo major methods
are then emplo yed; using either a trans mitted light interferometer (Mach-
Zehnder [Ref. 25J) or a rel1ected light interferometer (Michelson [Ref. 261). In
both ca ses light from the micro scope travels nor mal to the p repared fiber slice
faces (parallel to the fibe r axis), and differences in refr act!....e index result in
d ifferent o ptical path lengths . Thi s situation is illustrated in the case of the
Mach -Zehnder interferometer in Fig . S. l l(a). When the phase of the incident
light is compared with the phase of the emerging lipt, a field of par allel

' ..
' ... "'"
OP TI CA L FIBER M EA SUREMENT S 203

.
'-" ~op , ..
" ~'------1c--"",
f ',,11
lk•., "'11lt" f'~~·'---~'v
i"-·-----,~

rt:o.~:;' ,,'
Fig. 6 .11 (a) T he principle of t he M ach-Zehnd er rnter tercme ter [ Ref 251. (bl The
int erference fring e patte rn obt ai ned w it h an i nte rf erence mi cros cope fr om a
grad ed in dex fi ber. Reprod uced w ith permis sion fr om L, G. Cohen, P. Kaise r,
J. B. Mecch esnev. P, B O'Con ner and H, M. Presby , Appl. Phys. Lett.. 26,
p. 472,19 7 5 ,

interference fri nges are ob served . A photograph of the fri nge pattern may then
be taken. an example of which is shown in Fig. 5.1 I(b) IRef. 28 1.
The fringe disp lacements for the points within th e libel' core a rc then
measured using as reference the pa rallel fringes outside the libel' core (in the
fi ber cladding). The refractive index d ifference betwee n a po int in the fi ber core
(e.g. the core axi s) and lhe cladding c an tc obtained from the fringe shift q.
which co rres ponds to a number of fringe displacem ents. T his d iffe rence ill.
refractive index 5/1 is given by (Ref. 6 1:

q ).
6,, = - (5. 15)
x

w here x is the thickness o f the fi ber slab and A is t he incident o ptical

wa velength. The slab method gives an accurate measurement of the refractive
ind ex. profile, although computation o f the individual po ints is somewhat
tediou s un less an automated technique is used [R ef. 281. Figure 5.12 [Ref. 281
shows the refractive index profile obtained from the fringe patt ern ind icated in
Fig. S.II(b).
A limitation of this method is the time required to prepare the fi ber slab.
However, another interfero metric technique ha s been deve loped IRef. 30]
which requires no sample prep aration . In this method the light beam is incident
to the fiber perpend icular to its axis : this is known as transverse shearing
' Interferometry. Again fringes are observed from which the fi ber refract ive
Index prolUe may be obtained.
, ,
,.
204 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS: PR INCIPLES A ND PRACTICE

• " • :!-o
" •
I
" . l4
l 'fft'I 1JI_.Il"d ~

• • 't
• , ,
't
,,,. •
, • I
I
0
• •,
,, I
I •
•
,
••
,
\
I
I· ,

,
lU \

,\ ,
\,
~4

.,
1 ' - _ . _. _ . _ . -
R. ~....
- ~
I''''
_ ..-

, : ,
'J •
Fig.5.12 The fi be r refra ctive inde ~ p rofi le compe ted fro m tbe lorertereece patt e rn
snown in Fig . 5 .1 1Ibl. Reproduced with per miss io n trom L G . Cohen. P. Ka iser,
J . 8 M acChesne y, P. B. O'Conner and H. M. Presby. A pfll. Phys. Lett.• 26.
p. 4 72, 1975.

5.4.2 Near Field Scanning Method

The near field scanning method utilizes the close resemblance that exists
between t he ncar field intensity distribution and the refractive index profile, for
a tiber with all the guided modes equally illuminated. It provides a reasonably
straightforward and rapid method far acquiring the refractive index profile.
When a diffuse Lambertian source {e.g, t ungsten filament lamp or LED) is
used to excite all the guided modes then t he near fiel d optical power density at
a radius r from the core axis P[)(r ) may be expressed as a fraction of the core
axis near field optical power den sity Po(O) following IRef. 3 11 :

PD(r) [ n1 (r) - ni ]
-:".",, = C(u) (5.l6)
PolO) , nHOl - nj
OPTICAL FIBER MEASUREMENTS 205

where nl(O) and nl(r) are the refractive indices at the core axis and at a
distance r from the core axis respectively, n: is cladding refractive index and
C(r, z) is a correction factor. The correction factor which is incorporated to
compensate for any leaky modes present in the short test fiber may be deter-
mined analytically. A set of normalized correction curves is, for example, given
in Ref. 33.
An experimental configuration is shown in Fig. 5.13. The output from a
Lambertian source is focused onto the end of the fiber using a microscope
objective lens. A magnified image of the fiber output end is displayed in the
plane of a small active area photodetector (e.g. silicon p-i-n photodiode]. The
photodetector which scans the field transversely receives amplification from
the phase sensitive combination of the optical chopper and lock-in amplifier.
Hence the profile may be plotted directly on an X-V recorder. However, the
profile must be corrected with regard to C(r, z) as illustrated in Fig. 5.14(a)
which is very time consuming. Both the scanning and data acquisition can be
automated with the inclusion of a minicomputer IRef. 31].
The test fiber is generally less than I m in length to eliminate any differential
mode attenuation and mode coupling. A typical refractive index profile for a
practical step index fiber measured by the near field scanning method is shown
in Fig. 5.14(b). It may be observed that the profile dips in the center at the fiber
core axis. This results from the collapse of the fiber preform before the fiber is
drawn during the manufacturing process (see Sections 4.3 and 4.4).
Measurements of the refractive index profile may also be obtained from the
far field pattern produced by laser light scattered by the fiber under test. This
'technique, generally known as the scattered pattern method, requires complex
analysis of the forward or backward patterns in order to determine the refrac-
tive index profile [Ref. 31]. Therefore, it is pursued no further in this text.

Chopp<r Pr<ampllfior
x400bj
-
..c v /'
-
•
Ira"e,·,aol,
detector

Flb.r

,
,,0Obj
C\
"'00'00<
Look·ln
amplifier -

o , Limbo,ti",

.......
,
IOU"•

EKptrlmentel let-up for the near field scanning measurement of the refractive
Ind'll profll, IR.f. 321.
 206 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Normalj"d
",---------,
inlcn,ily
Refrncliw
i",lo,

'" C""',lo<l
near fi<IJ
11.8 i"t"n~ty

I, '" Di,tant'c

o.a
I
0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0
I

'"
Fig.5.14 (al The refractive index profile of a step index fiber measured using the near
field scanning method, showing the near field intensity and the corrected near
field intensity. Reproduced with permission from F. E. M. Siaden, D. N. Payne
and M. J. Adams, Appl. Phys. Lett., 28, p. 225. 1976. (b) The refractive index
profile of a practical step index fiber measured by the near field scanning
I
I method [Ref. 31].
,

i 5.4.3 End Reflection Method

I
I The refractive index at any point in the cross section of an optical fiber is
directly related to the reflected power from the fiber surface in air at that point
following the Fresnel reflection formula of Eq. (4.12). Hence the fraction of
light reflected at the air-fiber interface is given by:

r = reflected optical power = ( n l - 1 )'

(5.17)
incident optical power nj + 1

where n, is the refractive index at the point on the fiber surface (usually within
the fiber core). For small changes in the value of the refractive index:

(,--,n,_-_1:.,.)
&=4-:- on[ (5.18)
(n] + I)J

Therefore combining Bqs. (5.18) and (5.17) we have:

[ni~l]on[ (5.19)

Equation (5.19) gives the relative change in the Fresnel reflection coefficient
OPTICAL FIBER MEASUREMENTS 207

r which corresponds to the change of refractive index at the point of measure-

ment. However, when the measurement is performed in air the small changes
in refractive index on l that must be measured give only very small changes in
r, as demonstrated in example 5.5.

Example 5.5

Refractive index measurements are to be made using the and refieCliofl method on a
step index fiber in air. The fiber core refractive index is nominally 1.5 EstirnatH the
percentage change in the Fresnel reflection coefficient that must be measured in
order to allow a change in refractive index on,
of 0.001 to be resolved,
Solurion: The relative change in the Fresnel reflection codfieir"t is giVHnby Eq,
15.19). where:

",
Therefore when n, rs 5 and the requirement for on, is 0.001:

0: [1:5 ]0,001 0,0032

=

0.32%,
Hence the change in the Fresnel reflAc\ion coefficient which must be measured is

It is clear from example 5.5 that for a fiber in air very accurate measurement
of r is needed to facilitate a moderate resolution of on l • However, this problem
may be overcome by immersing the fiber in a suitable index matching oil, as
illustrated in example 5.6.

Example 5.6

The step index fiber of example 5,5 is immersed in oil with a refrac;tivH index of 1,45,
Estimate the percentage change in the Fresnel reflection eoelli"iH"t which must be
measured in order to obtain the resolution in on,
required in exarnplH 55 10.0011.
Solution: In this case we
mL!st refer back to the Fresnel .etrccnoo romHJla of Eel.
14.121 where:

"'- " ~ ("' 1.45 ~

( n + n ,- il, + 1.45 ,
,

Hence

(n, - 1,45)
6r=4 . &1,
(n, + 1,45)J
208 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PR ACTIC E

' ed

",
- = __ 4
[ 2 2 5 2. 103
] 0 _00 1 = 0 0 2 72

The re fo re , tile chdn g .. in th.' Fres ne l re fle c tio n coe ffici,mt ""I,id , m u!o l be measu red
fo r tile fibe r in tha o il il'o 2 .72'1(•.

The result from example 5.0 illustrates the increased sensitivity in t he rneas .
uremcnt with index matching ove r that calculated in exa mple 5.5 (0.32%)
when no index match ing wa s used. Also the sensitivity may be increased
furth er with improved index matching giving very accu rate profile mea sure-
ments .
Two experimental arrangements for performing end refl ection measure-
ment s are illustr ated in Fig. 5. 15 [Refs. 34 and 35 1. Both techniques utilize a
focused laser beam incident on the fiber end face in o rder to provi de the
nece ssary spatial resolutio n. Figur e 5. 15(a) shows end reflection measurements
witho ut index ma tching of the fiber input end face. The laser beam is initially
di rected thro ugh a polarize r and a )../ 4 plate in o rder to prevent feed back of the
reflected optical power fro m both the fiber end face and the intermediate
optics. ca using mod ulat ion of the la ser o utput t hro ugh interference. The
circ ularly polarized light beam from the A/4 plate is th en spatially fil tered and
expanded to pr ovide a suitable spot size. A beam splitter i~ used to prov ide
both a reference fro m the input light beam which is monitored with a solar cell,
and two beams fro m the fiber end face reflectio n. The reflect...' d bcams are used
fo r measurement via a ,ri-n photodiode, lock. -in am plifier combina tio n, and
lor visual chec k of the alignment on the fiber end face using a screen. Focusing
o n the fi ber end face is ach ieved with a microscope o bjective lens. and t he fi ber
end i~ sca nned slowly a cross the focal spot using precisio n tra nslatio n stages.
The reflected optical power is monitored as a function of the fi ber linear posi-
tio n on an X-Y recorder and the refractive index pr o l1le may be obtained
directly using Eq. (5. 19). Possible refl ections from the other fiber end face are
av oided by immersing it in an index matching liquid.
The experimental arra ngement shown in Fig. 5. 15(b) provides increased
sensitivity by immersing the fibe r in an index matching o il as demonstrated in
example 5.6. In this case the laser beam , which is again incide nt on a polarizer,
an d )./ 4 plate is deflected vertica lly using a mirror. An oil immersion objective
is utilized to focus the beam o nto the immersed fi ber end. Thi s apparat us has
sho wn sensitivity co mparable w'ith the near field method. However. there is a
need for careful alignment of the apparatus in order to avoid stray reflections.
OPTI CAL FIBER ME A SUREM ENTS 209

f ok,

Lo<lr.-in
" "
l'itol o<ljooc
Oil
imm",lon
obj " l;"

indo>
", . 'dli"~
1 "l ~~ 1

fig . 5 .15 Experime ntal a. rilllge me llls lor eed reflectio n me ~ su P'l! .....e nt of fiber refra ctjve
iflde~ p rofile : (i1) w ithOUl ifldell ..... atching of fibel irput e nd lace IRef. 3 41:
(b ) w ith index m atch iflg 01 fiber inpu t e nd lace IRef. 3 5 1.

Also in both techniques it is essential tha t the fiber end face sho uld be perfectly
n at (clea ved but not polished), b ecame the reflected powe r is severely alTected
by surface irregularities.

&.6 FIBER NUMERICAL APERTURE MEASUREMENTS

T he numerical aperture is an important o ptical fiber parameter a s it affects

characteristics such as the light -gathering efficiency and th e normalized fr e-
q uency of the fiber ( V). This in turn dictates the nu mber o f modes propagating
within the fiber (also definina the single mode region) which has consequent
IfTKU on botb the fibt r diaper.ion (i.e. intermodaJ) and. possibly. the fiber
0"
210 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

attenuation (i.e. differential attenuation of modes). The numerical aperture

(NA) is defined for a step index fiber by Eq. (2.8) as:
NA = sin 8" = (n1-ni)J- (5.20)
where e, is the maximum acceptance angle, n l is the core refractive index and
n2 is the cladding refractive index. It is assumed in Eq. (5.20) that the light is
incident on the fiber end face from air with a refractive index (no) of unity.
Although Eq. (5.20) may be employed with graded index fibers. the numerical
aperture thus defined represents only the local NA of the fiber on its core axis
(the numerical aperture for light incident at the fiber core axis). The graded
profile creates a multitude of local N As as the refractive index changes radially
from the core axis. For the general case of a graded index fiber these local
numerical apertures NA(r) at different radial distances r from the core axis
may be defined by:
NA(r) = sin 8,(r) = (nr(r) - ni){ (5.21)
Therefore. calculations of numerical aperture from refractive index data are
likely to be less accurate for graded index fibers than for step index fibers
unless the complete refractive index profile is considered. However, if refrac-
tive index data is available on either fiber type from the measurements
described in Section 5,4, the numerical aperture may be determined by calcula-
tion.
Alternatively, a simple, commonly used technique for the determination of
the fiber numerical aperture involves measurement of the far field radiation
pattern from the fiber. This measurement may be performed by directly
measuring the far field angle from the fiber using a rotating stage. or by
calculating the far field angle using trigonometry. An example of an experi-
mental arrangement with a rotating stage is shown in Fig. 5.16. The tiber end
faces are prepared in order to ensure square smooth terminations. The fiber
output end is then positioned on the rotating stage with its end face parallel to
the plane of the photodetector input, and so that its output is perpendicular to

I(ef",,>c' ';3",1
H,;" 'I",'hm' [rom opti,,1
Fil'" 1\Oldel' , <;hol'l~'T
•

r-; <,
la"k-ill
Fiber
, ""'l'lir",
-, 'V
, . ,
0" "\
iI L,,~, ,,"'"
\
Ro,atlllg ,tag"
i'lJatoJ,-t",o'

Fig.5.16 Fiber numerical aperture measurement using a sClmnlng photcdetectcr lind II

rotating stage.
OPTIC AL FIBER M EASUREM ENTS 211

tile 3J1: is of rotation. li ght is la unched into the fiber li t a ll possible angles
(overfi lling, the fiber) using an optica l system similar 10 that used in the spot
a ttenua tion measuremen ts (Fig. 5.3).
T he phorodetector, which may be either a small area device or an apert ured
la rge arca device, is placed 10-20 em from thc fiber and positioned in order to
obtain a maximum signal with no rotation (0°). He nce when the rotat ing stage
is tu rned the limits of the fa r field pattern ma y be recorded. The o utput power
is monitored and plotted as a fun ct io n of angle; the maximum acceptance
angle being o btained when the power drops a predetermined amount (e.g.
10%). Thus the numerica l aperture of the fi ber c an be o bta ined fro m Eq.
(5.20). This far field scann ing measurement may also be performed with the
phorodetector located o n a rotationa l stage and the fi ber positio ned at the
center o f rotat ion [Ref. 7 ). A complementary techniqu e utilizes a plane wave
input to the fiber , which is then rotated around t he in put beam axis whilst its
outpu t is directly monitored.
A less precise measurement of the numerical aperture can be obtained from
the fa r field pattern by trigono metric means. The experimental apparatus is
shown in F ig. 5.17, where the end prepared fiber is located on an optical base
plate or slab . A gain light is launched into the fiber under test over the full range
of its numerical aperture, and the fa r field pattern from the fiber is display ed on
a scree n which is po sitioned a kno wn distance 0 from the fiber o utput end
face. The test fiber is then aligned so that the o ptical intensity o n (he screen is
ma ximized . Fina lly, the pen em size on the screen A is measured using a
calibra ted vernier caliper. T he numerical aperture can be obtained from simple
ir igonometr ical relationships where :

A
(5.22)

Elllltmple 5.7

A t r;g(lI'o m etrical m easu re me nt is perfo rTnm l in order to d etermine I he o um .,rir:al

ep en u re 0 1 a st ep i nde ~ f iber The screen is positio ned 10.0 em f.u m th e fiber e nd
f ace. Wll en illu m ir"lll l ed f ro m a WId e angled visible &(Ill ' roC t he m eiOsured o utput
pattern size is 6 .2 em. catcora te th e epproxlrrt at e Il u m prical an erture 01 t he fi ber,
Solution: The n um eric al apert u re m ay be d Plf!rmin cd directl y lI sing Eq (5 271
wh ere :

6.2
= = - c = = O.30
138 .44 + 4 00 )~

It m U8t be noted that the acc uracy o f this measurem ent techniq ue is
dtptndent upon the visu el a ssessmen t of the fa r field pattern from the fiber.
The above meaaurement techniqu es are generally emplo yed with multimode
.'
212 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

--I)~:++-T
,I
I

Fig.5.17 Apparatus for trigonometric fiber numerical aperture measurement.

fibers only, as the far field patterns from single mode fibers are affected by
diffraction phenomena. These are caused by the small core diameters of single
mode fibers which tend to invalidate simple geometric optics measurements.
However, more detailed analysis of the far field pattern allows determination
of the normalized frequency and core radius for single mode fibers, from which
the numerical aperture may be calculated using Eq. (2.69) [Ref 361-
Far field pattern measurements with regard to multimodc fibers are depen-
dent on the length of the fiber tested. When the measurements are performed
on short fiber lengths (around 1 m) the numerical aperture thus obtained
corresponds to that defined by Eqs. (5.20) or (5.21). However, when a long
fiber length is utilized which gives mode coupling and the selective attenuation
of the higher order modes, the measurement yields a lower value for the
numerical aperture. It must also be noted that the far field measurement
techniques give an average (over the local NAs) value for the numerical
aperture of graded index fibers. Hence, alternative methods must be employed
if accurate determination of the fiber's NA is required [Ref. 371.

5.6 FIBER DIAMETER MEASUREMENTS

5.6.1 Outer Diameter

It is essential during the fiber manufacturing process (at the fiber drawing
stage) that the fiber outer diameter (cladding diameter) is maintained constant
to within I%. Any diameter variations may cause excessive radiation losses
and make accurate tiber-tiber connection difficult. Hence on-line diameter
measurement systems are required which provide accuracy better than 0.3% at
a measurement rate greater than 100 Hz (i.e. a typical fiber drawing velocity is
1 m S-I). Use is therefore made of noncontacting optical methods such as fiber
image projection and scattering pattern analysis.
The most common on-line measurement technique uses fiber image projec-
tion (shadow method) arid is illustrated in Fig. 5.18 [Ref. 38 J. In this method a
laser beam is swept at a constant velocity transversely across the fiber and a
OPTICAL FIBER MEASUREMENTS 213

c [mil
'" ..11,
'" "
Ia<c'r ,
C, ri, hi,.,

, ~'
Photo<lmclor ~
.\1,

>c "I'''''''':1<t",
UQ('k
Scope
<I,I,y f-
Pub,'
3'" - 0"
''''''
Ai"'l'

Time
S"'<P
,i""it
r-e- ill""Hl
J,<cCLor

e- Prill',",

Fig.5.18 The shadow method lor the on-line measurement of the fiber outer diameter
[Ref, 381

measurement is made of the time interval during which the fiber intercepts the
beam and casts a shadow on a photodetector. In the apparatus shown in Fig.
5.18 the beam from a laser operating at a wavelength of 0.6328 11m is
collimated using two lenses (G J and G 2 ) . It is then reflected ofT two mirrors
(M 1 and M 2 ) . the second of which (M 2 ) is driven by a galvanometer which
makes it rotate through a small angle at a constant angular velocity before
returning to its original starting position. Therefore, the laser beam which is
focused in the plane of the fiber by a lens (G,) is swept across the fiber by the
oscillating mirror, and is incident on the photodetector unless it is blocked by
the fiber. The velocity ds/dt of the fiber shadow thus created at the
phctodetector is directly proportional to the mirror velocity d$/dl following:

ds d$
-~l­ (5.23)
dt dt

where 1 is the distance between the mirror and the photodetector.

Furthermore the shadow is registered by the photodetector as an electrical
pulse of width W, which is related to the fiber outer diameter do as:

d'
do = W.- (5.24)
dl

Thus the fiber outer diameter may be quickly determined and recorded on the
printer. The measurement speed is largely dictated by the inertia of the mirror
rotation and its accuracy by the risetime of the shadow pulse.
214 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Example 5.8

The shadow method is used for the on-line measurement of the outer diameter of an
optical fiber. The apparatus employs a rotating mirror with an angular velocity of
1
4 rad 5- which is located 10 em from the photorlPler;tor. At a particular instant in
time a shadow pulse of width 300 liS is registered by the photodHector Determine
the outer diameter of the optical fiber in urn at this instant in lima
Solution: The shadow velocity may be obtained from Eq. 15.23) where:

ds dojl
-~/- 0.1 x4 __ OAms- 1
dt dr

__ 0.4 IJ.m I!S-1

Hence the fiber outer diameter do in urn is given by Eq (524):

d,
do = We - = 300 IlS X O.41J.rTl 1-\5->
,"
120 11m

Other on-line measurement methods, enabling faster diameter measure-

ments, involve the analysis of forward or backward far field patterns which are
produced when a plane wave is incident transversely on the fiber. These tech-
niques generally require measurement of the maxima in the center portion of
the scattered pattern from which the diameter can be calculated after detailed
mathematical analysis [Refs. 39--421. They tend to give good accuracy (e.g.
+0.25 11m l Ref 421) even though the theory assumes a perfectly circular fiber
cross section. Also for step index fibers the analysis allows determination of
the core diameter, and core and cladding refractive indices.
Measurements of the fiber outer diameter after manufacture (off-line) may
be performed using a micrometer or dial gage. These devices can give
accuracies in the order of +0.5 11m. Alternatively, off-line diameter measure-
ments can be made with a microscope incorporating a suitable calibrated
micrometer eyepiece.

5.6.2 Core Diameter

The core diameter for step index fibers is defined by the step change in the
refractive index profile at the core-cladding interface. Therefore the tech-
niques employed for determining the refractive index profile (interferometric.
near field, end reflection, etc.) may be utilized to measure the core diameter.
Graded index fibers present a more difficult problem as, in general, there is a
continuous transition between the core and the cladding. In this case it is
necessary to define the core as an area with a refractive index above a certain
OPTICAL FIBER MEASUREMENTS 215

predetermined value if refractive index profile measurements are used to obtain

the core diameter.
Core diameter measurement is also possible from the near field pattern of a
suitably illuminated (all guided modes excited) fiber. The measurements may
be taken using a microscope equipped with a micrometer eyepiece similar to
that employed for off-line outer diameter measurements. However, the core-
cladding interface for graded index fibers is again difficult to identify due
to fading of the light distribution towards the cladding, rather than the sharp
boundary which is exhibited in the step index case.
A second possible definition of the fiber core diameter is that it may be con-
sidered as the dimension of an area in which a certain fraction (e.g. 90 or 95%)
of the total transmitted optical power is propagated. Hence measurements may
be performed to establish the optical power distribution within the fiber either
using near field scanning techniques [Ref. 7], or by measuring the power
transmitted through a calibrated variable diameter iris positioned upon an
enlarged image of the fiber. Unfortunately these transmission measurements
are dependent on the fiber length and the optical launch conditions which tend
to make the measurement an effective rather than true diameter reading. Other
possible techniques include selectively etching the core material [Ref. 71, and
the analysis of the far field scattering patterns (for step index fibers) as
indicated when the measurement of fiber outer diameter was discussed.

5.7 FIELD MEASUREMENTS

The measurements discussed in the previous sections are primarily suited to

the laboratory environment where quite sophisticated instrumentation may be
used. However, there is a requirement for the measurement of the transmission
characteristics of optical fibers when they are located in the field within an
optical communication system. It is essential that optical fiber attenuation and
dispersion measurements, connector and splice loss measurements and fault
location be performed on optical fiber links in the field. Although information
on fiber attenuation and dispersion is generally provided by the manufacturer,
this is not directly applicable to cabled, installed fibers which are connected in
series within an optical fiber system. Effects such as microbending (see Section
4,6,2) with the resultant mode coupling (see Section 2.3.7) affect both the fiber
attenuation and dispersion. It is also found that the simple summation of the
transmission parameters with regard to individual connected lengths of fiber
cable does not accurately predict the overall characteristics of the link [Ref
43J, Hence test equipment has been developed which allows these transmission
measurements to be performed in the field.
In leneral. field test equipment differs from laboratory instrumentation in a
numbtr of IlpICtl 11~'1t is required to meet the exacting demands of field
, , (;,,,
216 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

measurement. Therefore the design criteria for field measurement equipment

include:

(a) Sturdy and compact encasement which must be portable.

(b) The ready availability of electrical power must be ensured by the
incorporation of batteries or by connection to a generator. Hence the
equipment should maintain accuracy under conditions of varying supply
voltage and/or frequency.
(c) In the event of battery operation, the equipment must have a low power
consumption.
(d) The equipment must give reliable and accurate measurements under
extreme environmental conditions of temperature, humidity and mech-
anical load.
(e) Complicated and involved fiber connection arrangements should be
avoided. The equipment must be connected to the fiber in a simple manner
without the need for fine or critical adjustment.
(f) The equipment cannot usually make use of external triggering or regulating
circuits between the transmitter and receiver due to their wide spacing on
the majority of optical links.

Even if the above design criteria arc met, it is likely that a certain amount of
inaccuracy will have to be accepted with field test equipment. For example, it
may not be possible to include adjustable launching conditions (i.e. variation in
spot size and numerical aperture) in order to create the optimum. Also,
because of the large dynamic range required to provide measurements over
long tiber lengths, lossy devices such as mode scramblers may be omitted.
Therefore measurement accuracy may be impaired through inadequate simula-
tion of the equilibrium mode distribution.
A number of portable, battery-operated, optical power meters are com-
mercially available. These devices often measure absolute optical power in
dBm and dBIl (i.e. 0 dBm is equivalent to 1 mW and 0 dBIl is equivalent to
1 IlW; sec example 5.9) over a specified spectral range (e.g. 0.4-1.15 11m). In a
number of cases the spectral range may be altered by the incorporation of
different demountable sensor heads (photodetectors} However, it must be
noted that although these devices often take measurements over a certain
spectral range this simply implies that they may be adjusted to be compatible
with the center emission frequency of particular optical sources so as to obtain
the most accurate reading of optical power. Therefore these devices do not
generally give spectral attenuation measurements unless the source optical
output frequency is controlled or filtered to achieve single wavelength opera-
tion. A typical example is the United Detector Technology S 550 fiber optics
power meter shown in Fig. 5.19. This device may be used for measurement of
the absolute optical attenuation on a fiber link by employing the cut back
technique. Other optical system parameters which may also be obtained usina
this type of power meter arc the measurement of individual splice and son-
OPTICAL FIBER MEASUREMENTS 217

Fig.5.19 The United Detector Technology S 550 fiber optics power meter, (Courtesy of
United Detector Technology.)

nectar losses, the determination of the absolute optical output power emitted
from the source (see Sections 6.5.3 and 7.4.1) and the measurement of the
responsivity or the absolute photocurrent of the pbotodetector in response to
particular levels of input optical power (see Section 8.6).

Example 5.9
An optical power meter records optical signal power in either dBm or tlBJ.l
{al Convert the optical signal powers of 5 mW and 20 J.lW tu dBm.
(b) Convert optical signal powers of 0.3 mW and 80 nW to dB).l.
Solution: The optical signal power can be expressed in decibels using:

dB=10109,o (:~)
where Po is the received optical siqnul power and P r ls a reference power level.
(a) For a 1 mW reference power level:

dBm = 10 log,o ( Po )
Im W

Hence an optical signal power of 5 mW is equivalent to

Optlcat signal power = 10 IOg10 5 = 6.99 dBM
and an optical signal power of 20 IlW is equivalent to:
Optical signal power = 10 10glo 0.02
= -16,99 dBm
 218 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

(b) For a 1 IlW reference power level:

Therefore an optical signal power of 0.3 mW is equivalent to:

Optical signal power = 10109,0 ( Pc ) = 10 log,o 30

"W
= 14.77 dBJ.l

and an optical signal power of 800 nW is equivalent to:

Optical signal power = 10 109,0 0.8

= -0.97 dBIi

There are a number of portable measurement test sets specifically designed

for fiber attenuation measurements which require access to both ends of the
optical link. These devices tend to use the cut back measurement technique
unless correction is made for any difference in connector losses between the
link and a short length of similar reference cable. A block schematic of an
optical attenuation meter consisting of a transmitter and receiver unit is shown
in Fig. 5.20 [Ref. 43]. Reproducible readings may be obtained by keeping the
launched optical power from the light source absolutely constant. A constant
optical output power is achieved with the equipment illustrated in Fig. 5.20
,, using an injection laser and a regulating circuit which is driven from a
reference output of the source derived from a photodiode. Hence any varia-
tions in the laser output power are rectified by automatic adjustment of the
modulating voltage, and therefore current, from the pulse generator. A large
area photodiode is utilized in the receiver to eliminate any effects from differing
fiber end faces. It is generally found that when a measurement is made on
multimode fiber a short cut back reference length of a few meters tS
insufficient to obtain an equilibrium mode distribution. Hence unless a mode
scrambling device together with a mode stripper are used, it is likely that a
reference length of around 500 m or more will be required if reasonably
accurate measurements are to be made. When measurements are made
without a steady-state mode distribution in the reference fiber a significantly
higher loss value is obtained which may be as much as I dB km" above the
steady-state attenuation IRefs. 22 and 441.
Several field test sets are available for making dispersion measurements on
optical fiber links. These devices generally consist of transmitter and receiver
units which take measurements in the time domain. Short light pulses
(:::!::200 ns) are generated from an injection laser and are broadened by

1-.', ""\,_
OPTICAL FIBER MEASUREMENT S 219

Fib« ..., "" , . __

~ ._- --

m<a' ....~ d I
Inj-o..'lioD W......,.,.
, .s,
nI
'\0
~ •
D ~ ' r~ ' pkDl(>J;<><l, ""c'l, b f~.,-

Jl l-
... ~
t- I
, .
~~.-
«0'. ..... ......
UI -+f- /' t- I>
1""(""" I
1'1><'_ >4< t '"
"'."- /'
~
I-
I . ,..........
Ampl.r« ,
I>
I
I
( ,

.. '........' <>< /
I
Rt.bf.,(
1% rc ,
I
I II.,0'''''
IX 'X-

V.';.I,,,, , .iot I, I
I>
. on)~i 'i<' I> , I
I ' ''' ' ''' '~ ;=-;''f
I,
,
._ ,.- , ..- -Tmm-mi licr_._._- , l) i~ i "l ,- ,n I-'I- a I
~I,,' I, ~' ':" :1 ':": ,I "
L .. .

Flg.5.20 An oplical atl e n ual io n me te. IRef. 43].

tran smission do wn the optical link before being received by a fast response
phot odetector (i.e. ava lanche photod iode) and displayed on a sampling
osc illoscope. This is similar to the dispersion measurements in the time domain
discussed in Section 5.3. If it is assumed that the pulses ha ve a near Gaussian
shape. Eq. (5.12) may be utilized to determi ne th e pulse broadening on the link,
and hence the 3 d B optical bandwidth may be o btained.

5.7.1 Optical T ime Doma in ReflK10metry t OTDR)

A measurement techn ique which is far more sophisticated and which finds
wide a pplication in both the labor atory a nd the field is the use or optical time
do main reflectometry (OT DR). This technique is often ca lled th e backscatter
measurement method. It provides meas urement or the attenuation on an
optical link down its entire length giving information on the length dependence
of the link loss. In this sense it is superior to th e optical attenuat io n measure-
ment methods discussed previously (Section 5.2) which only tend to provide an
averaged loss over the whole length measured in dB krn-' , When the attenua-
tion on the link varies with length. the averaged loss informa tion is inadequate.
OTDR also allows splice and conn ecto r lo sses to be evaluated <I S well as the
IOtltion of any faults on the link. It relies upon the measurement and analysis
.er the fraction of light which is reflected back within the fiber's numerical

•
 220 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

aperture due to Rayleigh scattering (see Section 3.4. 0 . Hence the backscatter-
ing meth od which was first described by Ba m oski and Jensen IRef. 451 has the
advantages of being no ndestru ctive (i.c. does req uire the c utting back of the
fiber) and of requiring access to one end of the optical link onl y.
The back sca ttered o pt ical power as a function of time PRa(l) may be
o btained from the following relationship I Ref. 46 1:
(5.25)
where Pi is the optical power lau nched into the fi ber, S is the fraction of
captured optical power. 'fR is the Rayleigh sca ttering coefficient (backscatter
101>5 per unit length), W " is the input o ptical pulse width• •,~ is the g roup
velocity in the fiber a nd '( is the attenuation coefficie nt per unit length for the
fi be r. T he fraction of captured optical power S is given by the ratio of the solid
acceptance angle for the fi ber to the tot al solid a ngle as:

ttNA1 NA '
S " ':::"'-c,.. _ (5 .26)
4n:nr 4nr
It must be noted that the relation ship given in Eq. (5.26) applies co step
index fibers and th e pa rameter S for a graded inde x fiber is generally a factor
of 2/ 3 lower th an for a step index fi ber with the same numerical aperture tRef.
471. Hence using Eqs. (5.25) a nd (5.26) it is possible 10 determine the back-
scattered optical power from a point along the lin k length ill relation to the
forward o ptical pow er at tha t poin t.

ElI&mple 5 .10

A n op t ic al f iber lin k con sist s of st ep tnde« fib er w h ich h as 0 ll u m erir.al ~l p'H l u re 01

0 .2 a nd a ce re . c n a c tive i,..,de ~ of 1.5. The Rayle ig h l;caUeting c(w fficil:lfll fo r the
fib er is 0 . 1 km- ' . W hen lig ht p urses 01 501'>5 r1 ural ioll a , ~ 11Iuncnc d inl n t he l i lJcf~
c a lcu lat e the rat io ;'1 dl'cibels o f th e hack eca tteeed o pt ical po..... cr 10 the fo~w a rd
o ptica l po w e r a t tne fibe r inpu t. The verccrv a t light in a vacuum is 2 99 8 x
tos m s-'.
S olution: The b acksc at te red op t ica l pow er PI\~ ( t ) is (l iven by Eq (5 ,2 51 wh ere:

PJII, ltl = ; PoSYfl W" Vg exp 1- Y"!< fl

At t h e fi be r inp u l t , - O. bence ' he p ower ra tIo is:

-,
,
•,
Sub st itul in g for S from Eq. 15. 2 6 1 g ~\/iU :

P". (OI ",,2. [NAI Y~WO vg]

PI 2 A~

~"
'i
•
'•
.
OPTICAL FIBER M EASUREM ENTS 221

The U.oup ve locily i" lhe fibe. " D is def i" om by EQ 12 .32) as'

c c
vq = - '="' -
. N, »,

Therefore

= ~ [ 10 .0 21' 0 .7 " 10 ..... )( 50 " 10-' " 2 .998 " , 0' ]

2 411 .5P

= 1.5 5 5 x 10-'
In d e cibe ls

.- - 4 8 ,' dB

Hence in example S.IO the backscattcred optical power at th e fiber input is

-1.8.1 d B down on the forw ard optical power. The backscanered optical power
should not be confu sed with any F resnel reflection at the fiber inpu t end face
resulting from a refractive index misma tch. This co uld be considerably greater
th an the backsca ttered light from the Iiber, p resenting measurement problems
with OT DR if it is allowed to fall on to the receiving pho todete ctor of the equip-
ment described below.
A block sche matic of the backscatter measurement method is shown in Fig.
5.2 1 [Ref. 49 1. A light pulse is launched into the fi ber in the fo rward d irection

C""pl<1 I ,1..,
hlW ,-"
/ )

i'110 t 0<1 ,' Ie' ,' L,"

,\ PD

I
"", ".or 1.0' ( :Ilon
;"\qlI'>"" >mpb' .., R"Co r, k r

fit. ".1 Optica l lim a d o m. ln refleeto me try o r the ba cks ca tt 9'l' me aSl,l remanl me thod.
 222 OPT ICAL FiSER COM MU NICATIONS: PRINCIPLE S AN D PRACTIC E

from a n injection laser using either a d irectional coupler o r a system of cxter -

nal lenses with a beam s plitter (usually o nly in the laborato ry). The back -
scattered light is detected using a n avalanc he photodiode receiver which drives
a n integrator in o rder 10 improve the received signa l to noise ratio by giving an
arithmetic average o ver a nu mber o f measurem ents tak en at o ne po int within
the fiber. This is necessary as the r eceived o ptica l signal pow er from a
particular point along the fiber length is at a very low level comp ared with the
forw ard power at th at point by some 4 5-60 d B (see e ..ample S. IO). and is also
swamped wit h noise. The signal from th e int egrator is fed through a
lo garithmic amplifier and averaged measurements for successive points within
the fiber arc plotted o n a c ha rt recorder. This provides locatio n-dependent
a tt enuation values wh ich give a n o verall picture of the o ptical loss down the
lin k. A possible backscatter plot is illustrated in Fig. 5.22 IRef. 50 1 which
sho ws the initial p ulse ca used by reflection and backsc at ter from the input
co uple r followed by a long tail caused by th e distributed Rayleigh scatt ering
from the inp ut pulse a s it travels down the link. Also shown in the plot is a
pulse corresponding to the d iscrete reflection from a fi ber joint, as well as a
discontinuity due to excessive loss at a fiber imperfection or fa ult. T he end of
the fiber link is indicated by a p ulse corresponding to the Fresnel refl ection
inc urred at th e ou tput end face of the fi ber. Such a plot yield s the attenuation
per unit length for the fiber by simply compu ting the slo pe o f t he curve over
the length required . Also the locatio n and insertio n losses of jo ints and/or
faults ca n be obtained fro m the power drop at t heir respective pcsinons on t he
link. F inal ly the overall lin k len gth ca n be determined from the time difference
between reflections fro m the fi ber input a nd o utput end faces . Hence optical
time do main reflecto metry is a very powerful technique for field measurement
on optic al fiber links.
A n umber of opti cal time domain refl ectometers are commercially avail ab le
fo r operation in the shorter wavelength region below 1.0 urn. These devices
emit a series of short ( lD- loo ns), intense optical pulses ( 100-500 mw ) from
whic h the backscattered light t.. received, an alyzed and displayed on an
oscillo scope, o r plotted o n a c hart recorder. A typical example which will
o perate o ver a dy na mic ran ge o f 40 d B two-way o ptical lo ss (often quoted as
2 x 20 dB since the single wa y o ptical lo ss is 20 d B) with locatio n and attenua-
i tion accuracies of +4 m and ± 10% respectively is shown in F ig. 5.23. In ad di-
tion this device is capabl e of detecting reflecting breaks (i.e. fro m the 4%
F resnel refl ection) over a single way dynamic range of up to 38 d B.
A major drawback of this technique, especially wh en using commercial
optical time dom ain reflectometers, is the limited dynamic range of the
mea surement system. As indicated above t his is currently aro und 40 dB
(2 x 20 d B) for high performance d evices. Hence. depe nding upon the fi ber
and coupling lo sses, the length of optical lin k which can be fully tested is
restricted to a t very best around IS km. However, a method of optical time
domain refleetometry by photon countina IRef. 5 11 has shown some promile
OPTICAL FIBER MEASUREM ENT S 223

•••
•
~•
D

,a
D
•

N
N
•
<•

..
 224 OPTICA L FIBER COM MUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES A ND PRACTICE

,.,
."
•
•
_ ~~ ::: ..
.. _. . :~;.,t'l·

..... •
..-' ...., :::
~ ~ ~: : :: , : :: : :
-~

.mn::
• .-
........
• --.
··•• ••, -..••.
•

~ ::•... .....--
:: ::: :
' .. ,,,.,, "
-.
...... -
...
..•
....... .'" ..: - '

..
_. ~

-..-
- _
- '-
-
-" -

Fig.5.23 The STC OFR3 oprtcat tlm e domain rene ctorn ara r. (Courtesy of STC Com-
ponents.t

especially when used as a diagnostic tool for fault locat ion. In this method the
avala nche phorodiode is opera ted in a Geiger tu be brea kdown mode IRef. 52 1
by biassing the device above its normal operating voltage where it ca n detect a
single photon. Experimental rRet: 511 measurements using this technique ha ve
demonstrated its a bility to cope with single wa y losses of up to 40 dB (i.e.
! a two-way dy namic range o f 80 d B) when detecting reflectin g brea ks in m ulti-
mode fibers.

PROBLEMS

5.1 Describe what is meant by 'equilibrium mode distribution' and ' cladding mode
stripping' with regard to tran smission measurements in optical fibers. Briefl y
outline method s by which these conditions may he achieved when opt ical tiber
measurements are perfo rmed.

5 .2 Discuss w ith t he aid of a suitable diagram the cut back technique used for the
measurement of the tota l auen uarion in an o p(iea l fiber. Indicate the
differences in the apparatu s utilized for spectra l lou and spot attenuation
measurement.
A spot measurement of fiber attenuation is performed on a 1.5 1m lenlth of
optical fi ber at a wavelon.th of 1. 1 jU11. The mouurod optical oulp'l1 powtr
OPTI CAL FIBER M EASURE M ENTS 22.

r. _ T,
, ~ V)
,
1.1 1l ' ''n

,,
,,, -
--- - - - --:;.-
-

_ _ _ _L
, _ 1. 51l
6. IIS ,
•
,'---- <i,--- - '*'"-
,.. "'l I hl

'"
fig . 5 .24 Fibe r a bsorplio n for meas ure ments tor pro blem 5.3 ; lal plol 01 ( r~ - Tr I
againsl lime l or a high a~rplion fiber; (b ) t he healing a nd COOling eU1V1t for
the te st 'iber .

fr om the 1.5 km length of fiber is 50. ' ~W .

W hen th e fiber is cu r b ack to a 2 m
length, the measured optical outpu t power is 385. 4 ILW. Determine the
attenuation per kilo meter for the fiber at a wavelength of 1.1 um, an d estimate
the accuracy of the result.

' .3 Briefly outline the principle behind the calorimetric methods used for the
measurement of absorp tion loss in optical fibers.
A high ab sorption opticnl fl ber was used to obt ain the plot of ( T ,", - T ,)(on
a logarithmic scale) against lime shown in Fig. 5.24(a). The measurements
were achieved using a c alorimeter 8I"Id thermocouple experimental arrange-
ment. Subsequently a d ifferent test filler was passed three times through the
same ca lorimeter befo re further mea suremen lS were taken. Mea surements o n
the t est fiber prod uced lite heating a nd cooling curve shown in Fig. 5.24(b)
when a constant 76 mW of optical p ower, at a wavelength o f 1.06 p m, was
passed through it. The constant C for the experimental arrangement was
calculated 10 be 2.32 x I O~ J -c-' . C alculate the absorption loss in decibels
per kilometer . at a wavele ngth of 1.06 ~ . for th e fiber under test.

'_4 Discuss the measurement of fiber scattering lo ss by de scribing the: use of two
co mmon scattering ce llfi.
A Nd : YAG laser operating at a wavelength o f 1.064 J.l rn is used with a n
integra ting sphere to measure the scauenng loss in an optical fiber sam ple. The
optical power propagating within the fiber at the sphere is 98.45 pw and
5 .3 1 n W of optical power is scau ered within the sphere. Th e length of fiber in
the sp here is 5.99 em . Determine the optical loss due to scattering for the fiber
at a wavelength of 1.064 um in decibels per kilometer.

••• Fib er scattering lo ss mea surement s arc taken at a wavelength of O.75 lJ m using
a solar cell cube. The readin g of the input optical power to the cube is 7.78 V
with a gain settin g o f lOs . T he corresponding re ading from the scattering cell
which incorporates a 4. 12 em length o f fiber is 1.56 V with a gain setting of
1 0~ . Previo us measurements of the total fiber attenuation at II wavelength of
0. 75 urn gave a value of 3.2 1 dB km- l . Calculate the absorptio n los s for the
fiber at a wavelength of 0 .75 urn in decibels per kilometer.

1.1 DilCUU with the aid of suitable d il &fams the measurement o f di~persion in
optical tl.bet1- Corllidct both time and frequency domain measurement
., "",,",,- -,

-'
22. OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Pulse dispersion measurements arc taken on a graded index fiber in the time
domain. The 3 dB width of the optical output pulses from a 950 ill fiber length
is 827 ps. When the fiber is cut back to a 2 ill length the 3 dB width of the
optical output pulses becomes 234 ps. Determine the optical bandwidth for a
kilometer length of the fiber assuming Gaussian pulse shapes.

5.7 Pulse dispersion measurements in the time domain arc taken on a rnultirnodc
and a single mode step index fiber. The results recorded are:
Input pulse Output pulse Fiber
width width length
(3 dB) (3 dB) (km)
(,) Multimode
fiber 400 ps 31.20 ns I. 13
(b) Single mode
fiber 200 ps 425 ps 2.35
Calculate the optical bandwidth over one kilometer for each fiber assuming
Gaussian pulse shapes.

5.8 Describe the end reflection method for the detailed measurement of the refrac-
tive index profile of an opticalliber. Indicate how the resolution of this tech-
nique can be improved.
The end reflection technique is to be used in order to measure the refractive
index profile of a graded index fiber in air. The fiber has a core axis refractive
index of 1.46 and a relative index difference of 1%. It is envisaged that 20
point measurements will be made between the core axis and the cladding
(inclusive). Estimate the percentage change in the Fresnel reflection coefficient
which must be measured in order to facilitate these readings, assuming no
index matching at the fiber input end face.

5.9 The fraction of light reflected at an air-fiber interface r is given by:

,~(",~l)'
nl +I
where nl is the fiber core refractive index at the point of reflection. Show that
the fractional change in the core refractive index onl!nl may be expressed in
terms of the fractional change in the reflection coefficient or/r following:

5nl_ (~) &-

nl 1-r r

Hence, show that for a step index fiber with n I of 1.5, a 5% change in r
corresponds to only a I % change in n I'

5.10 A step index fiber has a nominal core refractive index of 1.48. The fiber input
end face is immersed in oil with a refractive index of 1.51 prior to taking
refractive index measurements using the end reflection method. Determine the
anticipated resolution in the core refractive index measurement for a 2%
change in the Fresnel reflection coefficient.

B.11 Compare and contrast two simple techniques used for the m088uremont of the
numerical aperture of optical fiberl.
OPTICA L FIBER M EASUREMENT S 227

Nu merical aperture mea suremen ts a re performed on a n o ptical Fiber, The

angula r limit o f the far liekl pa ttern is found to be 26, 10 when t he finer is
rotated from a cen ter ze ro poim. The far field panem is then di1>pla,.ed o n a
screen where its size is measured as 16.7 em. Determine the numerical
apert ure for the fiber and tht' d ist ance of the fiber O ~lpu l end face from the
screen.

5.12 Describe, with the aid of a su itable diagram, the shado w metbcd used for thc
on-line measurement of the o uter diam eter of a n optical fiber .
The sh aJ o w met hod is used for th e measuremen t o f the o uter d iameter of an
o ptical fiber. A fiber outer d iameter o f 347 p rn generates a shadow pulse o f
SSO us ....-hen the rot ating mirro r has an a ngular velocity of 3 red s -I . Calc ulate
the distance between the rot atin g mirror and the optical fi ber,

5.13 Oulline the major dcsign criteria of an optical fiber po wer meter for use in the
rteld . Suggest any p roble ms a ssociated with field measurement s using such a
de vice.
Convert. the following optical power meter readings to numerical values of
power: 2S dBm, - 5.2 dB m, 3.8 dBI!-

5.14 Describe what is meant by optical time dom ain reflectomct ry. Discuss how the
technique may be used to lake tield measurements o n optical Il bers. Indicate
t he advantag es of this technique o ver other measurement methods to deter-
mine attenuati on in optical fi bers.
A backscatter plot for an o ptical fiber link provid ed by O T D R is sho wn in
F ig. 5.25. Determine :
(a} t he at tenuation o f the o ptical link for the regions indicated A , B a nd C in
decibels per kilometer.
(b) the insertion lou of the joint at the point X .

.-
Rei " ;""

,ul<..... t<o<o
(~ tl l

•
1.0 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

"
10,0

'"
• • , , • ,
.... U. 'I'ht N'~lCtttt r pfeil for til. oolicil link 01 protIl.rn 11.14.
II
228 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

5.15 Discuss the sensitivity of QTDR in relation to commercial rcflcctometers.

Comment on an approach which may lead to an improvement in the
sensitivity of this measurement technique.
The Rayleigh scattering coefficient for a silica single mode step index fiber
at a wavelength of 0.80 urn is 0.46 km- 1 . The fiber has a refractive index of
1.46 and a numerical aperture of 0.14. When a light pulse of 60 ns duration at
a wavelength of 0.80)..lm is launched into the fiber, calculate the level in
decibels of the backscattcrcd light compared with the Fresnel reflection from a
clean break in the tiber. It may be assumed that the fiber is surrounded by air.

Ans""ers to Numerical Problems

5.2 5.92 us km"!, ±0.13 dB 5.10 4.5 x 10- 4
5.3 1.77 dB km- I 5.11 0.44, 17.0 cm
5.4 3.91 dB km- I 5.12 21.0 em
5.5 1.10 dB km"! 5.13 316.2 mW. 302 IlW, 2.40 IlW
5.S 525.9 MHz km 5.14 (a) 2.0 dB km"", 3.0 dB km",
5.7 (a) 15.9 MHz k m: 2.5 dB km I ;
(b) 7.3 GHz km (b) 1.0 dB
5.8 0.26% 5.15 -37.3 dB
5.9 1.0'1'0

REFERENCES
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1979.
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1976. '
3 M. Ikeda, Y. Murakami and K. Kitayuma, 'Mode scrambler for optical fibres'.
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Electron. Leu.. 13(5), pp. 146-147. 1977.

I 5

6
1. P. Dakin. W. A. Gambling and D. N. Payne, 'Launching into glass-fibre
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OPTI CAL FIBER MEASUR EM ENT S 229

12 K.. I. Whi te, 'A calo rimetric met hod fo r thc mcasur emem o f low o ptical absorp-
tion losses in o ptical communica tion fibres', Opt. Quant/un Electron., 8. pp.
73-75, 1976.
13 K. I. White and J. E. Midwinter. 'A n im proved technique for the measurement of
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1973.
14 A . R. Ty nes, 'Integrating cube scat tering detector" •.(ppl. Opt... 9( 12), pp.
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15 F. W. Osterme yer and W. A. Benson, ' Integrating sp here for mea surin g scatter-
ing loss in optical fiber wa ~'egllides', Appl. Opt., U (8), pp. 1900- 1905, 1974.
16 S. de Vito and 8. So rde, ' Misure di anenuazlone e diffusio ne in fibre otliche
multi-modo' , LXX V Riuniuo ne AEI, Rome, 15-21 Sept, 19 74.
17 J. P. Dakin. 'A simplified photo meter for r api d measu rement o f total scauermg
auc nuation of fibre op tical waveguides' , Opt. Commun., 12( 1), PI'. 83---88, 1974.
18 L G. Cohen, P. Kais.er a nd C . Lin, ' Ex perimental techniq ues for evefueuon of
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19 S. D . Personick, ' Base band lineari ty a nd equalization in fiber optic d igital com-
munication systems' , Bell SYSI . Tech. J., 52(7). pp. 1175-11 94, 1973.
20 B. P. Lathi, Random Signals and Communication Theory, International
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21 D. Gloge, E. L. Chinnock an d T, P. Lee, 'Self pulsing O aA ~ laser for fiber disper-
sion measurement', IEEE J. Quantum E lectron., QE·8. pp. 844-846, 1972.
22 F . Krah n, W. Meiningh aus and D . Rittich, ' Measu ring and les t eq uipment for
optical ca ble', Phillips Teieco mmun. Ree.; 37(4), pp. 241 -249, 19 79 .
23 L. G. C ohen, 'Shuttle pulse measurements of pulse spre ading in an optical fibre' ,
Appl. Opl.. 14(6), pp. 1351-1 356, 1975.
24 I. K okayashi, M . Ko yama a nd K . A oyama, ' Meas ure ment of optical fibre
t ransfer functions. by swept frequency technique and discussion of fibre
ch aracteristics', Electron . Commu". Jpn, 6O-C(4), pp. 126-133, 19 77.
25 W. E . Martin, ' Refractive index profile measurement s of diffused optical
wavegu ides', App l. Opt.; 13(9), pp. 2112- 21 16, 1974.
28 H . M. Presby , W. Ma mmel and R . M. D ero sier, ' Refractive ind ex profiling of
gr aded inde'\ optical fibers ', Rf'V. Sci. Instr., 4 7(3), pp. 341\- 352, 1976.
27 8 . Costa and G. De Marchis, ' Test methods (o ptical fibres)', Telecomm. J. {Engl.
Ed.) Switzerkm d; 48(11 ), pp. 666--673, 1981.
28 L. G. Co hen. P. Kaiser, J. 8. MacChesney, P. B. O 'Co nner and H. M, Presby,
' T ransmission properties of a low-loss near-parabojic-inde a fiber' , Appl. Phys.
Lett .. 26(8), pp. 472--4 74, 1975.
29 C . Lin, ' Measurement techniques in fiber optics', IFOC tm, Fiber Opt. Commun.
( USA), 2(3), pp . 18- 20, 52-53. 198 1.
30 M . E . Marhic, P. S. Ho and M. Epstein, ' N ondestructive refractive index profile
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19 75. '
31 P. L. Chu, 'Measurements in optical fibres', Proc. IEEE Australia , 40(4), pp.
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32 F . E. M. Sladen, D . N . Payne and M. J. Ad ams, 'Determin a tion of op tical fibre
refractive index profile by ncar fi eld scann ing technique', Appl. Phys. Lett.,
28(5), pp, 255-258, 1976. ,
33 M, J. Adams, D. N. Pa yne and F. M. E, Sladen, ' Correction recto rs for deter"
mination of optical fibre refr active-index profiles by nea r-Field sca nning tech-
nfquu', £1«tf'Ol1. Lm., 11( 11 ), PI', 281 -283, 1976.
..
230 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

34 W. Eickhoff and E. Weidel, 'Measuring method for the refractive index profile of
optical glass fibres', Opt. Quantum Blectron.; 7, pp. 109-113,1975.
35 B. Costa and B. Sordo, 'Measurements of the refractive index profile in optical
fibres, comparison between different techniques', 2nd European Conference on
Optical Fiber Communication (Paris), pp. 81-86, 1976.
36 W. A. Gambling, D. N. Payne and H. Matsumura, 'Propagation studies 'on
single mode phosphosilicate fibres', 2nd European Conference on Optical Fiber
Communication (Paris), pp. 95-100, 1976.
37 F. T. Stone, 'Rapid optical fibre delta measurement by refractive index tuning',
Appl. Opt.; 16(10), pp. 2738-2742, 1977.
38 L. G. Cohen and P. Glynn, 'Dynamic measurement of optical fibre diameter',
Rev. Sci. Instrum., 44(12), pp. 1745-1752, 1973.
39 H. M. Presby, 'Refractive index and diameter measurements of unclad optical
fibres', J. Opt. Soc. Am., 64(3), pp. 280-284, 1974.
40 P. L. Chu, 'Determination of diameters and refractive indices of step-index
optical fibres', Electron. Len., 12(7), pp. 150-157, 1976.
41 H. M. Presby and D. Marcuse, 'Refractive index and diameter determinations of
step index optical fibers and preforms', Appl. Opt., B( 12), pp. 2882-2885, 1974.
42 D. Smithgall, L. S. wakins and R. E. Frazee, 'High-speed ncncontact fibre-
diameter measurement using forward light scattering', Appl. opt; 16(9), pp.
2395-2402, 1977.
43 F. Krahn, W. Meininghaus and D. Rittich, 'Field and test measurement equip-
ment for optical cables', Acta Electronica, 23(3), pp. 269-275, 1979.
44 R. Olshansky, M. G. Blankenship and D. B. Keck, 'Length-dependent attenua-
tion measurements in graded-index fibres', Proceedings of 2nd European Con-
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45 M. K. Barnoski and S. M. Jensen, 'Fiber waveguides: a novel technique for
investigating attenuation characteristics', Appl. Opt., 15(9), pp. 2112-2115,
1976.
46 S. D. Pensonick, 'Photon probe, an optical fibre time-domain reflectometer', Bell
Syst. Tech. J., 56(3), pp. 355-366, 1977.
47 E. G. Newman, 'Optical time domain reflectometer: comment', Appl. Opt.,
17(11), p. 1675, 1978.
48 E. A. Lacy, Fiber Optics, Prentice-Hall, 1982.
49 M. K. Bamoski and S. D. Personick, 'Measurements in fiber optics', Proc. IEEE,
66(4), pp. 429-440, 1978.
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Optical Fibre Commun. Syst. (London), paper 4/1, May 1981.
 6
Optical Sources 1: The Laser

6.1 INTRODUCTION

T he o ptic al source is often considered to be the a ctive component in an optical

fiber communication system. Its fund amental function is to con vert electrical
energy in the form of a current into optic al energy (light) in an efficient manner
which allows the light output to be effectively launched or coupled into the
optical fiber. Three main types of optical light source are available. These are:
(a) wideband 'continuous spectra' sources (incandescent lamps);
(b) monoc hromatic incoherent sources (light emitting diodes' LEOs);
(e) monochromatic coheren t sources (la sers).
To aid consideration of the sources currently in major use the historical
aspect must be men tioned. In the earl y stages of o ptical liber communication
the most powerful n arrowband coherent light sources were necessary d ue to
severe attenu atio n and dispersio n in the fibers. Th erefore initially gas lasers
(helium-neon) were utilized. However, the develop ment of the semico nductor
injection laser and the LE D, together with the substantial improvement in the
properties of optical fibers, has given prominence to these two specific sourc es.
To a large extent these two sources fulfil the major requirem ents for an
o ptical fiber emitter which arc outlined below.
(a ) A size and configuration compatible wn b launch ing light into an o ptical
fiber. Ideally the light output sho uld be highly directio nal.
(b) Mu st accurately track the electrical i.nput signal to minimize distortion and
noise. Ideally the source should be linear.
(c) ShouJd emit light at wavelengths where the fiber has low losses and low
dispersion and where the d etectors are efficient .
(d) Preferably capable of simple sign al modulation (i.e. direct- see Section
7.5) over a wide bandwidth extending from a udio frequencies to beyond
the aigahertz range.
(e) Must couple sufficient optical power to overcome attenuatio n in the fi ber
plu. additional connector losses and leave adequate power to drive the
detector.
231
.'
,
232 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

(f) Should have a very narrow spectral bandwidth (linewidth) in order to

minimize dispersion in the fiber.
(g) Must be capable of maintaining a stable optical output which is largely
unaffected by changes in ambient conditions (e.g. temperature).
(h) It is essential that the source is comparatively cheap and highly reliable in
order to compete with conventional transmission techniques.
In order to form some comparison between these two types of light source
the historical aspect must be enlarged upon. The first generation optical
communication sources were designed to operate between 0.8 and 0.9 urn
(ideally around 0.85 1IDl) because initially the properties of the semiconductor
materials used lent themselves to emission at this wavelength. Also as
suggested in (c) this wavelength avoided the loss incurred in many fibers near
0.9 urn due to the OH ion (see Section 3.3.2). These early systems utilized
multimode step index fibers which required the superior performance of
semiconductor lasers for links of reasonable bandwidth (tens of megahertz)
and distances (several kilometers). The LED (being a lower power source
generally exhibiting little spatial or temporal coherence) was not suitable for
long distance wideband transmission, although it found use in more moderate
applications.
However, the role of the LED as a source for optical fiber communications
was enhanced following the development of multimode graded index fiber. The
substantial reduction in intermedal dispersion provided by this fiber type over
multimode step index fiber allowed incoherent LEDs emitting in the 0.8-
0.9 urn wavelength band to be utilized for applications requiring wider band-
widths. This position was further consolidated with the development of second
generation optical fiber sources operating at wavelengt¥ between 1.1 and
1.6 urn where both material losses and dispersion are greatly reduced. In this '~
wavelength region wideband graded index fiber systems utilizing LED sources
may be 0E~r.!1:t_t?~Lo.Y~TJQngciistances, without the need for intermediate
repeaters. Furthermore, LEDs offer the advantages of relatively simple
construction and operation with the ~rent effects of these factors on cost
.end _extended, trouble-free life.
/
In parallel with these later developments in multimode optical propagation
came advances in single mode fiber construction. This has stimulated. the
development of single mode laser sources to take advantage of the extremely
low dispersion offered by single mode fibers. These systems are ideally suited
to extra wideband, very long-haul applications and are currently under
intensive investigation for long-distance telecommunications. On the other
hand, light is usually emitted from the LED in many spatial modes which
cannot be readily focused and coupled into single mode fiber. Hence to date
the LED has been utilized almost exclusively as a multimode source which will
only give adequate coupling efficiency into multimode fiber. However, in this
role the LED has become a primary multimode source which is extensively
OPTICAL SOURCES 1;, THE LASER 233

used for increasingly wider bandwidth, longer-haul applications. Therefore at

present the LED is chosen for many applications using multimode fibers and
the injection laser tends to find more use as a single mode device in single mode
fiber systems. Although other laser types (e.g. Nd:YAG laser, see Section
6.11) as well as the injection laser may eventually fmd limited use in optical
fiber communications, this chapter and the following one will deal primarily
with major structures and configurations of semiconductor sources (injection
laser and LED) taking into account recent developments and possible future
advances.
We begin by describing in Section 6.2 the basic principles of laser operation
which may be applied to all laser types. Immediately following in Section 6.3 is
a discussion of optical emission from semiconductors in which we concentrate
on the fundamental operating principles, the structure and the materials for the
semiconductor laser. Aspects of practical semiconductor injection lasers are
then considered in Section 6.4 prior to a more specific discussion of the
structure and operation of multimode devices in Section 6.5. Following in
Section 6.6 is a brief discussion of the single mode injection laser which
provides a basis for the description of the major single mode structures
presented in Section 6.7. As the preceding sections have primarily dealt with
injection lasers operating in the shorter wavelength region (0.8--0.9 11m), a brief
account of longer wavelength (1.1-1.6 11m) devices is given in Section 6.8. In
Section 6.9 we describe the operating characteristics which are common to all
injection laser types before a short discussion of injection laser to optical fiber
coupling together with device packaging is presented in Section 6.10. Finally,
in Section 6.11 nonsemiconductor lasers are briefly considered, the dis-
cussion concentrating on the neodymium-doped yttrium-aluminum-garnet
(Nd :YAG) device.

6.2 BASIC CONCEPTS

To gain an understanding of the light-generating mechanisms within the major

optical sources used in optical fiber communications it is necessary to consider
both the fundamental atomic concepts and the device structure. In this context
the requirements for the laser source are far more stringent than those for the
LED. Unlike the LED, strictly speaking, the laser is a device which amplifies
light. Hence the derivation of the term LASER as an acronym for Light
Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. Lasers, however, are
seldom used as amplifiers since there are practical difficulties in relation to the
achievement of high gain whilst avoiding oscillation from the required energy
feedback. Thus the practical realization of the laser is as an optical oscillator.
The operation of the device may be described by the formation of an
electromalnetic standing wave within a cavity (or optical resonator) which
pro'vide. an output of monochromatic highly coherent radiation. By contrast
:1
: 234 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

the LED provides optical emission without an inherent gain mechanism. This
results in incoherent light output.
In this section we elaborate on the basic principles which govern the
operation of both these optical sources. It is clear, however, that the operation
of the laser must be discussed in some detail in order to provide an
appreciation of the way it functions as an optical source. Hence we
concentrate first on the general principles of laser action.

6.2.1 Absorption and Emission of Radiation

The interaction of light with matter takes place in discrete packets of energy or
quanta, called photons. Furthermore the quantum theory suggests that atoms
exist only in certain discrete energy states such that absorption and emission of
light causes them to make a transition from one discrete energy state to
another. The frequency of the absorbed or emitted radiationfis related to the
difference in energy E between the higher energy state £2 and the lower energy
state E 1 by the expression:
(6.1)
where h = 6.626 X 10-34 J s is Planck's constant. These discrete energy states
for the atom may be considered to correspond to electrons occurring in
particular energy levels relative to the nucleus. Hence different energy states
for the atom correspond to different electron configurations, and a single
electron transition between two energy levels within the atom will provide a
change in energy suitable for the absorption or emission of a photon. It must
be noted, however, that modern quantum theory [Ref. I) gives a probabilistic
description which specifies the energy levels in which electrons are most likely
to be found. Nevertheless, the concept of stable atomic energy states and
electron transitions between energy levels is still valid.
Figure 6.1(a) illustrates a two energy state or level atomic system where an
atom is initially in the lower energy state E 1 • When a photon with energy
(E 2 - £1) is incident on the atom it may be excited into the higher energy state
E 2 through absorption of the photon. This process is sometimes referred to as
stimulated absorption. Alternatively when the atom is initially in the higher
energy state E 2 it can make a transition to the lower energy state £1 providing
the emission of a photon at a frequency corresponding to Eq. (6.1). This
emission process can occur in two ways:
(a) by spontaneous emission in which the atom returns to the lower energy
state in an entirely random manner;
(b) by stimulated emission when a photon having an energy equal to the
energy difference between the two states (E 2 - E I) interacts with the atom
in the upper energy state causing it to return to the lower state with the
creation of a second photon.
 OPTICAL SOU RCES 1: THE LASE R 235

(."J7
,!>,~ <V s,
I~it .... ....'"
_
•
IV •
I

~
I
I
I

C,,- - _

"- - I- -
I
I
~ S ~m " J .kJ

, <m...."'"
I
I

I, '
•
fig . 6 .1 Energy sta le- d iagra m s ho '#\' ing: ·(01) s bsorpuon: lb ) sponta neous e rmss'on:
11:1st imulate-d emission, The blac1 d ill indic ates the s la te of Ihe ato m before and
aft e r a tran s ition ta kes plac e.

Th ese two emission processe s are illustrated in Figs. 6.1(b) and (c)
respectively. The random nature of the spontaneous emission process where
light is emitted by electronic transitions from a large number of atoms gives
incoherent radiation. A similar emission process in semiconductors provides
the basic mechanism for light generation within the LED (see Section 6.3.2).
It is the stimulated emission process, however, which gives the laser its
special properties as an optical source. Firstly the photon produced by
stimulated emission is generally" of an identical energy to the one which
caused it and hence the light associated with them is of the same frequency.
Secondly the light associated with the stimulating and stimulated photon is in
phase and has the same polarization. Therefore, in contrast to spontaneous
emission, coherent radiation is obtained. Furthermore this means that when an

• It. pfloton with enct&Y "'will not necnn ril!( always stimulate Ulotber pholOll with «I«'gJ
v: PbokmJ may be .timulated over a small rani!! of CDCf"IieI UOllocl l(providin, an anis-
IIOClwlUW bu • fWtt lNqUll'lC')' or "". veIe:\rlb Ipread (lin1!Vt'idlb).
• •
236 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

atom is stimulated to emit light energy by an incident wave, the liberated

energy can add to the wave in a constructive manner, providing amplification.

6.2.2 The Einstein Relations

Prior to discussion of laser action in semiconductors it is useful to consider
optical amplification in the two level atomic system shown in Fig. 6.1. In 1917
Einstein [Ref 2] demonstrated that the rates of the three transition processes
of absorption, spontaneous emission and stimulated emission were related
mathematically. He achieved this by considering the atomic system to be in
thermal equilibrium such that the rate of the upward transitions must equal the
rate of the downward transitions. The population of the two energy levels of
such a system are described by Boltzmann statistics which give:

(6.2)
g,
~ - oxp (Iif/KT)
g,
where N[ and N z represent the density of atoms in energy levels E 1 and E z
respectively with gl and gz being the corresponding degeneracies" of the levels,
K is Boltzmann's constant and T is the absolute temperature.
As the density of atoms in the lower or ground energy state E[ is N 1 , the
rate of upward transition or absorption is proportional to both N j and the
spectral density PI of the radiation energy at the transition frequency f Hence
the upward transition rate R j 2 (indicating an electron transition from level I to
level 2) may be written as:

R 12 = N 1 PiB12 (6.3)
where the constant of proportionality BIZ is known as the Einstein coefficient
of absorption.
By contrast atoms in the higher or excited energy state can undergo electron
transitions from level 2 to level 1 either spontaneously or through stimulation
by the radiation field. For spontaneous emission the average time an electron
exists in the excited state before a transition occurs is known as the
spontaneous lifetime '21 .
If the density of atoms within the system with energy
£z is N 2 • then the spontaneous emission rate is given by the product of N z and

... In many cases the atom has several sublevels of equal energy within an energy level which is
then said to be degenerate. The degeneracy parameters 81 and 82 indicate the number of sub-
levels within the enerlY level. E l and E l respectively. If the system is not delenerale tben 81
and 81 may b, Nt to unity lRef. 1l,
OPTICAL SOURCES 1; THE LASER 237

Ih ll • This may be written as N 2.A 21 where A 21 • the Einstein coefficient of

spontaneous emission . is equal to the reciprocal of the spontaneo us lifetime.
The rate of stimulated d ownward transition of a n electron from level 2 10
level I may be obtained in a similar manner 10 tbe rate of stimulated upwa rd
transition . Hence the rate of stimulated em ission is given by N 2Pf B 11• where
B ll is the Einstein coefficient of stimulated emission. The total transition rate
from level 2 to level 1, R 21 • is the sum of the spontaneous and stimulated con -
tributions . Hence:
R 21 = N 2A u + N 1 Pj B1 l (6.4)
For a system in th erm al equilibrium. the upward and downward transition
rates must be equal and therefore R It = R 21 , or
(6.5)
It follows that ;

and
o4 2.1B 21
Pr ~ = -c:-';-:,-":.,.---:- (6.6)
( B 12N, / B2INl ) -1

Substituting Eq. (6.2) into Eq. (6.6) gives

All /B l l
Pr ~ ~-=--=--=-",-..:.c.==,..-,­ (6.7)
((xl B12/g2B21 ) exp (Iif/KD 1- 1

However, since the atomic system under consideration is in thermal

equilibrium it produces a radiation density which is identical to black body
radiation. Planck showed that th e rad ia tion spectral density for a black body
radiating within a frequency range f to f + qr is given by IRef. 31:

8Mt' ( I ) (6 .8)
~ ~ c' exp (hl /KT) - I

Comparing Eq. (6.8) with EQ. (6. 7) we obtain the Einstein relations :

(6.9)

and

(6. 10)

.'
I', I

238 OPTICA L FIBER COM MU NICATIONS: PRINCI PLES A ND PRACTiCE

I,
It ma y be o bserved from Eq. (6.9) that when the degeneracies of the two levels
are eq ual (gl = K:) then the probabilities of absorption and stim ulated emis-
I sion are equal. Furthermore, th e rat io of the stimulated emission rate to the
spontaneo us emission rate is given by:

stimulated emission rate B 21 P.r J

~ (6.11)
spontaneous emission rate An exp Vif"lKn - I

Exampl. 8 .1

Calc ula te th e ra tio of t he stimulated e miss io n ra te 10 the spo nta ne o us emi ssio n ra te
fo r a n incandescent lamp oper atin g 818 te mpe ratu re of 1000 K. It ma y be assume d
tha t th e ave ra ge opera ting wa ve len gth is 0. 5 urn.
S olution : Thll average operating frequency is given by :

( = -
c
).
=
2 ,9 98 x 10 8
0.6 " 10 ..-6
~6 .0 " 10
. HI

Us ing Eq . (6 . 1 1) thll ra tio re :

stim l,llaled em ission ra te 1

14
seootaeeous em ission ra te e xp ( 6 .6 26 " 10 -3<1 K 6 x 10 )
1.3 8 1 x 10 - 23 )( 1000
= exp 1- 2 8 .8 )
= 3 .1 " 10- 13

The resu lt obtained in example 6.1 indicates th at for systems in thermal

equilibrium sponta neous emission is by far the dominant mechanism. Further-
more it illustrates th at the radiation emitted from ordinary o ptical sources in
the visible spect rum occurs in a random manner, proving these sources are
incoherent.
It is apparent th at in order to produce a coherent optical source and
amplification of a light beam the r ate of stimulated emission must be increased
far above the level indicated by example 6.1. From consideration of Eq. (6.5) it
ma y be noted that for stimulated emission to dominate over absorption a nd
spontaneous emission in a two level system both the radia tion density and the
population density of the upper energy level N z must be increased in relation to
the population density of the lower energy level N 1 •

6.2.3 Population Inver.lon

Under the conditions of thermal equilibrium given by the Boltzmann distribu-
tion (Eq. (6.2» the lower energy level E , of the two level atomic system con-
tains more atoms than the upper energy level E z• This situation which it
OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LASER 239

normal for structures at room temperature is illustrated in Fig. 6.2(a).

However, to achieve optical amplification it is necessary to create a non-
equilibrium distribution of atoms such that the population of the upper energy
level is greater than that of the lower energy level (i.e. N 2 > N]). This condition
which is known as population inversion is illustrated in Fig. 6.2(b).
In order to achieve population inversion it is necessary to excite atoms into
the upper energy level E 2 and hence obtain a nonequilibrium distribution. This
process is achieved using an external energy source and is referred to as
'pumping'. A common method used for pumping involves the application of
intense radiation {e.g, from an opticaillash tube or high frequency radio field).
In the former case atoms are excited into the higher energy state through
stimulated absorption. However, the two level system discussed above does
not lend itself to suitable population inversion. Referring to Eq. (6.9), when the
two levels are equaJly degenerate (or not degenerate) then 8]2 = 8 2 ] , Thus the
probabilities of absorption and stimulated emission are equal, providing at best
equal populations in the two levels.
Population inversion, however, may be obtained in systems with three or
four energy levels. The energy level diagrams for two such systems which
correspond to two nonsemiconductor lasers are illustrated in Fig. 6.3. To aid
attainment of population inversion both systems display a centraJ metastable
state in which the atoms spend an unusually long time. It is from this meta-
stable level that the stimulated emission or lasing takes place. The three level
system (Fig. 6.3(a)) consists of a ground level Eo, a metastable level E] and a
third level above the metastable level E 2 • Initially the atomic distribution will
follow the Boltzmann law. However, with suitable pumping the electrons in

Energy IE)
I
,
I
\

Ic",
\'''1'( t../ieF)
\ ",
\"pl
\
F/i:I)

, ,

",
,

,,
\ ,
, ,

-, -,
:

", ,'
"l
1"' _ _
,, N, Den,i'}' of Dc,,,i',' of
""o>«·\') ,iomd.\')
(I»

Flg.8.2 Populations in a two energy level system: lal Boltzmann distribution for a
,y'tem in thermal equlllbrlum: (bl a nonequltlbrlurn ctsntooncn showing popula-
110n Inversion. '
240 OPTICAL FIBER COM MU NICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

•
c.
..... ,, -- --
~" .
It: . } ol

,~l~
d.. ""

• --- -- - -
P . ",~ "'lI:
"'''''''''=
• -- - -
,.>
o S1 ,,-
~ ,~ .

1141"d
4."a~

t• ••
'"
FIg .6.3 Energy level di agrams sho w ing population inversion and lasing for t wo no n-
sem iconductor lasers : la) t hree level system-ruby (cryst al) laser : (b) four level
svstern-c-He-Ne Igasl laser.

some of t he atoms may be excited from the ground state into th e higher level
E 2 _ Sin ce £ 2 is a normal level the electrons will ra pidly decay by nonradiative
processes to either E I o r directly to E o- Hence empty states will always be
provided in £ 2_ The metastable level E 1 exhibits a much longer lifetime than
£ 2 wh ich allows a large number of a to ms to accumulate at E I • O ver a period
the density of atoms in the meta stable state N I increa ses above those in the
ground st ate No and a population inversion is obt ained bet ween these two
levels. Stimulated emission and hence la sing can then occur creating radiative
electron transitions between levels E l and Eo. A drawback with the three level
sy stem such as the ruby laser is that it generally req uires very high p ump
powers because the terminal state o f th e laser transition is the gro und state.
Hence more than half the grou nd state atoms must be pumped into the meta -
sta ble sta te to achieve population inversion.
By co ntrast a four level system such as the He-Ne laser illustrated in
F ig. 6.3(b) is characterized by much lower pumping requirements. In this case
the p umping excites the atoms fro m the ground state into energy level E J and
they d ecay rapidly to the metastable level £1' However. since the populations
of E; and £1 remain essentially unchanged a small increase in the number of
atoms in energ y level £ 1 creates population inversion , and lasing takes plac e
between this level and level E I '

8.2.4 Optical Feedback end La.er Oscillation

Light amplification in the laser OCC\lrJ when a photon conidin. with an atom. in
the excited C:llerar ,talc UUs.e1 the ltimulued c:millioo of a tccond photon and
 OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LASER 24'

then both these photons release two more. Continuation of this process
effectively creates avalanche multiplication, and when the electromagnetic
waves associated with these photons are in phase, amplified coherent emission
is obtained. To achieve this laser action it is necessary to contain photons
within the laser medium and maintain the conditions for coherence. This is
accomplished by placing or forming mirrors (plane or curved) at either end of
the amplifying medium as illustrated in Fig. 6.4. The optical cavity formed is
more analogous to an oscillator than an amplifier as it provides positive feed-
back of the photons by reflection at the mirrors at either end of the cavity.
Hence the optical signal is fed back many times whilst receiving amplification
as it passes through the medium. The structure therefore acts as a Fabry-
Perot resonator. Although the amplification of the signal from a single pass
through the medium is quite small. after multiple passes the net gain can be
large. Furthermore, if one mirror is made partially transmitting, useful radia-
tion may escape from the cavity.
A stable output is obtained at saturation when the optical gain is exactly
matched by the losses incurred in the amplifying medium. The major losses
result from factors such as absorption and scattering in the amplifying
medium. absorption, scattering and diffraction at the mirrors and non-useful
transmission through the mirrors.
Oscillations occur in the laser cavity over a small range of frequencies where
the cavity gain is sufficient to overcome the above losses. Hence the device is
not a perfectly monochromatic source but emits over a narrow spectral band.
l. The central frequency of this spectral band is determined by the mean energy
level difference of the stimulated emission transition. Other oscillation fre-
quencies within the spectral band result from frequency variations due to the
thermal motion of atoms within the amplifying medium (known as Doppler
broadening") and by atomic cotnsionst. Hence the amplification within the

Opt;"1 •
wl!,u!

,-------------------
\I;'",r \lirror

Flg.6.4 The basic laser structure incorporating plane mirrors.

• Doppler broadening is referred to as an inhomogeneous broadening mechanism since

Individual groups of atoms in the collection have different apparent resonance Frequencies.
t Atomic collisions provide homogeneous broadening as every atom ill the collection has the
.Ime relonant frequency and spectral spread.
 242 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

laser medium results in a broadened laser transition or gain curve over a finite
spectral width as illustrated in Fig. 6.5. The spectral emission from the device
therefore lies within the frequency range dictated by this gain curve.
Since the structure forms a resonant cavity, when sufficient population
inversion exists in the amplifying medium the radiation builds up and becomes
established as standing waves between the mirrors. These standing waves exist
only at frequencies for which the distance between the mirrors is an integral
number of half wavelengths. Thus when the optical spacing between the
mirrors is L the resonance condition along the axis of the cavity is given by
[R'f. 41,

Aq
L~­ (6.12)
2n

where A is the emission wavelength, n is the refractive index of the amplifying

medium and q is an integer. Alternatively discrete emission frequenciesfare
I defined by
I,
I (6.13)
I

where c is the velocity of light. The different frequencies of oscillation within

the laser cavity are determined by the various integer values of q and each con-
stitutes a resonance or mode. Since Eqs. (6.12) and (6.13) apply for the case
when L is along the longitudinal axis of the structure (Fig. 6.4) the frequencies
given by Eq. (6.13) are known as the longitudinal or axial modes. Furthermore
from Eq. (6.13) it may be observed that these modes are separated by a fre-
quency interval of where:

c
oJ~­ (6.14)
2nL
){"I,li,,'
,""I,li(i,,'iol,

(;"ilO ,'eIVe'
"rnv.'lop,'

Fig.6.5 The relative amplification in the laser amplifying medium 8howlng the
broadened laser transition line or gain curve.
OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LASER 243

Example 6.2

A ruby laser contains a crystal length 4 cm with a refractive index of 1.78. The peak
emission wavelength from the device is 0.55 urn. Determine the number of
longitudinal modes and their frequency separation.
Solution: The number of longitudinal modes supported within the structure may
be obtained from Eq. 16.12) where:

2nL 2 x 1.78 x 0,04

q~--= =2.6xl0 5
6
A 0.55xl0

Using Eq. (6.14) the frequency separation of the modes is:

2.998 X 10 8
6f =2.1 GHz
2 x 1,78 x 0,04

Although the result of example 6.2 indicates that a large number of modes
may be generated within the laser cavity, the spectral output from the device is
defined by the gain curve. Hence the laser emission will only include the
longitudinal modes contained within the spectral width of the gain curve. This
situation is illustrated in Fig. 6.6 where several modes are shown to be present
in the laser output. Such a device is said to be multimode.
Laser oscillation may also occur in a direction which is transverse to the
axis of the cavity. This gives rise to resonant modes which are transverse to the

,
1""",i' ,
-1-1--
, ,
,I lI. ,I
, ,

I
,,
\
\
\
,,
,0>
pt,_ 1.1 (I!I) The modes in the Issar cavity, (bl The longitudinal modes in the laser output.
I
244 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AN D PRACTICE

L,,,,', "I,l i..1

,. ,'i1~ ,,,;,,,,,
n " ... rUt,. TE~ "

Rg.6.7 The low er c rce r tra nsve rse mod es a f a lase r.

direction of propagation. These transverse elect romag netic modes a re desig-

nated in a similar manner to transverse modes in waveguides (Section 2.3.2) by
TEM[m where the integers I and m indicate the number of tr ansverse modes
(see Fig. 6.7). Unlike the longitudinal modes which contribute o nly a single
spot of light to the laser output, tr ansverse modes may give rise to a penern of
spots at the output. This may be observed from the low order transverse mode
patterns shown in Fig. 6.7 on which the direction of the electric field is also
indicated. In the case of the TEM ou mode all pans of the propagating
. wavefront a re in phase. This is not so, however, with higher o rder modes
(TEM Hl , T EM u ' etc.) where phase reversals produce the various mode
patterns. Th us the greatest degree of coherence together with the highest level
of spectral purity may be obtained from a laser which operates in only the
TEM co mode. H igher order transverse modes only occ ur when the width of the
cavity is sufficient for them to oscillate. Consequent ly they ma y be eliminated
by suitable narrowing of the laser cavity.

6 .2.5 TIlt••hoId Condition for Leser Oscillation

It has been indicated that steady state conditions for laser oscillation are
achieved when the gain in the amplifying medium exactly balances the tot al
losses." Hence although population inversion between the energy levels provid-
ing the laser transition is necessary for oscillation to be esta blished, it is not
alone sufficient for lasing to occur. In addition a minimu m o r threshold gain
within the amplifying med ium must be attained such th at laser oscillations are
initia ted and sustained. This threshold gain may be determined by considering
the c hange in energy of a light beam as it passes through the amplifying
medium. F or simplicity all the losses except those due to transmission through
the mirrors may be included in a single loss coefficient per unit length crrr ' . a
A gain we assume the amplifying med ium occupies a length L completely filling
the region between the two mirrors which ha ve ref lectivi ties 1'1 a nd 1'1' On each

• This a pplies to C W luer w~.K:h give!! a co:UinuoUI output" rather than pulsed devices for
which diihtly difJcn:l1 cooditior.s nist. for OKillation to ~m:r.e nce the fractional i lin InCI
lou mun be mlttc!lcd.
 OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LASER 245

round trip the beam passes through the medium twice. Hence the fractional
loss incurred by the light beam is:
Fractional loss = r l "a e-1iiL (6.15)
Furthermore it is found that the increase in beam intensity resulting from
stimulated emission is exponential [Ref. 41. Therefore if the gain coefficient per
unit length produced by stimulated emission is it cm-! , the fractional round trip
gain is given by
Fractional gain = e2jL (6.16)

Hence

and
(6.17)
The threshold gain per unit length may be obtained by rearranging the above
expression to give:

_ _ 1 1
g'h=u+-In-- (6.18)
2£ r l r,

/ The second term on the right hand side of Eq. (6.18) represents the transmis-
sion loss through the mirrors."
For laser action to be easily achieved it is clear that a high threshold gain
per unit length is required in order to balance the losses from the cavity.
However it must be noted that the parameters displayed in Eq. (6.18) are
totally dependent on the laser type.

6.3 OPTICAL EMISSION FROM SEMICONDUCTORS

6.3.1 The o-n Junction

To allow consideration of semiconductor optical sources it is necessary to
review some of the properties of semiconductor materials, especially with
regard to the p-n junction. A perfect semiconductor crystal containing no
impurities or lattice defects is said to be intrinsic. The energy band structure
IRef. II of an intrinsic semiconductor is illustrated in Fig. 6.8(a) which shows
the valence and conduction bands separated by a forbidden energy gap or
bandgap E~, the width of which varies for different semiconductor materials.

• Thll term II sometimes .expreased in the form in: In i/r, where r. the reflectivity of the
mirrored endl, II equal to Y(rlrJ.
246 OPTI CAL FIB ER COMMU NICATi ONS: PRINCIPLES AND PR ACTICE

c,, "~U< , ..'" "'...J

•• • ••• • • •
,,
.. ..
m
---,, _.-
,,
,
' - - - - - - - --------.J
- r ,,
,
• I I.·. , ,,,. . ~ 11,,1,..
•
", , ",

Fig. 6.8 (81 Th e e nergy band st ruc w re o f an intrins ic semicond uctor at a te mperat ure
a bo ve absolut e zer o s ho w in g a n e q ua l n umbe r o f etect rc e s a nd ho les in t he con-
d uctio n ba nd a nd The va ler'l c e ba nd res pective ly. Ib) The Fe rm i- Dira c p robab ility
d ist ribution co rres po nding to [a].

Fig ure 6.8(a) shows the situation in the semiconductor at a temperat ure above
a bsolute zero where thermal excitation raises some electrons from the valence
band into the conduction band leaving empty hole states in the valence ba nd.
These thermally excited electrons in the conduction band and the holes left in
the valence band allow conduction throu gh the material. a nd are called
earners.
For a semiconductor in the rmal equilibrium the energy level occupation is
desc ribed by the Fermi-D irac distribution function (rather than the Boltz-
mann). Consequently the probability P(E) that an electr on gains suffi cient
therm al energy at a n absolute temperature T t hat it will be found occupying a
part icular energy level E. is given by the F ermi-Dirac distribution (Ref. I I:

(6.19)

where K is Boltzmann's constant and E F is known as the Fer mi energy or

Fermi level. T he Fermi level is only a mathematical parame ter but it gives an
indication of the distribution of carriers within the mat erial. This is shown in
Fig. 6.8(b) for the intrinsic semiconductor where the Fermi level is at the center
of the bandgap, indicating that there is a small probability of electrons occupy-
ing e nergy levels at the bottom of the conduction band and a corresponding
number of holes occupying energy levels at the top of the valence band.
To create an extrinsic semiconductor the material is doped with impurity
atoms which either create more free electrons (donor impurity) or holes
(a cceptor impurity). These two situations are shown in Fia_ 6.9 where the
donor impurities form energy levels j ust below the conduction band whilst
acceptor impurities .form eneray levels j ust above the VBJ CDCC band.
 OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LASER 247

["",,,, r - - - -- - - - -,
(...... 100<...... .....

• •• •••• •••
• • • ••
------ - -----!.,- --£,.-- - ----- --
" 'CO Pl O' " Il I'" , i l y l, ,'<I - _

(I , .,

(I c G

_,,,_I "

t'"
Fig.6.9 El"lergv band d iagrams: (a) " t yp e ~ m;cond uctor , (bl p type sem icond uc tor,

When donor impurities are ad ded , thermally excited electrons from the
donor levels are raised into the con duction band to create an excess o f negative
charge ca rriers and the semiconductor is said to be n type, with the majority
carriers being electrons. The Fermi level corresponding to this carrier distribu-
t io n is raised to a position above the center of the bandgap as illustrated in
Fig, 6.9(a). When accepto r impurities a re added as sho wn in Fig. 6.9(b)
thermally excited electrons are raised fro m the va lence band to the acceptor
imp urity levels leaving an excess of positive charge carriers in the valence band
and creating a p type semiconductor where the majority carriers are holes. In
\
this case the Fermi level is lowered belo w the centre of me bandga p.
The (HI junction diode is formed by creating adjoining p and n type
sem ico nductor layers in a single crysta l as shown in Fig. 6.1O(a). A thin deple-
tion region or layer is fo rmed at the junction thro ugh carrier recombination
which effectively leaves it free of mobile charge carriers (both electrons and
holes). This establishes a potential barrier between the p and n type regions
which restricts the interdifTusion of majority carriers fro m their respective
regions a s illustrated in Fig. 6.IO(b). In the absence o f an externally a pplied
voltage no current flows as th e potential barrier prevents the net flow of
carriers from on e region to another. W hen the j unction is in this equilibrium
state the Fermi level for the p and n type semiconductor is the same as sho wn
in Fig. 6.1O(b).
The width of the deplet ion region a nd thus the magnitud e of the potential
barrier is dependent upo n the carrier concentrations (doping) in the p and n
type regions, and any extern al applied voltage. When an external positive
voltage is applied to the p type region with respect to the n type, both the deple-
tion region width and the resulting potential barrier are reduced and the diode
is said to be forward biassed. Electrons from the n type region and holes from
the p type region can flow more read ily across the j unction into the opposite
type reaiol1. These minority carriers are effectively injected across the j unction
by the appUcatioa or the external voltaae end form a current tlow th rough the
248 OPTICAL FIBER COM MUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES A ND PR ACTICE

' ''ple tion 10\<,,,

.:•
p .t J I't u ~ Yi><

0 0 0 o ; 9 e a •• ••
,., 0
e
0

" • •0
e
0
e o
0 , ,0
0
• e I
I 0
• • • Ek<.1Jom

•
0
0
c 0 0
e ,) e
. I
0
•
• :• • •
~
o
II<.."
il.< <<p"'"
. ~

'- - - - --- ,;-- , - ----,-- - - -

• •
I ""'on,..1
J I@ N"....
I I @ (i) e I•••••• _
_ _ _ _ _ _ 1__.__ _ _ _ _ L -1- _
,0>
J
-- - -- G €l
o 1 I
',;; ,> c C O Cl I · ' ,
~)()O O () I a I

I
,
"----+-'_ ,----__
0

Fig . 6 .10 fa) Th e im p urities .,nd c harge c arr iers at a p-rt junctio n . fb) Th e e nergy band
di a g ram cor respo nd ing 10 (a ).

dev ice as they continuously ditfuse a way from the interface. Ho wever, this
situa tio n in suitable semicond uc to r materials allows carrier recombina tion with
the emission of light .

6 .3.2 Spontaneous Emis s ion

The increased concentration of minority carriers in the opposite type region in
th e forward biassed p--n d iode leads to the recombination of carriers acro ss the
bandga p. This process is shown in F ig. 6. 11 for II d irect bandgap (see Section

•••
• ••••
- ---------1-
------ - - ±
__1. . ,•
"
<j O o o r) (l r) O <I O
c " ;,c o 0 ("; C <'io ' - .............
~ O C O ') C
0':". 0 II ......

fig . 1 .11 The p-n junction wit" torwl rd biN g'vlng Ij)OnllnKl\.oI .mlilion at photoN..
OPTICAL SOURCES 1 : THE LASER 249

6.3.3) semiconduct or materia: where the normally empty electron states in the
conduction band o f the p type material a nd the normally empty hole states in
the valence band o f the n type material are popu lat ed by injected carriers
w hich recom bine a cross the bandgap. The energy released by thi s electron-
hole recom bin ation is approximately equal to th e bandgap energy E8 • E xcess
carrier population is therefore dec rea sed by recombin ation which may be
r ad iative or nonradiative.
In nonradiative recombina tion the energy released is dissipated in the form
of lattice vib rat ion s and th us heal. However, in ba nd to band radiative recom-
bination the energy is released with the creation o f a photon (sec Fig. 6.1 1)
with a freq uency following Eq. (6.20) where the energy is approximately equal
to the bandgap energy Ea and therefore :

E~ ~ hi (6.20)
This spontaneous emission of light fro m within the diode structure is known as
etectroluminescence." The light is emitted at the site of carrier recom bination
which is primarily close to the j unction. although recombination may take
place throughout the diode struct ure as carriers diffuse away from the junction
reg ion (see Fig. 6. 12). Ho wever, the amount of radiative recombination and
the emis sion area within the structure is dependent upon the semiconductor
m at erials u sed and the fabrication of the device.

- - P\lu'''''''
,
,,••
,,

P- t~pe--+ ~ . •
- "- - - - -- - - - - -- - - - - - - - ~ - - - - - - - - - -J--- P-~ juo"l.""
• •
•
.
~
•

e
fig.. e .12 An illust rat ion of cemer recom bina tlcn giving spo m enecus emisskm of Iigh l in
a p-n junction diode .

• Tbe term dectroIum iDtlccn« i. usee whnl the op-JcaI a mssion m1u1ts from the apphca lion
fJl an . lectric fkId. -
2 50 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRA CTICE

6 .3.3 Carrier Recombination

6 .3.3.1 Direct and Indirect Bandgap Semiconductors
In order to encourage electrolumlnescence it is necessary to select an
appropriate semiconductor material. The most useful materials for this
purpose are direct bandgap semiconductors in which electrons and holes on
either side of the forbidden energy gap have the same value of crystal
momentum and thus direct recombination is possible. This process is
illustrated in Fig. 6.13(a) with an energy-momentum diagram for a direct
bandgap semiconductor. It may be observed that the energy maximum of the
valence band occurs at the same (or very nearly the same) value of electron
crystal momentum- as the energy minimum of the conduction band. Hence
when electron- hole recombination occurs t he momentum of the electron
remains virtually constant and the energy released, which co rresponds to the
bandgap energy E~, may be emitted as light. This direct transition of an
electron across the energy gap provides an effi cient mechanism for photon
emission and the average time the minority carrier remains in a free state
before recombination (the minority carrier lifetime) is short (Io-R _ l o- IO s).
Some commonly used direct bandgap semiconductor materials are shown in
Ta ble 6,1 [Ref. 3],

[I",-..O~
"'~m

·- n..~·, .....
,,
,,
~ PI>o , ,,,,

,,
,, ,

\1,,,,.. ,, ~ u , ,, '" """" ,, tu n' M

wa" .,.o,lor k ,,·. " Wd Of k

Fig,6.13 Energy - mom en tu m di agrams show i ng the types of transit ion: te} direct
b andgap sem icondu ctor ; (b) i ndi rect bandgap semi conduct or .

• T he cry_Mal momentum p is related 10 the weveveetor k for .n electron in • cryetl1 by

p = 2rtltk , where h is F..nek's COftUartl [Ref. I]. Hence the .bKUII of F1&-6.13 Is oltta
. now n u the e:tctron .....vevector n ther thlll roomcntum.

~ - "
 OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LASER 251

TIIb~ ' .1 Some d ire ct and ind irecl bandga p s e miconducto rs with
calc uialed re co mbln e ncn coetl,e ie nt5

S e miconducto r Energy ba ndg ap Recombinalion coefficient 8 ,

ma terial ( , V} (cm ' s· ' j

G,"" Dire ct : 1.4 3 7.2 1 )( 10 - 10

GaSb Dire ct 073 2 .39 X 10- 10
Direct: 0 .35 8.5 )< , 0. 11
''"'"
InSb Direct: 0 ,18 4 .58 x 10-"

s; Indire ct. 1.12 1,7 9)(1 0-' ·

Ge Indirect : 0 .67 5,2 5 )( 10'\·
G,P Indire ct: 2.26 5.37 x 10- 1•

In indirect bandgap semiconducto rs, however, the maximum a nd minim um

energies occur at differen t va lues o f crystal momentum (Fig. 6.13(b)). For
electro n- hole recombination to take place it is essential that the electron loses
momentum such that it has a value of momentum corresponding to the
maximum energy of the valence ba nd . The conserv..ation of momentum
requires the emission o r abso rptio n of a third particle, a phonon. This three
particle recombination process is fa r less probable tha n the two part icle
process exhibited by direct bandgap semicond ucto rs. Hence. the recombine-
non in indirect ba ndgap sem icond uctors is relatively slow (Io-z- 1Q-4 s). T his
is reflected by a much longer mino rity carrier lifetime togeth er with a gre at er
\ probability of nonradlad ve tran sition s. The competing nonradiative recom-
bination processes which involve latt ice defects and impurities (e.g. precipitates
of commonly u sed dopants) become more likely a s they allow carrier recom-
bin ation in a relativ ely short time in most materials. Thus the indirect bandg ap
emitters such as silico n and germanium sho wn in Table 6 .1 give insignifican t
levels of electrolummescence. T his d isparity is further illustrated in T able 6. 1
by the values of the recombination coefficient B , given for both the direct and
indirect bandgap recombination semiconductors shown.
The recombination coefficient is obtained from the measured absorption
coefficient of the semiconductor, and for low injected minority carrier density
relative to the majority carriers it is related approximately to the radi ative
mino rity carrier lifetime' 't, by (R ef. 41 :
t, ~ IS,(N + P))-' (6.21)
where Nand P are the respective majority carrier concentrations in the n and p
type regions. The signifi cant difference between the recom bination coefficients
for the direct and indirect bandgap semiconductors shown, underlines the
importance of the use of direct bandgap materials for electroluminescent

e The radllttv. miDorit)' carrier lifeti me il Oefined as the average ume a minorily eacriCJ call
ulIt In • free IUle befOl'1l radiative ~ mbillatioo takn p1&cc.
Z5Z OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS; PRINCIPLES AND PRACTIC£

sources. Direc t bandga p semiconducto r devices in general have a much higher

internal quantum effi ciency. This is the ratio of the numbe r of radiative reco m-
binations (photons prod uced within the structure) to the nu mber of injected
carriers which is often expressed as a percentage.

Com pare t h8 apc rodmate radi ative minority carrier tltetrm es in Qaliium arsenide ar'ld
silicon w hen t he m inority carriers are electro ns inj ected into the p t ype region w hi ch
has a hole concentration of 10 ' $ cm- 3 . The injecte d electron densit y is sm all com-
pared wit h t he majo rity car rier del'1sit y.
SQl u tion ; EQuation (6. 2 1l giv@s tn ll rad iative m inority cerrier lifetime t , as

t, ~ lB,W + Pll-l
In t he p type regio" t"a "ole concentrat ion oererrntoes (he radiative carrier lifellme
115 P > N . Hence,

Th\ol s for gallium arsenid e:

I, ~ [7 2 1 'It 10- 10 'It 10 . 81 - 1
= 1.39 'It 10-9
= 1.39 ns
f or sil icon:
I , ~ (1 .79 X 10.. 15 )( 10'8 J-'
= 5.58 x 10, 4
= 0 .56 m s
Thus th e direct b8ndgap gallium arsen ide has a radiative carrier lifetime factol 01
IlfOund 2 .5 )( 10 · 1! less than rne lndiret:t bandgap silicon.

6 .3.3.2 Other Radiative Recombination Processes

In th e previous sections only full bandgap transitions have been considered to
give r adiative recombinatio n. Ho w ever energy levels may be introduced into
the bandga p by impurities or lattice defects within the material struct ure which
may gr eatly inc rease the electron-hole recombination (effectively red uce the
carrier lifetime). The recombina tio n process through such impurity or defect
centers may be either radiative or nonradiative. Major radiative reco mbination
processes at 300 K oth er than band to band transitions are shown in Fig. 6.14.
These are band to impurity cent er o r impurity center to band, don or level to
acceptor level and reco mbination in volving Isoelectrc nic impurities.
Hence an indirect bandgap semicond ucto r may be made into a more useful
electroluminescent material by the addition of impurity centers which will
effectively convert it into a direct bandgap material. An example of this is the
introduction 0( nitrogen as an impurity into gallium pho sphide. In this ca.c the

. -. :'.- ~-<'
 OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LA SER 253

.
('o<><)uc,,,"', - - - - -,
~ 1-1,'" ..", I
- - - - -
I

- "--- - -
I
... ,~ ,

~- --""-,,
k ...I
. . ,
-- -
""«I"'" 'nol""'l. ...1_
~"

Flg.6.t4 Major radiativ e recom btnatlon p roce ss e s at 300 K: (el ccnuucnon to valence
ba nd (ba nd to ba nd] tr an sitio n: Ibl co nd uction ban d 10 ac ce pto r imp uri ty, an d
do nor imp urity to valen ce ba nd tran sition ; (c l dO!1O r impurity 10 acceptor
im purity tra ns ition; (d) re co mbinat ion from an isoelect ronic impur ity to Ihe
va le nce ba oc.

nitro gen form s an isoelectromc impurity as it ha s the sa me num ber o f valence

\ (o uter shell) electrons as pho sphorus but with a different covalent rad ius and
hig.her electronegativity [Ref. 11. The nit rogen impurity center th us captures an
electron and acts as an isoelectronic trap which ha s a la rge spread of
momentum. This trap then att racts the oppositely charged carrier (a hole) an d
a d irect transition takes p lace between the impurity center and the valence
band. Hence gallium phosph ide may become an efficient light emitter when
n itrogen is incorporated. However, such conversio n of ind irect to direct
bandgap transitions is only rtad ily achi eved in mat erials where the direct and
indi rect bandgaps ha ve a small energy d ifference. This is the case with gallium
phosphide but not ....'ith silicon o r germanium.

8 .3.4 Stimulated Eml••lon and Lasing

The general concept of stimulated emission via population inversion was
indicated in Section 6.2.3. Carrier population inver sion is achieved in an
intri nsic (undoped) semiconductor by the injection of electrons into the con-
duction band of the material. T his is illustrated in Fig. 6. 15 where the electron
energy an d the corresponding fill ed states are shown. Figure 6.15(a) shows the
.Itu l tion at absolute zero when the 'conduction band contains no el ectron s.
EloctroDl injected into the material fill the low er energy states in th e conduc-
tion band up to the injection energy o r the quasi Fermi level for electrons.
Ilft;t char.o ceutrality j, conserved within the material an equal density of
•
 254 OPTICAL FIBE.R COM MUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRA CTICE

r,lkd
.1,." 1",,,
,r.1....
O.m~u< t; u"
h . "d

'" ,..
f lg.6.15 The filled electron STales fo r an intrins ic direct ba ndgap se m ico nd ucto r a t
ab solute zero [Het. 51: (8) in eq uilibrium ; (b! w it h hig h ca rrie r inject io n.

holes is cre ated in the top of the valence band by the absence of elect rons as
shown in Fig. 6. 15(b) (Ref. 51.
Incid ent photons with energy E~ but less than the separatio n energy of the
q uasi Fermi levels E q = E Fe - E r • cannot be absorbed beca use the necessary
cond uction band states are occupied. However. these photons ca n induce a
downward transitio n of an electron from the filled conductio n band slates into
the empty valence band sta tes thu s stim ulating the emission of another photon.
The basic condition for stimulated emission is therefore dependent on the quasi
Fermi level separation energy as. well as. the bandgap energy and may be
defined as:
(6.22)
However. it must be noted tha t we have described an idea l situ ation whereas. at
no rmal o perating tempera tures the distribution of electrons and holes is less
well defined but the condition for stimulated emission is largely maintained.
Popu lation inversion may be o bta ined at a p--n junction by heavy doping
(degenerative doping) of both the p and n type material. Heavy p type doping
with acceptor impurities causes a lowering of the Fermi level or boundary
between the filled and empty states into the valence band. Similarly degenera-
tive n type doping causes the Fermi level to enter the co nduction band of the
material. Energy band diagrams of a degenerate p-n junction a re shown in
Fig. 6.16. The position of the Fermi level and. the electron occ upation
(shading) with no applied bias are shown in F ig. 6. I6(a). Since in this case the
junction is in thermal equilibrium, the Fermi energy has the same value
thro ughout the material Fia;ure 6.16(b) sho ws the p-n junction when I
forward bi.a nearly equal to tile bandilP voltaiC it appUcd and hMee there It
I
i
OPTICAL SOURCES 1 : lH E LASER 255

, • Fill<d

,•
II '"''''
<\0,." "' 0

'" •
----------- ~£"

,,'
Fig. 6 .16 The dege ne rate o-n [uncttcn: (a ) with no a pplied bias: Ibl w ith strong for w ard
b ias suc h tha r nle seoareuco of tile Qua si Fe lmi Ie v els is hign a f tha n m e
electio n- hole fe comblna tiOn e nergy h I ill the nanow a ctive reg io ll. He lice
s timulated e miss ion is obtained in th is region.
\

direct conduction. At high injec tion carrier density" in such a junction there
exists an active region near the depletio n layer th at contains simultaneously
degener ate populations of electrons and holes (sometimes termed doubly
degenerate). For this region the conditio n for stimulated emission of Eq. (6.22)
is satisfied for electromagnetic radiation of frequency E1/h <I <
(EF~ -Efp )/h. Therefore any radia tion of this frequency which is confined to
the active region wiD be amplified. In general the degenerative do ping dist-
inguishes a p-n junction which provides stimulated emission from one which
gives only spontaneous emission as in the case of the LED .
Finally it must be noted that high impurity concentration within a
semiconductor causes differences in the energy bands in comparison with an
intrinsic semicond uctor. These differences are particularly apparent in the
degeneretively doped p-n junctions used for semiconductor lasers. For
instance at high donor level concentrati ons in gallium arsenide, the donor
Impurity levels form a band that merges with the conduction band. These
energy states, sometimes referred to as 'bandtail' states [Ref. 71extend into the
forbidden energy gap. The laser transition may take place from one of these

• rbl. may be Ilr,ely ecnetdered to be dectron l injected into the P-Il region becau se of their
....t.. mobility,
•

,
 256 OPTICAL FIBE R COM M UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

states. Furthermore the tra nsitio ns ma y termina te o n acceptor states which

because of their high concentration also extend as a band into th e energy gap.
In this wa y the lasing transitions rna)' occur at energies less than the bandgap
energy E• . When transitions of this type dominate, the lasing peak energy is
less than the bandgap energy. B ence the effective lasing wavelength ca n be
varied within th e electroluminescent semico nd ucto r used to fabrica te the j unc-
tion la ser through variatio n o f the impurity concentration. For example, the
lasing wavelength of gallium ars enide may be varied between 0.85 and
0.9 5 11m althoug h the best performance is usually achieved in the 0,88 to
0,91 11m band (see problem 6.5).
However, a further requirement of the junction diode is necessary to
establish lasing. This involves the provision of optical feedback to give laser
oscillation. It may be achieved by the formatio n of a n optical cavity (f abry-
Perot cavity. see Section 6.2.4) within the structure by polishing t he end faces
of t he j unction diode to ac t as mirro rs. Each end of the j unctio n is polished or
cleaved and the sides are roughened to prevent an y unwanted light emission
and hence wasted population inversion.
In common with all other laser types a requireme nt for the initiation and
maintenance of lase r oscillation is th at the optical gai n matches the optical
losses within the cavity (see Section 6.2.5). For the p-n j unctio n o r
semiconduct or la ser this occurs at a particular phot on energy within the
spectrum of spontaneous emission (usually near the peak wavelength of
spontaneous emission), Thus when extremely high currents are passed through
the device (l.e. injection levels of around 1018 carriers cm-' ), spontaneous
emission with a wide spectrum (Ii.newidth) becomes lasing (when a current
th reshold is passed) and the linewidth subsequently na rrows.
An idealized optical o utput power against current characteristic (aIM) called
the light o utput against curren t characteristic) for a semiconductor laser is
shown in Fig. 6. 17. The current thre shold is indicated and it may be observed
that the device gives little light output in the region below th e threshold current

~ 'H"" ,.I",I
,·In;. lIOn
Sp""tal\' ou.
'"~'''''
<tnn""'''
""lI"'"

c.......,

Fie.e.'7 The id l l l l ~ l'It output 19a 1nt! eurre.,t ee rl ctlri l t ic: tor I n Injl ction II " ',

-.. . .
~- ,
OPTI CAL SOU RCES 1; THE LASER 257

which correspond s to spontaneous emission only within the structure.

However, after the Lhreshold cu rrent is reached, the light output increases sub-
stantially for small increases in current t hrough the device. This corresponds to
the region of stimulated emission when the device is acti ng a s an am plifier of
light.
For strongly confined structures the threshold current density for stimulated
em ission J lh is to a fair app ro ximation [R ef. 41 related to the threshold gain
coefficient gtll for the laser cavity through:

i ... = flitl . (6.23 )

-
where the gain factor P is a constant appropriate to specific devices. Detailed
di scussion of the more exact relations hip is given in R ef. 4 .
Substituting for gl~ fro m Eq . (6. 18) and rearranging we o btain :

J lh = ~ [Ci + "':"'10 _1_] (6.24)

P 2L r 1r ,

Since fo r the semiconductor laser the mirrors are formed by a dielectric plane
and often uncoated, the mirror reflectivities r 1 and rx may be calculated using
the Fresnel reflection rela tionship of Eq. (4.12).

bemple 6 .4

A GaAs il1jtH;tiol1 la!ief has a n o pliul ce vttv ot le ngth 2 50 J,lm and w;dtt1 100 lJ.m. At
no rm al o peratin g tem perature the gaif1 lec tor ~ is 21 x 10 - 3 A c m-J and the loss
coefficie"t a per c m is 10. DeTermine the tt"(lshold c urren l dens ily end he nce Il'1 e
Ih ....s hold c un ee t fo r the devlCfl. II ",ay be assumed mat 11'1 08 cle.aoved m irrors ,lie
uncoa ted and thai the cu mm t is res triCted TO tt>e optical cavity. The refractive i nde~
01 GaAs mey be la ke" as 3.6.
Solution : The reflectivity for normal Incidence of 8 pTaf1e wa ve o n Ga As-lI ir
lf1t.rface m ey be c eteroee fro m Eq 14.121 w here :

'1='2=' = ("-' )'

0+ ,

• ( 3.6 - 1 )2 ;;:;0.32
3 6 -+ 1
The t hreshold cu rrent d8ns lty m ay be obtained fro m Eq . \6.2 4 1 wf'le ~ ;

J 1h ", -1 [ ii..--ln-
, , ]
B. L r
258 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

~ 2 1 " 110 3 [ 10 + 1
4
In...2.-J
2 50)( 10 - 0 .32

== 2.65 " 10 3 A. cm 2

The t hre shold c urrent ' In is give n by :

' tn = J ' n x area of the optical cavity
'" 2 .6 5 x 10 3 x 250 x 100 x 10- 8
== 663 mA
Therefore the thres ho ld c urre nt l or t his device is 663 mA. if the c urrent flow is
ll!I$tnc ted 10 the optical CSvil.,...

As the stimulated emission mino rity carrier lifet ime is much shorter
(typically 10-- 11 s) tha n that due to sponta neous emissio n, furth er increases in
input cu rrent above the threshold will result alm ost entirely in stimulate d emis-
sion, giving a high intern al quantum efficiency (50- 100%). Also, whereas
incoherent spontaneous emission has a linewidth of tens of nan ometers,
stimula ted coherent em ission ha s a linewidth of a nanom eter or less.

6.3.5 Het.rojunctlons
The previo us sections have considered the pbotoemis s ive properties of a single
p----n j unction fabricated from a single crystal semiconductor materia l. T his is
known as a homojunction. However the radiative properties of a junction
diode may be improved by the use of heterojunct ions. A heterojun ction is an
interfa ce between two adjoining single crystal semiconductor s with different
bandgap energies. Devices which are fabricated with heterojunctions are said
to have he terostru cture.
Heterojunctions are c lassified into either an tsorype (n-n o r p-p) or an
anisotype (p--n). The isotype heterojunction pro vides a potential ba rrier within
the structu re which is useful for the confinement of minority carriers to a small
active region (carrier confinement). It effectively reduces th e carrier diffus ion
length and thus the volume within the structure where radiative recombination
ma y take place. This technique is widely used for the fabrication of injection
laser s a nd high radiance LEOs. Isotype heterojunctions a re also extensively
used in LEO s to provide a transparent lay er close to the active region which
substantially reduces the absorption of light emitted from the structure.
A lternatively anisorype heterojunctions with sufficiently large bandgap
differen ces improve the injection efficiency of either electrons o r botes. Both
types of bererojuncuon provide a dielectric step due to the different refractive
indices at either side of the junction. Thi s ma y be used to provide radiation
confinement to the active region (i.e. the walls of an optical waveauide). The
efficienc;y of the containment depends usee the mqnitude of tbt tltlP wblch
o pnCAL SOURCES 1; TI-l E LASER 259

n CO'

0 ') 100 -
•
r --
0
-- e
'"

'-.
l rode -

,
U,
,I lle• • od "',,,.,. I
•,
,• • ., . ,'
I !
•

• • .- . • •
~ ._-.
_. • •

[ '"
.- o 0 o
c o c
o

"
';'
c
C
O
0
c
<)
Q
00
G
II

, --,,
" , (.)

,......
" • •••1. The doubll heteroj" oC1;on injlM;tiOlllaser: tel the laver s tructo.lre. shown with
I n epplii d forward 1)4'1; (bl energy ba od diag ram indicati ng a frP beterolcnc-
110n on thl left end. p-n hltl roJunctlon on the right; Ie) the correspo ndi ng
I'IIr1otlvl Indu dl. grlm Ind I llctrlc fliid diau;Dution.
•
260 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE
,
is d ictated b y the difference in bandgap energies and the wavelength of the
r adialion.
It is useful to consider the application o f heterojunctions in the fabrication of
a particular device. They were first used to provide potential barriers in injec-
tion laser s. Wh en a dou ble heterojunction (DR) structure wa s implemented,
the resulting carrier and optical confinement red uced the threshold curren ts
necessa ry for lasing. by a factor of a round 100. Thus stim ulated emission was
o bt ained with relatively smaU threshold curren ts (30-200 mAl. The layer
structure and an energy band diagram for a DH injection lase r are illustrated
in Fig. 6.1 S. A beterojunction is shown either side of the active layer for laser
oscillation. The forward bias is supplied by connecting a positive electrode o f a
supply to the p side of the structure and a negative electrode to the n side.
When a voltage which corresponds to the bandgap energy of the active layer is
applied, a large number of electrons (or holes) are injected into the active layer
a nd la ser oscillatio n commences. These ca rriers are confined 10 the active layer
b y the energy barriers provided by the heterojunctio ns which are placed within
the diffusio n length of the injec ted carrier s. It may also be observed from
Fig. 6.18(c) that a refractive index step (us ually a difference of 5-1 0%) a t the
heteroj unctions provides radiat ion containment to the active layer. In effect the
active layer forms the center of a dielectric waveguide which strongly confines
the electroluminescence within this region as illustr ated in Fig. 6. I 8(c). The
refractive index step shown is the same for each heterojunctton which is desir-
able in order to prevent losses due to lack of waveguiding which can occ ur if
the structure is not symmetrical .
Careful fabrication of the heteroj unctions is also important in order to
reduce defects at the interfaces such as misfit dislocations or inclusions which
cause nonradiauve recombi nation a nd thus red uce the intern al q uantum
effi ciency. Lattice matching is therefore an important criterion for the
materials used to form the interface. Ideally heterojunctions should have a very
small lattice parameter mis ma tch of no greater tha n 0.1%. However, it is often
not possible to obtain such good lattice parameter matching with the semi-
co nd uc tor materials required to give emission at the desired wavelength a nd
therefore much higher lattice parameter mismatch is often toler ated (.... 0.6%).

6.3.6 Semiconductor Material.

The semiconductor materials used for optical sources mu st bro adly fulfill
several criteria. These a re:
(a) p-n j unction formation. The ma terials must lend themselves to the forma-
t ion of p-n j unctio ns with suitable characteristics for carrier injection.
(b) Efficient electrolumlnescence. The devices fabricated must have a hiah
probability of radiative transition! and therefore a high intern al quantum.
etnciency. Hence the material, utilized muat be either direct blnd.ap
OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LASER 261

semiconductors or indirect bandgap semiconductor s with appropriate

impurity centers.
(c) Useful emission wavelength. The materials m ust emit light at a suitable
wavelength to be utilized with current o ptical fi bers and detecto rs
(0.8- 1. 7 pm). Ideally th ey should allow bandgap variation with
appropriate doping and fabrication in order that emission at a desired
specitic wavelength may be achieved.
Initial investigation of electrolu minescent ma terials for LEOs in the early
19605 centered around the direct bandgap III-V alloy semiconductor s includ-
ing the binary compounds gallium arsenide (G uAs) and gallium phosphide
(G a P) and the ternary gallium arsenide phosphide (G a As" PI _".). Gallium
arsenide gives efficient ejectrclu rrdnescence over an appropriate wavelength
band (0.88-0.9 1 urn) and for thc first generation optical fi ber communication
systems was the first material to be fab ricated into homojun ction
semiconductor lasers operating a t low temperature [Ref. 8 i. It was quickly
realized that improved devices co uld be fabricated with heterojunction
structures which thro ugh ca rrier and radiation co nfinement would give
enhanced light output for drastically reduced device currents. These
heterostructure devices were first fabricated using liquid ph ase epitaxy (LPE)
to produce GaAs!AI" Ga 1_J As single hetercjunctton lasers. This process
inv olves the precipitation of material from a cooling solution onto an underly-
ing substra te. When the substrate consists of a single crystal and the lattice
constant or parameter of the precipitating material is the same or very similar
to th at of the substrate (i.e. the unit cells within the two crystalline structures
are of a similar dimension), the precipitating material form s an epitaxiallayer
on the substrate surface. Subseq uer.Uy the sa me technique was used to
produce do uble heterojunctions consisting of At.. Ga 1_X As/GaAsl Alx G al--> As
epitaxial layers, which gave continuous (CW) operation at room temperature
(Refs. 9 and 10]. Some or the common material systems now utilized fo r double
heterojunction device fabrication together with their useful wavelength ranges
are shown in Table 6.2.

Table 6 .2 So me ccm mc e mateflal svste ms use-d in the fabricatio n

of electrc hrminescent sources lor OOl ical fibe r
cc enm unlcatio o s

Maler ial s yste ms Useful w avele,.,gt h

active laye r/confi ning la ye rs range Iuml Su bs trate

0 8 --0.9 GaA$
0.9 GaAs
065-0.9
0.8 5- 1.1
G.'"
GaAs
0 ,9- 1.1 GaAs
1.0-1.7 GaS b
0.9 2-1.7 I,.
 262 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

The GaAs/AIGaAs DH system is currently by far the best developed and is

used for fabricating both lasers and LEDs for the shorter wavelength region.
The bandgap in this material may be 'tailored' to span the entire 0.8--0.9 11m
wavelength band by changing the AlGa composition. Also there is very little
lattice mismatch (0.017%) between the AlGaAs epitaxial layer and the GaAs
substrate which gives good internal quantum efficiency. In the longer
wavelength region (1.1-1.6I1m) a number of III~V alloys have been
investigated which are compatible with GaAs, InP and GaSb substrates. These
include ternary alloys such as GaAs1_xSbx and InxGa1_xAs grown on GaAs.
However, although the ternary alloys allow bandgap tailoring they have a
fixed lattice parameter. Therefore, quaternary alloys which allow both
bandgap tailoring and control of the lattice parameter (i.e. a range of lattice
parameters is available for each bandgap) appear to be of more use for the
longer wavelength region. The most advanced are Inl_xGaxAsYPI_Y lattice
matched to InP and GaJ_yAI"Asl_xSbx lattice matched to GaSb. Both these
material systems allow emission over the entire 1.0--1.7 urn wavelength band.
At present the InGaAsP/InP material system is the most favorable for both
long wavelength light sources and detectors. This is due to the ease of fabrica-
, tion with lattice matching on InP which is also a suitable material for the active
region with a bandgap energy of 1.35 eV at 300 K. Hence InP/lnGaAsP
(active/confining) devices may be fabricated. Conversely GaSb is a low
bandgap material (0.78 eV at 300 K) and the quaternary alloy must be used
for the active region in the GaAlAsSb/GaSb system. Thus compositional
control must be maintained for three layers in this system in order to minimize
lattice mismatch in the active region whereas it is only necessary for one layer
in the InP/InGaAsP system.

6.4 THE SEMICONDUCTOR INJECTION LASER

The electroluminescent properties of the forward biassed p-n junction diode

have been considered in the previous sections. Stimulated emission by the
recombination of the injected carriers is encouraged in the semiconductor
injection laser (often simply called the injection laser) by the provision of an
optical cavity in the crystal structure in order to provide the feedback of
photons. This gives the injection laser several major advantages over other
semiconductor sources (e.g. LEDs) that may be used for optical communica-
tions. These are:

(a) High radiance due to the amplifying effect of stimulated emission. Injection
lasers will generally supply milliwatts of optical output power.
(b) Narrow linewidth of the order of 1 nm (10 A) or less which Is useful in
minimizina the 'effects of material dispersion.
OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LASER 2.3

(c) Modulation capabilities which at present extend up into the gigahertz

range a nd will undoubtedly be improved upon.
(d) Relative temporal coherence which is con side red essential to allow
heterodyn e (coherent) detection in high capacity systems, but at present is
primarily o f use in single mode systems.
(e) Good spatial coherence which allows the o utput to be focused by a lens
into a spot .....hich has a greater intensity than the dispersed unfocused
emission. This permits efficient coupling o f the o ptical o ut put power into
the fiber even fo r fibers with low n umerical apertu re. The spatial field
matching to the optical fiber which may be obtained with the laser source
is not po ssible with an incoherent emitter and con sequently coupling
efficiencies are much. reduced.
Th ese advantages, together with the compatibility of the injection laser with
optical fi bers (e.g. size) led to the early developments of the device in the
19605. Early injectio n lasers had the form of a Fabry-Perot cavity often
fabricated in gallium arsenide which was the major III-V compound
semiconductor with electroluminescent properties at the appropriate wave-
length for first generation systems. The basic structure o f this homoj unctioo
device is shown in Fig. 6. 19, where the cleaved ends of the crystal act as partial
mirrors in order to encourage stimulated emission in the cavity when electrons
are injected into the p type reg ion . However, as men tioned previously these
devices had a high threshold current den sity (greater than 10" A cm-") due to
th eir lack of carrier containment and proved inefficient light sources. The high
current densities required dictated that these devices when operated at 300 K
were largely utilized in a pulsed mode in order to minimize the j unction
temperature and thus avert d amage.
Improved carrier containment and thus lower threshold current densities
(around 1()3 A cm- 2 ) were achieved using heterojunction structu res (see
Section 6.3.S). The do uble heterojunction injection laser fabri cated from lattice
matched Ill-V alloys provided both carrier and optical confinement on both

Fo....,. ,."",
/
..(h¥ft!- <TJ .~1 ~
--------- -L~')

-- 7 -- -
,H:.;."
- --
/-
'-

, .,'~ rxl_/
/ .,~. ~

...
....... ~""...,
0.".,,,, ..,.., taot
"I. 1 .1' Sel'ltlml 1!e dl'fjf,lTI 0" G,A, I'Iomojunc1ion injection laser w'lh a Fabry-Perot
elvlly.
 264 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

side s of the p-n j unction giving the injection laser a greatly enhanced perfor-
, mance. This en abled these devices with the appropriate heat sinking to be
o perated in a continuous wave (CW) mode at 300 K with obvious ad vantages
I
e
for o ptical communications (e.g. analog transmission ). Ho wever, in o rder to
provide reliable CW operation o f the 0 H injection laser it was necessary to
provide further carrier and op tical confinement which led to the introduction of
stripe geometry D H laser configurations. Prior to discussion of this structure.
ho wever, it is useful to consider the efficiency of the semiconductor injection
laser as an optical source.

6 .4.1 Efficiency
There are a number o f ways in which the operatio nal efficienc y o f the
semicond uctor laser may be defined . A useful definition is th at of the differen-
tial external quantum efficiency 1'1 0 which is the ratio of the increase in photon
output rate for a given increase in the number of injected electrons. If P, is the
optical p ower emitted from the device, I is the current, e is the charge on an
electron. and hi is the photon energy, then:

dP.lhf dP.
(6.25)
1'1 0 = dIle "" d/(E }
J

where: E. is the bandgap energy expressed in electronvolt s. It may be noted

I that 1'1 0 gives a measure of the rate of change of the optica l output power with
curren t and hence defines the slope o f the output characteristic (Fig. 6.17) in
the lasing region. for a particular device. Hence 110 is sometimes referred to as
the slo pe quantum efficiency . F or a CW semicond uctor laser it u sually has
values in the range 4Q.-.60%. Alternatively the internal q uantum efficiency of
the semiconductor laser TI" wh ich wa s d efined in Sec tion 6.3.3.1 as :

n umbcr of photons produced in the laser ca vity

( 6.26)
1\ = number of injected electrons

may be quite high with values usually in the range 5O-1 OO%.lt is related to the
d ifferential external quantum efficiency by the express io n IRef. 41:

11.D = 11.i [I + C2liLl:n(1 /r rz)) ]

I
(6.27)

a
where is the loss coefficient of the laser cavity , L is the length of the laser
cavity an d r l , r2 are the cleaved mirror reflectivities.
An other parameter is the total efficienc y (external q uant um efficiency) l1T
wh ich is efficiency defined as :

lotaJ numbcr of outpUI phalons

(6.2 8)
t lr = total number of injected c1OCtron5

I . •''''',..'jl.f.l~
OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LASER 265

Pel Jif r,
.-0-,-'- ~ - (6.29)
lIe IE,
As the power emitted P, changes linearly when the injection current I is
greater than the threshold c urrent Ilb ' then :

Fo r high injection current (e.g. 1= 5/... ) then '1T ~ '1 D ' wherea s for lower
c urrents (I "- lllh ) the total efficienc y is lower and around 15-25%.
The extern al power efficiency o f the device (or device efficiency) 'lop in con-
verting elect rical input to opt ical o utput is given by :

r, r,
11 = - x 100 = - x 100% ( 6.3 1)
OJ' P IV

where P = I V is the d.c . electrical input power.

Using Eq. (6.29) for the total efficiency we find :

'lop = 'IT ( ~~) x 100% (6.32)

The tote r e fficie ncy of an inje ctio n ja se r w ilh 2 GolAs. a Cl ive ' eg'on is 18%. The
VOlta ge app lied to the dllvice is 2 5 V and the band ga p e-nergy fo r GeAs is 1,4 3 eV.
Ca lculat e the e l le mal powe r efficie r"lcy of the device.
Solvrion : Us ing Eq. (6.3 21. the e xte rr.a r powe r eff.e iency is given by:

'l.p = 0. 18 ('.43)
-
2 .5
l( l 00 ~ 10%

This res ull indi&a lE-s the possibilily o f a ch ie ving high overall power e fl ic iencies fro m
semtcond uctc r lase rs whic h are much la rger tha n for o th.., reser types.

6.4.2 Stripe Geometry

Th e 0 H laser structure pro vides optical confinement in the vertical direction
through the refractive index step at the heterojun ction interfaces, but lasing
takes place across the whole width of the device. Th is situation is illustrated in
Fig. 6.20 which shows the broad area D R laser where the sides of the cavity
are simpJy form ed by roughening the edges o f the dev ice in o rder to reduce
unwanted eminion in th ese directions EU1d limit the number of horizontal
trantVerte moael. Howner. the broad emission area creates several problems
tnc1udin, difficult heat ~lna. w in,from. multiple filaments in the relatively
•
266 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRI NCI PLES AND PRACTICE

Fig.6.20 A broad area GilAs/AIGaAs OH injection laser.

wide active area and un suitable light output geometry for efficient coupling to
the cylindrical fibers.
To overcome these problems whilst also reduci ng the req uired threshold
cu rrent, laser structures in which the active region does no t extend to the edges
of the de vice were de veloped. A co mmon technique Involved the introduction
of stripe geometry to th e structure to provide o ptical containment in the
ho rizontal plane. The structure of a DH stripe contact laser is s hown in
Fig. 6.21 where the major current now th rough the device and hence t he active
region is within th e stripe. Generally the stripe is form ed by the creatio n of
high re sistance areas on either side by techniques such as proton bombard-
ment IRef. 91 or oxide isolation (Ref. 101. The stripe there fore acts as a guiding
mechani sm which overcomes the major problems of the broad a rea device,
However , ahhough the active area width is reduced the light out put is still not

F"tg. 8.21
; OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LA SER 2.7

particularly well collimated due to isotropic ermssron from a small active

region and diffraction within the structure. The optical output and far field
emission pattern ate also illustrated in Fig. 6.21. The output beam divergence
is typically 45 ° perpendicular Co the plane of the junction and 9° parallel to it.
Nevertheless this is a substantial Improvement on the broad area laser.
The stripe contact device also gives. with the correct balance of guiding,
single transverse (in a direction parallel to the ju nction plane) mode opera -
tion whereas the broad area device tends to allow mukimode operation in
this horizontal plane. Numerous stripe geometry laser structures have been
investigated with stripe widths ran ging from 2 to 6S tun. and the DH stripe
geometry structure is universally utilized for optical fiber communications.

6.5 MULTIMODE INJECTION LASERS

6. 5.1 laM r Modea

The typical outpu t spectrum for a broad area injection laser is shown in
Fig. 6.22(8). It does not consist of a single wavelength o utput but a series of
wavelength peaks corresponding to different longitudinal (in the plane of the
junction. along the optical cavity) modes within the structure. As indicated in
Section 6.2.4 me spacing o f these modes is dependent o n the o ptical cavity
length a s each one corresponds to an integ ral number of lengths. They are
generally separated by a few tenth s of a nanometer, and the laser is said to be a
multimode device. However, Fig. 6.22(8) also indicates some broadening of the
longitudinal mode peaks due to subpeaks caused by higher order ho rizontal

(, )
/ ,
....

/ I~
:'\ . H

R.I.,...
;nl.'n",y
.....
- ---
,., •

' .m_
~ •. '.12 Outpul ' lactr, for multl mode injection la sers: (sl broad area device with mutrl-
Ir.D,vI ..I mod..: (b) .tripi glomllry device with single t rensvarse mode.
268 OPTICAL FIBER COM MU NICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

transvers e modes." These h igher order lateral modes may e xist in the broad
area device due to the unrestricted width o f Lhe active regio n. The correct
stripe geometry inhibits the occurrence of the higher o rder lateral modes by
limiting the width of the optical ca vity leaving onJy a single lateral mode w hich
gives the output spectrum shown in F ig. 6.22(b) where o nly the longitudin al
modes may be observed. This represents the typical output spectrum for a
good multimode inj ection laser.

6 .5.2 Structurea
F abrica tion of m uUimode injection lasers with a sing le later al mode is
achieved by the use of stripe geometry. The constriction of the current llow to
the stripe is realized in the structure eith er by implanting the regio ns outside
the stripe with protons (proton isolated stripe) to make them highly resistive. or
by oxide or p-n junction isolation. The structure for an aluminu m gallium
arsenide oxide isolated stripe 011 laser is shown in F ig. 6.21. 11 has an active
region of gallium arsenide b ounded on both sides by aluminum gallium
arsenide regions. This technique h as been widely applied especially for laser
st ructures used in the shorte r wavelength region. The current is confi ned by
etching a narrow stripe in a silico n dioxide film.
The other two basic tec hniq ues are illustrated in Figs. 6.23(a) and (b) which
sho w the proton isolated st ripe and the p-n junction isolated stripe structures
respectively. In Fig.6.24(a) the resistive region formed b y the proto n bom-
bardment gives better curre nt confinem ent tha n the simple oxide stripe and bas

r I
;:;.d
w_ '4'
>- ......ll""'.
p-...... .." .

" ..." 11;. ....

tKi.....

s L
Flg.6.23
'"
Schem ati c representarfon of struct ures for stripe geom etry injaction lasers:
{a] proton isolat ed strip ll GaAs/A IGaAs laser; (bl p -n jun ction Isolated
diffu sed pla nar stripe) GaAs/AIG aAs laser.

• Tran,verse modes in the plane of the jll1lCtiotr. an oIlm «lIt<l literal mode... traNIvene
mode beln, Rsaved for modn pupmdil:ulu 10 the julN:tioa pluJ.
OPTICAL SOU RCES 1 : THE LASER 269

LIlli" Rd.lt ...

<''' '1 '''' ;,,,, "'; ty
(m 'ili ) ~ ( mil' l

• ,

l-..",~
oo , 00 ~,I(l . ()rl

,.,
( ~ ' n-Jl l lo ~ ~ '

Fig.6.24
'"
la l Ttle ligh t o u tp,,1 ag a inst c u rre nl cneeacteosnc fo r a n injectio n laser with
non linellrities or a kink. in t he Slim ula led e mission region lb) A typica l nea r
field intensity d istributio n (patte rn; in th e plan e of t he junction lor a n inje ctlc n
la s e r,

superior thermal properties due to the ab sence of the silicon dioxide layer. p-e
j unction isolation invokes a selective diffusio n through the n type surface
region in order to reach the p type layers as iUustrated in Fig. 6.24(b), None of
th ese structures confines all the radiation and current to the stripe region and
spreading occurs on both sides of the stripe.

1.5.3 Optical Output Power

The optical output power ag ainst current ch aracteristic for the ideal
semiconductor laser was ill ustrated in Fig. 6.17. However, with many practical
laser diodes this characteristic is n ot linear in the stimulated emission region
but exhibits kinks. T hese kinks may be clas sified into two broad categories.
The first type of kink results from changes in the dominant lateral mode of
the laser as the current is changed. The output ch aracteri stic for laser A in
F ig. 6.24(a) ifluetrates this ty pe o f kink where la sing from the device changes
from the fundamental lateral mode to a higher order lateral mode (second
order) in a current region corresponding to a ch ange in slope. The second type
o f kink involve s a ' spike' as o bserved for laser B of F ig. 6.24(a). These spikes
have been shown to be associated with filamentary beh avior with in the active
region of the device [Ref. 41. The liIa~nls result from defects within the
crystal structure.
Both these mechanisms a rr~ t the near and far fie ld inte nsity distributions
(patternl) obtained from the laser. A typical near field intensity distributio n
corrolpondina to a sinjle optical output power level in the plane of the junc-
tion il _hown in Fia. 6.24(b}. AI this distribution is in the lateral dire ction, it is
 270 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

determined by the nature of the lateral waveguide. The single intensity

maximum shown indicates that the fundamental lateral mode is dominant. To
maintain such a near field pattern the stripe geometry of the device is
important. In general relatively narrow stripe devices (";;;10 11m) formed by a
planar process allow the fundamental lateral mode to dominate. This is
especially the case at low power levels where near-field patterns similar to
Fig. 6.24(b) may be obtained.

6.5.4 Recent Developments

Recent developments in multimode laser fabrication utilizing aluminum

gallium arsenide have been involved with three important areas:
(a) to reduce the required threshold current at room temperature and thus the
power consumption of the devices;
(b) to obtain a stable, narrow, near field intensity distribution for efficient
coupling of the emitted light to the optical fibers and to remove or reduce
any kinks in the light output against current characteristic;
(c) to increase the reliability of the devices.
Various stripe widths have been utilized in an attempt to optimize these
factors. The 20 urn wide oxide stripe laser may be fabricated so that its light
output against current characteristic is relatively free of kinks [Ref. 11] (see
Fig. 6.25), but it requires a fairly high threshold current of the order of
180 mA. If attempts are made to lower the threshold current by shortening the
cavity then the first order longitudinal mode has a lower output power. Also
the light output against current characteristic, although free from kinks, tends
to be nonlinear in the lasing region and is therefore of little use for analog
modulation.
The narrow stripe laser which utilizes an oxide-defined stripe of less than
5 urn appears largely to overcome these difficulties. The light output against

io 10!'m
Light
',m
'lripe
,tripo
outpul
(mWl

.511 100 ISO 200

Curront (mAl
\ Fig.6.25 The light output against current cherecterteece for 120 11m wiele Inell 3 11m
wide oxide stripe injection laser [Refe. 11 and 121.
I

. ........
.. :"
OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LASER 271

current characteristic for a 3 urn stripe laser [Ref 12J is also shown in Fig.
6.25 and it may be observed tha t the th reshold curren t is of the o rder of
70 mA. This de vice also has a very line ar light output against c urrent
characteristic. In addition it provides an em ission of man)' longitudinal modes
which tends to reduce modal noise (see Section 3.11) in the fiber,
F urther reduction in threshold current to 27 mA has been ach ieved with a
12 1J.fJl wide ox ide-defined stripe AI..G s1_.. As la ser {Ref. 13J by red ucing the
cavity length to 100 urn and limiting the current spread by a thin p type
gallium arsenide cap, Also a d ielectric stack was added 10 the back mirror
facet. T his provided substantially imp roved reflectivity from this fa cet ensuring
that virtually all the optical power wa s emitted from the other facet thus
maintainin g a good external efficiency with a reduced current de nsity through
the device. These devices have nearly do ubled the useful output efficiencies to
value s as high as 14%, and similar laser structures have been operated in CW
mode to light output levels abo ve 30 mW. Optical output power levels as high
as 130 m W have been achieved with wide (65 J.UTl) oxide-defined stripe lasers
iR ef. 141. H owever, at these light levels reliability b ecome s a problem as the
degradati on mechanism s are accelerated (see Section 6.9 .6).

6.6 SINGLE MODE INJECTION LASERS

These de vices are becoming increasingly important in optical fiber com-

munications. The develop ment o f high radiance LEOs for u se with low loss.
low dispersion graded index fibers h as diminished the req uirement for multi-
mode laser sources. Early optical fiber system design utilized LED sources
only for short-haul, low -band width ap plications with step index fibe rs, More
recently advances made in both LED fabrication (see Section 7.3) and graded
indelt fibe rs have led to the use of L ED sources in medium-haul . medium-
bandwidth system s. H owever. for long-h aul. high-b andwidth applications it is
necessary to use single mode fiber where the only c urrent suita ble source is the
single mode laser. H ence there h as been much activity in the area o f single
mode laser fabrication in recen t years along with the developments in low
attenuation single mode fiber .
This bas proved to be o f special interest in the longer wavelength region,
around 1.3 and 1.55 urn, where low fi ber attenu ation may be achieved. H owever.
this does not mean that the sh orter wavelength region has been neglected with
re,ard to single mode lasers. The expertise a nd knowledge of fabricating with
the GaAs/AIGaAs system has led to the development of a nu mber of
. tru~urel which aUow single mode C W o peration. The well-proven a nd
lucces.ful AlOaA. sinale mode laser stnrctures will therefore be discussed
before consideration of the application of similar structu res to the longer
.,lvtIoaath " &len.
•
.1 212 OPTICAL FIB ER COMMUNICATIO NS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

6 .6.1 Single Mode Operation

For sin gle mode operation, the optical output from a laser must contain only
a single longitudin al a nd single transverse mode. Hence the spectral width of
the emission from the single mod e device is far smaller than the broadened
transition Iinewidth discussed in Section 6.2.4. It was indicated that an
inhomogeneously broadened laser can support a number of longitudinal and
tran sverse modes simultaneously giving a mult imode output. Single transverse
mode operation. however. may be obtained by reducing the aperture of the
resonant C8\11Y such that only the TEM oo mode is supported. To obtain single
mode operation it is then necessary to eliminate all but one of the longitudinal
modes.
O ne method of achieving single longitudinal mode operation is to reduce the
length L of the cavity until the frequency separation of the adjacent modes
given by Eq. (6.14) as &f= c/ 2nL is larger than the la ser transition line width
or gain curve. Then only the single mode which falls within the transition
linewidth can oscillate within the la ser cavity. However, it is clear that rigid
control of the cavity parameters is es sential to provide the mode stabilization
necess ary to achieve and m aintain this single mode o peratio n.

6.6.2 Mode Stabilization

The structures required to give mode stability have been discussed with regard
t o the m ultimode injection laser (see Sectio n 6.5.2) and similar techniques are
req uired to produce a laser emitting a single longitudinal and transverse mode.
The correct DH structure restricts the vertical width oflhe waveguiding regi on
to le ss than 0.4 j.UT\ allowin g only the fundamental transverse mode to be
supported and removing any interference of the higher order tra nsverse modes
o n the emitted longitudinal modes.
The lateral modes (in the plane of the j unction) are confined by the restric-
tions o n the current now provided by the stripe geometry. In general o nly the
lo wer order modes are excited which a ppear as satellites to each of the
longitudinal modes. H owever, as mentioned previo u sl y (Section 6.5.3), stripe
contact devices often have instabilities and strong nonlinearities (e.g. kin ks) in
th eir light output against current ch aracteristic s. Tight current confinem ent as
well a s good waveguiding are therefore essential in order to achieve only the
required longitudinal modes which form between the mirror facets in the plane
of the j un ction. Finally, as ind icated in the previous section, single mode opera-
tio n m ay be obtained through control of the optical ca vity length such that
o nly a single longitudina l m ode falls within the gain bandwidth o f the device.
Fig ure 6.26 shows a typical output spectrum for a single mode device.
However, injection lasers with short cavity lengths (around 50 pm) are
difficult to handle and have DOt been particularly successful. A number of
OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LASER 273

'--~""iI.S S~---o-

Fig. 6 .2 6 Typical single longitudinal mode output spectrum from a single ro oce injecti on
laser.

other str uctures art available which give electrical and optical containment
end allow single mode operation.

8.7 SINGLE MODE STRUCTURES

6.7 .1 Buried Heterostructure IBH ) Laser

The BB laser is obtained by etching. a narro w mesa stripe (as small as 1 11m in
width) in O H semiconductor material a nd effect ively burying it in high
resistivity, lattice matched n type mate rial ....-ith a n appropriate bandgap and
low refractive index. T his process involves a rather complicated double liq uid
phase epitaxial (L PE) growth to give the structure illustrated in Fig. 6.27.
These devices may heve very small active regions to allow single mode opera-
tion. The small active region also gives low threshold currents of 10 mA or less
[Refs. IS and 16] and good linearity with out kinks, Wide modul ation band-
widths of 2 GHz have also been obtained IRef. 16] but the maximum reliable
optical output power is restricted. In practice the CW o ptical po.....er mu st be
kept below 1 m WIfam where lifetimes in excess of 2()(X) hours at 70 0 C have
been reported [Ref. 161. T he other major drawback is the beam divergence in
the junction plane (40-50°) from the small active region.

~ 1.17 Scne malic ~1''''''UlUO" of the Str\<ctUIlJ of a G.As/AIGaAs buried neterc -

.,ructUl't l.., r,
 274 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

""
1~.7.2 Transverse Junction Stripa (TJS) Laser
This structure is one of the most promising for single mode operation. It has
had substantial development since its conception in the mid-1970s and is now
fabricated on a semi-insulating substrate which has largely removed the earlier
problem of excessive temperature-dependent leakage current. A recent form of
the device is shown in Fig. 6.28 and consists of a DH multilayer in n type
semiconductor material. The lateral waveguide is achieved by two consecutive
zinc diffusions in order that the structure is confined by p" -n and p-n gallium
arsenide homojuncttons. Carrier injection is obtained laterally across these
homojunctions in the central layer and the DH structure confines the carriers
to the central active region. The device has good characteristics for single
longitudinal and transverse mode operation with typical threshold currents of
the order of 20 rnA giving CW optical output power of around 3 mW IRef.
18L
Extrapolated device lifetimes of lO6 hours at room temperature have been
reported [Ref. 19] for the AIGaAs structure which appear to be aided by the
moderate junction temperature rise (approximately 10 "C) due to the low
values of drive current. However, the structure has a strong threshold current
dependence on temperature (see Section 6.9.1) which makes control of the
optical emission more difficult at elevated temperatures.

Z" diffused
,{
I'{
+-- i-GoA,
<ub<tr"o

Fig.6.28 The structure of a GaAs/AIGaAs transverse junction stripe laser.

6.7.3 Channelled Substrate Lasers

There are several single mode structures which rely on the growth by liquid
phase epitaxy over channelled substrates. These include the channelled sub-
strate planar (CSP), the plano-convex waveguide (P'Cw) and the constricted
double heterojunction (CDH) which are illustrated in Fig. 6.29. The CSP laser
structure is fabricated by growing a DH layer on a substrate into which a
shallow channel has already been etched. This is shown in Fig. 6.29(a) where
the n type AlGaAs fills the channel giving a flat active layer. Mode selection is
thought to be the result of higher order transverse modes undergoing a large
propagation loss induced by light absorption in the GaAs substrate on either
side of the channel. Single mode operation is dependent On the achievement of
I
OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LASER 27.

,,,
Active "lion M,tl!
I
• p-<:.A.

r- (

a thin flat layer over the channelled substrate and on deep zinc diffusions
(wider than the channel) in order to create a uniform current across the
channel. Typically these devices have a threshold current around 70 rnA and a
median lifetime of 780 hours at 70 "C (Refs. 18 and 22J.
The pe w laser structure utilizes a lens-shaped lateral wa veguide grown by
LPE over the channel as shown in Fig. 6.29(b). Lateral confinement of both
current and radiation is provided by the variation in thickness over the lens
shape which also tend s to focus the light giving a narrow active region of
2-3 pm. A stripe contact is used to restrict the current now to the active
regio n. Single mode operation with c urrent thresholds around 40 rnA giving C W
optical outp ut to 10 mW and linear light output a gainst current characteristics
have been obtained (Ref. 231.
The CDH laser structure is grown with a 'double-dovetail' channel con -
figuration as illustrated in Fig. 6. 29(c). T he resulting constricted active region
is defined by a stripe contact approximately 10 urn wide and provides the
lingle mode operation of the device. Tight current confinement is not required
with this structure as the optical cavity is on the least resistive path. This offers
a distinct advantage over the CSP and pew la ser struct ures. The d evices
operate with thmbold currents in the range 4t)-10 mA giving CW single
. ~tudizW mode output to twice current thrcshokt ( 10- 15 mV( optical output
,.....> (Rift. 18 aad 2<1).
278 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

6.7.4 Distributed Feedb.ck (DFB) La.er.

Th ese devices consist of a complex structure which determines the wavelength
of the longitudinal mode em ission rather than the ma terial composition as in
the more conventional cleaved mirror structures. An optical gr ating is
incorporated into the heterostructure waveguide to provide periodic vari ations
in refr active index along the direction of wave propagation so that feedback of
optical energy is obtained through Bragg scattering (see Section 1 l. 8.3). The
corrugated grating may be applied over the whole active length of the device
where it gives what is known as distributed feedback a nd eliminates the need
for end mirrors. OriginaUy the corrugations were applied directly to the active
layer (Ref. 251 but the performance of s uch devices deteriorated rapidly at
temperatures above 80 K. It is believed this resulted from excessive non radia-
uve recombination from defect s in contact with the active layer introduced by
the processes (e.g. ion milling) employed in the format ion of the corrugations.
An improved mesa stripe geometry D FB laser structure fabricated with the
GaAs/ AlGaAs system which employs a separate confinement heterostructure
is sho wn in Fig. 6.30 [Ref. 26]. In th is device the corrugations are separated
from the active layer and formed in an Alo. o7 G8cl.~J As layer on the p side of the
junction. The n type Alo.j G llo.7 As and p type Alo,11GBo.uAs layers conftne the
o ptical field to the p type GaAs active layer. However. sufficient optical power
leaks across the th in p type (~. I urn} Alc. nG80,u As buffered layer into the
corrugated region such that distributed feedback is obtained. Furthermore the

" .c".,. .. ..b<It .t,

_ .,,_ p.A I... , [ ; . ~ " ,>"

1'-01.1,. " (;. , .,, A,

Fig. a 30 The structure of 8 m~ stripe geomelry A1GaAa c:h trib\ltecl feedback (OF!)
teeer IRef. 2 6 1.

"
OPTI CAL SOURC ES 1: THE LASER 277

P type Alo.n G80.u As layer also acts as a barrier for injected electrons confi n-
ing them to the active layer. thus avoiding exces sive nonradiative recombine.
tion in the corru gation region.
The emission frequency from th e structure is determined by the corrugation
period (see Section 11.8.3). Hence the DFB structure can provid e superior
longitudinal mode d iscrimination o ver con ventional F abry-Perot struct ures
where single longitudin al mode operation is dependent on the gain spectru m of
the optical cavity. When suitably fabricated and operati ng with a single
longitudinal and transverse mode such DFB lasers can give narrow emissio n
linewidths of less than 1 nm in comparison with 1-2 nm for convention al DH
injection lasers. F abrication, however. on the channelled substrate requires
great accuracy to ensure longitudina l mode selection and tran sverse mode
cont rol becau se the cleaved edges of the d evice are not p ari of the optical
cavity.
A further ad vantage of the DFB structure over the Fa bry- Perot cavity
design is that it exhibits a reduced wavelength sensitivity to changes in
temperature and injection current . T he emission from a F abry- Perot injection
laser follows the temperature dependence o f the energy gap whereas the lasing
from the D F B structure fo llows the smaller temperature dependence of the
refractive index. The typical wavelength shift with tem perature for a D FB laser
is 0-0.05 nm K-I while the ordinary D H stru cture gives a typical shift of
0.2-0.5 nm K -I [Ref. 271. Therefore. d espite the constructional complexity the
DFB laser offers interesting possibilities for applicatio n in optical fiber
communication s. Th is is especially the case in relation to integrated optical
techniques (Section 11.7) which are starting to be used in the fabrication of
components and circuits for optical fi ber systems.

8.7.5 Large Optical Cavity (LOC) Lasers

Ideally, lon g dist ance wideband app lications require light sources with high
power single mode C W optical outputs in the range 15-30 mW. To obtain
sucb high power operation with current technology it is necessary to increase
the lasing spot size (active region) both transversely and laterally whilst
maintaining the single mode selectivity. T wo method s o f achieving this
increase in the transverse direction are by use of very thin active layers of
0.05-0.06 J.L m instead of the more typical value around 0.2 J.L m [Refs. 18 a nd
311. or with the large optical cavity. The LOC laser utilizes an additional guide
layer with a refractive index intermediate between that of the active layer and
of the n type AlOaAs layer as illustrated in F ig. 6.3 1 [Ref. 181. It is within thi s
l ulde layer th at the optical mode is mainly propagated whilst o btai ning optical
lain from the active layer.
The LOC technique bu been applied to BH. pew and COH devices. with
th' 8H and COH Itructurel Jivina increased spot size in both the tranSVef!le
 278 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Output 18
puw,',
(,nW) 16

Met.l

Active rc~iol\

-----

00 20 40 60
Currellt \m,\)

Fig. 6.31 {a) Schematic representation of the structure of a high power, single mode
buried heterostructure large optical cavity laser, !b) The light output against
current characteristic for the BH LOC laser. Reproduced with permission from
D, Botez. Proc. SPIE (USA), 224, p. 102, 1980.

and lateral planes [Ref. 32]. The structure shown in Fig. 6.3I(a) is for a BH
LOC laser. However, a problem with the LOC technique is that the guide layer
allows carrier leakage as well as the spread of the optical mode. This leakage is
reduced in the structure of Fig. 6.31(a) by the reverse biassed ~n junction
which is formed during the second LPE growth. The resulting current confine-
ment gives low threshold currents around 20 rnA as may be seen from a
typical characteristic shown in Fig. 6.31(b). It may also be noted that the
device gives CW optical output power approaching 20 mW. Bandwidths in the
range of 2 GHz have also been reported [Ref. 16] for these devices which
exhibit a virtually flat frequency response.

6.8 LONGER WAVELENGTH INJECTION LASERS

Semiconductor materials currently under investigation for the longer wave-

length (1.1-1.6 urn) region were outlined in Section 6.3.6. The work has
centered on the InGaAsP/InP and AIGaAsSb/GaSb systems, the former pre-
pared by both liquid phase and vapor phase epitaxial techniques; the latter
generally prepared by LPE. Especially promising characteristics have been
obtained from devices utilizing InGaAsP prepared by both techniques [Ref.
141-
Figure 6.32(a) shows the structure of a 12 urn stripe contact InGaAsP/InP
CW injection laser grown by VPE and emitting at 1.25 gm [Ref. 361. The

_,:,L~':,_ - " . ,
OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LASER 279

•
,

100 ~ oo
d< <~ .... "ll "'~'
1, 1 l bl

Fig . 8.32 l sl Structure of an !roGaAsP/l nP laser for em ission at 1.25 urn, lb) lhe light
output ag.8:' r'\.51current charect enstic for the device ~n Ie). Reproduced .....ith per-
rmssr c n Imm G, H. Olsen. C. J Newoe and M . Eltlll'1 burg. A ppl. Phys. Lett.• 34.
p . 262. 1979.

device has a current threshold of 85 rnA which may be seen from Fig. 6.32(b)
and the light output against current characteristic is linear up to 4 mW where a
kink occurs. It exhibits single longitudinal mode optical output up to this
power level which indicates that the radiation is essentially confined to the
contact stripe.
However, improved single mode operation may be obtained using the mode-
confining techniques discussed in the previous section. BH and TJS laser
structures have been found to give consistent single mode operation with the
InGaAsP system. Threshold currents as sow as 22 rnA have been reported
(Ref. 37 J for BII devices with a 1 um wide active region and single mode opera-
tion to 8 m W has been observed in wider structures oftb is type (Ref. 38). The
structure of a 811 lnGaAsP/ln P laser which operates at 1.5 urn is illustrated in
Fig. 6.33(a) (Ref. 391. It comprises a semi-insulating Fe-doped lnP substrate
onto which art grown successively an n type lnP confining layer. an InGaAsP
active layer. a p type InP confming layer and ap ty pe InGaAlP cap layer. The
buried heterostructure so formed provides an optical cavity of length 2S0 um
and width 2.S urn. [0 addition, the epitaxial layers are mesa etched down to the
n type InP layer (right hand side of Fig. 6.3 3a), leaving a 5 urn length for the n
type electrode. The p type electrode is formed on the p type InGaAsP cap
layer. Hence, the two electrodes are provided on the same side of the laser
chip. Althouih the previously reported devices operating in the 1.5-1 .7 urn
wlveJenJth band have exhibited fairly high threshold currents (200-- 300 mAl
[Ref. 40]. thIJ device was reported to have a threshold current as low as
38 rnA for CW operation at 25 ac. This i. demonstrated by the light output
apiDIt OWTtat ,ebltae:tlriltic for the device lhown in Fia. 6.33(b). It may allO
280 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

.,~

p- I. r
,

1,, =J 8 m....
Ifll..;."'.r
(' '' ' i" ol o.y ,, ) wo

'" ( il )

f lg.6.33 (al S c he ma tic rl! Drl!sen ta tio n of the structure of a BH InGa AsP/l nP laser on a
sem i-ins ula tin g s u bstra te. (b! The lig ht outp ut ag ains t cvrrent c ha racte ris tic for
t he BH lase r unde r CW op e ratio n a t 2 5 °C. Re prod uce d with pe rmission fro m
T. Ma tsuok a, K. 1 a l<a l'\lll. Y. Noguchi and H. Nagel. Electron. Lett.• 11 . p. 12 .
19 8 1.

be noted that this c haracteri stic is kink free to an optical output power of
to mw. H owever. single mod e operation was obtained only at 1.4 times
threshold or about 2 mW optical output power.
Another InGaAsP/lnP 011 structu re emitting near the 1.5 J.1m wavelength is
the separated multiclad layer (SML) stripe la ser [Ref. 4 11. This device has a
novel waveguide and internal current confinement structure which is illustrated
in Fig. 6.34. The structure is fou r layered with the stripe region separating the
multiclad layer. A cou pled waveguide perpendicular to the junction plane is
formed by the active layer and the n type InG aAsP layer. There is a difference
in the propagation constant between the mode within the stripe and the modes

M, t>Hiu ti""

( - 1>-lnG. A<I·
1>-l nP
,\ ~ ~~ n-ln G " AU'
,,-lnC. .. .,P
"< p-Jnl'
~, nG.A ,F
,
"r Kl g l"~ .,1"" I, )·. , )
n · l,,!,

~ 8.34 Structure of 811 IIlG8A.1P/lnP tep8Ulled multiclltd I• .,.r .trlpe I...r IRef. 411.

, .
OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LASER 281

of the coupled waveguide outside the confines of the stripe which contains the
optical field and stabilizes the trans...erst mode. The current is confined to the
stripe by the reverse biassed p-n heterojunction. For a del-ice with a stripe
width of 6 pm and cavity length 250 urn the CW threshold current was found
to be 90 rnA at 2S °C. Single mode optical output (longit udinal and
transverse) was obtained at 1.5 times threshold current or around 5 roW
optical output power.
A maj or problem with the InG aAsP/lnP sy stem is its high temperature
dependence on threshold c urrent in comparison with the GaAs/AIGaAs
shorter wavelength system (see Section 6.9.1). This temperature sensitivi ty
dictates th e use of proper heat sinking SO that the device temperature does not
rise much above room temperature. It is often necess ary to use thermoelectric
cooling in o rder to maintain a specified working point However, as demand
for longer wavelength injection lasers rises due to the tremendous interest in
long-haul. high-bandw idth systems. it is likely that device performance will
improve. A reduction in temperature dependence may be brought about
through improved electrical contacts and device mounting techniques. Also
lower threshold currents, enhanced modal stability and improved dynamic
response are to be expected as the technology for the fabricat ion of these
devices matures. Hence the requirements of the external techniques for
temperature stabilization may be reduced in the future.

6.9 INJECTION LASER CHARACTERISTICS

When considering the use of the injection laser for o ptical fiber co mmunica-
tions it is necessary to be aware of certain of its characteristics which may
affect its efficient operation. The following section s outline the major oper ating
characteristics of the device (the ones which have not been dealt with in detail
previously) which apply to aU the various materials and structures previously
discussed although there is substan tial variation in behavior between them.

6 .9.1 Thr••hold Current Temp.... ture Dependence

Figure 6.33 shows the typical variation in threshold current with temperature
for an injection laser. The threshold current tends to increase with temperature,
the temperature dependence of the threshold current density J1h being
approximately exponential [Ref. 4] for most common structures. It is given by:

T
J th o: exp - (6.33)
T,

where T I, the device absolute temperature and To is the threshold temperature

cotfftcilm wbich 1I a characteristic temperature describing the qullity of the
•
 2BZ OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS : PRI NCIPLES AND PRACTICE

..,,,
•
../- -I-'---f......·....,..
"-'."'''
. '6

,
,
100 : :!QG : 300 t"l0 cu ",,~t (...,\1
' ..1=0 ' 0 '.. (<I() ,\ ) I .. ( ll(l "t )
FI{,. e.35 A typical lig ht out put against c urre nt c ha ract eris tic tor a n injectio n lase,
s howing t he va ria tio n in threshold c urrent wit h te mp e ratu re.

material. but which is also affected by the structure of the device. For AlGaAs
devices, To is usually in the range 120-190 K, whereas for InGaA sP devices it
is between 40 and 75 K [Ref. 42]. This emphasizes the stronger temperature
dependence of InGaAsP structures which is illustrated in example 6.6. The
increase in threshold current with temperature for AIGaAs devices can be
accounted for with reasonable accuracy by consideration of the increasing
energy spread of electrons and holes injected into the conduction and valence
bands. Par InGaAsP lasers it appears that the high temperature sensitivity
results from an add itional large and rapidly rising non radiative component of
the recom bination current in the active layer (Ref. 4 ).

bMnpl.8.6

Com~re tl-e ratio of t he thres"lOk:I current densiti es et 20 ·C 800 80 · C fOf" a

A IG8As inj ecti oro l asel' w ith To =' 160 K 8nd th e similar rltio for 8n lnG IIAsP device
wittl To = 55 K.
S olution: From Eq . (8 _3 31 the thr eshold current density :

T
J ... 0:: e~p­
To
For th e AIGlI As device :

293
J,~ (20 · C) 0:: exp - - = 6.24
160

353
J'h laO · C) <X: exp - = 9.08
160

Hent:e the ratio of the current den siti es:

-=-- - _-
J .... 180 · CI
J... 120 · CI
9 .08
6.24
= 1.48

,..., ) ..
OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LASER 283

For me Il'lG sAsP eevce:

293
J' h 120 "el a:: eKp - = 205 .88
55

353
J'h (80 "el IX:. exp - = 61 2 .89
'5
Hence t hll ratio of the current densiti es:

J' h (80 eCI 6 12.89

..:::.- - = _ 2 .98
J th (20 eCI 205.88

Thus in example 6.6 the threshold current density for the AIG aAs device
increases by a factor of I .S over the temperature range. whereas the threshold
current density for the [nGaAsP device increases by a factor of J . Hence the
stronger dependence of threshold current on temperature for InOaAsP
structures is shown in this comparison of two average devices. It may also be
noted that it is important to obtain high values of To for the devices in order to
minimize temperature dependence.
However, carrier leakage due to low potential barriers within the laser
structure causes To to be reduced. Hence To for the best AlGaAs TJS devices
is only 95 K . and for LOe structures it is around 100 K rather than the higher
values quoted for the standard OH structures. Conversely the threshold
current variation for AIGaAs COH structures appears much less than the
standard DH devices with To of around 250 K reported (Ref. l SI. In all cases
adequate heat sinking along with consideration of the working environment are
essential in order that the devices operate reliably over the anticipated current
range.

6.9.2 Dynamic Reaponae

The dynamic behavior of the injection laser is critical especially when it is used
in high-bit rate (wideband) optical fiber communication systems. The applica-
tion of a current step to the device results in a switch on delay often followed
by high frequency (of the order of 10OHz) damped oscillations known as
relaxation oscillations (RO). These transient phenomena occur whilst the
electron and photon populations within the structure come into equilibrium
and are illustrated in Fig. 6.36. The switch-on delay td may last for 0.5 ns and
the RO (or perhaps twice that period. At data rates above 100 Mbits s-' this
behavior can produce a serious deterioration in the pulse shape. Thus reducing
'do and dampina the relaxation osciDations is highly desirable.
Thl .witcb-on delay it caused by the initial build-up of photon density
rnultiDal'rom Itimull1ld em1Il'on. It iJ related to the minority carrier lifetime
.'
 284 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

1--', --I
Fig.6.36 The possible dynamic behavior of an injection laser showing the switch-on
delay and relaxation oscillations.
"

! and the current through the device [Ref. 7]. The current term, and hence the
switch-on delay, may be reduced by biassing the laser near threshold (prebias-
sing), However, damping of the ROs is less straightforward. They are a basic
laser phenomenon which vary with device structure and operating conditions;
however, RO damping has been observed, and is believed to be due to several
mechanisms including lateral carrier diffusion [Refs. 43 and 44], feeding of the
spontaneous emission into the lasing mode [Ref. 45) and gain nonlinearities
[Ref. 46]. Narrow stripe geometry DH lasers and all the mode stabilized
devices (i.e. BH, TJS, esp, CDH and LOC lasers) give RO damping, but it
tends to coincide with a relatively slow increase in output power. This is
thought to be the result of lateral carrier diffusion due to lack of lateral carrier
confinement. However, it appears that RO damping and fast response may be
obtained in BH structures with stripe widths less than the carrier diffusion
length (i.e. less than 3 urn) [Ref. 47].

6.9.3. Self Pulsations

Injection lasers also exhibit another type of output fluctuation (apart from
ROs) when operating in the CW mode. These self pulsations which are
observed in aged and poor-quality devices are a major problem as they can
occur after several hundred hours operation. Both transient as well as con-
tinuous self-sustained pulsations occur in the frequency range 0.2-4 GHz. The
pulsation frequency is related to both the spontaneous recombination lifetime
of the carriers (approximately 2 ns) and the photon lifetime in the cavity
(approximately 10 ps).
Mechanisms within the device structure believed to cause these self pulsa-
tions include quantum noise effects (see Section 9.2.3), defects and filament
formation and temperature-induced changes. More recent work [Refs. 48 and
49] traces the pulsations to the absorbing dark line defects (see Section 6.9.6),
and to regions of carrier depletion. Also there appears to be correlation
between the occurrence of self pulsations and deep level traps [Ref. 51] as well
as the presence of visible defects [Ref. 52]. It is likely that the preseece of
 OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LASER 285

absorbing regions within the active layer o f the device will be effected by an}'
slight increase: in ph oton density which will tend to reduct their absorption
capability (l.e. excess electron-hole pairs created in the absorption region
bringing it near to transparency). The subsequent decrease in loss in the optical
cavity will enhance the net gain o f the de vice and increase the photon density
giving a peak in the output. H owever. stimulated emission fro m the device will
red uce the amount of population inversion in the amplifying mat erial and allow
the laser to fall below threshold. thus switching the device off. The absorption
of the absorbing regions will therefore again be enhanced. a nd the am ount of
population inversion will be increa sed by the contin ued injection current.
Jlence the threshold will be reached again and the whole cycle repeated.
External means may be adopted to suppress these self-sustained pul sations
in the la ser response. These include optical injection IRef. 531. feedback. by an
external mirror {Ref. 54} and ch ange s in d rive circuit reacta nce [Ref 551.
However, it is Likely that these pulsations will ca use difficulties until a better
understanding of the nonlinear absorption and nonlinear gain mechanisms
within inj ection la sers is obtained .

6.9.4 Noi ••
An other Important characteristic of injection laser operation involves the noise
behavior o f the device. This is especially the case when considering a nalog
tr ansmiss ion.
T he sources of noise are :
_ (a) quantum noise (see Section 9.2.3);
(b) instabilities in operation such as kink s in the light output against current
characteristic and self pu lsation;
(c) reflection of light back into the devi ce;
(d) partition noise in mulrimode devices.
It is possible to reduce. if not remove. (b), (c) and (d) by using mode sta bilized
devices and optical isolators. Quantu m noise, however, is an intrinsic property
of all laser types. It results from the discrete and random spontaneous or
stimulated transitions which c ause intensity fluctuation s in the optic al emis-
sion. F or injection lasers operating a t freq uencies less th an 100 MHz qua ntum
noise levels are usually lo w (signal to noi se ratios less than - 80 dB) unless the
device is biassed within 1096 of threshold . Over this region the noise spectrum
is flat. H owever, for wideband systems wh en the las er is operating above
threshold quantum noise b ecomes more pronounced . This is esp ecially the
case with m ultimode devices (signal to noise ra tios of around - 60 d B). The
hiJber noise level results from a peak in the noise spectrum due to a relax ation
reecnance which typically occurs between 200 MHz and I GHz lR ef. 7).
Sln,le mode lisen hi ve shown IRef. 551 greater noise immunity by as m uch
I. 30 dB when the current i' raised above threshold. T his is a further
--
288 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS ; PRINCIPlES AND PRACTIC E

It " :

Fig.6.31 The e ttect of pa rt ilion no i58 in 8 multimode il'ljeC1;on lase'. It h. displa yed a s a
va riation in the d is t ribut io n of the various 10flgitudil'la l modes e rmrted f rom the
device.

advantage of the use of single mode lasers as sources for high data rate
systems.
Partition noise is a phenomenon which occurs in multimode lasers when the
modes are not well stabilized. Temperature changes can cause a variation in
the distribution of the various longitudinal modes as illustrated in Fig. 6.37.
This leads to increase d dispersion on the link and hence, if not allowed for,
may cause errors on a digital cha nnel.

8.9.5 Mode Hopping

The single longitudinal mode output spectr um of a single mode laser is
illustrated in Fig. 6.38(a). Mode hopping to a longer wavelength as the current
is increased above threshold is demonstrated by compari son with the output
spectrum shown in Fi.g. 6.38(b). This behavior occurs in all single mode injec-
tion lasers and is a consequence of increases in temperature of the device junc-
lion . The transition (hopping) from one mode to another is not a continuous
function of the drive current but occurs suddenly over only 1-2 rnA. Mode
hopping alters the light output against current characteristics of the laser, and
is responsible for the kink s observed in the characteristics or man y single mode
devices.

~ .lo'ih·
------1__ ["",,',.: (n output ,,,,.. ,,

(" t. ", ;".

,0>

_.l>._-,?,...I.J...~~~~ "",.. <I<l",t~ (~t1I )

U U
Fig. 8 .38 Mode ho pping in a sil'lgle mode inje C1 ioo lase.: lal $;n; le lo ng ilud ina t mod e
optical o utput . lb l mode ho p 10 a lo nge r pes t eminlon w.v. l, r glh it an
inentased Dlnie,' output DOwer.
OPTICA L SOU RCES 1: THE LASER 287

Between hops the mode tends to shift slightly with temperature in the range
0.05-0.08 nm K-l. St abilization agai nst mode hopping and mode shift may be
o btained with adequate heat sm king o r thermoelectric cooling. However, at
constant heat sink tempera ture, shifts due to thermal increases can only be
fuUy controlled by the use of feed back from external or internal grating
structures (see Section 10.2.3).

6 .9.6 Reliability
De vice reliability ha s been a major problem with injection la sers and although
it has been extensively studied, not a U aspects o f the failure mechanisms are
fully understood. Nevertheless. much progress has been made since the early
d ays when device lifetime s were very sho rt (a few hours).
The degradation behavior may be: separated into two maj or processes
kn own as 'catastrophic' and ' grad ual' degradation. C atastrophic degradation
is the result of mechanical damage of the mirror fa cets and leads to the partial
or com plete laser failure. It is ca used by the average optical flux density within
the structure at the facet and therefore may be limited by using the device in a
pu lsed mode. H owever, its occurre nce may severely restrict the operation (to
low optical power levels) and lifetime of CW devices.
G rad ual d egradation results from internal d amage caused by the energy
released by nonradiative carrier recombination. It is gener ally accepted (Refs.
4 and 511 that this energy enhances point defect (e.g. vacancies and
inte rstitials) displ acement leading 10 the accum ulation of defect s in the active
region. Hence: if nonradiative electron-hole recombination occurs, for instance
at the damaged surface of a laser whc:rc: it has been roughened, this accelerates
the diffusion of the point defect into the active region of the device. The emis -
sion characteristics of the active region therefore gradually deteriorate through
the accumulation of point defects until the device is no long er useful. Mobile
impurities formed by the precipitation process such as oxygen. copper or
in terstiti al beryllium or zjnc atoms may also be displaced into the active
region. These atoms tend to cluster around e xisting d islocations encouraging
h igh local absorptio n o f photons. This causes 'dark lines' in the output
spectrum which are a major problem with gradual deg radation.
Over recent years techniques have evolved to reduce, if not eliminate, the
introduction of defects into the injection laser active region. These include the
use of substrates with low d islocation den sities (i.e. less than J()l crrr" ),
passivating the mirror facet s to avoid surface-related effects and mounting
with soft solde rs to avoid extern al strain . Together with im provements in
crystal growth, device fabrication and material selection this has led to CW
Injection lasers with reported me an lifetimes in excess o f I Ct hours. or more
than 100 yean. These projections heve been reported (Ref. 581fo r a variety of
O&AJIAlOIA. lucr ltTUetUr Cl. In the longer wavelength region where tech-
DIq\MI ItI DOt u Wen. Idvlncecl reponed [Ref's.41 and .59) extrapolated
•
288 OPTICAL FIBER COM MU NICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

lifetimes for CW InG aAsP/lnP structures are around 10' hours. These predic-
tions bode well for the future where it is clear that injection lasers will no
longer be restricted in their application on the grounds of reliability.

6.10 INJECTION LASER COUPLING AND PACKAGING

A lthough injection lasers are relatively directional the divergence of the beam
must be considered when coupling the device to an optical fiber. A lens
assembly is therefore required to direct the beam within the numerical aperture
of the fiber if reasonable coupling efficiencies are to be obtained. A method of
achieving this is by use of a fiber lens as illustrated in Fig. 6.39 (Refs. 57 and
591. Th e fiber lens is mounted in a v -groove directly in (ra nt of the laser chip
a nd at right angJes to the fiber pigtail and gives a coupling efficiency of a bout
30%.
Th e whole assembly is incorporated in a hermetically sealed composite
package (for increased reliability) with a monitor detector for feedb ack control
(see Section 10.2.3) along with possibly some of the control and drive circuits.
Optical power is ta ken out of the package by means of the optical fiber pigtail
which itself passes through the hermetic seal.
The monitor detector is mounted behind the laser chip and monitors the
optic al power emerging from the rear face of the device. Alternatively a
specially fabricated beam splitter may be used in order to obtain optical power
from the mean output to the monitor detector. The whole assembly has the
dimensions of a large scale integra ted circuit and can therefore be placed on a

Fi b" pi~ ..il

to l'<rm<r"
..al

Ag.8.39 Schematic diagram o f a co mposite package for an InjectIo n ~. H r wl tt't I f bl r

le nl g:"'; ng incru sed COl.lpl ln g effICiency [Ref. 5 71.

,_ - _ c.~ .. _c _~ -j~Z::S,;·J'''!'''i
--. - __ •~ _ •MoaiiJ:
.. ' • __ Ui C-• f . - .-- -'. - - ..-
~.
•
OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LASER 289

lotio""..., _ . Fit""
,
!
•
)
~ •,
(
Wj«to<>oo 1- .

fig . 8 .40 Coupling the light ou tput from an irojectiOf1 la ser to the optical filler usi'lg a
eylindtical micmleros [Ref, 6 11.

printed circuit board along with other components. This type o f packagi ng
also uses low inductance drive leads a nd the compact nature of the drive
circuit reduces stray capac itance which eases the problems o f driving the laser
with large current pulses at high bit rates.
Mo re recently similar composite packages have been utilized with
cylindrical rnic rolenses for coupling the laser emission to the optical fiber [Ref.
6 1]. This coupling is illustrated in Fig. 6.40, and experimental versions of this
configu ration have already succeeded in launching more than 1 mW of optical
power at 1.3 urn wavelength into single mode fiber using an 8 1.lm diameter
microlens. A lso hemispherical lenses grown on the fiber end may be uti lized to
d irect the laser emission into the fibe r (Ref. 42 1. and the resulting action gives a
coupling efficiency of around 20%. These various techniques are still under
investigation and as yet no standard method has emerged.

8.11 NON$EMICONDUCTOR LASERS

Although at present injection la sers are the major la sing source for optical
fiber communications it is possible that in the future c ertain non sem iconductor
sources will find application in high -bandwidth, long -haul systems. Solid state
lasers doped with neodymium which emit in the 1.0 5-1 .3 um range appear to
be att ractive sources even though their application to optical fi ber com munica-
t io ns is at a n early stage. The most advanced of there promising solid state
sources is the neody mium-doped yttrium-aluminum-garnet (Nd :Y AG) laser.
T his structure has several important properties which may enhance its use as
an optical fiber communication .. __.
source :
(a) Single mode operation near 1,064 and 1.32 urn, making it a suitable source
for single mode systems.
(b) A narrow linewidth (,,0.Ql nm) which is useful for reducing dispersion on
optical links.
(e) A potentially long lifetime, a lthough comparatively litt le d ata an: available.
(eI) The pOllibility that the dimensions of the laser may be reduced to match
_ of the Iln&Ie mO<k Itep index fiber.
,
-,
'I, 29. OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICAT IONS; PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

,I 'r

I
~
1 nll,.J.....~n l (\ ~- l<1 U>< PI" """
~
...... plin~

t Fig. 6 .41
1D.1« , ;. 1

Schematic d iagram of an end pum ped Nd : YAG laser.

However, the Nd:YAG laser also has several drawbacks which are
common to all neodymium doped solid state devices:

I (a) The device must be optically pumped. However. long lifetime AIGa As
LEOs may be utilized which improve the overall lifetime of the laser.
(b) A long fluorescence lifetime of the order of I ()'-'" seconds which only allo ws
direct modulation (see Section 1.5) of the device at very low ban dwidths.
Thus an extern al o ptical modulator is nece ssary if the laser is to be usefully
utilized in optical fiber communications.
(c) The device cannot take advantage of the well-developed tec hnology
a ssociated with semiconductors and integrated circ uits.
(d) The above requ irements {i,e. p umping a nd modulation) lend to give a cost
d isadvantage in comparison with semiconducto r lasers .
An illustration of a typical end pumped Nd : YAG la ser is shown in Fig.
6.41. The Nd : YAG laser is a four level system (see Section 6.2.3) with a
number of pumping bands and fluorescent transitions. The strongest pumping
bands are at wavelengths of O.7S a nd 0.81 urn giving major useful lasing
transitions at 1.064 and 1.32 urn .
More complex neodym ium-based compounds (rather than doped) are
also under investigation fo r so lid state o ptical sources. These include neo-
dymium pentaphosphate (N dP4014) and lithium neodymium tetraphosphate
(LiN d P4011) which may give high power single mode emission with less
optic al pumping. Oth er types of lasa system (e.g. gas) do not appear useful for
optical fiber com munication systems owing to problem s of size. fragility a nd
high operating vo ltages. However, these devices are often used for laboratory
evaluations of o ptical fiber s and co mponents where their high optical o utput
power is an asset .

,I PROBLEMS

i 6 .1 Briefl y outline the general requirements for

munications.
II. source in optical fiber com-

Di SCU$$ the areas in which the injection laser fulfils these requimnenu. tnd
comment on ar.y drawbacb of using thit device u an optical fiber com·
I munication source.
OPTICAL SOURCES 1 : THE LASER 291

6.2 Briefly describe the two processes by ",..hich light can be emitted from an atom,
Discuss Ihe requirement for popctaucn inversion in order lbat stimulated emis-
sion may dominate over spontaneous emission. lllusu ate your answer with an
energy level diagram of a common nnnsemiconductor laser.

8.3 Discuss the mechanism of optical feedback to provide oscill ation and hence
amplification within the laser. Indicate how this provides a distinctive spectral
output from the d eyice.
The longitudinal modes of a g&l.lium arsenide injection laser emitting at a
wal'elenglh of 0.81 um are separated in frequency by 218 0 Hz. Determine the
Imgt:h of tbe optical cavity and the nu mber of longitudinal modes emitted. The
refracnve indell of ga:lium arsenide i. 3.6.

8.4 When GaSb is used in the fabrication of an electroluminescent source,

estimate the necessary hole concentration in the p type region in order that the
radiative minority carrier lifetime is I ns.

8 ,5 The energy bandgap for lightly doped gallium arsenide at room temperature is
1.43 eV. When the material is beavily doped (degenerative) it is found that tbe
lasing transitions involve 'bandtail' Slates which effectively reduce the bandgap
transition by 8%. Determine the difference in the emission wavelength of the
liaht between the lightly doped a nd thi~ heavily doped case.

8,8 With the aid of suitable diagrams, discuss the principles of operation of the
injection laser.
Outline the semiconductor materials used for enisslcn over the wavelength
range 0.8- L7 JIDl and give reasons for their choice.

1.7 Describe the techniques used to give both elecericel and optical confinement in
multimode injection Iesers.

8.8 A DH il\iectioo laser has an optical cavity of length ~ o urn and width 15 urn,
At normal operating temperature the loss coefficient is 10 em"! and the
current threshold is ~ O rn A. When the mirror reflectivity at each end of the
optical cavity is 0.3, estimate the gain factor ~ for the device, It may be
assumed that the cu rrent is confined to tm: optical cavity.

1.9 The coat ed mirror reflectivity at eithef end of the 3~ 0 urn long optical cavity of
an injection IlLSCT is 0,5 and 0 . 6 ~ , At normal operating temperature the
threshold current density for the device is 2 x 10 3 A cm- 2 and the gain factor
p is 22 x 10-] em A- I, Estimate the 1068 coefficient in the optieal cavity,
eo,o A gallium arsenide injection laser with a cavity of length 500 IJm has a loss
coefficie nt of 20 cm- t . T he measured differential external quantum efficiency
of the device is 4 5%. Calculate the internal quantum effICiency of the laser.
The refractive index of gallium arsenide is 3.6.

"" Octcribe, with the lid of hlitabl.e diagrams, the major structures utilized in the
rabrl~ of l!Jlala mode Injection 1&Ien. Q ivt: reasons fOf' the cumm mkTest
1ft the.. d..!""
 292 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS; PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

6.12 Compare the ideallig,bt output against current characteristics for the injection
laser with o ne from a more typical device. Di~u" the majoc points on the
characteristics and indicate why the two differ.

6.13 The th reshold current density for a stripe geo:neuy AlGaAs laser is
3000 A em" at a temperature of 15 " C. Estimate the required th reshold
current at a temperature of 60 "C when the threshold temperatu re coefficient
To for the device is 180 K, and the contact stripe is 20 x 100 um .

6.14 Briefl)' describe what is meant by the following terms when they are used in
relation to injection lasers:
(a) relaxation oscillations ;
(b) self pulsations;
(c) mode h opping;
(d) partition noise.

, 6 .16 Discuss deyadalion mec hlUlisms in injection la sers. Commen t on these with
regard to the C W lifetime of the devices.

Anewen to Numerical Problems

0,3 150 pm, 124 1 0.• 28 crrr'
6,4 4.2 x 1018 cm- J 6.10 84.5%
6.' 0.07 101m 6.13 71.0 rnA
0.8 3.76 x 10- 2 em A-I

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47 N. Chinane, K. Aiki, M. Nakamura and R. Ito. ' Effect s of lat eral mode and
carrier density profile on dyna mic behaviour of semiconductor lasers', IEEE J.
Quan tum Eiectron ., Q E-14 , pp. 625- 631, 1977.
48 G. Arnold and K. Peter mann, 'Self pulsing phenomena in (G a Al)A s double-
heterostructure injection lase rs'. Opt. Quantum E lectron., 10. pp. 31 1- 322, 1978.
49 R. W. Dixon and W. B. Jo yce. 'A possible model fot su stained o scillations
(pulsation s) in (AlG a)As double-heterostructure ' a sers·. IEE£ J. QuolWm
Electron.. QE-U, pp. 470-474. 1979.
50 G. A. Ackc:t and K . Koelman, ' Recent developmentl in HmIconductor iIlje.ct;on
Ium', A cta Electro". {FrQIIl:,}, 12(4), pp. 295-300, 1979.
-:
", . .~ '' '~' d~
~t. ~••,_
.,.
I~
......,,-
. :';' . -',,... • =-, '-
OPTICAL SOURCES 1: THE LASER 295

51 R.1. Hartman and R. W. Dixon, 'Reliability of DH GaAs lasers at elevated

temperatures', Appl. Phys. Leu.. 26, pp. 239-242, 1975.
52 J. A. Copeland, 'Semiconductor-laser self pulsing due to deep level traps',
Electron. Lett., 14(25), pp. 809-810, 1978.
53 R. Lang and K. Koboyashi, 'Suppression of the relaxation oscillation in the
modulated output of semiconductor lasers', IEEE J. Quantum Electron., QR-
12(3), pp. 194-199, 1976.
54 N. Chinone, K. Aiki and R. Ito, 'Stabilization of semiconductor laser outputs by
a mirror close to the laser facet', Appl. Phys. Lett., 33, pp- 990-992, 1978.
66 Y. Suematsu and T. Hong, 'Suppression of relaxation oscillations in light output
of injection lasers by electrical resonance circuit', IEEE J. Quantum Electron.,
QE-13(9), pp. 756-762, 1977.
56 R. E. Nahory, M. A. Pollock and J. C. De Winter, 'Temperature dependence of
InGaAsP double-heterostructure laser characteristics', Electron. Lett., 15(21),
pp. 695-696, 1979.
57 I. Garrett and J. E. Midwinter, 'Optical communication systems', in M. J. Howes
and D. V. Morgan (Eds.), Optical Fibre Communications, pp. 251-299, John
Wiley, 1980.
68 H. Koge1nik, 'Devices for optical communications', Solid State Devices Research
Corif, (ESSDERC) and 4th Symposium on Solid Device Technology (Munich,
W. Germany), 53, pp. 1-19, 1980.
69 T. Yamamoto, K. Sakai and S. Akiba, 'IOOOO-h continuous CW operation of
Inl_XGaxAsyPl_y/InP DH lasers at room temperature', IEEE J. Quantum
Electron., QE-15(8), pp. 684-687, 1979.
60 N. Chinone and H. Makashima, 'Semiconductor lasers with thin active layer',
Appl. Opt., 17(2), pp. 311-315, 1978.
61 P. A. Kirby, 'Semiconductor laser sources for optical communication', Radio
Electron. Eng., J. [ERE, 51(7/8), pp. 363-376, 1981.
62 J. Stone and C. A. Burrus, 'Self contained LED pumped single crystal Nd:YAG
fiber laser', Fiber Integ. Opt., 2, p. 19, 1979.
63 J. K. Butler (Ed.), Semiconductor Injection Lasers, IEEE Press, 1980.
64 K. Shirahata, W. Suseki and H. Namizaki, 'Recent developments in fiber optic
devices', IEEE Trans. Microwave Theory and Techniques, MTT-30(2), pp.
121-130,1982.

--------
ri •

Optical Sources 2: The Light Emitting

Diode

7.1 INTRODUCTION

Spontaneous emis sion of radiation in the visible and infrared regions of the
spectrum from a forward biassed p-n junction was discussed in Section 6.3.2.
The normally empty conduct ion band of the semiconductor is populated by
electrons injected into it by the forward current through the junction, and light
is generated when these electrons recombine with holes in the valence band to
emit a photon. Th is is the mechanism by which light is emitted from an LED,
but stimulated emission is not encouraged as it is in t he injection laser by the
addition of an optical cavity and mirror facets to provide feedback of photons.
The LED can therefore ope rate at lower current densities than the injection
laser. bu t the emitted photons have ra ndom phases and the device is an
incoherent optical sou rce. Also the energy of the emitted photons is only
roughly equal to the bandgap energy of the semicond uctor material, which
gives a much wider spectrallmewidth (pos sibly by a fact or of 100) than the
injection laser. The linewidth for an LED is typically 1-2 KT, where K is
Boltzmann's constant a nd T is the absolute temperature. This gives linewidths
of 30-40 om at room temperature. Thus the LED supports many optical
modes within its structure and is generally a multimode source which may only
be usefully utilized with multimode step index or graded index fiber.
At present LEDs ha ve several furth er dra wbacks in compariso n with injec-
tion laser s. These include :
(a) generally lower optical power coupled into a fiber (microwau s);
(b) relatively small modulation bandwidth (often less than SO MHz);
(e) harmonic distortion.
However, although these problems may initially appe ar to make the LED a far
less attractive optical source t han the injection laser, the device has a number
of distinct advantages which nave given it a prominent place in optical fiber
communications :
(8) Simpler fabrication. T here are no mirror facet. and in some struetw'e. no
Itriped geometry.

- -
. -'..
,...- -
 OPTICAL SOURCES 2 : TH E UGHT EMlTIING DIODE 297

(b) C OSL The simpler construction o f the LED leads to much reduced cost
which is always likely to be maintained.
(c) Reliability. The LE D doe s not exhibit catastrophic degrad ation and ha s
proved far less sensitive to gradual d egradation th an the injection laser. It
is also immune to self pulsation and modal noise problems.
(d) Less temperat ure dependence. T he light output against current character-
istic is less affected by temperature than the co rresponding characteristic
for the injectio n la ser. Furthermore the LED is not a threshold device and
therefore raising the temperature cannot increase the threshold current
above the operating point and hence halt operation.
(e) Simpler dri ve circuitry. Thi s is due to the generally lower drive currents
and redu ced temperature depen da nce which makes temperature com-
pensa tion circuits unnecessary .
(f) Linearity. Ideally the LED has a linear light output against current
characteristic (sec Section 7.4.1) unlike the injection laser. This can prove
advantageo us where analog modulation is concerned.

These advantag es coupled with the development o f high radiance medium

bandwid th d evices have made the LE D a widely used optical source for corn-
munication s applications.
Structures fa bricated using the GaAs/AIGaAs material system are well
advanced for the shorter wavelength region. There is also much interest in
LEDs for the longer wavelength region especially around Ld um where
m aterial dispersion in silica-based fibers goes through zero and where the wide
. linewidth of the LED imposes far less limitati on on link length than intermodal
dispersion within the fibe r. Furth ermore the reduced attenuation allows longer-
haul LED systems. As with injection lasers InGaAsP/lnP is the material
structure currently fa vored in th is region for the high rad iance devices. These
longer wavelength systems utilizing graded index fiber s are likely to lead to the
development of wider bandwidth devices as data rates of hundreds of Mbit s-'
arc alrea dy feasible. It is therefore likely that in the near future injection la sers
will o nly find majo r use as single mode devices within single mode fi ber
systems for the very long-haul, ultra -wide band applica tions whilst LEOs will
become the primary so urce for all other system applications.
Having dealt with. the basic operating principles for the LED in Section
6.3.2, we contin ue in Section 7.2 with a discussion of LED efficiency in rete -
1. tion to the launching of light into o ptical fibers. Moreover, at the end of this
section we include a brief account of the oper ation of an efficient LED which
employs a double heterostructure. This lead s into a discussion in Section 7.3 of
the major practical LED structures where again we have regard of their light
couplina efficiency. The various o perating characteristics a nd limitations on
LED pedonnance are deiCribed in Section 7.4. Finally, in Section 7.S we

4._
tDelude a brief dilc:ullion OD the possible modulation tech niqU'c.s... for semieoa-
optical IOIltCeL
I
298 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

7.2 LED EFFICIENCY

The absence of optica l a mplification through stimulated emission in the LED

tends ( 0 limit the internal quantu m efficiency (ratio of photons generated to
injected electrons) of the: device. R eliance on spontaneous emission allows non-
radiative recombination to take place within th e structure due to crystalline
imperfections and impurities giving at best an internal quantum efficiency of
50 % for simple homojunction devices. However. as with injection lasers
d ou ble heterojunction (D H) structu res have been implemented whic h recom-
bination lifetime measurements suggest (Ref. II give interna l quantu m
efficiencies o f 6()....80%.
Ahhough the possible intern al quantum efficiency can be relatively high the
radiation geometry for an LED which em its thro ugh a planar surface is
essentially Lambertian in th at the surface radiance (t he po wer radiated from a
unit area into a unit solid angle; given in W sr" m' " } is constant in all d irec-
tions. T he Lambertian intensity distribution is illustr ated in Fig. 7. ] where the
maximum intensity 10 is perpend icular to the planar surface but is reduced on
th e side s in proportion to the cosine of the viewing angle 9 as th e a pparent area
varies with this angle. T his reduces the external power efficiency to a few per
cent as mo st of the light generated within the device is trapped by total internal
reflection (see Section 2.2. L) when it is radia ted at greater than the critical
angle for the crystal-air interface. As with the injection laser (see Section
6.4. 1) the external p ower efficiency T\q, is defi ned as the ratio of the optical
power emitted externa lly Pr to the electrical power provided to the device P or:

r,
Tk , =:.: -P X 100% (7.1 )

A lso the optical power emitted P, into a medium of low refractive inde x n from
the face of a planar L ED fabricated fro m a material of refractive inde x nx is
given approximately by IRef. 21 :

r. Fn'
P, ~ "'-'4"'
0'-'-;'- (7.2)
,

\'1"-"---- --1',

fig. 7.1 The Lamblllrtifln in1e nsity d'fltribUl io n typ;ct l 01. pl. n.r LEO.

;'" " -;, ' ,

OPTICAL SOURCES 2 : TH E LIGHT EM ITTING DIODE 299

where P;nt is the po...... er generated intern ally and F is the transm ission fact or of
the semicond uctor-external interface. Hence it is possible to estimate the
percentage of optical power e mitted.

A plSOlI r LED is fabricated from llal1ium a rserlide wt1 ich ha s a reflactive inde x o t 3.6 .
la l Calc ulate \:t1e o ptica l powe r emitted into air as a percen tage of Il'1 e intema l
optical POWer" tor the device w he n me transmission factOr It the c rystal-air
imert8~ is 0 .68.
lbl When the optica l power 9,mel'8led ifT te m ally is 5 0% of the elec tlical power
SU!:lplted, detelmine \:t1e e xterna l power efficiency.
Solution: le I The o ptical power emit1 ed is given by Ell. (7. 2 1. in w hich 11'18 rej-ac-
tive Inde x n for air is 1.

P im O.68 x 1
= 0. 0 13 Pin'
4(3 .6 l2

He nc e th8 pow e r emitted 15 only 1.3 % of the opt ical power gllnllrated internally.
lb] The external powe r effi cien cy is given by Eq. 17. 11, wh ere

P~ Pr"
.... ~ =- x toc e o.ota c--.« 10 0
P P

Also ttMt optical power gerUtrated Illlema lly Pint = 0 .51'.

Hen~

0 .013 P...,
~ = x 100 = 0 .65%
2Pio'l

A further loss is encountered when coupling the light output into a fiber.
Consideration s of this coupling efficiency are very complex; ho wever. it is
possible to use an a pproximate simplified a pproach (Ref. 31. If it is assumed
(or ste p index. fibers that all the light incident on the exposed end of the core
within the accept ance angle 6a is coupled, then for a fiber in air using Eq . (2.8),

(7.3)

Also incident light at angles greater th an 6a will not be coupled, For a Lam-
bertien source, the radiant intensity at an angle 6,I(6) is given by (set: Fig. 7.1):
1(6) = 1Q cos 6 (7.4)

where 10 is the rad1,et inten&ity Ilona the line 6 = O. Con siderins a source
which 11 .maIler tllan.; udln c10te ProJlimity to. the fiber oore.'and anumin&
300 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS : PRINCIPL£S AND PRACTICE

cylindrical symmetry. t he coupling efficiency 1'\t is given by :

'10 ~
J---,-0e. 1(0) sin 8
_
ee
(7.5)
J v
%/1 / (0) sin 0 ae

Hen ce substituting from Eq. (7.4)

J lla 10 cos 0 sin 0dB

1'\0 = ---,- - -- - -
.' 71/2
J Io cos Osin OdO
•
=2
·
J e.. 10 sin 20 dO
_

Jo~ 10 sin 20 d8

[-10 cos 29/2Jt

'10 =
1-10 cos 2e/2l~

= sin 1 9• (7.6)
Fu rthermo re from Eq. (7.3),
n, = sin 2 e. = (NA)! ( 7.7)
Eq uation (7.7) for the coupling efficiency allows estimates for the percentage
of optical power coupled into the step index fibe r relative to the amount of
optical power emitted from the LED.

b . . . . . 7.2

Th e li1:lht o u lput from the GilAs LEO o f e xemp le 7. 1 i5 co upled Inlo a s te p Ifldel( f iber
wllh II oumert cere certure at 0.2. a co re refractive indell of 1.4 an d a d ia mete r la rg e r
tha n the dia me ter of the devic e. Estim ate:
(a) The co upling effic iency Into th e fiber when the LED Is in close p rOl( imity to th e
fib er CO 'II .
lb ) The optical loss in decibe ls. relative to the power e mitt ed from the LED. whefl
COUpliflg the ligh t ooQ u t into the fbe r.
te} The loss relat iv e to me In tern a lly Ilen erlll ted opt ical power in th e d evic e w l'1en
cou p ling the light o utPUt into t he fibe r wh ,!II\ the re is a &m a ll a i, ga p be twellf'l the
LED lind t he fiber core.
S olution: IIlJ From Eq. 17.71. the couplirtg efficlQr'lCY ls QIVilo by:
'It - (NAj2 _ (0 .2j2 _ 0 .041

'; ' ..'

opnCAL SOURCES 2 : THE UGHT EMITTING DIODE 301

Th us abou t 4 % of the extemellv e-mitted o ptical powe r is coupled i"to the fi be r.

(b ) Le t the optic a l power cou pled inlO tne fh e' be Pc ' The n the o ptica l loss in
d ecib e ls re la tive 10 p . when co upling t he light o ut put iJ'1 10 lhe fibe ' is:

P,
loss = -1 0 10g lO -
p.
= - 10 log, O'lc
Hence,
Loss = - 10 log10 0 .04
= 14 0 dB
Ic) When th e LED Is emitting int o ai r, from exam ple 7.1 .

r , = O O' 3 Pi" ,
A.sSll ming a val Y s m a ll a ir g a p (i .e. cylind rical symm etry u naft ecl ed l ; th en fro m (a l
me power co up led i"l o the fi ber is:
Pc = O.04P. = 0.04 ;0; O.013Pinl
= 5.2 )( 10"" P im
Henc e in this c a se Of'1 ly about 0.05% of th e inte ma l o ptica l pow er .s ccc p' eo into the
"'-.
The loss in de c ibe ls rela tive to Pinl is ;

P, ~
Loss = - 10 10910 - = - 10 109 10 5 .2 x 10 = 32.e d B
P inl

Therefore, beating In mimI th e assum ptio ns ma d e. t he re is a 3 .7 d B ad va ntag e in

th is example in e ns uring the fib er is in direct co nta ct with the LEO so urce .

If significa nt optical power is to be coupled from a n incoherent LED into a

low NA fiber the device mu st exhibit very high radiance. This is especially the
case when considering graded index fiber s where the Lambertian coupling
efficiency ....-ith the same N A (same refractive index difference) and a:::::: 2 (see
Sectio n 2.5) is about half that into step index fibers (Ref. 4 1. To obtain the
necessary high radi ance, direct bandgap semicond uctors (see Section 6.3.J. L)
must be used fabricated with D H structures which may be driven at high
current densities. The principle of operation of such a device will now be con-
sidered prior to discussion of ... arious LED structures.

7.2.1 The Doubl. Heterojunctlon LED

The principle of operation of the DH LED is illustrated in Fig. 7.2. The device
shewn consists of • P type GaAs layer sandwic hed between a p type AIGaAs
and aa fI type A10 " , II )'er. When a forward bias is applied ta s indicated in
Fla. 7.2(a» e1eeuOlli from the fI type layer are injected through·the p-n junc-
tion lDto &hI P type O~ ~y.r where they become minority The.. camerl.
302 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

minority carriers diffuse away from the junction IRef. 5] recombining with
majority carriers (holes) as they do so. Photons are therefore produced with
energy corresponding to the bandgap energy of the p type GaAs layer. The
injected electrons are inhibited from diffusing into the p type AlGaAs layer
because of the potential barrier presented by the p-p heterojunction (see
Fig.7.2(b)). Hence elecrroluminescence only occurs in the GaAs junction
layer, providing both good internal quantum efficiency and high radiance emis-
sion. Furthermore light is emitted from the device without reabsorption
because the bandgap energy in the AlGaAs layer is large in comparison with
that in GaAs. The DH structure is therefore used to provide the most efficient

, ,
, ,
, ,
~-:--

0-__
,
,
I
y
CC'___ o---{
"b ,':.:"
,--- c"---
C
,
,
I (
Op"cal
"'-",,,,(
c ___(>--- ~,
", ,
,
"'-
o.,...
''--- ... ,
,
,
,
(
,
~~
,
,
,
,
:---
,
lklcIQjunction,o=-l-- ---- - -- - -- -- -- -- -----: :
,-------t-.---, ,
: I' I I' I
, "

. ...- -
•• _ • Inj'"io"

• • •• ,loW"",
\.- .
•

'"
c , u n c
, " ",
"
Hole,
c' " o "
C U U
"

Flg.7.2 The double heterojunction LED: (a) the layer structure, shown with an applied
forward bias; (b) the corresponding energy bend diagram.
OPTICAL SOURCES 2 : THE LIGHT EMITTING DIODE .0.
incoherent sources for ap plication within optical fiber com munications.
Nevertheless these devices generally exhibit the previou sly discussed con-
straints in relation to coupling effic iency to optical fibers. This and other LED
structures a re con sidered in greater detail in the following sectio n.

7.3 LED STRUCTURES

There a re fou r maj or types o f LED structure although only two ha ve found
extensive use in optical fiber communications. These are the etched well
surface emitter. often -simply called the surface emitter. or Burrus (after the
o riginator) LED, and the edge emitter. The other two stru ctures, the planar
and dome LEO s, find more application as cheap plastic encapsulated visible
d evices for use in such areas as intruder alarms, T V channel c ha nges and
industrial counting. However, infrared versions of these d evices have been used
in optical communications mainly with fiber bundles and it is therefore useful
to consider them briefly before progressing on to the high radiance LED
structures.

7 .3.1 Planar LED

The planar LED is the simplest of the structures th at are available and is
fabrica ted by either liquid o r vapor phase epitaxial processes o ver the whole
surface of a GaAs substrate. This involves a p type d iffu sion into the " type
substrate in order to create the junction illustrated in Fig. 7.3. Forward current
now through the junction gives Lambertian spo ntaneo us emission and the
device emits light from all surfaces. However, only a limited amount of light
escapes the structure due to total internal reflection a s discussed in Section 7.2,
and therefore the radiance is low.

t
•

•
 304 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS; PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

7.3.2 Dam _ LED

The structure: of a typical dome LEO is shown in Fig. 7.4. A hemisphere of n
type GaAs is formed around a diffused p type region. The diameter of the
dome is c hosen to maximize the amount of internal emission rea ching the
surface within the critical angle of the GaAs-air interface. Hence this device
has a higher external power efficiency than the planar LED. However. the
geometry of the structure is such that the dome must be far larger th an the
active recombi nation area, which gives a greater effective emission area and
thus reduces the radiance.

Fig.7 .4 Thll str uctu re of a do me LEO.

7.3.3 Surface Emitter (Bu rrus Type) LED

A method for obtaining high radiance is to restrict the emission to a small

active region within the device. The technique pioneered by Burrus and
Da wso n (Ref. 61 with homoetructure devices was to use an etched well in a
GaAs substrate in order to prevent heavy absorption of the emitted r adiation,
and physically to accommodate the fiber. Th ese structures have a low thermal
impedance in the active region el jowing high c urrent densities and giving high
radiance emission into the o ptical fiber. Furthermore considerable advantage
may be obtained by employing DII structures giving increased efficiency from
electrical and optical confinement as well as less absorption of the emitted
radiation.
The structure of a high radiance DH surface emitter for the 0.8-O.9Ilm
wavelength band is shown in Fig. 7.5 lRef. 7]. The internal absorption in this
device is very low due to the larger bandgap confining layers, and the reflection
coeffici ent at the back crystal face is high giving good forward radiance. The
I emission from the active layer is essentially isotropic although the external
I' emission distribution may be considered Lambertian with a beam width of

I
I
•
120 0 due to refraction from a high to a low refractive index at the OaAs-tiber
interface. The power coupled Pc into a step index tiber may be estimated from

•, -,
",- ~- - .-
OPTICAL SOURCE::i 2 ; THE LIGHT EM ln l NG DIODE 3 05

Li.i nt .>I.l tl"J 1

-t.
\l.W .." ,

~/ " •• I(,..A<
...__. ;.· G .~,
_.. - p ..\l... . \..
1,' ~ iL'"
.... ,oll "~ ..,,,

Ag. 7 .5 Tile structure of an AIGaAs DH lIurface·emitting LED I Burrus t ype) lRef. 7 1.

the relationship (Ref. 81 :

(7.8)
where r is the Fresnel reflection coefficient at the fiber surface. A is the smaller
of the fiber core c ross section o r the emission area of the source and Ro is the
r adian ce o f the source. However, t he power coupled into the fiber is also
dependent on many other fac tors including the distance and alignment between
the emission area a nd the fi ber. the LED emission pattern and the medi um
between the emitting area and the fiber . F or insta nce the addition of epoxy
resin in the etched well tends to red uce the refractive index mismatch and
increase the external power efficiency of the device. Hence, D H surface
emitters often give more coupled optical power than predicted by Eq . (7.8).
Nevertheless Eq. (7.8) may be used to gain an estimate of the power co upled
altho ugh accurate results may o nly be obtained through measurem ent

A DH surface emit ter w hich h~s an emiSsi<m area diamet er of 50 J.l.rn Is butt jQiN ed
to en eo p.m core step indeJl fi Der w ith a numerical apert ure oj 0. 15. The device has
a r.diance of 30 W 5 r- cm- 2 at II oonatent operating dnve current . Estimate the
1

Optical pow er coupled Into th e fiber if 11 is essumec that thl! Fresnel reflection
coeffIcittl t I t me IndeJl m etcn ed fi ber surface is 0 .0 1.
S o/urlon: UI;ng EQ. 17.8 I, th e optical power coupled into t he fiber P r is give" by:
Pr; ,., 1ti 1 - MR o lNAl2
0'"
In thl'
H.no.,
A r'pr...nl. 'h• • missloo area 01 th e source.
II OPTI CAL FIBEA COM MUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE
306

Th us,
Pc = JIll - 0 .011 1.96 )C I O---!"> X 30 l< (0 . 151 2
= 4 1.1 f1,W
In this al< ample 8roUnd 4 1 'rJW o f o ptical power is coupled i nto t he s te p iode. fib er.

However, for graded index fiber optimum direct coupling requires that the
source diameter be about one half the fiber core diameter. In both cases lens
coupling may give increased levels of optical power coupled into the fiber but
at the cost of additiona l complexity. Another facto r which complicates the
LED fi ber coupling art the t ransmission characteristics of the leaky modes or
large angle skew rays (see Section 2.3.6). Much of the optical power from an
incoherent source is initially coupled into these large angle rays, which fall
within the acceptance angle of the fiber but have much higher energy than
meridional rays. Energy from these rays goes into the cladding and may be
lost. Hence much of the light co upled into a multimode fiber from an LED is
lost within a few hundred meters. It must therefore be noted that the effective
optical power coupled into a short length of fiber significantly exceeds that
, cou pled into a longer length,

7 .3.4 Len. Coupling

, It is apparent that much of the light emitted from LEOs is no t cou pled moo the
generally narrow acceptance angle o f the fi ber, Even with the etched well
surface emitter where the low N A fiber is b utted d irectly into the em itting
aperture of the device. coupling efficiencies are poor (of the order o f 1- 296).
However, it has been fou nd that greater coupling efficiency may be obtained if
lenses are used to collimate the emission from the L ED . There are several lens
coupling configurations which include sph erically polished stru ct ures not
unlike the dome LED. spherical-ended fiber coupling. tr uncated spherical
microlenses and integral lens structures.
i! A G a As!AIGaAs spherical-ended fiber coupled LED is illustrated in
.,I', Fig. 7,6 (Ref. 91. It consists of a planar surface emitting structure with the
, spherical-ended fiber attached to the cap by epoxy resin. An emitting diameter
of 3.5 urn was fabri cated into th e device and the light was co upled into fibers
with core diameters of 7.5 and 110 pm. The geometry o f the situation is such
that it is essential that the active diameter of the device be substantially less
(factor of 2) than the fiber core diameter if increased co upling efficiency is to
be obtained . In this case good performance was obtained with coupling
efficiencies around 6%, This is in agreement with theoretical IRef. 101 and
o ther experimental {Ref. II I results which suggest an increased coupling
efficie ncy of 2- .5 times th rough the sp herical fiber lens.

• ."
. ,.:~~ .r-·l -- : .",- - ',A,i • .
OPTICAL SOURCES 2 ; THE LIGHT EM ITTING DIODE 307

.... P Ia~ ....

,, ~

I -"
,
E"",t.J1. .. 110~ ---"''''~ -Ioy«
1..-A1. Ga. _. ....)
"\
.- •
, ~

~ .< -
I

~ .. ~
A..'!"'"
~:~n&rti; 10, ", }zaM ....cl P Io~'"
" 20
r-r-
1''''
.-- so,
~W
...OSi
D>id. .... . _

"'" ~

•
Fig . 7 .6 Schemal ic illustrat ion of lhe structure 01 a spt!erical-ended tIbtlr coupled AlGaAs
LED [Ref. 91.

Another common lens coupling technique employs a truncated spherical

mlcrolens. This configuration is shown in Fig. 7.7 for an etched well InG aAsP/
InP DH surface emitter [Ref. 12J operating at a wavelength of 1.3 urn. Again a
requirement for efficient coupling is that the emission region diameter is much
sm aller than the core diameter o f the fiber . In this case the best results were
obtained with a 14 Jl111 active diameter and an 85 Jl111 core diameter step index
fi ber with a numerical aperture of 0.1 6. The coupling efficiency was increased
by a factor of 13, again supported by theory (Ref. 10) which SUU ests possible
inc reases of up to 30 times.
However, the overall power conversion efficiency ~ which is defined as the
ratio o f the optical power cou pled into the fiber Pc to the electrical power
applied at the terminals of the device P and is therefore given by :

(7.9)

.,.,,-------!L! U
"'"0" '" - ,-- -,1 ,,·In? ,ubo.' fl t<
p-IoG.A<P C., C". I. y. r)
I' -I. P

Rei.7.7 The of I uunc lt6d ~I'l llrlc ll i microJe f11i fo<" coypiing the emission fro m I n
UN
InGIAIP . ~rfl c. ... mlt1lng UD to t'le fiber (Ref. 12.1.
._-
•
 308 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

is still quite low. Even with the increased coupling efficiency TJpc was found to
be around 0.4%.

Example 1.4

A lens coupled surface-emitting LED launches 190 IlW of optical power Into a step
index fiber when a forward current of 25 rnA is flowing through the device. Deter-
mine the overall power conversion efficiency when the corresponding forward
voltage across the diode is 1.5 V.
Solution: The overall power conversion efficiency may be obtained from Eq. (7.91
where,

Hence the overall power conversion efficiency is 0.5%.

The integral lens structure has perhaps the greatest potential for both a low
current, high power source for small core fibers and an ultra-high power
source for large core fibers. In this device a low absorption lens is formed
directly in the semiconductor material as illustrated in Fig. 7.8 fRef. It],
instead of being fabricated in glass and attached to the LED with epoxy. This
technique eliminates the semiconductor, epoxy, lens interface thus increasing
the theoretical coupling efficiency into the fiber. For optimized devices coupl-
ing efficiencies in excess of 15% are anticipated [Ref 13].

__ [nP len'

,
Ii
5iO,
Pl.r,,<J Au

i Fig.7.8 An example of an integrated lens structure with an InGaAsP LED [Ref. 111.

I 7.3.5 Edge Emitter LED

I The other basic high radiance LED structure currently used in optical com-
munications is the stripe geometry D H edge emitter. This device has a similar
OPTICAl SOURC ES 2 : THE LIGHT EM ITIING DIODE 309

geomet ry to a conventional injection laser as shown in Fig. 7.9. It takes

ad vantage of transparent guiding layers with a very thin active layer (SO-
100 11m) in order that the light produced in the active layer spreads into the
transparent guiding layers. reducing self-absorption in the active layer. The
consequent waveguiding narrows the bea m di....ergence to a half power wid th of
around 30° in the plane perpendicular to the j unctio n. However. the lack of
waveguiding in the plane of the j unction gives a Lambertian output with a half
power width of a rou nd 120 0 a s illustrated in Fig. 7.9.
Mo st of the propagating light is emitted at one end face only due to a
reflector on the other end face and an antirefle ction co atin g on the emitting end
face. The effective radiance at the emitting end face can be very high giving an
increased coupling efficiency into small NA fiber compared with the surface
emitter. However. surface emitters generally radiate more power into air
( 2.5- 3 times) than edge emitters since the e mitted light is less affected by
reabsorption and interfacial recom bination. Comparisons [Refs. J5-I7J have
shown that edge emitters couple more optical power into low N A (less than
0.3) than surface emitters, whereas the opposite is true for large NA (greater
than 0.3).
The enhanced waveguiding of the edge emitter enables it in theory [Ref. 161
to couple 7.5 times more power into lo w NA fiber than a comparable surface
emitter. Ho wever, in practice the inc reased co upling efficiency has been fo und
to be slightly less than this (3.5-6 times) (Refs. 16 and 171. Similar coupling
efficiencies may be obtained into low N A fiber with surface emitters by th e use
of a lens. Furthermore it has been found that lens coupling with edge emitters
m ay increase the coupling efficiencies by comparable factors (around 5 time s).

501:.,. '

... 7., Schem,tlc t1tu l1..tlon of the r. ruC1ur, of e s:ripe oeomelry DH A1GeAl .cfge-
Imming LEO. -----
 310 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTIC E

...·-1<'(;. \ "'-
~ . -!JIG&A>I'

'."'''' ' Ia} ...)

RII.1.10 The struct ure o f 80 10GaAsP lldge-em irting LED fo r OPillatio o a t a wa ve le ng th

of 1.3 um IRet. 191.

The stripe geometry of the edge emitt er allows very high carrier injection
densities for given drive currents. Thus it is possible to couple approaching a
milliwatt of optical power into low N A (0.14) step index tiber with edge-
emitting LEDs operating at high drive currents (500 lOA) [Ref 18].
Edge emitters have also been found to have a substantially better modula-
tion bandwidth in t he order of hundreds of megahertz than comparable
surface-emitting structures with the same drive Ievel lgef 171. [0 general it is
possible to construct edge-emitting LEns with a narrower linewidth than
surface emitters. but there ere manufacturing problems with the more com-
plicated structure (including difficult heat sinking geometry) which moderate
th e benefits of these devices. However. although surface emitters appear to be
the favored incoherent so urces at present it is likely t hat the significant
advantages of edge emitters for medium-haul, medium-bandwidth applications
will give them an enhan ced position in future optical tiber communications.
Th is is especially th e case in the longer wavelength region at present around
1.3 um, where InGaAsP/InP edge emitting structures of the type illustr ated in
Fig. 7.10 show more promise [Ref. 19].

\:0,~i"
-'I"I
t:ii~ 7.4 LED CHARACTERiSTICS
,
7 .4.1 Optical Output Power
The ideal light output power against current characteristic for an LED is
shown in Fig. 7.11. It is linea r corresponding to the linear part of the injection
laser optical power output characteristic before lasing occurs. Intrinsically the
LED is a very linear device in comparison with the majority of injection lasers
and hence it tends to be more suita ble for a nalog transmission where severe
constraints are put on the linea rity of the optical source. However. in practice
LEDs do exhibit significant nonl inearities which depend upon the confilun-
lion utilized. It is therefore etten neceuary to use some form of Une&rWna
OPTICAL SOURCES 2 : THE LIGHT EMJTIING DIODE 311

L. ~I' t OlO ll' '' '

l PO.... 1

"0. 7.n An ideal lighl Ol,llptJt a g~jn st current cnarectensuc for- an LED.

L. it ~ , , L;iII" ,
"',Ipu' L ""Ipu' L
(rnW) (rn W)
ru

• •
•

'. ,.
( ~ m:n'(."' l

( ~)

Flg.7.12 lig ht o utp ut (powe r) into a ir against d.c . drive c urrent for typica lly good LE Os
[Ref. 17 1: lal an AIGaA , sunaet! em itter w ittl /I 50 lun diameter dOl contact:
tbJ an AIGaAs edge emitter w ith a 65 1lm wide str'p e and 10 0)lm If!f\gt h.

circuit technique (e.g. predistorticn linearization or negative feedback) in order

to ensure the linear performance of the device to allow its use in high quality
analo~ transmission systems IRef. 2 11. Figures 7. 12(a) and (b) show the light
output against current characteristics for typically good surface and edge
emitters respectively {Ref. 17 J. It may be noted th at the surface emitter
radiates significantly more optical power into air than the edge emitter, and
that both devices are reasonably linear at mode rate d rive currents.

7.4.2 Output Spectrum

The spectral lioewidth of an LED operating at roo m temperature in the
O.8-0.9j.Lm wavelenlth band is usually between 25 a nd 40 nm at the hair
maximum intensity points (full width at half power (FWHP) points). For
mlterial, with .mallet baooaap energies opera ting In the 1.1-1.7 um wave-
IIIlIth rliion the linewldth tend, to increase to around SO-tOO om. Example•
.... two output ,tpectrl are shown in fig. 7.13 [Ref,. 3 ~d 22]. AlICl
. 11I1'11- 7,13(\1) ... tho in.,..... in lincwiclth due to in.riiied doplna
312 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AN D PRAGnCE

0-1; Q ~\l Q, ~~

.,
... · do: ""tt. lIo ..'

"
1 l5 U
\Ii .. <l< .~U. i,.." ,
l H ,.
,"
Flg.7.13 LED output spect ra: (a) outpu t spect rum for an AIGaAs surface emitt er w ith
doped active region [Ref. 31 : (bl output spect ra tor an InGaAsP eurtec e emitter
show ing both the lightly doped and heavily doped cases. Reproduced wit h per-
mission from A. C. Carter. The Radio and Electron. Eng.. 51 . p. 341 . 1981.

levels and the formation o f bandtail states (sec Sect ion 6.3.4). T his becomes
apparent in the differe nces in the outp ut spectra between surface- and edge-
emitting LEOs where the devices have generally hea vily doped and lightl y
doped (or undoped) acti ve layers respectively. It may also be noted that there
is a shift to lower peak emission wavelength (i.e. h igher energy) through reduc-
tion in doping in Fig. 7.l3(b), and hence the active layer composition must be
adj usted if the same center wavelength is to be maintained.
T he o utput spectra also tend to broaden with increases in temperature due
to t he greater energy spread in carrier d istributions at higher temperatures.
Increases in temperature of the j unction affect th e peak emis sion wavelength as
well, and it is shifted by +0.3-0.4 nm 0C- l • It may therefore be occeSiary to
utilize heat sinks with LEOs for certain optical tiber communication appI1c&-
OPTICAL SOURCES 2 : THE LIGHT EMln lNG DIODE 313

nons, a lthough this is far less critical (normally msignificaDt compared with tbe
linewidth) than the cooling r eq uire ment fo r injection lasers.

7.4.3 Modulation Bandwidth

The modulation band width in optical communications may be defined in either
electrical or o ptical terms. H owever, it is often more useful when considering
the associated electrical circuitry in an optical fiber comm unication system to
use t he electrical definition where the m odulation bandwidth has drop ped to
h alf its constant value due to the modulated portion of the optical signal. This
correspond s to the electrical 3 dB point or the freq uency at which the output
electrical power is reduced by 3 d B w ith respect to the input electrical power.
A s optical sources operate down to d.c. we only consider the high freq uency
3 dB point. the modulation bandwidth being the frequency ran ge between zero
and this high frequency 3 dB point.
Alternatively if the 3 d B bandwidth ofthe m odulated optical carrier (o ptical
bandwidth) is considered, we obtain an increased value for the modulation
bandwidth. The reason for this infl ated mod ulation bandwidth is illustrated in
exam ple 1.5 and F ig. 7. 14. In considerations of band width within the text the
electrical modulation bandwid th will be assumed unless otherwise stated
following current practice.

( ",<on'
"I i"
!!"
'. r.c

0.500

· OplQl l:>4>1ol->d tb- - ---1

Ag.7 .14 The freQ ue ncy res ponse lor a n o ptica l fi be r syste m snowing the electr ical and
o ptical bal'dwidth s.

Eumpl. 1.5

Compere tI... elec'lrici l a nd optical band width, tor an optical fiber com munica tion
. '(I18 m 1 M develop I relltionship betwee n them .
SoIut/rHI ; In order to obtain I . imple relationshi p betwee n the two ban dwidt h' it
~ nec....ry to compa re t he ~I(:trica l cu rt'1l nl m rouG t1 the svs tem. Curren t ralhe r
ttl." ¥OIt'i 1 (wt'Itctl ll QlMI.lIy u-ed In electrical 6)'S1emsl Is compared as both t he
optlcel IClllrCl••nd optlc.1 detecto r (••• Se ction 8 .61 m.y be consldll r-.t-.!o !l. ve a
, 11M" ral.tlonthlp betw•• n light .nd curren t.
 314 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Electrical bandwicr.h: The r.tio of t he e lect rical OU lpul Dower to Iht! e le elrica l
inp ut powe r in decibels REl16 is g i...en by :

elect ri ca l power out (at the detllCt or)

REge .. 10 IOg 10 - - - ...::.'-- - ' -- - - ' --'-
e lect rica l po w e r in (at th e eou ece t

OC l 0 lo\l'10
[ ',0.•"' ] '
Th e ele<:lrical J d B poin ts occur wh en the ra tio o f e lectric al powers show" above
iii t . He nce it fo ll ows t hat thit must OCC\J( whe n:

['0',.. I ~_ 1

Thus in the electr ical regime t he band wi dth may be defined by t he frequency w hen
the output CUHent hes dropped 10 1Iy2 or 0 .7 0 7 of t he input current t o thl:t sys ' em.
Oplical bandwidth: The ra tiO o f !he o ptica l output power to the optica l inpu t
POWel'" in d e cibela ROde is g lvlHl by.

optica l pow e r 0,," (rllceiV&d a t delsclor)

RO r£ = 10 log lO
o pt ic a l pow er in (tra n s mieted e t sou rce}

,~
OX 10 1og 10 -
'.
Idull to th e linear light/curre nt relationships of the SQu~ and detector]. Hence the
optical 3 dB pointl occur w hen the ralio of the curre ms is lIlQual to .J-. and :

Th erefore in tha optical regime the bandwidth is defined by the frecuences at

which the OUlput cun ent has dropped to .. or 0 .5 of the il1put cunent to tne system.
This corresponds to an electrical POWIIr enenu attcn of 6 dB.

The comparison between the two bandwidths is illustrated in Fig. 7.14

where it may be noted th at the optical bandwidth is significantly greater th an
the electrical bandwidth. The difference between them (in frequency terms)
depends on the shape of the frequency response for the system. H owever, if the
system response is assumed to be Gaussian. then the optical bandwidth is •
factor of '1'2greater than the electrical bandwidth (Ref. 231.

· .-'lIIIb... _ O L' -
OPTICAL SOURCES 2 : THE LIGHT EMITTING DIODE 315

The modulation bandwidth of LEOs is generally determined by three

mechanisms. These a re:
(a) the doping level in the active layer ;
(b) the reduction in radiative lifetime due to the injected carriers;
(c) the parasitic capacitance of the device.
Assu ming negligible parasitic capacitance. the speed at which an LED can be
directly current modulated is fundamentally limited by the recombination
lifetime of the carriers. where the optical o utput power p.(ro) of the device
(with constant peak current) and angular modulation frequency to is given by
[R ef. 241.

p. l") I
(7.10)
P *' [I + (cot,)1 It

where 'ti is the injected (minority) carrier lifetime in the recombination region
and Pde is the d.c. optical output power for the same drive current.

Eump&e 7.8

The minority carrier recombination lifetime for an LED is 5 ns When a COnl;l ant c,c.
drive cur rent Is applied to the device th e optica l output power is 30 0 v.W. Determ ine
t he optical output power wh en the device is modulated with an rms drive current
correspon ding to the e.c. drive current at trecuencies of (i1) 20 MHz: (b) 10 0 MHz.
It ma y be assum ed lhat paraslUe ceoecneece i s neglig ible. FUl1hllf delermlnfl the
3 dB optical bandwioth for me Oavic:e and eslirrale 1118 3 dB eleelrical band w idth
assuming a G ~ u ssi an response.
Solution : I~ ] From EQ . (7. 101. the o pti cal outp ut pow er at 20 MHz is:

300)( 10--6

300)( 10-ti

[1.39J-I:

= 25• .2 lAW
(bl Ag _ln u&ing EQ. (7 .10J:

-
••
316 OPTICAL FIB ER COM MUNICATIONS: PRINCIPL ES AND PRACTICE

110.87]*

= 90.9 jj W
Thi s exam ple illustrates th e reduction i n th e LED optical output power as the device
is driven M hig 'ler mo dulllling frequencies. II is ':t1erefOfe apparent t"a! th ere i s a
somewh at limited band width over w "ic" the dit'.ice m ev be usefully l>(ililed.
To det ermin e t he optica l 3 dB band width : th e Mig" freq uency J dB point cccc rs
wt-.e n p . (wllP <J. = 1/2. . Hence. using Eq. 17 .10):

1
--1

/, /,
f= - = - 55.1 MHl
2 11 t a x 10- 8

Thua the 3 dB optical bandwid th 8 0 pt is 55 .1 MHz as the devic e similar to all LEOs
operates down to d.c.
Assumin g a Gaussian freq ulIl'ICY response, the 3 dB etectrtcei bandwidth B wi ll
be :

55 .1
8 ... - = 39.0 MHz
/2
Thus the corre1;Jlonding electric,l bandwid th is 39 MHz. However. II must be
rfImell"bered thai pOlllsitic capaci tance may reduce tbe modulatlon bandwidth
below this va lu~.

The carrier lifetime is depende nt on the doping co ncentration. the number

of injected carriers into the active region, the surface recombination velocity
a nd the thickness of the active layer. AU of these parameters tend to be
interdependent a nd are adj usta ble within limits in present day technology. In
general the carrier lifetime ma y be shortened by either increasing the active
layer d oping or by decrea sing the thickness of the active layer . However, in
surfa ce emitters this can reduce the external power efficiency of the device due
10 the creation of an increased number of nonradiative recombination centers.
Ed ge-emitting LEOs have a very thin virtually undoped active laye r and the
carrier lifetime is controlled only by the injected carrier density. At high
current densities the carrier lifetime decreases with injection level because of a
bimolecular recombination process [Ref. 24 1. This bimolecular recombination
process allows edge-emitting LEOs with narrow rec ombina tion regions to
have sho rt recombinatio n times. and therefore relatively hiah modulation
capabilities al reasonable operating current densities. For instance. edge-
emitting devices with electrical modulation bandwidths of 145 MHz h ave been
OPTICAL SOURCES 2 : THE LIGHT Er'.~mIN G DIODE 317

achieved with moderate dopi ng and extremely thin (a pproxim ately SO run)
active layer s IRef. 2SI.
However , at present LEOs are fundamentally slower than injection lasers
because of the longer lifetime of electrons in the donor region resulting fro m
spontaneous recombination rather than stimula ted emission. T hus at high
modulatio n bandwidths the optical output power tends to decrease as demon-
strated in exam ple 7.6. and shown in Fig, 7. 1S fR ef. 26]. The figure illustrates
the decrease in optical o utput power with electrical modulation bandwidth for
surface emitters (solid lines) whilst also ind icating an ed ge-em itting device. It
may be not ed that at a modulation band width of 120 MHz the edge-emitting
LED provides more optical power into air than the surface-emitters.
Furthermore, homojunction LEOs fa bricated using vapor phase epitaxial
techniques which give modulation bandwidths to I GHz have: been re:poned
(Refs. 27 and 281 and it is likely that the: modul atio n b andwidths for all device
types will improve as the tech nology advances. At present com mercially avail-
able LEOs are generally restricted to bandwidths of belo w tOO MHz.
Longer wavelength LE O s. especially those fa bricated from the InGaAsPI
InP system are also becoming commercially available. These devices which at
present tend 10 operate in the 1.1-1.3 pm wavelength band take advantage of
the reduced dispersion and attenuation at these w avelengths. They also exhibit

'>1 " imu""

,"r---c::--
/ - m,o,
-- -- - - ---,
_~oo
""'i<:d :!O
.,.,..." • mIii I Il"'~ ..... • so....

"
,
•
Surf...,. ~"";It" r<
-~ V. ""d lkJo4i

, • ll<> 1 ~ ~nd H"'Qb<fp

[J... "" ' ~'"

• 11' '''''''''1'' 01

10 zo ,0 100 200 -lOO

U " "'" I ~"",I"' i,1111 'Il H<1

,0 100 , 00 , IXI
OVtiul b. II<I ...~ l l! l n ' Hl l

"'.7.1. Optical o utpul powe' wit h a 300 inA dr ive current egainst bandwidt h for
Al G. AI lurf.e. emitters reported bv Lee and De ntal [Ref, 11 and lo r AIGaAs
. ", rfKe.1'\CI edge emitt ers ",porte d by Bcrez and Ett enb'H9 r~fli. 17 ' l'1d 26).
R. ~uc:ed with permih ioo from D. Bo:&z al'1d G. J . HerskoViiu. 'Componen-.s
for Op1fe. f COmm", nfc.IIQl"1' Syllte ml : A Review". Proc. IEEE, ea, p, 689 , 1980.
', ' , CoDVrlgh1 • 1no IEEE,
 318 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

larger modulation bandwidths (2- 3 times) than the GaAsI A1GaAs system
with the sa me doping den sity [Ref. 281. probably due to shorter carrier
lifetimes as a consequence of a larger val ue o f recombination coefficient and a
larger number of no nradiating centers IRef. 241. Modul ation bandwidths up to
300 MHz have been repo ned (Ref. 121 for these devices, and it is clear that
there will be continued activity both in the 1.1- 1.3 urn wavelength band as well
as in the 1.3-1. 6 J.1IO band in order to achieve increased modulation band-
widths (Ref. 30) . It is therefore certain that as the technology for detectors
over these wavelength bands beco mes more established , then large data r ate,
longer wa velength LED systems will be brought into o peration.

7.4,4 Reliability
LEOs are not generally effected by catastrophic degrad ation mechanisms
which severely affect injection lasers (see Section 6.9,6). However, they do
exhibit gradual d egradation which may take the form of a rapid degradation
mode or a slow degradation mode.
Rapid degradation in LEOs ap pears to be similar to that in injection lasers,
ji
and is due to the growth of dislocations in the active regio n givi ng rise to both
dark line defects and da rk spot defects (absorbing region s) under device ageing
IRef. 301. The growth of these defect s does not depend upon substrate orienta-
tion but on the injection c urre nt density, the tem perature, a nd the impurity
concentration in the active la yer. G ood GaAs substrates have dislocation
den sities around 5 x 10" cm-t . lienee there is less probability of dislocations

,
,
, in d evices with small active regions.
LEOs may be fabricated which are largely free fro m these defects and
are therefore subject to a slower long term degradation process. T his
homogeneous degradation is tho ught to be due to recombinatio n en hanced
point defect generation (i.e. vacancies and interstiuals}, or the m igration of
im purities into the active reg ion IRef. 31I. The o ptical output power Pr(t) may
be e xpressed as a function o f the operating time I , and is given by (Ref. 31 1:
(7. 11 )
where P 0..1 is the initial out put power and 13, is the degr adation rate. The
d egradation rate is characterized by the activation energy of homogeneous
degradation E a and is a function of temper ature. It is given by :
~, ~ flo exp l- E. /KTI (7.12)
where 130 is a proportionality con stant, K is Boltzmann's constant and T is the
absolute temperature of the emitting region. T he activation energy E. is a vari-
able which is dependent 00 the material system and the structure of the device.
The value of E. is in the range 0.56--0.6 eV, and 0.9-1.0 eV forsutf'ace-emlttinl
GaAs/AIGaAs and InGaAsP/ lnP LEOs respectively Iller. 7). TheM value.
OPTICAL SOURCES 2 : THE LIGHT EM m lNG ClODE 31.

suggest 1f1' - I0 1 hou rs (100- 1000 years) CW operation at room temperaturefor

AlGaAs devices and in excessof 1O~ hOUfSfo r surface-emitting InGaAsP LEDs.

An InGaAsP surface amitter has an activs lioo el'lerg'l' of 1 eV wi lh a coeetaet 01

proponlonarity Il'c) of 1.84 x 10 1 h-1 . Est imal e the CW Operol;ng lifetime for the
LED w ith a con stant junction temperature of 17 °C, if it is assumed that th e devi ce
is no long er useful when Its optical output power has dimin ished to 0 .67 of its
orig inal value.
Sofutio,,: Initially it is necessary to obtain the deg,adillion rate P" thus from Eq
17 .12)
j), = 60 e ap I-E. /K n
, [-1 l<1.602 x 10-
19]
= 1.8 4 x 10 exp 23
1.3 8 x 10 x 290

= 1.8 4 x 101 exp [-40 1

= 7.8 2 x 10- 1' h- 1

Now usin g Eq. (7 .11)

p.w
- = exp l--P,tl- 0.67
p-

~fore

ll,t = -In 0 .6 7

' ro O. 67 _0 .40

0;; 5.1 )( 10 9 h

Hence the estimated lifetime or the device: under the specified conditions in
example ,., is 5.1 x 10" hours. It must be noted that the junction temperature
even for a device operating at room temperature is likely (0 be well in excess of
room temperature when substantial drive currents are passed. Also the
diminished level of optical output in the example is purely arbitrary and for
many applications this reduced level may be unacceptab le. Nevertheless even
with more naorous conditions the anticipated lifetime of such"devices is
ul;d!ent and is unlikely to cause problems in any optical fiber communication
lyIt.m.
Extrapolated Keelerated lifetime tests are also in broad agreement with the
thIorttlo&llldm:ue111lefi. 3lll'ld 32). Therefore u the LED is a realonably
."
 320 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES ANO PRACTICE

simple compact structure which operates without a current threshold. it is

likely that its operational life win always exceed that of the injection laser.

7.5 MODULATION

In order to transmit information via an optical fiber communication system it

, is necessary to modulate a property of the light with the information signal .
I, This property may be intensity, freq uency, phase or polarizat ion (direction)
,
with either digital o r analog signals. The choices are indicated by th e
characteristics of the optical fiber, the available optical sources and detectors,
and considerations of the overall system.
Ho wever, at present in optical fiber communications considerations of the
above generally limit the options to some form of intensity modulation of the
source. For instance, with optical heterodyne (coherent) det ection it is
necessary to dem odulate the frequency or phase of the light. Although not
impossible this is very difficult and requires a stable narrow linewidth single
mode source as well as extremely high quality single mode fi ber. Therefore
direct (envelope) detection of the intensity modul ated source ie currently the
•• favo red method.
Intensity modulation is easy to implement with the electroluminescent
sources available at present (LEOs and injection lasers). These devices can be
d irectly modulated simply by variation of their drive currents at rates up to
gigahertz. This d irect modulation o f the optical source is satisfactory ror tile
modulation bandwidths currently under investigation. However. considering
the recent interest in integrated optical devices (see Section 11 .8) it is likely th at
external o ptical modulators [Ref, 33 ] may be utilized in the future in order to
achieve greater bandwidths and to allow the use of nc nsemicondu ctor sources
(e.g, Nd :Y AG laser) which cannot be d irectly modulated at high frequency
(see Section 6.11 ). External o ptical modulators are active devices which tend
to be used primarily to modulate the frequency o r phase of the light, but may
also be used for time d ivision multiplexing and switching of optical signals.
However , modulation considerations within this text will be almost exclusively
concerned with the d irect modulation o r the intensity of the o ptical source.
Inten sity mod uJation may be utilized with both digital an d analog signals.
Analog intensity modulation is usu ally easier to apply but requires com-
paratively large signal to noise ratios (see Section 9 . 2 . ~ ) and therefore it tends
to be limited to relati vely narrow bandwidth, short distance applicat ions. Alter-
natively digital intensity modula tion gives improved noise immunity but
req uires wider bandwidths, although these may be smalI in compertsoa with
the av ailable bandwidth. It is th erefore ideally suited to optical fiber transmis-
sion where the available bandwidth is large. Hence at present most fiber
systems in the medium to long distance range use digital intensity moduladoft.

I
,I " fi'···;;';., "..:; .;,,, , ~,~ i~ . : : jk~.···',,~,~""'....
, ,;,
OPTICAL SOURCES 2 : mE LIGHT EMlnlNG DIODE 32'

PROBLEMS

7.1 Describe with the aid of suitable diagrams the mechanism giving the emission
of light from an LED. Discuss the effects of this mechanism on the properties
of the LED in relation to itJ use as an optical source for communications.

7.2 Briefly outline the adtantages and drawbacks of the LED in comparison with
the injection laser for use as a source in optical fiber communications.

7.3 Estimate the external power efficiency of a GaAs pl anar LED when the
transmission factor of the GaAs-air interface is 0.68 and the internally
generated optical power is 30% of the electrical power supplied. The refractive
index of GaAs may be taken as 3.6.

7.4 The external power dTtciency of an InGaAsPllnP planar LED is 0.75% when
the intemll1ly generated optical power is 30 mW. Determine the transnussicn
factor for the foP-aiT interface if the drive eurreet is 37 rnA and the potential
difference across the device is 1.6 V. The refractive index of InP may be taken
as 3.46.

7.5 A GaAs planar LED emittin& I t a wavelength 0( 0.85 .. m has an internal

quantum effICiency of 60% when passing a forw ard current of 20 rnA S- I.
Ezitimate the optical power emitted by the device into air, and hence determine
the external power efficiency jf the potential difference across the device is I V.
It may be assumed that the tr ansmission factor at the OaAs-air interface is
0.68 and that the refractive index of GaAs is 3.6. Comment on any approxima-
tions made.

7.6 The external power efficiency of a planar GaAs LED is 1.5% when the
forward current is 50 rnA and the potential difference across its terminals is
2 V. Esnmere the optical POWCf generated within the device if tbe transmission
factor at the coated GaAs- air interface is 0.8.

7.7 Outline the common LED scuercres for optical fi ber communications disc uss-
ing their relative merits and drawbacks. In particular, compare surface- and
edge-emining devi ces.

7.8 Derive an expression for the coupling efficiency of a surface-emitting LED into
8 step index fiber, assuming the device to have a Le mberuen output. Determine
the optical loss in decibels when coupling the optical power emitted from the
device into a step index fiber with an acceptance angle of 14 °. It may be
assumed that the LED is smaller than the fiber core and that the two are in
close proximity.

7.' Considering the LED of problem 7.3, calculate:

<a) the COupling effICiency and o ptical loss in decibels of couplrg the emitted
liabt into a ~ep index fiber with an NA of 0.15, when pae device is in
daM prosimity to the ftber and IS s maller than the fiba' core;
(b) \bI optkal 101. relative to the optical power atnerated internally if the
dIYIIe IIIdu tnto • thin air .ap befort liabt i. coupled into the fiber.
,
322 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

1.10 E stimate the optical power coupled into a SO ~ diameter core step index fiber
with an N A o f 0 . 18 from a D H surface emitter with lUI emissio n area diameter
of 7S 11m and a radian ce of 60W sr"! cm- 2, The Fresnel reflection at index
m atched semiconductor-fiber interfac e considered negligible.
F urther, de termine the optical loss when co upling light into the fiber relative
to the power emitted by the device into a ir if the F resnd reflection at the
seeucondactcr-ek Interface is 30%.

1.11 The Fresnd re.'lection coeffICient at a fiber core of refractive index n I is given
approximately from t he classical Fresnd formulae by

wh ere n is the refractive index of the surrounding medium.

(a) Estimate the o ptical loss due to Fr esnel reflection at a fiber core and from
GaAs which have refractive indices of 1.5 a nd 3.6 respectively.
(b) C alculate the o ptical power coupled into a 200 11m diameter core step
ind ex fiber with a n NA of 0 .3 from a GaAs surface-e mitti ng LED with an
emission diameter of 90 11m and a radiance of 40 W sr- 1 cm- 2. Comment
o n the result.
(c) Er.timate the optical power emitted into air foc the device in (b).

1 .12 Determine the over afi power conversion dIicin\cy for the L EO in problem 7. 11
if it is operating with a drive current of 100 rnA and a forward voltage o f 1.9 V.

1.13 Discuss lens coupling of LEO s to optical fibers and outline the various tech-
niques employed.

7.14 Discuss the relationship between the electrical and o ptical modulation
bandwidths for an optical fiber communication system, Estimate the 3 d B
optical bandwidth corresponding to a 3 d B electrical bandwidth of 50 MHz. A
G au ssian frequency response may be assumed.

7 .15 Determine the o ptical modulation ba ndwidth for the LED of pro blem 7.11 if
the device emits 840 pW of optical power into air when modulated at a Ire-
quency o f I SO M Hz.

7 .18 Estimate the electrical modulation bandwidth for an LE D with a carrier recom-
bination lifetime of8 ns. The frequ ency response of the device m ay be assumed
to be G aussian,

7 .17 Discuss the rdiability o f LEOs in comparison with injection lasers.

Estimate the C W operating lifetime for an AIG aAs LED with an activation
energy of 0 .6 eV and a constan t of proportionality ( ~ll) of 2.3 x 10 ' h- l when
the j unction temperature of the device is a constant o f ,0o C. It may be
assumed that the LIll is no longer useful when it s optical output powlr 11 0 .8
of ill original value.

•
OPTICAL SOURC ES 2 : ThE lIGKT EMITIING DIODE 323

7 .18 W hat is meant by the direct modulation of an optical source '? Give reasons for
the current usc of direct intensity modulation of semiconductor optical sources
and comment on possible e nemeuves.

Answers to Numerical Problems

7.3 0 .4% 7.11 (al O.81 dB
7.4 0.70 (b) 600 oW;
7.5 230 ~W, 1.1 5% (c) ' .44 mW
7.6 97 .2 mW 7 .12 0 .32 %
7.8 12.3 dB 7 .14 70.7 MHz
7.9 (a) 16.7 ea 7 ,15 4O.6MHz
(b) 35.21 as 7 .18 24.4 M Hz
7.10 0 .12 mW, 16.9 d B 7 ,17 2.2 1 x l~ hours

REFERENCES

1 T. P. Lee and A. G. Dent ai, 'Power and modulation bandwi dth of GaAs-
AlGaAs high radiance LEOs for optical communication sy stems', IEEE J.
Quantum Electron., QE-I4(3). pp. ISO-I56. 1978.
2 R. C . Goodfellow and R. D avis, 'Optical source devices', in M. J. Howes and
O. V. Morgan (Eds.), Optical Fibre Communlcatloru , pp. 27-106, John Wiley,
1980.
3 J. P. W ittke, M. Ettenburg and H . K ressel. ' H igh rad iance LED fOT single fiber
optical links', RCA Rev., 37(2), pp. 1~ 18], 19 76.
4 T. G. GiallorenLi, 'Optical communications research and technology: fiber
optics" hoc. IEEE, 66, pp. 744-780. 1978.
5 A. A. Berlb and P. J. Dean, L ight-Em itting D iodes, Oxford University Press,
1976.
8 C . A . Burrus and R. W. Dawson, 'Sma.D area high-l:uTmlt density OaAs electro-
luminescent diodes and a method of operation for improved degradatKm charac-
teristics', Appl, Phys. L eu., 17(3), pp. 97- 99, 1970 ,
7 C . A . Burrus and B. l. Miller, 'Small-area double-heterostructure aluminum-
aallium arsenide electroluminescent diode sources for optical fiber transmission
UnCI'. OjU. Commun., of. pp. 307-369. 197 1.
S T. P. Lee, ' Recent developments in liiht emitting d)odn for optical fiber com-
munication systems', Proc. Soc. P1ttJto Opl. Instrum: Eng. (USA), 114, pp,
92- 101, 1980.
• M. Abe, I. Umebu. O. 1I a.'lCgawa. S. Yamakoshi, T. Yamaoka, T. Kota ni.
H. Ok ada and H. Tatamashi, 'Highly efficient Ion. lived GaAlAs LEOs for
fiber-optical ccmmunicauone', IEEE Trans. Blearon, Devices, ED-14(7), pp.
990- 994, 1977.
10 R. A. Abram, R.. W . Allen an d R . C. Goodfellow. ' Th e coupling or light emitting
diadn to optical fibres usina sphere lenses', J. Appl. Ph)<·s., 46(8), pp. 3468-3474,
191.5.
11 O. Wacia, S. Yamakoshi, A. Masayuki, Y. N"rsMani and T . Sakurt.i. ' H iab
rad:lInCClInOaA,P/lnP lented LEOs for optk al c:ommuntcation Ipterns at 1.2-
I ,J IU!lt IEEE J, Qucznl1lm El«t1'On., Q B·I 7(2), pp. 174-178, ' l 98 l .
-' 1 ... C. CJoodIWlow. A. C. Carter. L Griffith and R. R. Bradley, 'OIInA, P!lnP
rut. h1P tadlMl. 1,0$-1.3 ~ ... ....lcnath LBO. with emc:iant len' (:OUpUna
• •
324 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

to small numerical aperture silica optical fibers', IEEE Trans. Electron. Devices,
ED-26(8), pp. 1215-1220, 1979.
13 R.A. Abram and R. C. Goodfellow, 'Coupling efficiency calculations on an
integrated LED sphere lens source for optical fibres', Electron. Lett., ]6(1),
pp. 14-16, 1980.
14 C. A. Burrus, H. Craig Casey Jr and T. Li, 'Optical sources', in S. E. Miller and
A. G. Chynoweth (Eds.), Optical Fiber Telecommunications, pp. 499-556,
Academic Press, 1979.
15 D. Gloge, 'LED design for fibre system', Electron. Len., 13(4), pp. 399--400,
1977.
16 D. Marcuse, 'LED fundamentals: Comparison of front and edge emitting diodes',
IEEE J. Quantum Blectron., QE-13(lO), pp. 819-827, 1977.
17 D. Botez and M. Ettenburg, 'Comparison of surface and edge emitting LEDs for
use in fiber-optical communications', IEEE Trans. Electron. Devices, EO-26(3),
pp. 1230-1238, 1979.
18 M. Ettenburg, H. Kreesel and 1. P. Wittke, 'Very high radiance edge-emitting
LED', JEEE J. Quantum Electron., QE-12(6), pp. 360-364, 1979.
19 G. H. Olsen, F. Z. Hawrylo, D. J. Channin, D. Botez and M. Ettenburg, 'High
performance 1.3 11m InGaAsP edge emitting LEOs', IEEE 1980 Intemiu.
Electron Devices Meeting Tech. Dig. (Washington, DC, USA), pp. 530-533,
1980.
20 J. Straus, 'The nonlinearity of high-radiance light-emitting diodes', IEEE J.
Quantum Electron., QE-I4(ll), pp. 813-819, 1979.
21 J. Straus, 'Linearized transmitters for analog fiber links', Laser Focus (USA),
14(10), pp. 54-tl1, 1978.
22 A. C. Carter, 'Light-emitting diodes for optical fibre systems', Radio Electron.
Eng. J. JERE, 51(7/8), pp. 341-348, 1981.
23 1. Garrett and J. E. Midwinter, 'Optical communication systems', in M. J. Howes
and D. V. Morgan (Eds.), Optical Fibre Communications, pp. 251-3oo, John
Wiley, 1980.
24 H. Kressel and J. K. Butler, Semiconductor Lasers and Heterojunction LEDs,
Academic Press, 1977.
25 H. F. Lockwood, J. P. Wittke and M. Ettenburg, 'LED for high data rate, optical
communications', Opt. Commun., 16, p. 193, 1976.
26 D. Botez and G. J. Herkowitz, 'Components for optical communications
systems: a review', Proc. IEEE, 68(6), pp. 689-731, 1980.
27 R. C. Goodfellow and A. Mabbit, 'Wide band high radiance gallium arsenide
LEOs for fibre optic communication', Electron. Lett., 12(2), pp. 50-51, 1976.
28 A. C. Carter, R. C. Goodfellow and R. Davis, 'High speed GaAs and GalnAs
high radiance LEDs', lmemat. Electron. Devices Meeting, Washington DC
(USA), pp. 577-581, 1977.
29 I. Umebu, O. Hasegawa and K. Akita, 'InGaAsP/InP DH LEOs for fibre-optical
communication', Electron. Lett., ]4(16), pp. 499-500, 1978.
30 T. P. Lee, 'Recent development in light emitting diodes (LEOs) for optical fiber
communications systems', Proc. Soc. Photo-opt. Instrum. Eng. (USA), 340,
pp. 22-31, 1982.
31 S. Yamakoshi, A. Masayuki, O. Wada, S. Komiya and T. Sakurai, 'Reliability of
high radiance InGaAsP/InP LEOs operating in the 1.2-1.3IJ.m wavelength',
IEEE J. Quantum Electron., QE-I7(2), pp. 167-173, 1981.
32 S. Yamakoshi, T. Sugahara, O. Hasegawa. Y. Toyama and H. Takanashi,
'Growth mechanism of (IOO) dark-line defects in high radiance GaAlAI LBO,',
International Electronic Devices Meeting, pp. 642-645, 1978.
OPTICAL SOURCES 2 : THE LIGHT EMiTII NG DIODE 32.

33 I. P. Kaminow a nd T. li, 'Modu lat~n techmques', in S. E. MiDer (Ed.). Oplkal

Ftber Tetecommunieations, pp . 557-5 9 1, Academic Pr"S, 1979.
34 A . G . Dentai, T. P. lee and C. A . Burr us. 'Small-area hiah radiance LETh; emit·
ting at 1.2 to 1.3 11m', E lectro" . uu., 13( 16). pp. 484-485, 1917-
35 H. F. Wolf, 'Optical sources', in H . F, Wolf (Ed.). H alUlbook qf Fiber Optics,
pp, LS3-201, G ran ada. 198 1.
38 K. Iga, T. Kambayashi, K. Wakao, C, Kitahara and K. Morit i. 'GalnAsPlIn P
doubk -heterostructure planar LEO',,, IEEE Trans. Electron, Df'I'iCTS, ED-26(8),
pp. 1227-1 230. 1979.
37 A . C. Carter, R, C. Goodfellow a nd R. Davis, ' 1.3- 1.6 urn GaIn AsP LEOs and
their application in long haul, h igh data rate fibre optic systems', Internal. Co'lf.
on Communications Pt. II, Seattle (USA), IEEE, Pt 28,1, 1980.

,
 8
Optical Detectors

8.1 INTRODUCTION

We are concerned in tbis chapter with photodetectors currently in use and

under investigation for optical fiber communications.
The detector is an essential component of an optical fiber communication
system and is one of the cruciaJ elements which dictate the overall system
performance. Its function is to convert the received optical signal into an
electrical signal, which is then amplified before further processing. T herefore
when considering signal attenuation Mong tbe link, the system performance is
determined at the detector. Improvement of detector characteristics and
performance thus allows the installation of fewer repeater stations and lowers
both the capital investment and maintenance costs.
The role the detector plays demands that it must satisfy very stringent
requirements for performance and compatibility. The following criteria define
the important performance and compatibility requirements for detectors which
are generally similar to the requirements for sources.
(8) High sensitivity at the operating wavelengths. The first generation systems
have wavelengths between 0.8 and 0 .9 sun (compatible with AIGaAs laser
and LED emission lines). However, considerable advantage may be gained
at the detector from second generation sources with operating wavelengths
above 1.1 ~m as both fiber attenuation and dispersion are reduced. There
is much research activity at present in this longer wavelength region,
especially concerning wavelengths around 1.3 11m where attenuation and
material dispersion can be minimized. In this case semiconductor materials
are currently under investigation (see Section 8.4.3) in order to achieve
good sensitivity at normal operating temperatures (i.e. 300 K).
(b) High fidelity. To reproduce the received signal waveform with fidelity, for
analog transmission the response of the photodetectcr must be linear with
regard to the optical signal over a wide range.
(c) Large electrical response 10 the received optical signal. The photodetector
should produce a maximum electrical signal for a given amount of optical
power, i.e. the quantum efficiency should be high.
3'8
 OPTICAL DETECTORS 321

(d) Short response time to obtain a suitable bandwidth. Present systems

extend into the hundreds of megahertz. However, it is predicted that future
systems (single mode fiber) will operate in the gigahertz range, and
possibly above.
(e) A minimum noise introduced by the detector. Dark currents, leakage
currents and shunt conductances must be low. Also the gain mechanism
within either the detector or associated circuitry must be of low noise.
(f) Stability of performance characteristics. Ideally, the performance charac-
teristics of the detector should be independent of changes in ambient condi-
tions. However, the detectors currently favored (photodiodes) have
characteristics (sensitivity, noise, internal gain) which vary with
temperature, and therefore compensation for temperature effects is often
necessary.
(g) Small size. The physical size of the detector must be small for efficient
coupling to the fiber and to allow easy packaging with the following
electronics.
(11) Low bias voltages. Ideally the detector should not require excessive bias
voltages or currents.
(i) High reliability. The detector must be capable of continuous stable opera-
tion at room temperature for many years.
(j) Low cost. Economic considerations are often of prime importance in any
large scale communication system application.
We continue the discussion in Section 8.2 by briefly indicating the various
types of device which could be employed for optical detection. From this
discussion it is clear that semiconductor photodiodes currently provide the best
solution for detection in optical fiber communications. Therefore in Sections
8.3 and 8.4 we consider the principles of operation of these devices, together
with the characteristics of the semiconductor materials employed in their con-
struction. Sections 8.5-8.7 then briefly outline the major operating param-
eters (quantum efficiency, responsivity, long wavelength cutoff) of such
photodiodes. Following in Sections 8.8 and 8.9 we discuss the structure and
operation of the major device types (p-n, ~i-n and avalanche photodiode).
Finally, in Section 8.10 we consider recent developments in phototransistors
, which could mean they may eventually find wider use as detectors for optical
fiber communications.

'.2 DEVICE TYPES

To detect optical radiation (photons) in the near infrared region of the

,pectrum, both external and internal photoemission of electrons may be
'; utilized. External photoemillion devices typified by photomultiplier tubes and
I
I.
3 28 Opn CAl FIBER COMM UNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE
It,
vacuum photodiodes meet some of the performance cr iteria but are too bulky,
I and require high voltages for operation. However, internal photoemission
devices especially semicond uctor photodiodes with or without internal
(aval anche) gain provid e good perfo nnance and compatibility with relatively
low co st. These photodiodes are made fro m semiconductors such as silicon,
germanium and an increasing number of III-V alloys, all of which satisfy in
vario us ways most of the detecto r requirements . They ere therefore used in all
major current optical fiber communication systems.
The internal photoemission process may take place in both intrinsic and
extrinsic semicond uctors. With intrinsic absorption, the received photons
I, excite electrons from the valence 10 the cond uction bands in the semrcon-
, ductor, whereas extrinsic absorption involves impurity centers created within
th e material. Ho wever, for fast response coupled with effi cient absorption of
i photons, the intrinsic absorpt ion process is preferred and at present all
detectors for optical fi ber co mmunications use intrinsic photodetection.
Silicon photodiodes [Ref. I] have high sensitivity over the O.8---{).9Ilffi
wavelength band with adequate speed (hundreds of megahertz), negligible
shunt conductance, low dark current and long term stability. They are
therefore widely used in first generation systems a nd are currently com-
"
mercially available . Their usefulness is limited to the first generation
,I'I"
wavelength region as silicon has an indirect bandgap energy (see Section 8.4.1 )
of 1. 14 eV giving a loss in response above 1.O9~. Thus for seco nd genera-
t ion systems in the longer wavelength range 1.1-1.6 um research is devoted to
the investigatio n of semiconductor materials which ha ve narrower bandgaps.
,,," , Interest ha s focused o n germanium and III-V allo ys which give a good
response at the longer wavelengths.
In both wavelength bands two main device types are currently the topic of
m ajor study. These are t he p-i-n and avalanche photodiodes. We shall
,•
therefore consider these de vices in greater detail.

8 .3 OPTICAL DETECTION PRINCIPLES

T he basic detection process in an intrinsic absorber is illustra ted in Fig. 8.1

which sho ws a p-n photod iode. This device is reverse biassed and the electric
field developed across the p-n junction sweeps mobile carriers (holes and
I electrons) to their respective majority sides (p and n type material), A deple-
tion region or layer is therefore created on either side of the junction. This
barrier has the effect of stopping the majority carriers crossing the junction in
the o pposite directi on to the field . However, the field accelerates minority
carriers from both sides to the opposite side of the junction. forming the
reve rse leakage current of the d iode. Thus intrinsic conditions are created in
the depletion region.
A pholon incident in or near tile depletion region ofthiJ device wh1cb hal an

~ -' .. .
-
 OPTICAL DETECTORS 329

,
, ,
, ,
Oholc 'd e- , :___ o_--i " 1--0
_electron ,
,
,
•
',,------'t----,- , ,
,
I ,
, ,
, ,
I
t', , ,
Depl<tion
region ,, ,
C,
,,
',,--~---Ic---'- ,
,., 0 ,
,
ld '/ I
I
-, I
-c
I -----E,.(Fc'mil..cl)

Fig. 8.1 Operation of the p-n photodiode: (a) photogeneration of an electron-hole pair in
an intrinsic semiconductor; Ibl the structure of the reverse biassed p-n junc-
tion illustrating carrier drift in the depletion region; (c) the energy band diagram
of the reverse btassed p-n junction showing photogeneration and the eubse-
quent separation of an electron-hole pair.

energy greater than or equal to the bandgap energy Ei of the fabricating

material (i.e. hl,,;?- Ei ) will excite an electron from the valence band into the
conduction band. This process leaves an empty hole in the valence band and is
known as the photogeneration of an electron-hole (carrier) pair as shown in
Fig. 8.I(a). Carrier pairs so generated near the junction are separated and
swept (drift) under the influence of the electric field to produce a displacement
current in the external circuit in excess of any reverse leakage current (Fig.
8.1(b)). Photogeneration and the separation of a carrier pair in the depletion
region of this reverse biassed p-n junction is illustrated in Fig. 8.l(c).
The depletion region must be sufficiently thick to allow a large fraction of
the incident light to be absorbed in order to achieve maximum carrier pair
. leneration. However, since long carrier drift times in the depletion region
'restrict the speed of operation of the photodiode it is necessary to limit its
'width. Thus there is a trade-off between the number of photons absorbed
,'(aensitivity) and the speed of response.

1.4 ASIORPTION

Ablorptlon Coefficient /
/

~,neabtorptlon of photonl In a photodiode to produce carrier pairs and thus a

, " .II dependent on the ablorption. coefficient au 'of the lI.ht in the
 330 OPTICAL FIBER COM MU NICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

semiconductor used to fabricate the device. At a specific wavelength and

assuming o nly bandgap transitw,ns (i.e, intrinsic absorber) the photocurrent J,
produced by incident light o f o ptical power P., is given by (Ref. 4J:

It J, -
Por(l-r)
/if (l -exp(--<>odl! (8, 1)
I
where e is the charge on an electron, r is the Fresnel reflection coefficient at the
semiconductor-air interface and d is the width of the absorption region.
The absorption coeificien ts of semiconductor materials are stro ngly depen-
dent on wavelengt h. This is illustrated for some common semiconductors
, IRd . 41 in Fig. 8.2. It ma y be observed that there is a variation between t he
"
absorptio n c urves for the materials sho wn and that they a re each suitable for
I
Ahoorp tlon
'e w· '
, ,,,,md onr LIJh l poot rrorl()N
(e m-I ) ,lol,rh fIlm)
ro-
,•
"
'" { W

,. s, ••

•
0

a• '"
I
Fig. 8.2 Optical abSOfpTOO cu..... IlS tOf som e com mo n sem iconductor photodiod a
m aterials (sili con. geman ium, galli um arsenide lind indium gal lium arsenide
pl'losphide). Repl"oduce d w it h pe-mtssron tram S. C. M illi!,r . nd A. G. Chynow eth
(Ed! .), OpticlJ l Fibre r"pcommun;cation$. 19 1 9 . COurtesy Academ ic P r'fI SS Inc..
lid.

,
II
I
T~ 8.1 Bandgeps for some semiccoductor
pholodiode me1erials; at 300 K

Bandgap laVI at 3 00 K

lodlrect Dlrect

51 1.14 4 .1D
G. 0.67 0.8 1
Gll As 1.43
InAs 0.35
lo P 1.35
GaSb 0.73
I no."GlIo.~$ 0.75
I,,- ,.G'lo. ..,As 1.15
GaA... .Sbo.l' 1.15

I'
I
OPTICAL DETECTORS 331

different wavelength applications. This results from their differing bandgaps

energies as shown in Table 8.1. However, it must be noted that the curves
depicted in Fig. 8.2 also vary with temperature.

8.4.2 Direct and Indirect Absorption: Silicon and Germanium

Table 8.1 indicates that silicon and germanium absorb light by both direct and
indirect optical transitions. Indirect absorption requires the assistance of a
phonon so that momentum as well as energy are conserved. This makes the
transition probability less likely for indirect absorption than for direct absorp-
tion where no phonon is involved. In this context direct and indirect absorption
may be contrasted with direct and indirect emission discussed in Section
6.3.3.1. Therefore as may be seen from Fig. 8.2 silicon is only weakly absorb-
ing over the wavelength band of interest in optical fiber communications (i.e.
first generation 0.8-0.9 1J1l1). This is because transitions over this wavelength
band in silicon are due only to the indirect absorption mechanism. As
mentioned previously (Section 8.2) the threshold for indirect absorption occurs
at 1.09 urn. The bandgap for direct absorption in silicon is 4.10 eV
corresponding to a threshold of 0.30 urn in the ultraviolet and thus is well
outside the wavelength range of interest.
Germanium is another semiconductor material for which the lowest energy
absorption takes place by indirect optical transitions. However, the threshold
for direct absorption occurs at 1.53 urn, below which germanium becomes
strongly absorbing corresponding to the kink in the characteristic shown in
Fig. 8.2. Thus germanium may be used in the fabrication of detectors over the
whole of the wavelength range of interest (i.e. first and second generation
0.8-1.6 urn), especially considering that indirect absorption will occur up to a
threshold of 1.85 1J1l1.
Ideally a photodiode material should be chosen with a bandgap energy
slightly less than the photon energy corresponding to the longest operating
wavelength of the system. This gives a sufficiently high absorption coefficient
to ensure a good response, and yet limits the number of thermally generated
carriers in order to achieve a low dark current (i.e. displacement current
generated with no incident lightIsee Fig. 8.5»). Germanium photodiodes have
relatively large dark currents due to their narrow bandgaps in comparison to
other semiconductor materials. This is a major disadvantage with the use of
germanium photodiodes especially at shorter wavelengths (below 1.1 urn).

8.4.3 III-V Alloys

The drawback with germanium as a fabricating material for semiconductor
photodiodes haa led to increased investigation of direct bandgap-Ill-Y alloys
for the lonaer wlve1enlth re,lon. These materials are potentially superior to
pnnanium booaullthoir bandSAPI can be tailored to the destred wavelength
 332 OPTICAL FI BER COMMUNICATIONS: PR INCIPLES AND PRACTICE

by changing the relative concentrations of their constituents . resulting in lower

d a rk c urrents. They ma y a lso be fabricated in heterojunction structures which
enhances their high speed operation.
Tern ary a Uoys such as InG aAs and G aAlSb deposited o n G aSb substrates
have been used to fabricate photodiodes for the l.G-l .4\.lrn wavelength band.
However, difficulties in growth of these eJloys with lattice matching have led to
defects which cause increa sed dark currents and microplasma sites (small
areas with lower breakdown voltages than the rest of the junction).· These
• defects limit the performance of a device fabricated from ternary alloys. More
-l
, e ncouraging results have been ob tained with q ua ternar y alloys such as
InG aAsP grown on InP a nd GaAIAsSb grown on GaSb. These systems have
the major ad van ta ge that the bandgap and lattice constant can be va ried
independ ently. This permits the bandgap tailoring whilst maintaining. a lattic e
match to the sub strate.

8 .5 QUANTUM EFFICIENCY

T he quantum efficiency 1) is defined as the fraction of incident photons which

a re absorbed by the photodetector and generate electrons which are collected
a t the detector terminals:

number of electrons collected

,, (8.2)
, 1) = number ofincidenl photons

1 Hence,
•

'.
" ~­
(8.3)
"
where rp is the incident photon rate (photons per second) and r, is the
correspond ing electron rate (electrons per second).
One of the major factors which determines the quan tum efficiency is the
absorption coefficient (see Section 8.4. 1) of the semiconductor material used
within the photodetect or. 1t is generally less than unit)' as not all of the incident
photons are absorbed to create electron-hole pairs. F urthermore, it should be
n oted that the quantum efficiency is often quoted as 8 percentage (e.g. a
quantum efficiency of 75% is equivalent to 75 electrons collected per 100
incident photons). Finally, in common with the absorption coefficient, the
quantum efficiency is a functio n of the photon wavelength and must therefore
o nly be q uoted for a specific wavelength .

• It should be noted that m icroplilllmas are only of conce", in . v.llneN

photodiodell (Suction 8. 9.1 1.

•
OPTI CAL DETECTORS 333

8 .6 RESPONSIVITV

The expression for quantum elnciency does not involve photon energy and
therefore the responsivity R is e llen of more use when characterizing t he
performance of a phctodetectcr, It is defined as :

I
R = ..L A W i (8.4)
p.
whe re I p is the output photocurrent in amperes and Po is the incident optical
power in watts. The respon slvity is a useful parameter as it gives tile transfer
c haracteristic of tile detector (i.e. photocurrent per unit incident o ptical power).
The relationship for responstvuy (Eq. (8.4» may be developed to include
q uantum efficiency as follows. Considering Eq. (6. ) the ene rgy of a photon
E = !if. Thus the incident pho to n rate r p may be written in terms of incident
optical power and the photon e nergy as:

Po
r. = - (8.5)
P hi
In Eq. (8.3) tile electron rate is given b y:
(8.6)
Substituting from Eq. (8.5) we obta in

(8.7)

Therefore, the output pbotocurrent is:

(8.8)

where e is the charge on an electron. Thus from Eq. (8.4) the responsivity may
be written as:

(8.9)

Equation (8.9) is a useful relationship for responsivity which may be developed

a further stage to include the wavelength of the incident light.
The frequency f of tbe incident photon s is related to their wavelength A and
the velocity of light in air c, by :

c
I-- (8. 10)
A
•
 I 334 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS ; PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Substituting into Eq. (8.9) a Iinal expression for the respons.ivity is given by:

~e.
R~­ (8.11)
he

It may be noted that the responsivity is directly proportional to the quantum

efficiency at a particular wavelength.
The ideal responsivity again st wavelength characteristic for a silicon
photodiode with unit quantum efficiency is illustrated in Fig. 8.3. Also shown
is the typicaJ responsivity of a practical silicon device.

R· 'I"",· (, ity
(A W " )

,,,
,
,
':"-T.pia/ plwtDol ..-

'" ,I,
,• ,,
,
I,
-, us I U ~

w..d<"flk ( ~ m l
Fig. 8.3 Aesponsivity against wa velongth cberectensuc for an ideal silicon ph ctc cjc ce.
The fqpons ivity of a typ;cel device is also encw n.

bampl.S.l

\A'tllIn 3 " 10" photons eec h ....hh 8 W~e<lgt:h of 0.85 .,.m are incid""t o n a
photodiode, on average 1.2 'J( 10. ' alBCtron, a re oollecll'd i111 me l erm 'na:, of ttl e
device. Determine t he qu a ntu m efficiency al'1 d the responsivity o f th e c hctodrcc e at
O.S5 Iolm.
SoIuthJn: Fro m Eq. {S. 2 ),

number of e lectrons c o llect ed

quantu m efficiency _ - - - - - - - -- -
number of iocidenl photons

1.2 )( 10 "
•

= 0 .4
The q uantum efficiency of the phOtodiode at 0 .85 IJm is 40%.
From Eq. (8 .1 11,

.,.>
reIponliM tyR - -
no

. _. ---_ .
~. . . .= & - -. . ,-' - -' ,' ' "
"" -"","
.,'.
OPTICAL DETECTORS 335

0.4 x 1.602 x 10- 1• X 0.85 X lO- ft

6.626 X 10-3• X 2,998 x 10"

= 0.274 A W-1
The responsivity of the photodiode at 0,85 urn is 0.27 A W-'.

Example 8.2

A photodiode has a quantum efficiency of 65% when photons of energy 1.5 x

10- 1• J are incident upon it.
(a) At what wavelength is the photodiode operating?
(b) Calculllt8 the Incident optical power required to obtain a photocurrent of 2.5 !JA
when the photodiode is operating as described above.
Solution: (a) From Eq. (6.11, the photon energy E=hf=he/'A.. Therefore

he 6.626 X 10-30 x 2.998 X 10·

'~-~------,,--
E 1.5xl0'·

1.32 um
The photodiode is operating at a wavelength of 1.32 urn.
(b) From Eq. (8.9).

ne 0.65 x 1.602 x 1 0~1.

respcnsivltv R = - ~ --cc:-cc:-;:--
hI 1.5 x 10- 1•

= 0.694 A W~'

Also from Eq. (8.4).

Therefore

2.5 x 10-"
Po = = 3.60 J.lW
0.694

The incident optical power required is 3,60IlW.

8.7 LONG WAVELENGTH CUT OFF

It is essential when considering the intrinsic absorption process that the energy
of Incident photons be greater than or equal to the bandgap energy E g of the
material used to fabricate the photodetector. Therefore the photon energy
he
-I."
' E, (8.12)
 3S8 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICAn ONS: PRINCI PLES AND PRACTICE

giving

he
. ,;; - (8.13)
E,

Thus the threshold for detection commonly known as the long wavelength
cutoff point A" is:

.. ~-
he
E,
(8 .14)

The e xpression given in Eq. (8. 14) allows the calculation of t he longest
wavelength of light to give photodetection fOT the various semiconductor
materials used in the fab rica tion of detectors.
[I is important to note t hat the above criterion is only ap plicable to intrinsic
photodetectors. Extrinsic photodetectors violate the expression given in Bq.
(8 .12), but arc not currently used in optical fiber communications.

E.llm p le 8 .3

GaAs has a bandgap energy of 1.4 3 eV at 300 K. Determine Ihe wlIvelu'lgth above
which an in trinsic pho lodlltllclor fab rica ted from this m aterial will ce a se to opera te.
S olutio,,: From Eq. 18 .14), lhe tong wavelength cutoff .

".- . /tc
Eg
-
6.626 )( 10 -34 )( 2 .998 x , 0-
- - -
1.43 x 1.602 )( 10--'·
---,,----

= 0 .8 67 jlI'n

The GaAs photocete ct cr w ill c ease to operate above 0. 8 7 Iolm.

8 .8 SEMICONDUCTOR PHOTODIODES WITHOUT INTERNAL

GAIN

Semiconductor photod iodes without intern al gain generate a single electron

hole pair per absorbed pho ton. This mechanism was o utlined in Section 8.3,
a nd in order to understand the development of this type of photodiode it is now
necessary to elabor ate upon it .

U!oJ..CS,7 i :''') t.:f;

8 .8.1 p-n Photodiode
Fi gu re 8.4 shows a reverse biassed p-n photodiode with both the depletion and
diffusion regions. The depletion region is formed by immobile poJitiveJy
•
,I
J.. . _ · --
d o . . " '--
• t - . .. .
,-* ._ - - ,-- ~
 OPTICAL DETECTORS 337

E field

.
,.
Depl<lion
region
Absorption
region
f- ----17~

e
e •
Diffu,ion rc ~ion

I
Flg.8.4 p-n photodiode showing depletion and diffusion regions.

negatively charged acceptor atoms in the p type material, when the mobile
carriers are swept to their majority sides under the influence of the electric
field. The width of the depletion region is therefore dependent upon the doping
concentrations for a given applied reverse bias (i.e. the lower the doping, the
wider the depletion region). For the interested reader expressions for the deple-
tion layer width are given Ref. 5.
Photons may be absorbed in both the depletion and diffusion regions as
Indicated by the absorption region in Fig. 8.4. The absorption region's position
and width depends upon the energy of the incident photons and on the material
from which the photodiode is fabricated. Thus in the case of the weak absorp-
.tion of photons, the absorption region may extend completely throughout the
'~device. Electron-hole pairs are therefore generated in both the depletion and
_diffusion regions. In the depletion region the carrier pairs separate and drift
'under the influence of the electric field, whereas outside this region the hole
diffuses towards the depletion region in order to be collected. The diffusion
'process is very slow compared to drift and thus limits the response of the
, photodiode.
It is therefore important that the photons are absorbed in the depletion
'region., Thus it is made as long as possible by decreasing the doping in the n
type material. The depletion region width in a p-n photodiode is normally
I-311m and is optimized for the efficient detection of light at a given
wavelength. For silicon devices this is in the visible spectrum (0.4-0.7 11m) and
,tor aermanium in the near infrared (0.7--0.9 urn).
Typical output characteristics for the reverse-biassed p-n photodiode are
,Ulultrated In FIa. 8.5. The different operating conditions may be noted moving
m no 1I1ht input to a hiah light level. /
338 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

(UlT<n,

"" '00

Flg.8.5 Typical p-n photodiode output characteristics.

8.8.2 p-i-n Photodiode !V

In order to allow operation at longer wavelengths where the light penetrates
more deeply into the semiconductor material a wider depletion region is
necessary. To achieve this the n type material is doped so lightly that it can
be considered intrinsic, and to make a low resistance contact a highly doped n
type (n+) layer is added. This creates a Jri-n (or PIN) structure as may be
seen in Fig. 8.6 where all the absorption takes place in the depletion region.
Figure 8.7 shows the structures of two types of silicon p-i-n photodiode for
operation in the shorter wavelength band below 1.09 11m. The front illuminated

'f

E [i<ld

.
-----1"-~~
"

,
Absorption rogion

.
"
I
Lo.d
Fig. 8.8 p-i-n photodiode showing ccrnblned absorption and depletion rlglon.
 OPTICAL DETECTORS 339

Metal cQntact~

-===~~=1~~~~~
SiO,
Depl,t;on l.yer_

.'
t ,
t
(b)

Flg.8.7 lal Structure of a front illuminated silicon p-i-n photodiode. Ib) Structure of a
side illuminated (parallel to junction) p-i-n photodiode.

photodiode when operating in the 0.8-0.9 J.U11 band (Fig. 8.7(a» requires a
depletion region of between 20 and 50 11m in order to attain high quantum
efficiency (typically 85%) together with fast response (less than I ns) and low
dark current (I nA). Dark current arises from surface leakage currents as well
as generation-recombination currents in the depletion region in the absence of
illumination. The side illuminatedstructure (Fig. 8.7(b», where light is injected
parallel to the junction plane, exhibits a large absorption width (~500 11m) and
hence is particularly sensitive" at wavelengths close to the bandgap limit
(1.09 urn) where the absorption coefficient is relatively small.
Germanium jri-n photodiodes which span the entire wavelength range of
interest are also commercially available, but as mentioned previously (Section
8.4.2) the relatively high dark currents are a problem (typically 100 nA at
20°C increasing to lilA at 40 "C). However, as outlined in Section 8.4.3
III-V alloys are under investigation for detection in the longer wavelength
region. The two of particular interest in view of lattice matching are
Inl_xGaxAsyPI_y grown on InP and Ga"All_xAsySbl_y grown on GaSb. The
atrueture for a jri-n photodiode [Ref. 7] of the former is shown in Fig. 8.8.
The quaternary wafer was grown by liquid phase expitaxy using a con-
ventional sliding-boat technique. The photodiode formed a mesa structure in
which the edge of the jrn junction was exposed to the environment or the
material in the package, It operated at a wavelength of 1.26 11m with low dark
current (less than 0,2 nA) and with a quantum efficiency around 60%. Also the
re.ponle time WIS estimated at no greater than 100 ps. It is likely that
",botodlodes f'lbriolted from these materials will find wide application within
•Io!IPr wlvt1eoJlh opllol1 8bo, .y.tom.. '
!
34. OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

j
Fig . 8 .8 S tructu re of an InG, As P p- i- n photodiodll. The InP ba se is tra ns Pil rl!mt to t he
ra diation absorbed in lhe q ua te rna ry lay e rs [Ref. 7).

8 .9 SEMICONDUCTOR PHOTODIODES WITH INTERNAL GAIN

II 8 .9.,"
\.\';.'" Av~nche
4~
co' ,
' L' r ;
Photodiod••
The second major type of optical communications detector is the avalanche
photodiode (APD). This has a more sophisticated structure than the Jr;-n
photodiode in order to create an extremely high electric field region
(approximately 3 x l OS v cm -' ) as may be seen in Fig. 8.9(a). Therefore, as
well as the depletion region where most of the photons are absorbed and the
primary carrier pairs generated there is a high field region in which holes and
electrons can acquire suff'c1a a energy to excite new electron-hole pairs. This
process is known as impact ionization and is the phenomenon that leads to
avalanche breakdown in ord inary rever se biassed diodes. It requires very high

. -
"
,

,,' -

l.o><l
,.,
Ag. 8.9
'"
lal Avalanche pho todiode s"'owing high e le ctric field (g l lnl ~';l'on. (b ) C.rrler
pai r mu ltiplication ir. the gain region.
"I

I _ ...--_.-- ..l..'• •_ _. _.._ v ,· , ,

-- ~ --
OPTICAL DETECTORS 34 '

reverse bias voltages (l()()....4()() V) in order thai the new carriers created by
impact ionization can themselves produce additional carriers by the same
mechanism as shown in Fig. 8.9{b).
Carrier multiplication factors as great as 10" may be obtained using defect-
free materials 10 enSU It: uniformity of carrier multiplication over the entire
photosensitive area. However. other factors affect the achievement of high gain
within the device. Microplasmas, which are small areas with lower breakdown
voltages than the remainder of the j unction, must be reduced through the selec-
tion of defect-free materials together with careful device processing and
fabrication. In addition, excessive leakage at the junction edges can be
eliminated by the use of a guard ring structure as shown in Fig. 8.10. At
present both silicon and germanium APDs are available.
Operation of these devices at high speed requires full depletion in the
absorption region. As indicated in Section 8.8.1, when carriers are generated in
undepleted material, they are collected somewhat slowly by the diffusion
process. This has the effect of producing a long 'diffusion tail' on a short
optical pulse. When the A PD is fully depleted by employing electric fields in
excess of 1()4 V m-', an the carriers drift at saturation-limited velocities. In this
case the response lime for the device is limited by two factors. These are:
(a) the transit lime of the carriers across the absorption region (l.e. the deple-
tion width); and
(b) the time taken by the carriers to perform the avalanche multiplication
process.
Often an asymmetric pulse shape is obtained from the APD which results
om a relatively fast rise time as the electrons are collected and a fall time
etated by the transit time of the holes travelling at a slower speed. Hence,
ougb the use of suitable materials and structures may give rise times
'-tween J50 and 200 ps, ran times of I ns or more are quite common which
the overall respon se of the device.

"= =::;-,
l14<cOI <0111&• •

"
StfUC'tU'" of I , lIlcon I Vllanche ghotodlodil w hh ~Ird ri ng .
342 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

8.9.2 Silicon Reach Through Avalanche Photodiodes

To ensure carrier multiplication without excess noise within the APD it
is necessary to reduce the ratio of the ionization coefficients for electrons and
holes k: (see Section 9.3.4). In silicon this ratio is a strong function of the
electric field varying from around 0.1 at 3 x 1()5 V m-' to 0.5 at
6 x 10 5 V rrr". Hence for minimum noise, the electric field at avalanche
breakdown must be as low as possible and the impact ionization should be
initiated by electrons. To this end a 'reach through' structure has been imple-
mented with the silicon avalanche photodiode. The silicon 'reach through'
r
APD(RAPD) consists of -rt-Jrn+ layers as shown in Fig. 8.ll(a). As may
be seen from the corresponding field plot in Fig. 8.11(b), the high field region
where the avalanche multiplication takes place is relatively narrow and
centered on the p-n+ junction. Thus under low reverse bias most of the voltage
is dropped across the p-n" junction.
When the reverse bias voltage is increased the depletion layer widens across
the p region until it 'reaches through' to the nearly intrinsic (lightly doped) rr
region. Since the rt region is much wider than the p region the field in the rt
region is much lower than that at the p-n- junction (see Fig. 8.1l(b)). This has
the effect of removing some of the excess applied voltage from the multiplica-
tion region to the rt region giving a relatively slow increase in multiplication
factor with applied voltage. Although the field in the 1t region is lower than in
the multiplication region it is high enough (2 x 10" V ern") when the
photodiode is operating to sweep the carriers through to the multiplication
region at their scattering limited velocity (10 7 em s-'). This limits the transit
time and ensures a fast response (as short as 0.5 ns).
Measurements [Ref. 16J for a silicon RAPD for optical fiber communica-
tion applications at a wavelength of 0.825 IlJ1l have shown a quantum
efficiency (without avalanche gain) of nearly 100% in the working region, as
may be seen in Pig. 8.12. The dark currents for this photodiode are also low
and depend only slightly on bias voltage.

E field

I
50 ~'"
~-G"ill region

H I - - - - - - - A b , o r P l i o n region

(.) x (bl

Fig. 8.11 (a) Structure of a silicon RAPD, (b) The field distribution In the RAPO showing
the gain region across the p-nr junction.
 OPTICAL DETECTORS 343

S;I"-,,,,, ,,- I' • p'

A\':tlancho photodjod<

\00

Flg.8.12 Measurements of quantum efficiency against wavelength for a silicon RAPD.

After Ref, 16. Reprinted with permission from The Bell System Technical
Journal. @ 1978. AT&T.

8.9.3 Gennanium Avalanche Photodiodes

Work is also continuing to optimize germanium APDs in order to achieve low

dark currents with reasonable multiplication factors over the whole of the
wavelength range of interest. A low noise n+-n-p germanium APD [Ref. 25]
which will operate over the 0.8-1.5 11m wavelength band has gone some way
'. to achieving this, although at a wavelength of 1.3 11m with a multiplication
,factor of 10 the device has a dark current of approximately I 11A.

III-V Alloy Avalanche Photodiodes

.
,Recently interest has focused on APDs fabricated from III-V alloys. Initially
they were found to give excessively large dark currents at the biasses required

Au ~~_,
\

Inl'(p')

/"
InPln) I ~m
\ - --InG.AoJ'
--- (n) l.5 ~m

InP(n') I ~m
344 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS ; PRINCIPLES AND PRACTlCE

to achieve gain. However , a structure has been reported which appears to

reduce this problem IRef. 261.
An example of this structure is given in Fig. 8.13 whic h shows an etched
inverted mesa InG aAsP/ ln P APD. The interesting innovation with this
structure which reduces the dark current to an acceptable level (200 pA for a
multiplication fact or of 10) is that the p--n+ j unction, and the refore the mul-
tiplication region is loc ated in the InP substrate with the depletion region
extending into the photosensitive InG aA sP. The structure therefore takes
adv antage of the low leakage, high gain properties of In P A PDs an d the longer
wa velength response of the narrower bandgap InGaAsP (0.35-0.70 eV).

8.9.5 Drawbacks with the Avalanche Photodiode

APDs have a distinct advantage over photodiodes without internal gain for the
detection of the very low light levels o ften enc ountered in o ptical fiber com-
munications. However, t hey also have several dr awbacks. which are ;
(a) Fabrication difficulties due to their more complex structure and hence
increased cost.
(b ) The random nature of the gain mechanism which gives an additional noise
contribution (see Section 9.3.3).
(c) The high bias volta ges required ( 10Q-400 V) which a re wavelengt h
depende nt.
(d) The variation of the gain (multiplication factor) with temperature as shown
in Fig. 8 .14 for a silicon RAPD (Ref. 161. Thus temperature compensa tion
is necessary to stabilize the operation of the devi ce.

.-
CoarrrD' ' ~ r---------"","
~ oo
Sib<"" ,,'-I'-. -p'
...,-........ ~ J~, ..,<>dKAlc

," '"' soc

~
-cc
..c"'" ~.... l \'.
Flg .8.14 CU JTent gain agai nsl reverse bias for a silicon RAPO optlral1ng 81 8 w.ll~ e l e"gth
of 0 .825 um. After Ref. 16. geprtmed wit'l permiulon from Th. B. " Sn t.m
Technical J ourna'_ e 19 78 , AT&T.

, ---
/
_ •
• · _ _ .- A _
__ ..i _ • • •• i .
OPTICAL DETECTORS 345

8 .9.6 Multiplication Factor

The multiplication factor M is a measure of the internal gain provided by the
APD. It is defined as:
t
M ~- (8.15)
[,
where I is the total output current at the operating voltage (ie. where carrier
multiplication occurs) and I,. is the initial or primary photocurrent (i.e. before
carrier multiplication occurs),

b ampleS.4

The qua ntum effi ciency of a panicullH silicon RAPD is 80% for the detection of
redretlc n at a wavelen gth of 0 .9 urn. When th e incident optical power 15 Q.5 Il-W , t he
o ut put current from the device (atlllr avalanche gain) is 11 !lA. Oetermine the
mul tiplication factor of the phot odiod e under these condi ti ons
Sa/urian: From Eq, (B ,ll ). th e respcnslvltv

R = 1'\eA. = COC·8:-:<O'O·60
:..:.:2:-:<C'OO_~C"C<::::OC9_'CC'~O_~
he 6.6 2 6 X 10--34 )( 2.99 8)( 10'

= 0 58 1 A W-'
Also from Eq. IBAI. tne pbotecurrent

/~ = PoR

= 0. 5 M 10--" ); 0 .581

= 0. 29 1 !!A
Finell v using Eq. (8. 15 1'

I 11 x 1~
M=- ==c:-=
Jp 0 .29 1 x 1~

= 3 7.8
The multiplication factor 01 the photodi ode is approxim ately 38.

8.10 PHOTOTRANSISTORS

The probJemli encountered with APDs for use in the longer wnelength region
hll ltimuWed a renewoc:t lnterest in bipolar phototran ti ~ ,. However. th ese
•
 348 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

devices have yet to find use in major opt ical fiber communication sy ste ms. In
common with the APD t he photo tra nsistor provides internal gain of t he
pbotocurrent. This is achieved throu gh transistor action rather than avalanche
multiplication. A symbolic representation of the n-p-n bipolar phototransistor
is shown in Fig. 8.15(a). It d iffers from the conventional bipolar transistor in
that the base is unconnected, the base-collector junction being photosensitive
to act as a light-gathering element . Thus ab sorbed light affects the base current
giving multiplication of primary photocurrent through the device.
The structure of II recent n-p-n InGaAsP/InP heterojunction photo-
transistor is shown in Fig. 8. 15(b) fRef. 301. The three layer heterostructure
( see Section 6.3.5) is grown on an InP substra te using liq uid phase epita xy
(LPE). It consists of an n ty pe foP coUector layer followed by a thin (0. 1 ~m) p
type InGa As P base layer. T I\e third layer is a wide bandgap 11 type lnP emitter
layer. Radiation incident on the device passes unattenuared thro ugh the wide
bandgap emitter and is absorbed in the base, base-collector dep letion region

t--- ~ o..tjJ\O' ..........

,.,

~-I ••P. ,j""

..

'"
I Ag.8.115 hill Symbolic representation of the rJ-P-fI pnolO~"al'lor .l'Iowing the m.m.1
connecVol'ls. lbl Cron hetlon of In n-p--n InGaAafl!lnP h.l.ro/unoUon
pho~at rll~i .to' I R~. 30 ).
OPTICAL DETECTORS 347

and the collector. A large secondary photccurrem between the emitter and
collector is obtained as the photogenerated holes are swept into the base,
increasing the forward bias on the device. The use of the heterostructure
permits lo w eminer-base a nd collector-base j unction capacitances together
with low base resistance. This is achieved through low emitter and collector
doping levels coupled with heavy doping o f the bas e. and allow s large current
ga in. In addition the potential ba rrier created by the heterojunction a t the
emitter-ba se junction effectively eliminates hole injecti on from the base when
the junction is forward biassed . This gives good emitter base injec-
tion efficiency. The optiona l gain Gu of the device is given a pproximately
by IR, r. 301
/If 1,
G,,:::' ll h ~E = - -p (8.16)
e 0

where" is the quantum efficiency o f the base-collector photodiode. I%:E is the

common emitter current gain, 1. is the collector curr ent. P" is the incident
optical power. e is the electronic charge and hi is th e photon en ergy.
The photoirenslstcr shown in Fig. 8. 15(b) is capable of o pera ting over the
·0.9-1.3 urn wavelength band giving optical gains in excess of 100 as demon-
Itrated in example 8.5.

Ell8mple 8 .5

The cn c totrensrero - of Fig. 8. 15(b) has a colle cto r curren t of 15 rnA w he n the
Incident o ptica l pow e r at a w avel e ngth of 1.26 ~m is 125 ~w. Estimate :
I_I the optical gain of Ihlt device under u.e abo ve operaling condi tions;
fbI th lt common emitter ctJrrerlt g ain if the Quanlum efficie ncy of the b ase-ccnect o-
photod iode I t I wa vele l1gth of 1.2 6 pm is 40%.
So/ur/on; (a) Using Eq. (8 .161. (he optica l gain is g iven by:

hI ' e hr: Ie
Gc ~- - ~- -
e Po A" Po
6 .6 2 6 )< 1 ~ '1' 2 .998 )( 10- )( 15 X t o-- l
1.26 X Ier- X 1.602 l( 10-- " X 125 )< 10 1

_ 11 8 .'
(b) Th' common e mitte r c urre nt g ain is :

Go 118.'
JlF€ = - - - 295 .3
I'J 0 .4
348 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

PROBLEMS

8.1 Outline the reasons for the adoption of the materials and devices used for
photodetection in optical fiber communications. Discuss in detail the ~i-n
photodiode with regard to performance and compatibility requirements in
photodetectors.

8.2 A ~i-n photodiode on average generates one electron-hole pair per three
incident photons at a wavelength of 0.8 IJ.m. Assuming all the electrons are
collected calculate:
(a) the quantum efficiency of the device;
(b) its maximum possible bandgap energy;
(c) the mean output photocurrent when the received optical power IS
10--7 W.

8.3 Explain the detection process in the p-e photodiode. Compare this device with
the p-t-n photodiode.

8.4 Defme the quantum efficiency and the responsivity of a photodetector.

Derive an expression for the responsivity of an intrinsic photodetector in
terms of the quantum efficiency of the device and the wavelength of the
incident radiation.
Determine the wavelength at which the quantum efficiency and the
respcnslvity are equal.

8.5 A p-n photodiode has a quantum efficiency of 50% at a wavelength of 0.9 urn.
Calculate:
(a) its responsivity at 0.9 IJ.m;
(b) the received optical power if the mean photocurrent is 10--6 A;
(c) the corresponding number of received photons at this wavelength.

8.6 When 800 photons per second are incident on a ~l-n photodiode operating at
a wavelength of 1.3 IJ.l11 they generate on average 550 electrons per second
which are collected. Calculate the responsivity of the device.

8.7 Explain what is meant by the long wavelength cutoff point for an intrinsic
photodetector, deriving any relevant expressions.
Considering the bandgap energies given in Table 8.1, calculate the long
wavelength cutoff points for both direct and indirect optical transitions in
silicon and germanium.

8.8 A ~i-n photodiode ceases to operate when photons with energy greater than
0.886 eV are incident upon it; of which material is it fabricated?

8.9 Discuss the operation of the silicon RAPD, describing how it differs from the
~n photodiode.
Outline the advantages and drawbacks with the use of the RAPD as a
detector for optical fiber communications.

8.10 An APD with a multiplication factor of20 operates at a wavelength of 1..5 urn.
Calculate the quantum efficiency and the output photocurrent from the device
OPTICAL DETECTORS 349

if its responsiviry at this wavelength is 0.6 A W- 1 and 1010 photons of

wavelength 1.5 J.Im are incident upon it per second.

8.11 Discuss the materials used in the fabrication of APDs and comment on their
relative merits and drawbacks when employed in devices utilized for optical
fiber communication.

8.12 Given that the following measurements were taken for an APD calculate the
multiplication factor for the device.
Received optical power at 1.35 urn = 0.2 J.IW
Corresponding output photocurrent = 4.9 J.!A
(after avalanche gain)
Quantum efficiency at 1.35 am = 40%

8.13 An APD has a quantum efficiency of45% at 0.85 lim. When illuminated with
radiation of this wavelength it produces an output photocurrent of 10 IiA after
avalanche gain with a multiplication factor of 250. Calculate the received
optical power to the device. How many photons per second does this
correspond to?

8.14 When io" photons per second each with an energy of 1.28 x 10- 19 J are
incident on an ideal photodiode, calculate:
(a) the wavelength of the incident radiation;
(b) the output photocurrent;
(c) the output photocurrent if the device is an APD with a multiplication
factor of 18.

8.16 A silicon RAPD has a multiplication factor of 10 3 when operating at a

wavelength of 0.82 J.Im. At this operating point the quantum efficiency of the
device is 90% and the dark current is 1 nA.
Determine the number of photons per second of wavelength 0.82 urn
required in order to register a light input to the device corresponding to an
output current (after avalanche gain) which is greater than the level of the dark
current (i.e. I > 1 nA).
8.18 An InGaAsP hetercjunction photctransistor has a common emitter current
gain of 170 when operating at a wavelength of 1.3 J.Im with an incident optical
power of 80 J.IW. The base collector quantum efficiency at this wavelength is
65%. Estimate the collector current in the device.

Anewera to Numerical Problema

(a) 33%; (b) 24,8 x 10-20 J;
••• (c) 21,3 nW
8.10
8.12
50%, 15,9 nA
24.1
'.4 1.24 11m 8.13 77.8 nw,
'.1 (a) 0,36; (b) 2.78 OW; 3.33 x lOll photons S-I
(c) 1.26 X 10 13 photons S-I 8.14 (a) 1.55 am; (b) 1.6 J.IAj
0,72 A W- l (c) 28,8 I1A
••• 0.3 I'm, 1.09 lAm, 1.'3 IU", 6,94 x 106 photons 5- 1
••• .m
'.11

I..
1.15
Iao.,Cl N.
'.1' 9,3 rnA
 350 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNI CATIONS : PRINCIPLES AN D PRACTIC E

REFERENCES

1 H. Mdcbior, M. B. Fisher and F. R. Arams, 'Photoderectors for optical com-

munication systems'. Proc. IEEE, 58, pp. 1466- 1486, 1970.
2 H . Melchior, 'Detectors for lightwave communications', Phys. Today, 30. pp.
32-39, 1977.
3 S. D . Personick, 'Pbotcdeteceors for fiber systems', in M. K. Barnos ki {Ed.],
Fundamenmis of Optical Fwr Communications, 2nd Ed., pp . 257-293,
A cademic Pre ss, 198 I .
4 T. P. Lee and T . Li, 'Photod~OI"!l ', in S. E. Miller and A. G . Chynoweth
( Eds.), Oplic4l Fiber TelecomMUnlca'iofU , pp. 593---6 26, Academic Press, ]979.
5 S. M. See, Ph}'Sin of S emlroMuclor Delices (2nd Ed.), John Wiley. 1981.
8 B. O. Seraphin and H. E. Bennett, "Optical constants', in R. K , Willardr.on and
A. C . Beer (Ed5.), Srm lronductors and S emimetals, Vol. 3, pp. 449-543,
Academic Press, 1967.
7 C. A. Burrus, A. G . Demai lU'ld T. P. Lee, ' InGaAsP p-i-n photodiodes with low
dark currents and small capacitance', Electron. Lett., 15(20), pp. 655--656, 1979.

• T. Sukegawa, T. Hiraguchi, A. Tanaka and M. Haginer, ' Highly efficient

P-GaSb-N-Ga1 __x AI", Sb photodiodes', Appl. Phys. Lett., 32(6), pp. 376---378,
1978.
9 A. R . Clawson, W. Y, Lum, G, E. McWilliams and H. H. Wieder, 'Quaternary
alloy lnGaAsP/]nP detecto rs', Appl. Phy s. Leu.. 17(1 1), pp , 2065-2066, 1978.
I. R. E. Leheny, R. E. Nehcry and M. A. Polla ck, 'InosGall.oAs, p-i-n
photodiodes for long wavelenath fibre optic system', Electron. Lett.. 15(22), pp.
71 3-7 15, 1979,
11 A. Kashinwazwa,. A. Yemeguchu and M. F uguwara, 'Silicon pin pholodiodes',
Hal. Tech. Rep. (JprI) EE£, 2j(6), pp. 118D-1J 89, 1979.
12 T. Pearsall, ' Photc:ldet«tor. for communication by optical fibres', in M. J. Hewn
and D . V. Morgan (Eds.). Optical Fibre Comm un ications, pp. 107- 164, John
Wiley, 1980.
13 C. E. H urwitz and J. J. Hsieh. 'G alnAsP/InP avalanche photodiode s', Appl.
Ph)'J. Len.. 32(8), pp. 4 87-489, 1978.
T. P. Lee, C. A. Burrus Jr and A. G. Dentai, 'InGaAsP/I nP photodiodes
" microplasma.limited avalanche multiplication at ] -1 .3 urn wavelength', IEEE J.
,. Quantum Electron., Q E·I ~ , pp. 3D-35. ]979.

,.
P. P. Webb, R. J. Mcintyre and J. Conradi, ' Properties of avalanche photo-
diodes'. RCA Rev.• H , pp. 23 ~ -277, 1974.
A. R. Hartm an, H. Melchior, 0 , P. Schinke and T. E. Seidel, 'Planar epitaxial
silicon avalanche photodiode', Bdt Sys. Tech. / ., H, pp . 179 1- 180 7, L9 78.
17 B. H . Weider, A. R. Clawson end G. E. Mcw illiam s, ' I n~G a l_.< Asz P I_JlnP
heterojunction photodiodes', Appl. Phys. L ett., 31, pp. 468 -470, 1977.
18 G. E. Stillman and C . M. Wolfe, 'A valanche photodiodes', in P, K. Willardson
I. and A, C. Beers (Bde.), Semiconductors and Semimt>tals, Vol. 12, p. 291,
Academic Press, 19 77.
19 G . H. Oslen and H . K ressel, ' Vapour grown 1.3 urn InGaAsP/InP avalanche
photodiodes', Appl. Phys. Lett., 34, pp. .581-5 83, 1979.
20 K. Nishida, K. Teguchi, Y. Matsumoto, 'InGaAsP heterostructure avalanche
photodiodes with high avalanche galn',Appl. Phys. L ett .; 3 ~ , pp. 25 1-2.53, 1979.
21 H. Melngailis, ' Photodiodes a t 1.06--1.6 um', IEEE Opttc&i Fiber Communica-
lton Ccnf; Washinaton DC, USA Paper THA2I90, 1979.
OPTICAL DETECTORS 35'

22 R. G. Smith, ' Pbotodetectors for Iiber transmis sion systems'. Proc. IEEE,
n O D), pp, 1247-1 2' 3, 1980.
23 D. Bola and C. J. Henkowitz, 'Componen ts fo r optical communication
systems: a revew', Proe. IEEE, 68(6), pp. 689-730, ) 980.
24 H. Ando, H. K aebe, T. Kimwa. T. Yameska and T. Kaneda. ' Chuacteristics of
germanium. avalanche photodiodes in the wavelength reaion 1- 1.6 J.Im', IEEE J .
Quantum E lectro" ., Q E-14. pp. 804--809, 1978.
25 T. Mika wa, S. K aga wa, T. K aneda, T. Sakwai, H. Ando and O. Mika:11.i, 'A 1010'-
noise ,," np germanium avalanche photodiode', IEEE J. Quantum Electron.
QE-1 7(2). 1'1'. 2 10-21 6, 198 1.
26 H. Kanbe. N. Sma. H . Nak agome and H. Ando, ' InGaAs avalanche photodiode
with InP p-n j unction, Eleclron. LeU., 16, pp, 16 3-1 6' , 1980.
27 C. E. Hurwitz, 'Detecto rs for the 1.1- 1.6 um spectral retion', Proc. Soc. Photo-
opl. t nstrum. Eng. (USA). 214, pp. 122-1 27, 1980.
28 H. Melchior and A. R. Ha rt man. ' Epitaxial ~ i1icon n ' -JrJt- p + avalanche
photodiode for optical fiber co mmunications at 800 to 900 na nometers', Tech.
Dig. in Electronic Devices Meeting, p. 412, 1976.
29 M. lobe, Y. Amemiya, S. Sak ai and M. Umenn, 'High-sensitivity InGaAsP/ lnP
phototra nsistors', Appl. Pill'S, Lett., 37(1), pp. 73-75, 1980.
30 P. D. Wright, R. J. Nelson and T. Cella, 'H igh gain InGaAsP- lnP heterojunc-
tion phototransistors', Appl. Phys. Lett., 37(2). pp. 192- 194, 1980.
31 A. N. Saxena and H. F. Wolf, 'O ptical detectors', in H. f . Wolf (Ed.), H andbook
of F iber Optics, Theory and Applications, pp . 20 3- 240, Granada, 198 1.
32 S. D . Personick, 'Fundamental limits in optical communication', Proc. IEEE
69(2), pp. 262-266, 19 81.
33 R. A. Mila no, P. D. D apkus and G. Eo Stillman, ' Heterojunction photo transisto rs
fo r fiber-Optic communica tions', Proc. Soc. Pholo-opt.. I nurum , Eng.• 272. pp,
43-50. 1981.
34 K, 'Iubarebele-Ajavi and C. G. Pcestad, ' Recent advances in InG~n P
phototransisrora', Proc. S oc. Photo-opt, l nsirum, Eng., 212, pp. 38-42, 198 J.
35 G . E. Stillman, L. W, Cook, G. E. Bulman, N. T abatabaie, R . C hin and P. D.
O apkus, ' Long-wavelength (1.3. to l.6-J.IIl1) detectors for fiber-optica l com-
munications, IEEE Trans. Etectron. Dev., £O-29(9J, pp. l J " -l3ll , 1982.

•
 9
Receiver Noise Considerations

9 .1 INTRODUCTION

,! The receiver in an optical fiber communication system essentially con sists of

the photodetector plus an amplifier with possibly add itional signal processing
I circuits. Therefore the receiver initially converts the- optical signal incident on
the detector into an electrical signal. which is then amplified before further
processing to extract the information originally carried by the optical signal.
The importance of the detector in the overall system performance was
stressed in Chapter 8. However. it is necessary to consider the properties of
this device in the context of the associated ci rcuitry com bined in the receiver. It
is essential that the detector performs efficiently with the following amplifying
and signal processing circuits. Inherent to this process is the separation of the
information originally contained in the optical signal from the noise generated
within the rest of the system and in the r eceiver itself, as well as any limitations
on the detecto r response imposed by the associated circu its. These factors play
a crucial role in deter mining the performance of the system.

, In order to consider receiver design it is useful to regard the limit o n the

performance of the system set by the signal to noise ratio (SNR) at the
receiver. It is therefore necessary to o utline noise sou rces within opticalliber
systems. The noise in these systems has different origins from that of copper-
based sy stems. Both types of system have thermal noise generated in the
receiver. However. altho ugh optical fiber systems exhibit little crosstalk the
noise gen erated within the detector must be considered, as wetl as the noise
properties associated with the electromagnetic carrier.
In Section 9.2 we therefore briefly review the major noise mechanisms
,
which are present in optical fiber communication receivers prior to more
det ailed discussion of the limitations imposed by photon (or quantum) noise in
Ij both digital and analog transmission. This is followed in Section 9.3 with a
more specific discussion of the noise assoc iated with the two major receiver
types (i.e. employing p-i-n and ava lanche photodiode detectors). EJ;prcssions
for the SJ'R s of these two receiver types are aIM> developed in this section.
Section 9,4 considers the noise and bandwidth performance o f common pre-
amplifier structures utilized in th e design of optical fiber receivers. Finally In
112 / .' --
-.. - ~~ --.
RECEIVER NOISE CONSIDERATIONS 363

Section 9.S we present a brief account of low noise field effect transistor (FET)
preamplifiers which fmd wide use within optical fiber communication receivers .
This d iscu ssio n also includes consideration o f Jrl-n photodiode/FET (PIN-
FET) hybrid receiver circuits which have been developed for optical fiber com-
municatio ns.

9.2 NOISE

Noise is a tenn generally used to refer to any spurious or undesired distur-

bances t hat mask the received signal in a communication system. In optical
fiber communication sy stems we are generally concerned with noise due to
sponta neous fluctuations r ather than erratic disturbances which may be a
feature o f copper-based systems (due to electromagnetic interference. etc.).
There are three main types o f noise due to spo ntaneous fluctuations in
optical fiber communication systems : thermal noise, dark current noise and
quantu m noise.

9 .2.1 Thennal Noi••

This is t he spontaneous fluctuation d ue to thermal interaction between, say,
the free electrons and the vibrating ions in a conducting medium, and it is
especially prevalent in resistors at room temperature.
The thermal no ise curren t ~ in a resistor R may be expressed by its mean
square value IRef. IJ and is given by :

n 4KTB
It = (9.1)
R
whe re K is Boltzmann' s constant, T is t he absolute temperature and B is the
post-detection (electrical) bandwidth o f the system (assuming t he resisto r is in
the optical receiver).

9.2.2 Dn Current Noise

When there is no optical powe r incident on the photodetector a small reverse
leax.aac current still flows fro m the device terminals. T hus d ark. current (see
Section 8.4.2) contributes to th e total system noise and gives random fluctua-
tions about the average particle flow of th e photocurrent. It therefore manifests
itself as shot noise [Ref. I1on the pbotccurrent. Th us the dark current noise i l
i. glven by :
il = us), (9.2)
wa. , I. tho obIttt 08 1ft llewon and. I. i, the dark current, It may be
ncIl101d b)' •...,.,. IIIId rabrioalioa of tho d..oC1Cr.
-: .: . ',-- ::twt
-" ~.. ,
~ "--;.,,4 1-'1
' ~ .,. " -
3~ OPTICA L FIBER COMM UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

9.2.3 Quantum Noi••

The quantum nature of light was discussed in Section 6 .2.1 and the eq uation ,
for the energy of this quantum o r photon slated as E = /if. The quantum
behavior of electromagnetic radia tio n must be taken into account at optical
I
freq uen cies since 1if > KT and quantum fluctuation s dominate o ver thermal
fluctuations.
The detection of light by a photodic:xle is a discrete process since the crea-
tion of a n electron-hole pair results from the absorption of a photon, and the
sign al emerging from the detecto r is dictated by the sta usucs of photon
arrivals. Hence the statistics for mo nochromatic coherent radiation ernving at
a detector follows a discrete pro bability distribution which is independent of
the number of photons previously detected.
It is found that the probability 1'(l) of d etecting l ph oton s in time period t
when it is expected on average to detect l m photons obeys the Poiss on distribu-
tion [Ref. 2J:

(9.3)

where l ", is equ al to the variance of the probability distribut io n. Th is equality

of the mean and the variance is typ ical of the Poisson dist rib ution. From Eq.
(8.7) the electron rate r~ generated by incident photons is r~ = T1 Po/hf'. The
number of electrons generated in time t is equal to the average nu mber of
photons detected over this time period l ... . Therefore :

"Po'
z. ~ -';-;./:- (9.4)

The Poisson distributions for z'" = I a and l ", = I 000 a re illustr ated in
Fig. 9 .1 and represent the detection process for monochromatic coherent light.
Incoherent light is emitted b y independent atoms and therefore there is no
phase relationship between the emitted photons. This property dictates an

'" ,,'
Z",· 10

! • 10 • s, 10-'

, z
" " ~o

Fig.. I .t PolUOfl dl81ributlon. fo¥ Z", ~ 10 end ' m "" 1000.

RECEIVER NOISE CONSIDERATIONS 366

""
,~,
10- '
' • • 10 _. - 1000

S • 10 I s• 10 •

2Q : ;00 , I)Q() I ~ OO :!I)(WI ,

Fig.9.2 Probability distri butions indicating the 6til llisl ical fluctuati ons of incoherent light
for zm = 10 and zm = 1000.

exponential intensity distribution for incoherent light which if averaged over

the Poisson distribution [Ref. 21 gives:

:'.
p(z) ~ -,:---=-'
( I + zmr= l
(9.5 )

Equation (9.5) is identical to the Bose-Einstein distrib utio n {Ref. 31 which is

used to describe the rando m statistics of light emitted in black bod y radiation
(thermal light). The statistical fluctuations for incoherent light are illustrated by
the probability distributions shown in Fig. 9.2.

9 .2.4 Digital Signalling Quantum Noiae

For digital optical fiber systems it is possible to calculate a fundamen tal lower
limit to the energy a p ulse of light must contain in order to be detected with a
liven probability of error. The premise on which this analysis is based. is th at
the ideal receiver has a sufficiently low amplifier noise to detect the displace-
ment current of a single electron-bole pair generated within the detector (i.e.
an individual photon may be detected). Thus in the absence of light. and
neakcting dark current. no current will flow. Therefore the on ly way an error
can oc cur is if a light pulse is present and no electron-hole pairs are generated.
The probability of no pairs being generated when a light pulse is present may
be obtained from Eq. (9.3) and is given by:
P(O/!) ~ exp (- z. ) (9.6)
Thu. in the receiver descrlbed 1'(0/1 ) represents the system error probability
p(.) "'d !b.rer....:
(9.7)
•
UlUmel that the
356 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS; PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

photodetector emits no electron-hole pairs in the absence of illumination. In

this sense it is considered perfect. Equation (9.7) therefore represents an
absolute receiver sensitivity and allows the determination of a fundamental
limit in digital optical communications. This is the minimum pulse energy Emin
required to maintain a given bit error rate (BER) which any practical receiver
must satisfy and is known as the quantum limit.

Example 9.1

A digital optical fiber communication system operating at a wavelength of 1 urn

requires a maximum bit error rate of 10- 9. Determine:
(a) the theoretical quantum limit at the receiver in terms of the quantum efficiency
of the detector and the energy of an incident photon;
(b) the minimum incident optical power required at the detector in order to achieve
the above bit error rate when the system is employing ideal binary signalling at
10 Mbits s-1 , and assuming the detector is ideal.
sotouon. (a) From Eq. (9.7) the probability of error

P = exp (-zm) = 10-9

and thus zm = 20,7.
zm corresponds to an average number of photons detected in a time period T for
a SER of 10-9.
From Eq. (9.4):

lJPoT
zm =--=20.7
hi
Hence the minimum pulse energy or quantum limit

20.7 hf

Thus the quantum limit at the receiver to maintain a maximum SER of 10-9 is

20.7 hI

(b) From part (a} the minimum pulse energy:

20.7 hI

"
Therefore the average received optical power required to provide the minimum
pulse energy is:

20.7 hf
Po =

However for ideal binary signalling there are an equal number of ones and zeros
(50% in the on state and 50% in the off state). Thus the average received optlcel
power may be considered to arrive over two bit periods, and
RECEIVER NOISE CONSIDERATION S 357

l O.7 hi 20 .7 hf B,
Polbioary) ... ~,----
2 ltl 2 ..
where Sr is tne bit ril le . Al ' wa veleng lh of 1 em, f = 2.998 " 10 14 ~l. and assum -
ing an ideal de':ectDr, '1 = 1.
H~.

2 0 .7 x 6.626)( 10--34 x 2 .998)( 10' " )( 10 1

Po (binary) = = "-"-"-'"'-- -'=----:"-= '"'-- "-- "-"-
2

= 20.6 pW
In eeene's IdB)

p.
Po in d B= IO log lO-
e.
wh ere P, is a reference po we r level.
When th e reference powe r hIVel Is one wa lt :

Po = 10 10910 Po wnllrll Po is expressed in watts

= 10 log, o 2 .06 l< 10- 11
= 3 .14-" 0
= - 10 6 .9 dBW
W hen the reference power level Is Of'e milliwatt

Po • 10 loglo 2.0 6 x 10 - 9
= 3 .14 - 80
= - 7 6.9 d Bm
Thllrefore th e minimum incident optica l power required at t he receiver to ecmeve an
error rate of 1 0- 9 with ide. I bi r\l ry signalling is 20.8 pW or - 76 .9 dBm.

The result of example 9.1 is a theoretical limit and in practice receivers are
generally found to be at least 10 dB less sensitive.

9.2.5 Analog Tr8nlllTllaaion Quantum Nola.

In analog optical fiber systems quantum noise manifests itself as shot noise
which also has Poisson statistics [Ref, 11. The shot noise current i, on the
photocurrent I p is given by.
(9.8)

NeaIec:tinl other source! of noise the SNR at the receiver may be written as :

(9.9)

•
358 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Substituting for 1[ from Eq. (9.8) gives

S I,
-~-- (9.10)
N 2eB

The expression for the photocurrent I p given in Eq. (8.8) allows the SNR to be
obtained in terms of the incident optical power Po'

S "poe
- - (9.11)
N hf2eB 21tfB

Equation (9.11) allows calculation of the incident optical power required at the
receiver in order to obtain a specified SNR when considering quantum noise in
analog optical fiber systems.

Example 9.2

An analog optical fiber system operating at a wavelength of 1 urn has a post detec-
tion bandwidth of 5 MHz. Assuming an ideal detector and considering only quantum
noise on the signal, calculate the incident optical power necessary to achieve an
SNR of 50 dB at the receiver.
Solution: From Eq. (9.111. the SNR is

5 ""0
N 2hfB

Hence

For SIN = 50 dB, when considering signal and noise powers:

5
10Io910~=50
N

5
and therefore SIN = 10
At 1 urn. f = 2.998 x 10 1• Hz. For an ideal detector T] = 1 and, thus the incident
optical power:

105 X 2 x 6.626 X 10-34 x 2.998 x 10 14 x 5 X 10 6

= 198,6 nW
RECEIVER NOISE CONSIDERATIONS 359

In dBm
Po = 10 10910 198.6 x lO- S
= -40 + 2.98
= -37.0 d8m

Therefore the incident optical power required to achieve an $NR of 50 dB at the

receiver is 198.6 nW which is equivalent to -37.0 dBm.

In practice receivers are less sensitive than example 9.2 suggests and thus in
terms of the absolute optical power requirements analog transmission com-
pares unfavorably with digital signalling.
However, it should be noted that there is a substantial difference in informa-
tion transmission capacity between the digital and analog cases (over similar
bandwidths) considered in examples 9.1 and 9.2. For example a 10 Mbit S-1
digital optical fiber communication system would provide only about ISO
speech channels using standard baseband digital transmission techniques (see
Section 10.5). In contrast a 5 MHz analog system, again operating in the
baseband, could provide as many as 1250 similar bandwidth (:::::3.4 kHz)
speech channels. A comparison of signal to quantum noise ratios between the
two transmission methods taking account of this information capacity aspect
yields less disparity although digital signalling still proves far superior. For
instance, applying the figures quoted above within examples 9.1 and 9.2, in
order to compare two systems capable of transmitting the same number of
speech channels (e.g. digital bandwidth of 10 Mbit e-' and analog bandwidth
of 600 kHz) gives a difference in absolute sensitivity in favor of digital
transmission of approximately 31 dB. This indicates a reduction of around
9 dB on the 40 dB difference obtained by simply comparing the results over
similar bandwidths. Nevertheless, it is clear that digital signalling techniques
still provide a significant benefit in relation to quantum noise when employed
within optical fiber communications.

9.3 RECEIVER NOISE

In order to investigate the optical receiver in greater detail it is necessary to

consider the relative importance and interplay of the various types of noise
mentioned in the previous section. This is dependent on both the method of
demodulation and the type of device used for detection.
The conditions for coherent detection are not usually met in current optical
fiber systems for the reasons outlined in Section 7.5. Thus heterodyne detec-
tion, which is very sensitive and provides excellent rejection of adjacent chan-
nell, II not used, u the optical signal arriving at the receiver tends to be
Incoherent. In practice all currently installed optical fiber communication
360 OPTICAL FIBER COM MUN ICATIONS: PRINCI PLES AND PRACTICE

, c",,"'.
"".~
.
................. -
"
11.<",,,,,,,
"~ I :"h. .. - U- ctron"
r·u'

"f N<>iot :
·~><&l\ I.'"
. ;.n. ",,.,.••,
• .......;£<.... 104
." ........
.< J ...

~.- h ........
" ot>. l1I>oI

.• .... ",...,..."",1
....-.-...."'",
· be• • ' f,,,m ("" ,,.., . "'"..nu l
•...ri..." 'nu,:c
<. m<r)
"" " '.. !>

ng.9.3 Slock schem atic of the froot end of an c c ucer reclI!livlI!lr showing th e various
sou rces of noise.

systems use incoherent or direct detection in which the va riation of the optical
power level is monitored and no infor mation is car ried in the phase or fre-
que ncy content of the signal . Therefore the noise considera tions in this section
are based on a receiver employing d irect detection of the modulated optical
carrier which gives th e sa me signa l to noise ratio a s an unmodulated optical
ca rrier.
Figure 9.3 shows a block sche matic of the front end of an o ptical receiver
and the vario us no ise so urces a ssoci ated with it. The majo rity of the noise
so urces sho wn apply to both main types of optical detector (p--;-n and
a valanche photodiode). The noise generated from background radiation, which
is important in atmos pheric propagation and some copper -based systems, is
negligible in both types of o ptical fiber receiver, and th us is often igno red. Also
the beat noise generated fro m the various spectral components of the
incoherent optical ca rrier can be shown to be insignifi cant (Ref. 4] with multi-
mode propagation and hence will not be considered. Jt is neces sary. however,
to t ake into account the o th er sources of noise shown in Fig. 9.3.
The avalanche photodiode receiver is the most complex case a s it includes
no ise resultin g from the ra ndom na ture of the internal gain mec han ism (dotted
in Fig. 9.3). It is therefore useful to consider noise in optical fi ber receivers
employing photodlodes withou t intern al gain, before avalanche photodtode
receivers a re discussed.

9 .3.1 p-n and p- i-n Photodiode Receiver

The t wo main sources of noise in photodiodes without internal gain are dark
current noise and quantum noise. both of which may be regarded as shot noise
on the photocurrent (i.e. effe ctively consider an alog quantum noise), W hen the
exp ressions for these noi se sources given in Eqs. (9. 2) and (9 .4) are combined
the to tal sho t noise lis is given by :
(9.12)

I
RECEIVER NOISE CONSIDERATIONS 361

If it is necessary to take the noise due to the background radiation into

account then the expression given in Eq. (9.12) may be expanded to include the
background radiation induced photocurrent lb' giving
iis = 2eB(lp + ld + I b ) (9.13)
However, as I b is usually negligible the expression given in Bq. (9.12) will be
used in the further analysis.
When the photodiode is without internal avalanche gain, thermal noise from
the detector load resistor and from active elements in the amplifier tends to
dominate. This is especially the case for wideband systems operating in the
0.8-0.9 urn wavelength band because the dark currents in well-designed silicon
photodiodes can be made very small. The thermal noise due to the load tr
resistance R L may be obtained from Eq. (9.1) and is given by:

p = 4KTB (9.14)
, R,

The dominating effect of this thermal noise over the shot noise in photodiodes
without internal gain may be observed in example 9.3.

Example 9.3

A silicon p-i-n photodiode incorporated into an optical receiver has a quantum

efficiency of 60% when operating at a wavelength of 0.9 11m. The dark current in the
device at this operating point is 3 nA and the load resistance is 4 kfl.
The incident optical power at this wavelength is 200 nW and the post detection
bandwidth of the receiver is 5 MHz. Compere the shot noise generated in the
photodiode with the thermal noise in the load resistor at a temperature of 20 QC.
Solution: From Eq. 18.8) the photocurrent is given by:

I ~ _,p_o_" ~ _'Cp,o_"'_
P hf he

Therefore

'» = 0.6)( 200)( 10-9 )( 1.602)( 10- 19 )( 0.9)( 10--6

6.626)( 10-34 x 2.998)( 10 8

=87.1 nA

From Eq. (9.12) the total shot noise is:

.¥s = 2sB(ld + Jp )
= 2 x 1.602 X 10- 19 x 5 x 10 6 [13 + 87.1) x 10-9 ]
= 1.44 X 10- 19 A 2

Ind thl rOOI mlln equlre (rma) shot noise current is

j
-:
 362 OPTICAL FI BER COM MU NICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AN D PRACTICE

The therms l noise in t he loa d resisto r is g ive.-. by Eq. 19 .14 1:

- 4/(78
I, - -,--
R,
4 )( 1.381 )( 10-23 l( 293 )< 5 )( 10 6
4 l( 1~

IT =20 °C =293KI
Thftf'Bfoffl , hs nTIS lhermal noise c unent is
vi s l+ .. 4 .49 l< 10- 9 A
In t his exa m ple the rms thermal noise curren t is a factor o f 12 ~f e s t e r tha n the
total rms shot noise c urre nt .

Example 9.3 does not include the noise sources within the amplifier, shown
in Fig. 9.3. These noise sou rces, associated with both the active and passive
elements of the amplifier, can be represented by a series voltage noise source ~
and a shunt current no ise source p. . _
Thus the total noise: associated with the amplifier I;",,, is given by :

i~1' = ~ J: (p.
B + ~ IY1 1)df (9.IS)

where Y is the shunt ad mittance (combines the shunt capacitances and

resistances) and f is the frequency. An equivalent circuit for the front end of
the receiver, including the effective input capacitance C. and resistance R . of
the amplifier is shown in Fig. 9.4. The capacitance of the detector Cd is also
shown and the noise resulting fro m Cd is usually included in the expression for
i~1' given in Eq. (9.15).
The SNR for the p-n o r H-n photodiode receiver may be o btained by
summing the noise contributions from Bqs. (9.12), (9. 14) and (9. 15). It is given
by:

, ,,
c. ', Re ,i 11. . (~
, '
: Ampl,n..

fig . 9.4 The equ ivale nt circuit for the froot end of I n optiCal fiber r8C41I\ler. I,

-- ~~- .
,-;
'O--W..£• ••-_ " __ _::.:.- .:. ,j .- . ."....,q;F""" "*",<......r.a. . . ~; J
RECEIVER NOISE CON S IDERATIONS 363

s (9.16)
N

The thermal noise co ntribution may be reduced by increasing the value of

the load resistor R l • although this reduction may be limited b)' bandwidth con-
si deration~hich are discussed later, Also the noise associa ted with th e
ampli fier i;"'" may be red uced with lo w detector and arylilier capacitance.
Howeve r, when the no ise associated with the am plifier ....p is referred to the
load resisto r R, , the noise fi gure F~ I Ref. II for the arJIplifier may be o btained,
This allows f.."pto be combined ~ith the thermal noise from the load resistor 1.
to give:
"": a-' _ 4KTBF~
'I + I. mp - (9. 17)
Rc
The expression for the SNR given in Eq. (9. 16) ean now be written in the
form :
s I'p
(9.18)
- - - - 2 -=-cc-•
N 4KTBFn
2eB(lp + l d) +
Rc
Thus if the noise figure F", for the a mplifier is known, Eq. (9. 18) allows the
SN R to be determined.

b.empte 9 .4

The fllOll iv er in eJ(ample 9 .3 Mas an amplifi er w itn a noise f,gy re of 3 dB. Determin e
t he SNR at m e output o f th e eece.ve- und er the sa me cor>d itions as e ltample 93.
So fution : From lIumpl e 9 3 :

' D :;: 8 7. 1 x 10 - 9 A
~ = 1.4 4 x 10-19 A 2
"J, = 2 .02 x 10 - 11 A2
Ttle amplifier netse fiQu re

Fn = 3 d B

= 1010910 2
Thus Fn may be constoered 89 )( 2 .
In Eq . (9.1 B) thll SNR ill given by :

•
364 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES A ND PR ACTICE.

i~ + Ii: x F" I

(87.1 X 10. 9 )2
~ C"C.C.C.-.- ,O
C."CO,C,-. - ,C
2C.OC2C.- c,CO-.C
, ,.'C2'"

= 1.8 7 x 10"
SNR in dB is 10 109 10 1.87 x 107 = 2 2 .72 dB.
AIlllrMlively i t is possib<e 10 conduc t lt1e carccte uo n in da Ii we ne qtect t he
st1 01 noi se (say i~S = 0).
In dB :
Ip = 940 - 80 -= - 70 .60
Hence
~ = - 14 1.2 0 dB
ood
i: = 3 .05 - 170 = - 16 6 ,9 5 dB.

The ampllfillr noi se figure Fro '" 3 d B.

Theref ore t he
SNR = - 14 1.20 + 16 6 ,95 - 3
= 22 .75 d B
A slight difference in the fina l answ er may be noted. This is due to the negleCled
shot noi se term.

A quantity which is often used in the specifi ca tion of optical detectors (or
detector-amplifier combinations) is the noise equivalent power (NEP). It is
defined as the amount of incident optical power Po per unit bandwidth
required to produce an output power eq ual to the detector (or detector-
amplifier combination) output noise power. The N EP is therefore the value of
Po which gives an output SNR of unity. Thus the lower the NEP for a particu-
lar detector (or detector-amplifier combination), the less optical power is
needed to obtain a particular SNR.

9 .3.2 Receiver Capacitance

Considering the equivalent circuit shown in Fig. 9.4, the total capacitance for
the front end of an optical receiver CT is given by:
(9.19)
where Cd is the detector capacit ance and C. is the amplifier input capacitance.
It is import ant that this total capacitance is minimized not only fro m the noise
considerations discussed previously but also from the bandwidth penalty
which is incurred due to the time constant of CT and the load resistance R L •

. >,
"' .. ...,.
RECEIVER NOISE CONSIDERATIONS 36.

We assume here that R L is the total loading on the detector and therefore have
neglected the amplifier input resistance R a • However, in practical receiver con-
figurations R. may have to be taken into account (see Section 9.4.1). The
reciprocal of the time constant 2rtR L CT must be greater than, or equal to, the
post detection bandwidth B;

(9.20)

When the equality exists in Eq. (9.20) it defines the maximum possible value of
B for the straightforward termination indicated in Fig. 9.4.
Assuming that the total capacitance may be minimized, then the other
parameter which affects B is the load resistance R L • To increase B it is
necessary to reduce R L • However, this introduces a thermal noise penalty as
may be seen from Eq. (9.14) where both the increase in B and decrease in R L
contribute to an increase in the thermal noise. A trade-off therefore exists
between the maximum bandwidth and the level of thermal noise which may be
tolerated. This is espeically important in receivers which are dominated by
thermal noise.

Example 9.5

A photodiode has a capacitance of 6 pF. Calculate the maximum load resistance

which allows an 8 MHz post detection bandwidth.
Determine the bandwidth penalty with the same load resistance when the follow-
ing amplifier also has an input capacitance of 6 pF.
Solution: From Eq. 19.20) the maximum bandwidth is given by:

Therefore the maximum load resistance

RL1ma x) =
, ,
211CdB 2116 x 10 12 X 8 X 10 6

= 3.32 kO
Thus for an 8 MHz bandwidth the maximum load resistance is 3.32 kO.
Also, considering the amplifier capacitance, the maximum bandwidth
, ,
B"
21tR L(C d+Ca) 2n:x3.32x10 3x12xl0 12

= 4 MHz
A' would be expected the mlxlmum po.t d.t.etlan bandwidth II hllived,
 366 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS: PR INCIPLES AND PRACTICE

9.3.3 A,,8tanehe Photodtode (APDJ Receiver

The internal gain mechanism in an APD increases the sign al current into the
amplifier and SO improves the SNR because the load resistance and amplifier
noise remain u naffected (i.e. the thermal noise and amplifier noise fi gure are
! unchanged). However, th e d a rk cu rren t and qu antum noise are increased by
i. the multiplication process and may become a limiting factor. This is because
the random gain mechanism introduces excess noise into the receiver in terms
o f increased shot noise above the level that would result from am plifying o nly
t he primary shot noise. Thus if the photocurrent is increased by a factor M
(mean avalanche multiplication factor), then the shot noise is also increased by
an excess noise factor W, such that the total shot no ise i~A is now given by :
i; A = usu, + Id)Mh A (9.2 1)
where x is between 0.3 and 0.5 for silicon APDs and between 0.7 and 1.0 for
germ ani um o r III-V alloy APDs.
Equation (9.21) is often used a s the total shot noise term in order to
compute the SNR. although there is a small am ount of shot noise current
which is not multiplied through impact ionization. The shot noise current in the
detector which is not multiplied is a device parameter and may be considered
as an extra shot noise term. However it tends to be insign ificanl in comparison
with the multiplied shot noise and is therefore neglected in the further analysis
(i.e. all shot noise is assumed to be multiplied).
The SNR for the avalanche photodiode may be obtained by summing the
combined noise contribution from the load resistor and the amplifier given in
Bq. (9.17), wh ich remains unchanged , with the modified noise term given in
Bq. (9.21). Hence the SNR fo r the APD is :

s
(9.22)
N

It is a pparent from Eq . (9.22) that the relative significance of th e combined

thermal a nd a mplifier noise term is reduced due 10 the avalanche multiplication
of the shot noise term. When Eq. (9.22) is written in the fonn:

s
(9.2l )
N 4KTBF
2eB(1, +
d
I )MA + R
n M-2
i,

it may be seen th at the first term in the denominator increases with increasing
M whereas the second term d ecreases. For low M the combined thermal and
amplifier noise term dominates and the total noise power is virtually unaffected
RECEIVER NOIS E CONSIDERAllONS 367

,, ~ ll . S

" ~ - 1.0

,
10 ~ ) 11 ~ 50 ~ ~ W ~O 100
.\ ..J.~ .....e....""'_ lao._ .1/

Ag.9.5 The imp<tlvement in S NR as a f unCl lo l'I 01 e vata ocee m.. l l ip li c:atio n ta ct o- M for
diffe rent excess nosse f3cto rs M· . Re prod uc:e<I w ilh pelmis$iOl'l Irom
I. Gar rett. 1M Radio " rod Elecfton. Eng ., &1 . p, 3 49 . 198 1.

when the signal level is increased , giving an improved SNR. However, when M
is large, the thermal and amplifier noi se term becomes insignifi cant and the
SNR decreases with increasing AI et the rate o f 101" . An optim um value of the
multiplication factor JIJ<'f' therefore exists which ma ximizes the SNR. It is
given by:

2eB(l p + /,j),\/:r, 2
(9 .24)
(4KTBFn /Rd M'; x

and therefore

~+.< = 4KTFn (9.25)

oc> x eRl(lp + ld )

The variation in 101", for both silicon and germanium APDs is illustrated in
Fig. 9 .~ tRef. 5J. Th is shows .a plot of Eq. (9. 22) with F n equal to unity and
neglecting the dark current. For good silicon APDs where x is 0.3. the
optimum multiplication factor covers a wide range. In the case illustrated in
Fig. 9.~ Mop commences at about 40 where the possible improvement in SNR
above a photodiode without internal gain is in excess of 25 d B. Ho wever , for
germanium and III-V alloy APDs whe re x may be equal to unity it can be
seen that less SNR improvement is possible (less than 19 dB). Moreover, the
maximum Is far sharper. o ccurring at a multiplication factor of abo ut 12. Also
it must be noted that Fig. 9 .5 d emonstrates the va riatio n o f Mop with x for a
.pecific cate, aDd therefore only represents a general trend. It may be o bserved
Crom Eq. (9.2') that Mop is dependent on a number of other varia bles a pan
from x.
..•
 368 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Example 9.6

A good silicon APD (x = 0.31 has a capacitance of 5 pF, negligible dark current and is
operating with a fost detection bandwidth of 50 MHl. When the photocurrent
before gain is 10- A and the temperature is 18°C; determine the maximum SNR
improvement between M= 1 and M = Mop assuming all operating conditions are
maintained.
Solution: Determine the maximum value of the load resistor from Eq. 19.20):

= 636.5 11
I'
When M = 1. the SNR is given by Eq. 19,221,

S
N 4KTB
2eBfp +
R,
where Id =0 and Fn = 1
I
The shot noise is:
2eBf p = 2 x 1.602 X 10- 19 x 50 x 10 6 x 10-7
= 1.602 x 10- 18 A 2
and the thermal noise is:

4KTB 4 x 1.3B1 x 10-23 )( 291 )( 50)( 10 6

RL 636.5

= 1.263 x 10- 15 A2

It may be noted 'that the thermal noise is dominating.

Therefore

7.91
N

and the SNR in dBs is

s
I - = 1010g lO 7,91 =B.98dB
N

I Thus the SNR when M = 1 is 9.0 dB

When M=Mop and x=0.3, from Eq. 19,251:

where fd = 0 and Fn = 1. Hence:

4 x 1.381 X 10-23 X 291

0.3 x 1.602 x 10- 1" x 636.5 x 10--1

~,~~~ ,_" ': 'L_~,"-L",""i.",-",;Ji,;:; '-'~"' 4'i U '1i!i[jgtX¥*'';.t1ti'$';iri¥.~

__"_
RECEIVER NOISE CONSIDERATIONS 369

"" M op = \5 .2 55 If 103 )rJ 43'

=41.~

The SNR at Mop mav be obtained Iro m EQ. 19 .221:

S
N

15
(1.602 " 10- 18 ,, 14 1.54123 j + 1.2 63 )( 10-

= 1.78 " , 03
and the SNR in dBs is

S
- - 10 10g 1rJ 1.78" 10 3 = 32 .50 dB
N

Thereto,. the SNR whlll"l M = Mop is 32 .5 dB and the SNR impro~ement over
M = 1 Is 23 .5dB.

EXllmpl. !t.1

A german ium APD (wit h){ = 1) is tncoroorarec into an opti cal fib er receiver w it h a
10 kO load resistance. Whe n operate d at a temperatu re of 120 K, th e mlnlrnu m
p hctcc urre nt required to givlI a SNR of 3 5 dB at the out put 01 the receiver is found
to be • factor of 10 grealer th an th e dar\,; current. If the r cise figure of the fol lowing
amplifier at t his t emperatura is 1 dB and the post detection bal'ldwidth ill 10 MHz,

SoIutJc>n: From Eq. (9, 2 21 with II

soectses Ihat M =Mop ' the S N~ i s:
=,
determine the optimum avalanche multiplication factor.
and M = Map Il.e. minimum photocurtent

s ~op~
N
2eBI' p ,HdWol>
J
+-::'R,-'-
4KT8

Al so from EQ. (9.25)

4K". },"
""'. -{""..U, .'.1
370 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Substituting into Eq. (9.22), this gives:

s {
4KTF
--c---""-
eRLUp+fdl
l" "
p

N BKTBFn 4KTBFn
+

and as f d = 0.1 f p the SNR is

s (
4KTF ) ' "
c-cc-::"~
1.leR
I'"
p
L
N 12KTBFn

R,
Therefore the minimum ctiotccurrent f p :

12KTBFn

R,
4KTFn ) ' "
(
1.1eRL

where the SNR is

S
-=35dB=3.16 X 10 3
N

and as F n = 1 dB which is equivalent to 1.26:

12 x 1.381 x 10-23 x 120 X 10 7 x 1.26

10'

= 2.51 X 10- 17
Also

4 x 1.3B 1 x 10-23 x 120 x 1.26 ) W

(
1.1 x 1.602 x 10 19 X 10 4

= 2.82 x 10--4

Therefore

~
3 17
1 (3.16 X 10 X 2.51 X 10- )';'

p 2.82 x 10--4

= 6.87 x 10-8 A

To obtain the optimum avalanche multiplication factor we substitute back jntc Eq.
RECEIVER NOISE CONSIDERATIONS 371

(9.25), where:

4 x 1.381 X 10-23 x 120 x 1.26 ) va

Mo = (
P 1.602x1019Xl03xl.lx6.87X108

= 8.84

In example 9.7 the optimum multiplication factor for the germanium APD is
found to be approximately 9. It shows the dependence of the optimum mul-
tiplication factor on the variables in Eq. (9.25), and although the example does
not necessarily represent a practical receiver (some practical germanium APD
receivers are cooled to reduce dark current), the optimum multiplication factor
is influenced by device and system parameters as well as operating conditions.

9.3.4 Excess Avalanche Noi•• Factor

The value of the excess avalanche noise factor is dependent upon the detector
material, the shape of the electric field profile within the device and whether the
avalanche is initiated by holes or electrons. It is often represented as F(M) and
we have considered in the previous section one of the approximations for the
excess noise factor, where:

F(M) ~ M' (9.26)

and the resulting noise is assumed to be white with a Gaussian distribution.

However, a second and more exact relationship is given by [Ref. 6]:

(9.27)

where the only carriers are injected electrons and k is the ratio of the ionization
coefficients of holes and electrons. If the only carriers are injected holes:

F(M)~M [ (I-k)
1+k (M-I)']
M (9.28)

The best performance is achieved when k is small, and for silicon APDs k is
between 0.02 and 0.10, whereas for germanium and III~V alloy APDs k is
between 0.3 and 1.0.
With electron injection in silicon photodiodes, the smaller values of k
obtained correspond to a larger ionization rate for the electrons than for the
holes. AI k departs from unity, only the carrier with the larger ionization rate
contribute, to the Impae:t ionization and the excess avalanche noise factor is
I 372 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNiCATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

reduced. When the impact ionization is initiated by electrons this corresponds

to fewer ionizing collisions involving the hole current which is flowing in the
opposite direction (i.e. less feedback). In this case the amplified signal contains
less excess noise. The carrier ionization rates in germanium photodiodes are
often nearly equal and hence k approaches unity, giving a high level of excess
noise.

9.4 RECEIVER STRUCTURES

A full equivalent circuit for the digital optical fiber receiver, in which the
optical detector is represented as a current source idol' is shown in Fig. 9.6. The
noise sources (i., iTS and i. mp ) and the immediately following amplifier and
equalizer are also shown. Equalization [Ref. 7] compensates for distortion of
the signal due to the combined transmitter, medium and receiver character-
istics. The equalizer is often a frequency shaping filter which has a frequency
response that is the inverse of the overall system frequency response. In
wideband systems this will normally boost the high frequency components to
correct the overall amplitude of the frequency response. To acquire the desired
spectral shape for digital systems (e.g. raised cosine, see Fig. 10.37), in order to
minimize intersymbol interference, it is important that the phase frequency
response of the system is linear. Thus the equalizer may also apply selective
phase shifts to particular frequency components.
However, the receiver structure immediately preceding the equalizer is the
I, major concern of this section. In both digital and analog systems it is
important to minimize the noise contributions from the sources shown in
Fig. 9.6 so as to maximize the receiver sensitivity whilst maintaining a suitable
bandwidth. It is therefore useful to discuss various possible receiver structures
with regard to these factors.

9.4.1 Low Impedance Front End

Three basic amplifier configurations are frequently used in optical fiber com-
munication receivers. The simplest, and perhaps the most common, is the
voltage amplifier with an effective input resistance R . as shown in Fig. 9.7.
In order to make suitable design choices, it is necessary to consider both
bandwidth and noise. The bandwidth considerations in Section 9.3.2 are

Amplifior

i • ., , c, Rc f t, f in R, c. + 1m ,

Fig.9.6 A full equivalent circuit for a digital optical fiber receiver including th, virioul
nclee source•.
RECEIVER NOISE CONSIDERATIONS 373

Fig. 9 .7 Low im pedance front end optical uber receiver w ith vo ltage amptlfle r.

trea ted solely with regard to a detector load resistance R L • Ho wever, in most
pra ctical receivers the detector is loaded with a bias resistor R. and an
amplifier (see Fig. 9.7).. The bandwidth is determined by the passive impeda nce
which appea rs across the detector terminals which is taken as R L in the
bandwidth relationship given in Eq. (9.20).
However, R L may be modified to incorporate th e parallel resistance of the
detector bias resistor R b and the amplifier input resistance R, . The modified
total load res istance R n is therefore given by :

(9.29)

Considering the expressions given in Bqs. (9.20) and (9.29), to achieve an

optimum bandwidth both R b and R , must be minimized. This leads to a low
impedance front end design for the receiver amplifier. Unfort unately this
design allows thermal noise to dominate within the receiver (following Eq.
(9. 14» , which may severely limit its sensitivity , Therefo re th is structure
deman ds a tr ade-off between bandwidth and sensitivity which lends to make it
impractical for long-haul. wideband optical fiber communication systems.

9.4.2 High Impedance (Integrating) Front End

Th e second configuration consists of a high input imped ance amplifier together
with a large detector bias resistor in o rder to red uce the effect of thermal noise.
However. this structure tends to give a degraded frequency response as the
bandwidth relationship given in Eq. (9.20) is not maintained for wideband
operation . The detector output is effectively integrated over a large time con-
stant end must be restored by differentiatio n. This ma y be performed by the
correct eq ualization at a la ter stage (Ref. 8J as illustrated in Fig. 9.8. Therefore

R. R.

t'JotlC lor 1JOll:ia H.,""". imped.o ....- .

wdlat< ' '''fllJOtr

.... ~~ -:;r."'-_.-'=1,"~llfitInG
. -
,-- -- -
lron1 ....:I op rk:.l l fi ber NCl fvll r with equl i1,ed
,
•
374 OPTICAL FIBE R COMMUNICATIONS ; PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

the high impedance (integrating) front end structure gives a significant

impro vement in sensitivity over the low impedance front end design. but it
creates a heavy demand for equalization and has problems of limited dynamic
range (the ratio of maximum to minimum input signals).
The limitations on dynamic range result from the attenuat ion of the lo w Ire-
quency signaJ components by the equalization process which causes the
amplifter to saturate at high signal levels. When the amplifier saturates before
equalization has occurred the signal is heavily distorted . Thus the reduction in
dynamic range is dependent upon the amo unt of integration and subsequent
equa lization employed.

9.4.3 The Transimped8rH:e Front End

This configuration largely overcomes the d rawbacks of the high impedance
front end by utilizing a low noise, high input impedance amplifier with negative
feedback. The device therefore oper ates as a current mode amplifier where the
high input impedance is reduced by negative feedback. An equivalent circuit
for an optical fiber receiver incorporating a transimpedance front end stru cture
is sho wn in Fig. 9.9. In this eq uivalent circuit the parallel resistances and
capacitances are combined into R Tl and C T respectively. The open loop
current to voltage transfer functi on 1I0 l (w) for this transimpedance configura-
tion corresponds to the transfer funct ion for the two structures described pre-
viously which do not employ feedback (i.e. the low and high impedance front
ends). It may be written as:

'.

e
@ -G
'.
R,.
,
I..,. I
" '-,

FIg. 9.9 An .,quivllint cfrcult for the op,icli fi tJ. r receiver Incorpol'li,ln; • t,.ne-
im pe dll'lCl {current mode l pnempltfll r.
RECEIVER NOISE CONSIDERATIONS 37.

where G is the o pen loop voltage gain of the amplifier and <ll is the angular fre-
quency of the input signal.
In this case the b andwidth (without equalization) is constrai ned by the time
constant given in Eq. (9.20).-
. When the feed back is applied. the closed loop cu rrent to voltage transfer
fu nction HCL (0» for the transimpedance configuration is given by (see
Appendix E).

where R r is the value of the feedback resistor. In this case the permitted
electrical bandwidth B (without equalization) may be written as:

B" G (9.32)
2:tR,CT
Hence, comparing Eq. (9.32) with Eq. (9.20) it may be noted th at the
transimpedance (or feedback) amplifier provides a much greater bandwidth
than do lite amplifiers without feedback . This is particularl y pronounced when
G is large.
Moreover. it is intere sting to co nsider the thermal noise generated by the
rransimpedence front end . Using a referred impedance noise analysis it can be
sho wn [Ref. 121 that to a good a pproxim ation the feedback re sistance (or
impedance) may be referred to the amplifier input in order to establish the
noise perform ance of the configuration. T hu s when Rr <C R TL , the major noise
contribution is from thermal noise genera ted in R( . Th e noise performan ce of
this configuration is therefore improved when R f is large. and it approaches the
no ise performance of the high impedance front end when R. = R n .
Unfortun ately. the value of R . cannot be increased indefi nitely due to pro blems
o f stability with the clo sed loop design. F urthermore it may be observed from
Eq. (9.32) that increasing R, reduces the b andwidth of the transimpedence
configuration. This problem may be a lleviated by making G as large as the
stability of the closed loop wiU allow. Nevertheless it is clear that the noise in
t he transimpedance a mplifier wiU always exceeed that incurred by the high
impedance front end structure.

Exempte 9.'
A high InputlmpedanCII amplifier wh ich i$ employed in an opti cal fiber receiv8r has
an . ffect iv. l ~ u t rn ilJtanco of 4 M O w i t h is matcMd 10 a detector bi as resistor of
t h. u me v.II.... Oellmnine:
II I Th. I\"IhImum bendwktth that mav be obtained wilhout &quolizatiofl if 11'1 0 lotal
~tance CT II 0 pF.

• 1M ... I MI'I_ til .tIned dtrectly from Eq. (51.30) wIlere: the muirlt.lm bu.dwiCtlt
 376 OPTICA L FIBER COMMUN ICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

lbl Th9 m ean scu ere t he rma l rcrse current per unit bandwidth ge ne ra ted by this
high Input impedance ampl ifi er co nfigura tio n wher'! it is o pe ra ting at a
t e mpe rat ure of 300 K.
(cl Compare the va lues calc ula ted in (al and (bl w ilh mose o bt ai"ed w he n the hig h
inpul impedance a mplifie r is rep laced by a lfans im ped i'l nce IIm~ ifier w ith a
l OOk{) feedbac k resis tor a nd a n open loop gain of 400. It m ay be assumed that
R, « Rn. . and lnat lt1e ton i capacitance rem<1ins 6 pF.
S olution: (a) U ~ing EQ. (9 .2 91, t he total effective load resis ta nc e :

He nce fro m Eq . (9_2 01 the ma l<.im\lm bllndwid lh i s given by:

~ 1.3 3 ,, 10 • Hz
The m aldmLlm ben dwldtn tna t may be co teto ed w ithout equanzencn is 13 .3 kHz.
(b ) Thll me an sq uare the rma l no ise c urre nt pe r unit b andwldth for th e high
impeda nce co nfig urat io n lollow ing Eq. (9 .14 ) is :

if = ~= 4 )( 1.381 )<, 10- lJ )( 300

Rrr 2 >< 10 6

= 8.29 x 10-27 A 2 Hz- 1

(cl The ma ximum ba ndw idth (Wllhoot equalizat ion ) for t he tra nsimpedance coo-
figuration may be obt ained usi"g Eq. (9 .32 1. whele

G 400
8 ~ -:-:
211Rt C, 2 11' )( 105 )( 6 )( 10 12

'" 1.0 6 )( l OB Hz
H"nce II ba ndwid1h of 10 6 ~Hz is polmilled by Ih8 1r9'lslm pedll'lGe d esign.
Assum ing Rt '" Rn . the meen squa re the rmal noise c urre nt per unit ba ndw idttl
for the treestn-pedaoce configutltl ion is given by:

~ 4KT 4 >< 1.381 x 10-2 3 X 300

/,., "" - = -- - -- - ,----
5
- -
R, 10
= 1.6 6 )( 10 -2 5 A 2 Hz~ 1

The me an sq uIJre therm al noise current In tbe lra nsi mpedance configUlIltion is
t he refore II facto r of 20 g r88te r th e n th at ob tained with m e high inpu t impe dance
co nfig uration.
The e« uiva lenl value in decibllls of the ra tio of these noise DO......e nl is:

; no1&e powe r in t h8 tra nsl mpeda nce co nfi g ura tion

-~-'---:--::---,-:-:--,-----:--,--:-c-:--':;-:--:--:- - 10 log 10 20
I noise power in the t1lg h i" cut impeda nce config ura tion

- 13 dB

.,
~~
~. ;.:;; .•..
.-',""'- " '. - •:,.•. •' . -,"...J.l
.' ~-""_'" •. 1,., .':'""
•. - -->1111·
,"""'. ' ', ~.'
_l.••."-•." ,,,
.- •
RECEIVER NOISE CONSIDERATIONS 377

Thus the transimpedance front end in example 9.8 provides a far greater
bandwidth without equalization than the high impedance front end. However,
this advantage is somewhat offset by the 13 dB noise penalty incurred with the
transimpedance amplifier over that of the high input impedance configuration.
Nevertheless it is apparent, even from this simple analysis, that trans-
impedance amplifiers may be optimized for noise performance, although this is
usually obtained at the expense of bandwidth. This topic is pursued further in
Ref. 13. However, wideband transimpedance designs generally give a sig-
nificant improvement in noise performance over the low impedance front end
structures using simple voltage amplifiers (see problem 9.18). Finally it must
be emphasized that the approach adopted in example 9.8 is by no means
rigorous and includes two important simplifications: firstly, that the thermal
noise in the high impedance amplifier is assumed to be totally generated by the
effective input resistance of the device; and secondly, that the thermal noise in
the transimpedance configuration is assumed to be totally generated by the
feedback resistor when it is referred to the amplifier input. Both these assump-
tions are approximations, the accuracy of which is largely dependent on the
parameters of the particular amplifier. For example, another factor which
tends to reduce the bandwidth of the transimpedance amplifier is the stray
capacitance C r generally associated with the feedback resistor R f • When Cf is
taken into account the closed loop response of Eq. (9.31) becomes:
-R;
H CL (il) ...., c--c--;;-~=---::;c­ (9.33)
I + jroRr(Cr/G + C f )
However, the effects of Cf may be cancelled by employing a suitable com-
pensating network [Ref. 14].
The other major advantage which the transimpedance configuration has
over the high impedance front end is a greater dynamic range. This improve-
ment in dynamic range obtained using the transimpedance amplifier is a result
of the different attenuation mechanism for the low frequency components of
the signal. The attenuation is accomplished in the transimpedance amplifier
through the negative feedback and therefore the low frequency components are
amplified by the closed loop rather than the open loop gain of the device.
Hence for a particular amplifier the improvement in dynamic range is
approximately equal to the ratio of the open loop to the closed loop gains.
The transimpedance structure therefore overcomes some of the problems
encountered with the other configurations and is often preferred for use in
wideband optical fiber communication receivers [Ref. 15].

S.. FET PREAMPLIFIERS

Tbe lowllt nolll ampllner device which is widely available is the silicon field
_ ....1IIte>t (PET). UnIlk. tIIo b1polor tr...iltor, th. FET operatll by ,on·
•
 378 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UN ICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE
,

I R o",

.:
I
I Ag.9.10 Grou nded source FET configuration tor the f ront end of lin opt ical Iiber receiver
am plif ier.

t ro lling the current flow with an electric field produced by an applied voltage
on the gate of the device (sec: Fig. 9. 10) rather than with a base current. Thus
t he gate draws virt ually no current, except for leakage, giving the device an
extremely high input impedance (can be greater than lO l ( oh ms). This,
coupled with its low n oise and capacitance (no greater than a few picofar ads),
makes the silicon F ET appear an ideal choice for the front end of the optic al
fiber receiver amplifier. However, the superior pro perties of the FET over the
bipolar transistor are limited by its comparatively low transconductance g",
(no better than 5 millisiemens in comparison with at least 40 millisiernens for
the bipolar), It ca n be sho wn tRef. 131th at a figu re o f merit with re gard to the
noise performan ce of the Fbj amplifier is gm/C! . Hence the advantage of
high transconductance together with low total capacita nce CT is apparent.
Moreover, as CT == Cd + C. , it should be noted th at the figure of merit is
optimized when C. == Cd ' This requires FETs to be specifically matched to
particular detectors, a procedure which device availability d oes not generally
pe rmit in current optical fibe r receiver des ign. As indicated above. the gain of
the FET is restricted. This is especially the case for silicon F ETs at frequencies
above 25 MHz where the current gain drops to values near un ity as the
transconductance is ru ed with a decrea sing input impedance. Therefore at fre-
quencies above 25 MHz, the bipola r transistor is a more useful a mplifying
device."
Figure 9.10 shows the grounded source F ET configuration which increases
the device input impedance especially if the amplifier bias resistor R be is large.
A large bias resistor ha s the effect o f reducing the thermal noise but it will aIM)
increase the low frequency impedance of the detector load which tends to
integrate the signal (l.e. high impedance integrating front end). Thus compensa-
tion through equalization a t a la ter stage is generally required.

• The fiaure of merit in relation t~ noise perlQfmance for tM bipolar transistor a mplifier may
be showa IRef. 131 to be (lire) ICy when: II" E is the common emitter eurm1t pin ot'the
device. Hetlte the noise perform l nte or the bipolar ampliflef may br optimll od In a . imfllr
manner to that of the PET amplifier.
RECEIV ER NOISE CONSIDERATIONS 37.

9.5.1 Gallium Arsenide MESfET.

Although silicon FETs have a limited useful bandwidth, much effort has been
devoted to the development of high perfo rmance microwave F ETs over the
last decade. These FETs are fabri cated from ga llium arsenide and being
Schottky, barrier devices (Refs. 16-1 91 are called GaAs MESFETs. T hey
overcome the major disadvantages of silicon FETs in that they will operate
with both low noise and h igh gain at microwave Freq uencies (GHz). Thus in
o ptical fiber communication receiver design the)' present an alternative to
bipolar transistors for wideband operation. These devices have therefore been
incorporated into high performance receiver designs using both Jri- n and
avalanche photodiode detectors [Refs. 21- 32 1.l-to wever, there is, in particular,
growing interest in hybrid integrated receiver circuits utilizing p-I- n
photodiodes with GaAs MESFET amplifier front ends.

9.5.2 PIN-fET Hybrid.

The p-i--fl/FET, or PIN-FET. hybrid receiver utilizes a high performance
p-l-n photodiode followed by a low no ise preamplifier often based o n a G aAs
MESFET, the whole of which is fabricated using thick film integrated circuit
technology. This hybrid integration on a thick film substrate reduces the stray
cap acitance to negligible levels giving a total input capacitance which is very
low (e.g. 0 .4 pF). T he M ESFETs employed have a transconductance of
a pproxima tely 15 millisiemen s at the bandwidths required (e.g. 140 M bits S-I ).
Early work (Refs. 22 and 231 in the 0 .8--0.9 urn wa velength band utilizing a
silicon p-i-1l detector showed the P IN- FET hybrid recei..-er to have a
sensitivity of --45.8 dBm for a 10-9 bit erro r rate which is only 4 dB worse than
current silicon RAPD receivers (see Section 8.9.2).
T he work was subsequently extended into the longer wavelength band
( 1.J - l.6 11m) utilizing lII-V alloy p- i-n photodiode detectors. An example of
a PIN-FET hybrid high impedance (integrating) front end receiver for opere-
tion at a wavelength of 1.3 um using an InGa As ~i-n photodiode is shown in
F ig. 9 .11 [Refs. 24-27]. This design, used by British Telecom. consists of a
preamplifier with a GaAs M ESF Ef and microwave bipolar transistor cescode
followed by an emitter fo l lower output buffer. The cascade circuit is chosen to
ens ure sufficient gain is obtai ned from the first stage to give an overall gain of
18 d B. As the high impedance front end effectively integrates the signal. the
following digital equalizer is necessary. The pulse shaping and noise filterin g
circuits comprise two passive filter sections to ensure that the pulse waveform
shape is optimized and the noise is minimized. Eq ualization for the integration
(i.e. differentiation) is performed by monitoring the change in the integrated
waveform over one period with a submin iature coaxial delay line followed by a
bi&h .peed low level cOmparator. The receiver is d esigned for use at a tranemis-
.Ioa rite ot 140 Mbiu-I where iu performance is found to be comparable
38. OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS ; PRINCIPLES AND PRA CTICE

n o
'f ~ t---{o.~
11i;ch ' l'<<<I
<""'1'..........

H~,o-j ~
U Ul ~ ", l '..... ~
. Dd r~ '"

ts v -
Flg. 9 .'1 PIN-FET hybrid high impedance intElg reting front end receiv er [ gets. 24-27].

to germanium and III-V alloy APD receivers. For example, the receiver
sensitivity at a bit error rate of 10-9 is -44.2 dBm.
When compared with the APD receiver the PI N- FET hybrid has both cost
and operational advantages especially in the longer wavelength region. The
low voltage operation (e.g. + 15 and - 15 V supply ralls) coupled with good
sensitivity and ease of fabrication makes the incorporation of this receiver into
wideband optical fiber communication systems commercially attractive. A
major drawback with the PIN-FET receiver is the possible lack of d ynamic
range. However, the confi guration shown in Fig. 9.11 gave adequate dynamic
range via a control circuit which maintained the mean voltage at the gate at

.,.-

~, ......:;'
~ lcl
r-
( ;.", MESFET :l
-
'""" J.
"
,

F'g. 9 .12 PIN-FET hybrid tr.ntll'fl~'nc:. front end ~elv9'lfl.t. 211.

RECE IVER NOISE CONSID ERATIONS 38'

o V by applying a negative voltage proportional to the mean photocurrent to

the M ESFET bias resistor. With a - I S V supply rail an optical dynamic range
of some 20dB was obta ined. This was increased to 27 d B by redu cing the
value of the MESFET bias resistor from 10 to 2 Mn which gave a slight noise
penalty of 0.5 d B. These figures com pare favorably with practical APD
receivers.
Transimpedance front end receivers have also been fabricated using the
PIN-FET hybrid approach. An example of this type of circuit {Ref. 29] is
shown in Fig. 9.12. The amplifier consists of a GaAs MESFET followed by
two complementary bipolar microwave transistors. A silicon p-t-« pho todiode
wa s utilized with the amplifier and the receiver was designed to accept data at
a rate of 274 Mbits ,-I. In this c ase the effective input capaci tance of the
receiver was 4.5 pF givi ng a sensitivity around -35 dBm fo r a bic erro r r ate of
io-.
These figures are somewhat worse than the high impedance front end
design discussed previously. However, this design has the distinct advantage of
a flat frequency response to a wider bandwidth which requires little, if any,
equalization.

PROBLEMS

9.1 Bridly d iscuss the possible sources of noise in optical fiber receivers. Describe
in detail what il meant by quantum noise. Consider this phenomenon with
regard to:
(a) digital signal:ing;
(b) analog transmission.
giving any rdevant mathe matical formulae.

9 .2 A silicon photod:ode has a responsiviry of 0.5 A W- I at a wavelength of

0 .8 5 IJm. Determine the minimum incidem optical power required I e the photo-
d iode at this wavelength in order to maintain a bit error rate o f to-1 , when
utilizing ideal bina ry signalling a t a rete of 35 Mbi.ls s- l.

9 .3 An analog optical fiber communication system requires an SNR of 40 d B a t the

detector with a po st detection bandwidth of 30 M Hz. Calculate the minimum
optical power required at the detector if it is operating at It. wavelength of
0.9 IJm with a quantum efficiency of 70%. State any assu mptions made.

8 .4 A digital optical fibe r link employing ideal binary signalli na at a rate of

SO MBits s" operates at a wavelength of 1.3 urn. The detector is a germanium
photodiode which has a quantu m efficiency of 45% at thi s wavelength. An
alarm is activated al the receiver when the bit error rate drops below 1O-~ .
Calculate the theoretical minimum o ptical power required at the photodiode in
order to keep the a11lJ'm iuctivatcd. Comment briefly o n the reasons why in
pr&etk:c the minimum klddent optical power wouki need 10 be lis niflcantly
~.. th&c th1I n11,l1•
 382 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

9.5 Discuss the implications of the load resistance on both thermal noise and post
detection bandwidth in optical fiber communication receivers.

9.6 A silicon ]ri-n photodiode has a quantum efficiency of 65% at a wavelength of

0.8 urn. Determine:
(a) the mean photocurrent when the detector is illuminated at a wavelength
of 0.8 11m with 5 IJW of optical power;
(b) the rms quantum noise current in a post detection bandwidth of20 MHz;
(c) the SNR in dB, when the mean photocurrent is the signal.

9.7 The photodiode in problem 9.6 has a capacitance of 8 pF. Calculate:

(a) the minimum load resistance corresponding to a post detection band-
width of 20 MHz;
(b) the rms thermal noise current in the above resistor at a temperature of
25°C;
(c) the SNR in dB resulting from the illumination in problem 9.6 when the
dark current. in the device is InA.

9.8 The photodiode in problems 9.6 and 9.7 is used in a receiver where it drives
an amplifier with a noise figure of 2 dB and an input capacitance of 7 pF.
Determine:
(a) the maximum amplifier input resistance to maintain a post detection
bandwidth of 20 MHz without equalization;
(b) the minimum incident optical power required to give an SNR of 50 dB.

9.9 A germanium photodiode incorporated into an optical fiber receiver working at

a wavelength of 1.55 IJlIl has a dark current of 500 nA at the ~rating
temperature. When the incident optical power at this wavelength is 10 Wand
the responsivity of the device is 0.6 A W- l , shot noise dominates in the
receiver. Determine the SNR in dB at the receiver when the post detection
bandwidth is 1{)(} MHz.

9.10 Discuss the expression for the SNR in an APD receiver given by:

S
N 4KTBF
2eB(I + I )M2+x + "
" R i,

with regard to the various sources of noise present in the receiver. How may
this expression be modified to give the optimum avalanche multiplication
factor?

I 9.11 A silicon RAPD has a quantum efficiency of95% at a wavelength ofO.9IJ.m,

has an excess avalanche noise factor of MO,3 and a capacitance of2 pF. It may
be assumed that the post detection bandwidth (without equalization) is
,
25 MHz, and that the dark current in the device is negligible at the operating
:i temperature of 290 K. Determine the minimum incident optical power which
,
can yield an SNR of 23 dB.

8.12 With the device and conditions ,Iven In problem 9.11, cl1clullte:
(a) the 8NR obtained whm the IvalanClhe muldpUClatlon tutor tor chi
IlAPD FIlII to holIlbo oplilllUllYlI.. OIIoul111l1l
,
•
RECEIVER NOISE CON SIDERATION S 383

(b) the increased o ptical power necessary to restore the SNR t o 2 3 dB with
M = 0.5.\1.,. .

9 .13 What is meant by the excess a valanche noise factor F(M)? Give two possible
ways of expressing this factor in analytical terms. C om ment briefly on their
relat ive merits.

9.14 A germanium APD (with x = 1.0) operates at a wavelength of 1.35 um where

its responsivity is 0.45 A W- 1• The dark c urren t is 200 nA at the o perati ng
temper ature of 250 K and the device capacitance is 3 p F. Determine the
maximum possible SNR when the incident optical power is 8 x 10- 1 W and the
post detection bandwidth without equalization is 560 MHz.

9.15 1be photcdiode in proble m 9. 14 drives an amplifier with a noise figure of 3 d B

and an input capacitance of 3 pF. Determine the new maximum SNR when
they are operated und er the same condition s.

9.16 Discuss the three main ampliflCf configurations currently adopted for optical
fiber comm unic ations. Co mment on their relative merits and drawba cks.
A high impedan ce integrating fron t end amplifier is used in an opti cal fiber
receiver in PMalld with a d etector bia s resistor of 10 MQ. The effective input
re sistance of the amplifter is 6 M O and the tot al capacitance [detector and
a mplifier) is 2 pF.
It is found th at the detector bias resistor may be omitted when a
translmpedance front end am plifier design is used with a 270 kfl feedback
resistor and an o pen loop gai n of 1( 1).
Co mpare t he bandwidth and thermal noise implication s of these two cases,
assuming a n operating temperature o f 290 K.

9.17 A p-i-n photodi ode operating at a wavelength of 0.83 11m has a quantum
efficiency o f 50% a nd a da rk c urrent o r O.5 nA at a temperature o r 295 K. T he
devic e is unbiassed but }ollded ....i th a cu rrent mode am plifier with a 50 kO feed-
bac k resistor and a n open loop ga in of 32. T he c apacitance of lhc photod iool! is
I pF and t he inpu t capacita nce of the amp lifier is 6 pF.
Determi ne the inciden t optical power required 10 maintain a SN R of 55 d B
when the post oerecuo n band ....jdth is 10 MHz. Is eq ualization necessary?

9.18 A voltage am plifier for a n optical fiber receiver is designed with an effective
input resista nce o f 200 0 which is matched to the detector bias resistor of thc
same value. Determ ine :
(a ) The maximum band widlh thal may be obta ined without equalization if
the total capacitance (C T ) is 10 pF.
(b) The ems thermal noise current generated in this configuration when it is
operating over the bandw idt h obtained in (a) and at a temper at ure o f
290 K. T he therm al noise gen erated by the voltage amplifier may be
assumed to be from t he effective input resistance to the device.
(c) C ompare the values calc ulated in l a) and (b) with those obtained when
the voltage a mplifier is replaced by a transimpedancc a mplifier with a
10 kO feedback resistor and an o pen loop gain of 50. II may be as sumed
that the feedback resistor is also used to bias the detector, and the total
capacitance remains 10 p F.

.., . What 11 • PIN-PET hybrid m:eivet? Decuss in det:ai1 its me ri15 and possible
,w_~llA,nbl:plrilOft with th. APD l'tCcivor,
384 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUN ICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Answers to Numerieal Problems

9.2 - 70.4 dBm 9.15 2 1.9 dB

9.3 - 37.2 de m 9 .16 High impeda nce front end :
9.' - 70.1 dBrn 2(.22 kH L.
9.6 (a) 2.01 ~A ; (b) 3.$9 nA ; 4 .2 7 )( 10-21 A 1 H z- I ;
(c) 55.0 d B Transimpedance front end :
9.7 <a) 994.7 O J (b) 18. 19 nA ; 29 .4 7 MH z, 5.93)( 1O-1~
ec) 39.3 d B A 2 Hz- I
9.8 (a) 1.37 kO ; (b) 19.58 ~W 9 .17 - 23.1 dam, equalization is
9.9 40.1 dB unnecessa ry
9 .11 - 50.3 dBm 9.18 (a) 159 .13 M Hz; (b) 160 nA ;
9 .12 (al 14.2 as. (b) --49.6 dBm (c) 79.56 MHz. 11.3 nA, noise
9 .14 23.9 d B power 23 dB down

REFERENCES

1 (a) M. Schwa rtz, l nj'fJrmot km Transmission. ModulaJkm and Noise. McGra w·

Hill. 1970.
(b) F. R. Conner, Noise, (2nd Edn.), Edward A rn old, 1982.
2 P. Russer, 'Introduction to optical com munic at ions', in M . J Howes and D . V.
Morgan (E ds.), Optical Fibre Commu nicanons, pp. 1- 26, John Wiley. 1980.
3 M . Garbuny. Optical Physics, Acade mic Press. 1965.
4 W . M . H ub bard, ' Efficient utilization of optical frequency carriers for low and
moderate bit rate chan nels', Bell Syst. recs. J ., 50, pp, 713-7 18, 1973.
5 I. G arren, ' Receivers Ior o ptic al fibre comm umca uoas', Electron , and Radio
1';"8., 5 1(7/ 8), pp. 349-361, 198 1.
6 P. P Webb, R. J. Mci ntyre and J. Conradi, ' Pro perties of ava lanche ph otodiodes',
RCA Rn., 35, pp. 234-278, 19 74.
1 W . R . Bennett and J. R. D avey, Doto Transmission, McGraw-H ili, 1965.
8 S. D . Personic k, ' Rece iver design for digital fibe r optic communicatio n systems
(Pa rt I and IIr, Bell S )'St. Tech. J., 52. pp_ 8.aJ- 886, 19 73-
9 T . P. Lee a nd T. Li, ' Pho toderectors', in S. E. Miller and A . G . C hynoweth (Eds .).
Optical Fiber Telecommunicat ions, pp . 593-623 , Academic Press, 1979.
10 S. D , Personick , 'Receiver design', in S. E. Miller and A. G . Chynowet h (Ed s.),
Optical Fiber Telecommumeanons; pp. 62 7~S I , Academic P ress, 1979.
11 J. E. Goell, ' Input amplif.er"5 fo r optical PCM receivers', Bell SJ·st. Tech. J., 54,
pp . 177 1-1793, 19 74.
12 J. L. Hulleu and T. V. Muoi, 'Referred imped a nce noise analysis for feedback
a mplifiers', Electron . Len.; 13( 13), pp. 387- 389, 19 77.
13 R . G. Smith and S. D . Per sonick, ' Receiver design for optical fibe r comm unica-
tion system s'. in H , K ressel (Ed.), S emiconductor Devices lor Optical
Comm unicanon, (2 nd edn .), Springer-Verl ag, 1982.
14 J. L H ullett, ' O ptica l comm unication receivers', Proc, lR £ /:; Australia, " 0(41, pp.
127-136, 19 79.
15 J. L. Hnllen a nd T . V. Muoi, 'A feedback receiver amplif)Cr for optical transmis-
sion sy stems', Trans. IEEE, COM 24 , pp. 11 80-11 85, 1976.
18 1. S. Barrera, ' Microwave transistor review, Part I. GaAs field-effect lransi.tou ',
Mtcrowave J.t (USA), 19(2), pp, 28-31 . 1976,
RECEIVER NOIS E CONSIDERATIONS 385

17 8 . S. He\Oo itt, H. M. Co x. H . Fukui, J. V. D i lorenzo, W. O. Scholesser a nd D . E.

Iglesia s, 'Low noise GaA ~ MESFETs', Electron. t. en.; 12(12). pp. 309-3 10 ,
1976.
18 D. V. Morgan, F . H. Eisen an d A. Ezis, ' Prospect s for ion bombardment and ion
implantation in GaA s and InP device fabrication', lEE Proc., IZ8( I--4), pp.
109-1 29, 1981.
19 J. Mun, J. A . Phillips a nd B. E. Barry, ' High-yeild process for G aAs
enh ancement-mode MES FET integr ated circuits', lEE Proc., 128( 1-4 ), pp.
144-147, I IJIH .
20 S. D. Persomck, P, Balaban, J. H. Bo bsm and P, R. Kum ar, ' A detailed com-
parison of four approaches to the calculation of t he sensitivity of optical fiber
system receivers ', IEEE Trans. Commun.; COM ·Z" pp. 541 -549, 1977.
21 S. D. Personick, 'Design of receivers and transmitters for fiber sy stems', in M. K .
Barno ski (Ed.). Fundomenlals of Optical Fiber Communicolions, (2nd ed n.),
Academic Press, 198 1.
22 D . R . Smith, R . C. Hooper and I. G arrett, ' Receivers for optica l comm unica-
tio ns; A compariso n o f avalanc he pbotcdiodes wilh PIN - FET h ybrid s', Opt.
Quanl. Eteetron.; 10, pp. 293- 300, 1978.
23 R. C. Hooper a nd D. R. Smit h, ' Hybrid optical receiver s using PIN photo-
diodes' , lEE {Landon] Colloquium on Broadband High Frequency A mp lifiers,
pp. 9/1-9/5, 1979.
24 K. Ah mad and A. W. Mabbitl, 'Ga ...... In... As photodecectors fo r 1.3 micron
PIN-FET receiver', IEE£ Nr ( USA) Inll'rtlm ional £1«lrOl,ic Devices "'ee-ling
(Washingto n, D C), pp . 64 f>-64 9, 1978.
25 D . R . Smi th, R. C. Hooper and R . P. w ebc, ' High performance digital optic al
receivers wilb PIN phOlod iodes'. I EEE (N }") Proc«dings of the tmemattonat
Symoslm on Circuits and Sy stems (To kyo), pp. 5 11-5 14, 1979.
26 D. R. Smith, R. C, Hooper, K. Ahmad, D. Jenkins, A. W. Mabbitt a nd R.
Nicklin, 'p---i- n/ FET hybrid optical receiver for lon ger wavelen gth optical com-
municatio n sy stem ~', Electron. Leu., 16(2), pp. 69- 7 1, 1980.
27 R. C. Hopper, D. R. Smith and B. R. While, ' PIN- FET Hybrids fo r digital
optical receivers', I EEE NY (US A) 30th EI«Ironic Components Conference, San
Francisco, pp. 2S 8-260, 1980.
28 S. Hera, Y. Sugeta, Y. ~Ii lushim a. K. Asataoi and K. N awara, 'Silicon p-i-n
photodetectors with mtegreted transistor am plifiers' , IEEI:: Trans. Electron:
Devices, ED-Z6(6), pp. 989-991, 1979.
29 K. Ogawa and E, L. Chinnock, ' GaAs FET transimpedance front-end design for
a wid ebend o ptical receiver', Electron , LeI!.. 15(20), pp. 65()-{j5Z, 1979.
30 S. M. Abbott a nd W. M . Muska, 'Low noise o ptical detection o f a 1.1 Gb/s
optical dat a stream, E lectron. z.ee., 1$(91, pp. 250-251, 1979.
31 L A. Godfrey, 'Designing for the fastest response: ever - ultra high speed
pboroderecnon', Opl. Spectra (USA), B (lO), pp. 43. 46, 1979.
32 R . I. MacDonald, ' High gain o ptical detection wuh G aAs field eITect tJansi~lon;',
Appl. Opt. (USA ) , ZO(4), pp . 59 1- 594, 1981.
 10
Optical Fiber Systems

1
I
'I -
,I 1 '0.' INTRODUCTION

Th e transfer of informatio n in the form o f light propagating "Within an optica l

I' fiber requires the successful implementation of an o ptica l fiber communication
I system. This system, in common with all systems, is composed of a nu mber of
discrete components which a re connec ted together in a manner that enables
I, them to perform a desired task. Hence. to achieve relia ble and secure com -
munication using o ptical fibers it is essential that a ll th e compo nents within the
I tra nsmission system are compati ble so that their individual perform ances, as
I far as possible, en hance rather th an degrade the overall sys tem performance.
I The principal components of a general optical fi ber communication system
for either digital or analog tran smission are sho wn in the system block
schematic of Fig. 10.1. T he t ransmit terminal equipment co nsists of an infer -
merion encoder o r signal shaping circuit preceding a modulation or electronic
driver stage which operates the optical so urce. light emitted from the source is
la unched into an optical fi ber incor por ated within a cable which co nstitu tes the
!I transmission medium. The light emerging from the far end of the t ra nsmission
med ium is converted back into an electrical signal by an optical detector
I positioned at the input or the receive terminal equipment. This electrica l signal
I, I is then amplifi ed prior to decoding or demodulation in order to obtain the
informat ion o riginally transmitted.
Th e operation and characteristics of the optical components of th is genera l
III s ystem have been discussed in some deta il within the previous chapters.
H owever. to enable the successful incorporatio n of these components into an
I o ptical fiber communicatio n system it is necessary to consid er the intera ction
of one component with another, and th en to evaluate the overall perfo rmance
[I of the system. Furthermore. to opt imize the system performance for a given
application it is often helpful to offset a pa rticular compo nent charac teristic by
,II trading it 01T against the performance of ano ther com ponent, in order lei
provide a net gain within the overall system . The electronic components play
II an import ant role in this context, a llowing the system designer further choices
, Which. dependi ng on (he o ptical components utilized. can improve the . ystem
perfo rm ance.
1
388
OPTICAL FIB ER SYSTE MS 387

I ,, ,,
I
,,
he()d " 1
<.i ~n . I Ih "l" 1\f; '-; rru it
,I, I
lHeoocrl
d,,,, o<.l ll ~ t Of
I I,

I ,I ,
I I
I
I I
I . I
ld.,.j oJlal« Jd, .. «

,Itlo<lnUl <otIl1"""'""'.
I , " ......,f..,

~-- 'I -- - .- - -t-, ---

I
-+ -.-. -t-, - -
,, ,,
~ - -

I f-+II ,,
,,I ( I(J' J<IJ ,,"U r< C ~
,
Tr:UU "''''' Clll
,". ~ i ,, ~ <: fiC« ' '''IIC<! <!oW tCl'

, I
l ll ~ <:<lIII lo)O. ~n
I
I I
I
L 1 ran....,1 l<mll"'" ..: l, R,......,.. """'.... -'I

F"tg. 10.1 The pril'lcipal components of an optical fibe r com mul'lic.u ;OI'1 sysle m .

The purpose of this chapter is to bring together the importa nt performance

characteristics of the individual system dements, a nd to con sider their interac-
tion within optical tiber communication systems. It is intended that this will
provide guidance in rela tion to the various possible component configu rations
which may be utilized for different system applications, whilst also giving an
insight into system design and optimization. Hence the opti cal components
and the associated electronic circuits will be discussed prior to consideration of
general system design procedures. Although the treatment is by no means
exhaustive, it will indicate the various problems involved in system design and
provide a description of the ba sic techniques and pract ices which may be
adopted to enable successful system implementation.
We commence in Section 10.2 with a discussion of the optical transmitter
circuit. This includes consideration of the source limitatio ns prior to descrip-
tion of various LED and laser drive circuits for both dig.ital and a nalog
transmission. In Section 10.3 w e present a similar discussion for the optical
receiver including examples of prea mplifier and main amplifier circuits.
General system design considerations a re then dealt with in Section 10.4. This
is followed by a deta iled discussion of digita l systems commencing with an
outline of the operating principles of pulse code modulated (PCM) systems in
Section 10.5 before continuing to consider the various aspects of digital optical
fiber systems in Section 10.6. Analog optical fiber systems are then dealt with
in Section 10.7 where the various possible analog modulation techniques are
described and analyzed. Finally, we conclude in Section 10.8 with a brief
acwuot of coherent optical fi ber systems which are currently attracting much
Interest.
 388 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS . PRINCIPLES A ND PRACTICE

10.2 THE OPTICAL TRANSMITTER CIRCUIT

The unique properties and characteristics of the injection laser and the light
emitting diode (LED) which make them attractive sources for optical fiber
communications were discussed in C ha pters 6 and 7.
• Although both dev ice types exhibit a number of similarities in terms of their
general performance and compatibility with optical fi bers, striking differences
exist between them in relation to both system application and transmitter
design. It is useful to consider these differences. as well as the limitation s of
I the two source types. prior to discussion of transmitter circ uits for various
applications.

10.2.1 Source Umitationa

10 .2 .1 .1 Pow er
The electrical power required to operate both injection lasers and LEOs
is generally similar with typical current levels of between 20 and 300 rnA
(certain laser thre sholds may be substantially higher than this-c-or the order of
1- 2 A). and voltage drops across the terminals of 1.5- 2.5 V. However. the
optical o utput power agai nst current characteristic for the two devices varies
considerably, as indicated in Fig. 10.2. The injection laser is a threshold device
which must be operated in the region of stimulated emission (i.e. above the
threshold) where continuous optical output power levels are typically in the
range 1-1 0 mW.
Much of this light output may be coupled into an optical fi ber beca use the
isotropic distribution of the narrow linewidth, coherent radiation is relatively
directional. In addition the spatial coherence of the laser emission allows it to
be readily focused by appropriate lenses within the numerical apert ure of the

.....'
.,ulpJt
i... Wj
"
,
•
•
,
ice ,
10\1 lOO -too
-'.... (""""t h nA I
liDctll rqio~ ••"teN<
rOt an.ol<lll mod.,lal"

Fig.10.2 Light OUIP'J t (pow e r) om itted tl'l to a ir lIS a fU l"lC llon of d.c. driv. curr.nt for .
tY pical I'>iil" radial'lC a LED . nd for a tYplcll In"'Cllo" la" r. Th, CU N" Ill hlbtt
l'loolir ellriTy at high cu r,.nt, due to Junct io n h, .tlng.
OPT1C Al FIBER SYSTEMS 389

fi ber. C o upling efficiencies near 30% may be obtained by placing a fi ber close
to a laser mirror, and these ca n a pproach 80% with a suita ble lens a rrange-
ment [Refs. I and 21. Therefo re injection la sers are capable o f launching
between 0 .5 and several milhw eus of optical power in to a fiber .
LE D ~ are capable of similar optical o utput power levels to injection lasers
depending on their structure and quantum efficiency as indicated by the ty pical
characteristic fo r a surface emitter show n in Fig. 10.2. However. the spon-
taneous emission o f radiation over a wide linewidth from the LED generally
exhibits a Lambertian intensity distributio n which gives poor coupling into
optica l fi bers. Consequently o nly between L a nd perha ps 10% (using a good
edge emit ter) of [he emitted optica l power from an LED ma y be launched into
a rnultimode fi ber, even with appropriate lens coupling (see Section 7.3.4).
T hese consideratio ns tran sla te into optica l power levels from a few to several
h und red mic rowatts launched in to individu al m ultimode fi bers, Thus the
optical power coupled into a fi ber fro m an LED can be l o-20 d B below that
obtained with a typical inj ection laser. The power adv antage gained with the
injection laser is a major factor in the choice of source, especially when con-
sidering a long-haul optical fiber link .

10.2. 1.2 Linearit y

Linearity o f the o ptical o utpu t power against current characteristic is an
importa nt consideration with both the injection laser and LED. It is especially
pertinent to the design of a nalog o ptical fiber comm unication systems where
source nonlinearities may cause severe distortion of the tr an smiued signal. At
first sight the LED may appear to be ideally suited to analog transmission as
its outpu t is approximately pro port ional to the drive current. However, most
LEO s display some degree of nonlinearity in their optical output against
current characteristic beca use of junction heating effects which may either
prohibit their use, or nece ssitate the incorporation o f a linearizing circuit 'Within
the o ptica l transmitter. Cert a in LEOs (e.g. etched well surface emitters) do
d isplay good linearity, with distortio n products (harmonic a nd intermodula-
tion) between 35 and 4S d B below the signal level (Refs. 3 a nd 41.
An alternative approach to o btaining a linear source cha racteristic is to
o perate an inj ection laser in the light-generating regio n above its threshold, as
ind icated in Fig. 10.2. T his may p rove more suitable for ana log tran smission
th an would the use of certain L EDs. However, gro ss nonli nearities due to
mode instabilities may occur in thi s region. These are exhibited as k ink s in the
laser output characteristic (see Section 6.5.3). Therefore many of the multi-
mode injection lasers have a limited use for analog tr an smission without
additional linearizing circuits within the transmitter, although some of the
. Inlle mode structures have de mon strated linearity suitable for most analog
lpplicllion• . Alternatlvely. diJitaJ trans.mission, especially utilizing a bin ary
(2 I.YII) format. fa rar lou Mnlni.... to source nonlinearitiu and is therefore
_ pnfIMot _ '..... _ II\ltOlloo Ium Illd LBo..
."-- -' .
 390 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUN ICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACT ICE

10.2 .1.3 Th erma f

The the rmal beha vior of both injection lasers and LEOs can limit th eir opera-
tio n with in the optical transmitter. H owever. as indicated in Section 6 .9.1 the
variation o f injectio n laser thresho ld c urrent with the device , j unction
tem peratu re can cause a m ajor operating p roblem. Threshold c urrents of
typ ic al AIGaAs devices inc rease by a p pro ximately 1% per degree centigrade
increase in j unction temper at ure. H ence any signific ant increa se in th e j unction
tempera ture may cause lo ss of lasing and a subsequent dram atic reductio n in
II. the o ptical output power . This limitation cannot usu ally be overcome by
sim ply cooling the device on a heat sink, but must be taken into account wit hin
,I the transmitter design. through the incorporation of optical feedba ck, in order
to o btain 8 const ant o ptica l o utpu t power level fro m the d evice .
,I The optical output fro m an LED is a lso dependent o n the device junction
tem perature as indica ted in Sectio n 7.4.2. Mo st LEDs exhib it a d ecrease in
o ptical outp ut power following an increase in junction temperature. which is
;I typically a round - 1% per degree centigrade. This thermal behavio r. ho wever.

II altho ugh significant is not critical to th e operation of the device d ue to its lack
o f thresho ld. Nevertheless this temperature dependence can result in a varia-
tio n in o ptical output p ow er of several decibels over the temperature range
I 0-70 " C. It is therefore a factor within system design considerations which . if
not tolerated, may be overco me by providing a cir cuit within the transm itter

I which adjusts the LED drive cu rrent w ith tem pera ture.

10.2. 1.4 Resp onse

I The speed of response of the two types of optical source is largely dictated by
their respective radiative e mission mechanisms. Spont aneou s emission from
I the LED is d epend ent o n the effective minority c arrier lifetime in the semi-
cond uctor material (see Section 7.4.3). In heavily d oped (I OIB_ IOI ' per em)
I gallium arsenide this is typically between 1 a nd 10 nan osecond s. However, the
respo nse of an o ptical fiber sourc e to a current step inp ut is often specified in
terms o f the 10-90% rise time, a parameter which is reciprocally related to the
I device freq uency response (see Section 10.6.5). The rise time of the L ED is at
lea st twice the effective minority carrier lifetime. and often much lon ger
because of junction and stray capacita nce. Hence. the rise times for current ly
\\ available LEOs lie between 2 and 50 nanoseconds. give 3 d B b and widths of
aro und 7 to at best 175 M Hz. Therefo re LEOs a re inherently restricted to
I lower b andwidth applications. aJthough suitable drive circuits can maximize
their b andwidth cap ab ilities (i.e. reduce rise times). ,

I Sti mulated emissio n from injection lasers occurs o ver a much shorter period
giving rise times of the order of 0. 1- 1 ns, thu s allowing 3 dB band widths above
j

I G}Jz. However, injection la ser performance is limited by the device switch-

\ on delay (see Section 6.9.2). T o achieve the highest speeds it is therefore
necessary to minimize the switch-on delay. Tran$lYlittcr circuiu which probiu
the la ser to j ust below o r j ust above thrclhold in conjunction with blp lpeed
OPTICA L FIBER SYSTEMS
3"
drive currents which ta ke th e device well above threshold. prove useful in the
r eduction of this limitation.

10.2 .1 .5 Spectral Width

The finite spectral width of the optical so urce causes pulse br oadening due to
material dispersion on an o ptical fiber communication link. Thi s res ults in a
limitation on the bandwidth-length pr oduct which may be obtained using a
particular source and fi ber. The inco herent emission from an LED usually
disptays a spectral Iinewidth of between 20 and 50 nm (full width at half power
(F W HP) points) when opera ting in the 0.8-0.9 tim wavelength ran ge. This
limits the bandwidth-length prod uct with a silica fiber to around 100 and
160 M Hz km at wavelengths of 0.8 and 0.9 urn respectively. Hence the overall
system bandwidth for an optical fiber link over several kilo meters may be
restricted by material d ispersion rather tha n the response time of the so urce.
The problem may be alleviated by wo rking at a longer wavelength where the
material d ispersion in high silica fibers approaches zero (i.e. near J.J urn, see
Section 3.8.1). In this region the source spectr al width is far less critical and
bandwidth- length products of 1 GHl km may be obt ained using LEOs.
Alternati vely, an optic al source with a narrow spectral linewidth may be
utilized in place of the LED. The coherent emissio n from an injection laser
gene rally has a linewidth of I nm or less (F W H P). Use of the injection laser
greatl y reduces the effect of material dispersion within the fiber, giving band-
width- length products of I G Hz km at 0.8 urn. and far higher at lo nger
wa velengths. Hence, the requ irement for a system operating a t a particular
bandwidt h over a specific dista nce will influence both the choice of so urce and
operating wavelength.

10.2.2 LED Drive Circuits

Although the LED is somewhat restricted in its ran ge of possible applications
in comparison with the more powerful. higher speed injection laser. it is
generally far easier to operate. Therefore in this section we consider some of
the c ircuit configurations that may be used to convert the informatio n voltage
signal at t he tra nsmitter into a mod ulation current suita ble for an LED so urce.
In th is context it is useful to discu ss circu its for digital and an alog transmission
independently.

10.2.2.1 Digital Transmission

The operation of the LED for binary digital transrmssron req uires the
fwitchinl o n and 01T of a current in the ra nge of severa l tens to several
hundred! of milliamperes. T his must be performed at high speed in response to
loaic voltale kvell It tho d.riviaa circuit input., A com mon method of achieving
tbiI ourrnt ewItddna operation for an LED is shown in Fia. 10.3. The circuit
WIlIIrIlId _ .J ..... "",ol_ ,w1lcll operllOd In the <:ommen emltt"
": -.I -> ·.s ' -. -··.7~': -->_~;-: •
 392 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTI CE

'.
<.

Flg.l0.3 A simple drive ci rcui t f o r billa ry digi t al t ransmis sto n co " s ;&t i" g of a common
emitter satu rat in g swltcb .

mode. This single stage circuit provides current gain as well as giving only a
sma ll voltage drop across the switch when the transmitter is in saturation (i.e.
when the collector- base junction is forward biassed. the emitter to collector
voltage VeE (sat) is around 0.3 V).
The maximum current now through the LED is limited by the resistor R.!
whilst independent bias to the device may be provided by the incorporation of
resistor R.I. However. the switching speed of the common em itter configura-
tion is limited by space cha rge and diffusion capacitance; thus bandw idth is

'.

"

n D

fig. lOA low imped.n~ drive circuit COl'\Ii'1ing of an emltt, rfOIlOWtr w ith c:ompetlltt-
Ir>g mUchi"g network IRet. 61.

,.,
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 393

traded for current gain. This may, to a certain extent, be compensated by over-
driving (pre-emphasizing) the base current during the switch-on period. In the
circuit sho wn in Fig. 10.3 pre -emphasis is accomplished by use of the speed up
capacitor C.
Increased switching speed may be obtained from an LED witho ut a pulse
shaping or speed up element by use of a low impedance driving circuit ,
whereby c harging of the space charge and d iffusion capacitance occurs as
rapidly as possible. This may be achieved with the em itter follower drive circuit
shown in Fig. lOA fRef. 5J. The use of this configuration with a compensating
matching netwo rk (R JC) provides fast direct modulation of LEOs with
relatively lo w drive power. A circuit, with optim um values for the matching
network, is capable of giving optical rise times of 2.5 ns for LEOs with
capacitance of 180 pF, thus allowing 100 Mbits s-' operation [Ref. 6J.
Another type of low impedance driver is the sh unt confi gur ation shown in
Fig. 10.5. The switching tran sistor in this circuit is placed in parallel with the
LED providing a low impedance path for switching o fT the LED by shunting
cu rrent around it The switch -on performance of the circ uit is determined by
the combination of resistor R and the LEO capacitance. Stored space charge
may be removed by slightly reverse biassing the LED when the device is
switched ofT. This may be achieved by placing the tr an sistor emitter potential
VEE below ground. In this case a Schottk y clamp (shown dotted) may be
incorporated to limit the extent of th e reverse bias with out introducing any
extra minority carrier stored c harge into the circuit.
A frequent requirement for digital transmission is the interfacing of the LED
drive circuit with a common logic family a s illustrated in the block schematic
of Fig. 1O.6(a). In this case the logic interface must be co nsidered along with
possible drive circ uits. Compatibility wa h TTL may be a chieved by use of
commercial integrated circuits as shown in Figs. IO.6(b) and (c). The co n-
fi gur ation shown in Fig. 10.6(b) uses a Texas Instruments' 74S140 line driver

· ·Cc
.~

,,,
,,
V~ ("----r
-'
,-,.",
.- ..eo /
<,'
,,
,,
... 1
,

.... tOol , ~ lmPti Il"lCt do'tVt Cllrvult conllltlng of • limpM lhunt COf1fIg.Ir111on.
. , , .", ,oj! . e;,~ ~ Hol~::;- i.t'\t.UlI..; ;"
-. '_,_ - -. ' ' " ~" ,' . c-
 ,
'!
394 OPTICAL FIBE R COMM UNICAT IONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRA CTICE

~ .
'''1'"1
, "" /
,!
'I.
." , 1-
'"

=, 45 140
"
lon. <1, 1", c
, ,
I
I ,., ~

.I ,•
,

-
-~

Flg,10.8 Loqlc inl e rf6c ing lo r digita l transmission : Iii} block sch llmillic st1 0 w ing the
interfacing of th e LED drive circuit with logic inp ut levels; Ib} a simpl e TIL
comp atible LED drive clrcuil employing a Texas Instrum ent s' 745140 !i nll
driver [R ef. 71: (e) 8 TTL compat ible shunt drive ctrcutt usin g a comm ercially
I availabl e inte g ra te d circ uit [Rill. 7].

!,,
which provides a drive current of around 60 rnA to the LED when R ] is 50 o.
Moreover. the pac kage contains two sections which may be connected in
parallel in order to obtain a drive current of 120 mAo The incorporation of.
suitable speed up capacito r (e.l. C = 47 pF) gives opti~&1 rile time. of &rO\IM
, nl when usin. LED. with between 150 and 200 pF C&pacl~ [Rat. 1).
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 39.
Figure IO.6(c) illustrates the shunt configura tion using a sta ndard TfL 7545 1
integrated circuit. The rise time of this shunt circuit may be improved through
maintenance of charge on the LED capacitance by placing a resistor between
the shunt switch collector and the lED tRef. 71.
An alternative important d rive circuit config uration is the emitter coupled
circuit shown in Fig. 10.7 (Ref. 71. The LED act s as a load in one collector so
thai the circ uit provides cu rrent ga in and hence a drive current fo r the device.
Thus the circuit resembles a linear differential amplifier, but it is opera ted
outs ide the linear range and in the switching mode. Fast switching speeds may
be o btained due to the co nfiguratio n's nonsaruraung cha racteristic which
avoids swi tch-off time degradations caused by stored charge accumulation on
the transistor base region. The la ck of saturat ion al so minimizes the base d rive
requirements for the tran sistors thu s preserving their small signal cu rrent ga in.
The emitter co upled driver configuration shown in Fig. 10.7 is compatible with
commercial emitter co upled logic (EeL). However, to achieve th is com -
patibility the c ircuit includes two level shirting transistors which g.ive Ee l
levels (high -0.8 v, low - 1.8 V) when th e positive terminal of the LED is at
ea rth potential. The response of th is circuit is s pecified [Ref 71 at up 10
50 Mbit S -I , with a possible extension to 300 Mbit $ - 1 when using a raster Ee l
logic family and high speed transistors. The emitter coupled drive circuit con-
fi guration may also he interfaced with other logic families. and a TTL com-
patible design is discussed in Ref. 8.

10 .2.2.2 Analog Transmission

For a nalog tra nsmission the drive circuit must cause the light o utput from a n
LED source to follow accurately a time-varying input voltage waveform in

+ I ~1
.on tWt
»-: l~l n
,... .~

'::~
r'.....
...., ~ ,
V ,
..... .... 'A '"
,.... J'"

1 ~6 Il aeon '"
~
L8lI U I

".n 1% 11

~ 7w ~.E:-

~ ~ZD
200 I!

scc n

( 2 \'

.... ,o.r "" M itt... ooupltd drlvi circuli wnloh II cDmpl1lbte with Eel IDgic IRlt. 7].
•
396 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

both amplitude and phase. Therefore, as indicated previously, it is important

that the LED output power responds linearly to the input voltage or current.
Unfortunately, this is not always the case because of inherent nonlinearities
within LEOs which create distortion products on the signal. Thus the LED
itself tends to limit the performance of analog transmission systems unless suit-
able compensation is incorporated into the drive circuit. However, unless
extremely low distortion levels are required, simple transistor drive circuits
may be utilized.
Two possible high speed drive circuit configurations are illustrated in
Fig. 10.8. Figure 1O.8(a) shows a driver consisting of a common emitter
transconductance amplifier which converts an input base voltage into a
collector current. The circuit is biassed for a class A mode of operation with
the quiescent collector current about half the peak value. A similar trans-
conductance configuration which utilizes a Darlington transistor pair in order
to reduce the impedance of the source is shown in Fig. 1O.8(b). A circuit of this
type has been used to drive high radiance LEOs at frequencies of 70 MHz
[Ref. 9].
Another simple drive circuit configuration is shown in Fig. 10.9. It consists
of a differential amplifier operated over its linear region which directly
modulates the LED. The LED operating point is controlled by a reference
voltage Vrer whilst the current generator provided by the transistor T 3 feeding
the differential stage (T j and T 2 ) limits the maximum current through the
device. The transimpedance of the driver is reduced through current series
feedback provided by the two resistors R 1 and R2 which are normally assigned
equal values. Furthermore, variation between these feedback resistors can be
used to compensate for the transfer function of both the drive circuit and the
LED.

,w~

""
,..
....
..
..-'

"b-
,,' '"
Fig.10.8 Transconductance drive circuits for analog transmission: (al common emitter
configuration: (b) Darlington transistor petr.

, .-'.
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEM S 397

~ I H'~ z/
V. .... '-< v..
...' ;...
" "
'. '.
" "
*"
,",

Ag . 10.9 A differen tial amplifi er dr ive circcit.

A ltho ugh in many commun ication applications where a single analog signal
is tra nsmitted certain levels of amplitude and ph ase distortion can be tolerated,
thi s is not the case in freq uency multiplexed systems (see Section 10 .4.2) where
a high degree of linearity is required in order to minimize interference between
ind ividual channels caused by t he generation of intermodulation products.
Also baseband video transmi ssion of T V signals requi res the maintenance of
extremely low levels of a mplitude and phase d istortio n. For such applications
the sim ple d rive circu its described previously are inadeq uate without some
fo rm of linearization to compensate for both LED and drive circuit non-
lineari ties. A number of techniq ues h ave been reported IRef. 101. some of
which are illustrated in Fig. 10.10. F igure 10 . l()(a) shows the complem entary
distortion technique IR ef. 1 I I where additional nonlinear devices are included
in the system. It may take the fo rm of predistortion compensation (before the
source drive circuit) o r postdistornon co mpensation (after the receiver). This
approach bas been shown (Ref. 121 to reduce harmonic distortion by up to
20 d B over a limited range o f mod ulation am plitudes.
In the negative feedba ck compensation tech niq ue shown in Fig. 1O. ltXb),
the LED is included in the linea rization scheme. Th e optical o utput is detected
and compared with the input waveform, the amount of compensation being
depende nt on the gain of the feedback loop. Although the technique is straight-
forward, large bandwidth requirements (i.e. video) can cause problems at high
frequencies [Ref. 13].
The technique shown in Fig. 10 .10(c) em ploys ph ase shift modulation for
selective harmonic compensation using a pair of LEO s with similar charac-
teristiel [Ref. 141. The input signal is divided into eq ual parts which are phase
shilled with respect to each other. These sian als then modulate the two LEOs
,Mal ~ c&DOlDadon of-1he ICCOC1d and third harmonic with I 900 and 600
 398 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PR INCIP LES AND PRACTICE

r L::ril::;-;o.lplo·
I "< howl. ~
,--- _._.

...

Inpu t ,.......
~ I- u... ,
etrcu it
~ / i,.,
ll...
Oolpu,

8 ' ,'7
.(.. 2r'
"'.~
"Io ni to r

,l
. "ee.Jb.<.t.
«>M• ..,l

'"

""', -
cimlit

~
/
In."'1 Pb_~ fle:r
'
~ W.,.,
( W b~ _) ~ t«i> e1"

+
Lr'
p,r..
d,eu't ~

~~
L,' /
,.)

F1g. 10 .10 Block sctlllmlltics of som e lillll srizat iorl met hod, for LED drive circuits :
lal comp lement ary distonion I9chniqu a; lbl negad"a feedback complrlNltlon
tllctlnique; leI IIlIll1eti.... h.rmonlc compenMtlon lloChnlqua.
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 399

phase shift respectively. However, although there is a high degree of distortion

cancellation, both harmonics cannot be reduced simultaneously.
Other linearization techniques include cascade compensation IRef. 151, feed-
forward compensation IRef. 161 and quasi-fccdforward compensation IRefs.
17 and 181.

10.2.3 Laser Drive Circuits

A number of configurations described for use as LED drive circuits for both
digital and analog transmission may be adapted for injection laser applications
with only minor changes. The laser, being a threshold device, has somewhat
different drive current requirements from the LED. For instance, when digital
transmission is considered, the laser is usually given a substantial applied bias,
often referred to as prebias, in the off state. Reasons for biassing the laser near
but below threshold in the off state are:
(a) it reduces the switch-on delay and minimizes any relaxation oscillations;
(b) it allows easy compensation for changes in ambient temperature and
device ageing;
(c) it reduces the junction heating caused by the digital drive current since the
on and off currents are not widely different for most lasers.
Although biassing near threshold causes spontaneous emission of light in the
off state, this is not normally a problem for digital transmission because the
stimulated emission in the on state is generally greater by, at least, a factor of
10.

".

II, •
'. ~
"'5

L."r~
f-

- l....
PI•• 10.11 A ,hunt drive circuit for use wlth an injection laser.
4 00 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES A ND PRA CTICE

A simple lase... drive circu it for d igital transmission is shown in Fig. 10.1 L
This circuit is a shu nt driver utilizing a field effect tran sisto r (FEn to provide
high speed la ser o peration. Sufficient voltage is main ta ined in series with the
laser using the resistor R 2 a nd the compens ating ca paci tor C suc h that the
FET is biassed into its active o r pinch -off region. Hence fo r a pa rtic ular input
voltage Viti (i.e. Ve s ) a specifi c amount o f the total cur rent flowing thro ugh R I
is diverted around the laser leaving the b alance of the current to flow through
R 1 a nd provide the otT sta te for the device. Using suita ble gallium arsenide
M ESFE Ts (see Section 9.5.1) the circu it shown in Fig. to.ll has modulated
la sers a t rates in excess of I Obit S- I IRef. 19 ).
An alternative high speed laser drive circuit employing bipolar tr ansistors is
sho wn in Fig. 10.12 fRef. 201. T his circuit configura tion. again for digital
transmission. consists o f two d ifferentia l a mplifiers connected in parallel. The
inp ut st ag e. which is EeL compatible. exhibits a 50 0 input impedance by usc
o f an emitter follow er T l and a 50 rJ: resisto r in paral lel with t he input. The
tr ansistor T 1 acts as a current source with the zener diode ZD adj usting the
sign al level for Ee L operation. The two differential amplifier s provide suf-
ficien t modulation current a mplitude for the laser un der t he control of a d.c .
control cur rent I F th rough the two emitter resistors R E I a nd R E1 • 1£ is
provided by an optical feedbac k co nt rol circuit to be discussed shortly. Finally.
a prcbias current is ap plied to the laser from a sep arate cu rrent source. T his
ci rc uit when utilizing microwa ve transistors was operated with a return to zero
d igital format (see Section 3.7) a t I Gbit s-' [Ref 201.
A major difference bet ween the drive circuits of Figs. 10 .11 a nd 10.12 is t he
a bsence a nd use respectively o f feedback control for adjustment of the lasser

'.

f~ .10 .12 An EeL competible hIgh ' !)t 'd Il ur drl.,. circuit IFl" . 20).
OPTICAL FIB ER SYSTEMS 40'

o utput le....el. For this reason it is unlikely that the shunt drive ci rc uit o f Fig.
10 .1 1 would be used for a system application. Some form of feedback control
is generally required to ensure continuo us la ser o pera tion becau se the device
lasing threshold is a sensitive function of temperature. Also the threshold level
tend s to increase as the laser ages follow ing an increase in internal device
losse s. Although lasers may be cooed to com pensate fo r temperature vari a-
lion s. ageing is not so easily accommodated by the same process. However.
both problems may be ov ercome through co ntrol of the las er bias u sing a feed-
back tec hniq ue. T his may be achieved using low speed feedback circuits which
adj ust the generally static bias curren t when necessa ry. Fo r this purpose it is
usually found necessary to mo nito r the light o utput from the la ser in o rder to
keep some aspect consta nt.
Several strategies of va rying complexity a re available to provide automatic
ou tput level control for the laser. The sim plest and perhap s most common
fo rm of las er drive circuit incorporating optical feedback is the mean power
control circ uit shown in F ig. 10.13. Often the monitor detector con sists of a
cheap, slow photodiode po sitioned next to the rear fac e of the laser package as
indicated in Fig. 10.13. Altern atively, an optical coupler at the fiber input can
be used to direct some of the radiation emitted from the laser into the monitor
photod iode. The detected signal is integrated and compared with a reference
by an operational amplifier which is used to servo-control th e d .c . bia s applied
to the la ser. Thus the mean optical power is maintained co nsta nt by varying
the thresho ld c urrent level. This technique is suitable for both digital and
a nalog transmission.
A n alternative control me thod for digital systems which offers accurate
threshold tracking and very little device dependence is the switch-on delay
technique illustrated in F ig. 10.14 IRef. 24 1. This circuit mon itors the swi tc h-
on delay of an optical pulse in order to control the laser bias current. T he
switch -on delay is measured fo r a zero level set below threshold and the feed-

MOlli t",
pilot"" ,,,,", _
---

.... 10.'1 Melli ""'., 'u llMcl& IlIf1lul\ fo r oorrtrol c1 th l ltur bln cumlnt•
.' .
 402 OPTICAL FIBEA COM MUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

"',ko:
",
1).••
... ;. ~
dr, ;",i'
\'
'-
-'" 0. ",. ~~
ploo<ooJOcKk
J
•• •
. """ r -
\~i

ri ~

e
"
<,
In" , ••"..
-,

,•
'
"<, I- f ;"." ...:Ilb
lou l"" ",·,,,, .. 10'

Flg.10.14 Switch-on delay feed back lase r co nt rol circuit [Ref. 2 4].

back is set to a constant fixed delay to control it. Hence, the circuit provides a
reference signal proportional to the del ay period. This signa l IS used to control
the bias level. T he technique requires a fast monitor photod iode as well as a
wideband amplifier to allow measurement of the small delay periods. It is also
essential that the zero level is set below the lasing t hreshold beca use the feed-
back loop will only stabilize for a finite delay (i.e. the delay falls 10 zero at the
" threshold).
A majo r disadvantage. however. with just controlling the laser bias current
is that it does not compensate for .... ariations in the laser slope efficiency. The
mod ulation current for the device is preset and does not tak e into account any
slope changes with temperature and ageing. In order to compensate for such
changes. the a.c. and d.c. components of the mon itored light output must be
processed independently. This is especially important in the case of high bit
rate digital systems where control o f tbe on and 01T levels as well as the light
level is required. A circuit which utilizes both a.c. and d.c. information in the
laser output to control the device drive current and bias independently is
shown in Fig. 10. 15 [Ref. 201. The electrical output from the monitor
photodiode is fed into a low drift d.c. amplifier Al and into a wideband
amplifi er A2. Therefore the mean value of the laser output power P«ave) is
proportional to the output fro m A J whilst the a.c. content of the monitoring
signal is peak detected after the amplifier A2. The peak signals correspond to
the maximum P« max) and the minimum P«min) laser output powers within a
certain time interval. The difference signal proportional to (P, (max) - P, (min))
is acquired in A J and compared with a drive reference voltage in order to
control the current ou tput fro m A 4 and conseq uently the laser drive current. In
this way the modulation amplitude of the laser is controlled. Control of the
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 403
Dri..e control
La,., dr;,," cirouit
Bi>, oontrol

" r-,
e
V"
3O/~2~ V
r-r-
{- - Monitor
"
I'llutodi<xie ,l. Bi". ref.
Y$>-1
- 1~ A' P"k-"C '.. e <,
detector
I~,. V /'
_ Driv< ref.

fig.10.15 A laser feedback control circuit which uses a.c. and d.c. information in the
monitored light output to control the laser drive and bias currents
independently [Ref. 20).

laser bias current is achieved from the difference between the output signal of
Ai (P.(ave)) and P.(min) which is acquired in A5. The output voltage of A5
which is proportional to P.(min) is compared with a bias reference voltage in
A6 which supplies a current output to control the laser d.c. bias. This feedback
control circuit was designed for use with the laser drive circuit shown in Fig.
10.12 to give digital operation at bit rates in the gigahertz range.

10.3 THE OPTICAL RECEIVER CIRCUIT

The noise performance for optical fiber receivers incorporating both major
detector types (the ]ri-n and avalanche photcdiode) was discussed in Chapter
9. Receiver noise is of great importance within optical fiber communications as
it is the factor which limits receiver sensitivity and therefore can dictate the
overall system design. It was necessary within the analysis given in Chapter 9
to consider noise generated by electronic amplification (i.e. within the pre-
amplifier) of the low level signal as well as the noise sources associated with the
optical detector. Also the possible strategies for the configuration of the pre-
amplifier were considered (see Section 9.4) as a guide to optimization of the
receiver noise performance for a particular application. In this section we
extend the discussion to consider different possible circuit arrangements which
may be implemented to achieve low noise preamplification as well as further
amplification (main amplification) and processing of the detected optical
signal.
A block schematic of an optical fiber receiver is shown in Fig. 10.16.
Pcllcwingthe linear conversion of the received optical signal into an electrical
current at the detector, it il amplified to obtain a suitable signal level. Initial
ampllftcatlon II perfar_m the preamplifier circuit where it is essential that
Iddldonal nolH J. _t9tl&1~ in order to avoid corruption of the
•
! ,I

404 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS: PRI NCIPLES AND PRACTICE

....
\ )Pt t<al Opt ical
okb:<1uI' f- 1't~... ~11I "" - \l ~ , n
.."j>lif ...
EQ...h U .
f- r~ ... Q UIp"1

fig . 10.16 3 100;k schematic showing the major etemeo ts 01 3ll oplio;al fibe r receiver.

received signal. As noise sou rce s . . . . ithin the preamplifier may be dominant. its

I
,
.,,
configuration and design are major factors in determining the receiver
sensitivity. The main a mplilier provides additional low noise amplifi cation of
the sig na l to give an increased signal level fo r the follo wing c irc uits•
• Although optical detectors are very linear devices a nd do no t themselves
int roduce significant d isto rtio n onto the signal, other component s within the
optical fiber communication system may exhibit nonlinea r behavior. For
instance, the received optical signal may be distorted due to the dispersive
mechanisms within the optical fiber. Alternatively the tran sfer functio n of the
pre am plifier- main amplifi er co mbination may be such that the input signal
becomes distorted (especi ally the ca se with the high impedance front end pre-
am plifi er). Hence, to compen sate for this distortion and to provide a suitable
signal sh ape for the filter. a n equ alizer is ofte n included in the receiver.lt may
precede or follow the main am plifier, o r may be incorpo rated in the functions
of the amplifier and filter .' In Fig. 10.1 6 the equalizer is shown as a separate
elemen t following the a mplifier and preceding the filter.
The functio n of the fin a l element in the receiver, the filter. is 10 maximize the
received signal to noi se ratio whilst preserving the essential features of the
signal. In d igital system s t he function of the filter is primarily to reduce
intersymbol interference . whereas in analog system s it is generally req uired to
hold the amplitude and phase response of the received signal within certain
limits. The filter is also de signed to red uce thc noise bandwidth as well a s in-
band noise levels.
Finally. the general receiver consisting of the elemen ts depicted in Fig. 10.1 6
is often referred to as a linear channel because all o perations o n the received
o ptica l signal may be considered to be mathematically linear.
,
10.3.1 The Preamplifier
The choice of circuit configuration for the preamplifi er is largely dependent
upon t he system application. Bipolar or field effect tran sistor s (FETs) can be
o perated in three useful connections. These are the common emitter or source,
the common base or gate. a nd the emitter o r source follower for the bipolar
a nd field effect transisto rs respectively. Each con nection has characteristics
which will contribute to a pa rticular preamplifier configuration. It is therefore
useful to discuss the three basic preamplifier structure, ( lew impedance, hilh
im pedance and uansimpedance front end) and ind icate polrible chotcn of'

"'~ ---n.
_"'_...~. " - •';' ···t;;;';"l J 'r ·' ':;;- - '"'IIit::~ilIl
-.-1::
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 406

transistor connection. 10 th is context the discu ssion is independent of the type

of optical detector utilized. However. it must be noted that there are a num ber
of significan t differences in the performance cha racteristics between the p-i-fl
a nd a va lanche phorodiode (see Chapter 8) which must be considered within
the o verall design of the receiver.
The simplest prea mplifier struct ure is the low input impedance voltage
am plifier. This design is usually implemented using a bipolar transistor con-
figuration because of the high input impedance of FETs, The comm on emitter
and the grounded emitter (without a n emitter resistor) amplifier shown in Fig.
lO. J 7 a re favored connections, as they may be designed with reasona bly lo w
input impedance and therefore give operatio n over a moderate bandwidth
without the need for equalization. However. this is achieved at the expense of
increased therm al noise d ue to the low effective load resistance presented to the
detector. Nevertheless it is possible to reduce the thermal noise contribution of
this preamplifier by choosing a transistor with characteristics which give a
high cu rrent gain at a low emitter current in order to maintain the bandwidth
of the stage. Also an inductance may be inserted at the collector to provide
partial equalization for any integration performed by the stage. The alternative
connection giving very low input impedance is the common bas e c ircuit
Unfortunately this configura tion has an input impedance which gives
insufficient power gain when connected to the high impedance of the optical
detector.
The preferred prea mplifi er configurations for low noise operation use either
a high impedance integrating front end or a transsnpedance amplifier (see Sec-
tion s 9.4.2 and 9.4.3). C areful design employing these circuit structures can
fac ilitate high gain cou pled with tow noise performance and therefore

~~ ,
...
..

...
<... _
"
A ~_ICldlodl witt! I QrOIoIndld
.
.
.."mer, low Input I", pldl nce vol tlgt
 406 OPTICAL FIBER COM MU NICATIONS : PR INCIPLES A ND PRACTICE

I enha nced receiver sensitivity. Although the bipolar transistor incorporated in

the emitter follower circuit may be used to realize a high impedance front end
,I a mplifier, the FET is generally employed for this purpose because o f its low
noise operation. It was indicated in Section 9.5 that th e grounded source FET
connection wa s a useful circ uit to provide a high imped ance front end
1,
amplifier. The same configuration with a source re sistor (commo n source con-
nection) sho wn in Fig. 10.18 pro vides a similar high input impedance a nd ma y
II also be used (often both configurations arc referred to as the common source
r. connection). When operating in th is mode the FET power ga in a nd output
I, impedance are both high. which tends to minimize an y noise contributions
from the following stages. It is especially the case when the volta ge gain of the
common source stage is minimized in order to reduce the Miller capacitance
[Ref. 271a ssociated with the gate to drain capac itance of the F ET. This may be
achieved b y follo wing the common source sta ge with a stage having a lo w
input impedance.
Two config urations which provide a low input im pedance stage are sho wn
in Fig. 10.1 9. Figure 1O.I9(a) shows the grounded so urce FET followed by a
bipolar transistor in the common emitter connection with shunt feedback o ver
the stage. Another favored configuration to reduce Miller capacitance in the
first stage FET is shown in Fig. 10.19(b). In this case the second stage consists
of a bipolar transistor in the common base confi guratio n which. with the initial
grounded source FET, forms the cascade configuration.
The high impedance front end s tructure provides a very lo w noise pre-
am plifier design but suffers from two major dr awb acks. The first is with regard
to equaliza tion which mu st gene ra lly be ta ilo red to the am plifie r in o rder to
compensate for d istortion introduced onto the signal. Secondly, the high
input-impedance a pproach suffe rs from a lack of dyna mic range which occurs

H I'CC

'-
" ,"
" s

,i, s:
"F

-
Fig. 10.18 An FET com mon source preamplifier c onfi g ur~tiQn wh ich proylde, hIgh Input
Im pedl l'lCft for the p-J-n pho todiode .
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEM S 407

~
,

r-
>Y_
~--
,...
,..,
f-

,,, ~

".
J
.2~IOCIOI
,y-

>

., _ b-

Fig. 10.19 High il'1pul im peda nce p ream plifle' coofi g l>,atlons: Ill) grOl>nd el1 SOU fc.ll FET
followed bv co rnman e m ;tll!f connection w ith sh unt tee CbacK; lbl ce s ceoe
ccooecne n Th e s e par ate bles volta ge ind icates tne U5 e of e ithe r p-i-n o r
a vala nche pho lodiode.

because the cha rge o n the input c apa citance from the lo w freq uency corn-
ponents in the signal builds up o ver a period of time. causing prem atur e satura-
tion of the am plifier at high input signallevels. Therefore although th e circuits
shown in F ig. 10. 19 are examples of possible high impedance integrating front
end amplifier configuration s, simila r connections may be employed with
overall feedback (to the first stage) 10 obtain a transimpedance pre amplifier.
The transimpedance or shunt feedback amplifier find s wide applicat ion in
preamplifier dulJn for optical fiber communications. This front end str ucture
which aetI u • 0UITIDC-'tClkq;1 converter aives low noise performance without
lhOiov"" ~.lIud_ lmpooed by the blab Input impedance fron t
" "" . ,, <~ . .
 408 OPT ICAL FIBE R COM MUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

... '-
~

L ~ .
,., --
-"
,. + 15 V

....t...
~
e-
pnp

"" ...
t..;' P~

= sv
~

+I$ V
+
"
"'
Fig,10.2O Tr ansirn peda nc e tro nt 9r'ld confi guratio ns: (II) bi polar nensisrc r design [Refs.
28 a nd 29 1; lbi FET fro nt en d an d bipola r tra nsisto r cascade s tructu re IRef.
3 2).

end design. It also provides greater dynamic range tha n the high L'1 PUt
impeda nce structure. However. in practice the noise performa nce of the
transimpedance amplifier is not quite as good as thaI achieved with the high
impedance structure due 10 the noise contribution from the feedback resistor
(see Section 9.4.3). Nevertheless the transimpedan ce design incorpor ating a
large value of feedback resistor can achieve a noise perfor mance which
approaches that of the high impedance front end.
Two examples of tr ansimpcdance front end configurations are shown in Fig.
10.20. Figure 10.20(a) illustrates a bipolar transistor structure consisting of a
common emitter stage followed by an emitter follower [Refs. 28 and 291 with
L overall feedback through resistor Rr. The ou tput sianal level from this
transimpedance pair may be increased by the additton of a second ccmmcn
emitter stage (Ref. JOJ after the emitter follow er. This ,ulc II not UIU.uy

: 0- ' • • • "'-
QPTlCAl FIBER SYSTEM S 409

....r- ,,
v ,
<,
,
--
.
e
6
y !
r. ,
I
I
Fig . 10.21
-
A typical clrcutt for an ooerercn ar amplifier t ranslmpedence front end IRe!.
331.

included in the feedback loop. An FET front end transimpedance design is

shown in Fig. IO.2Il:b) [Ref. 321.
The circuit consists of a grounded source configuration followed by a
bipo lar transistor c ascade with feedbac k ov er the three stages. In this con-
figuration the bias currents for the bipolar stages and the feedback resistance
may be chosen to give good open loop bandwidth whilst making the noise con-
tribution fro m these stages negligible.
Finally, for lower-bandwidth, sho rter-haul applicatio ns an FET operational
amplifier front end is often adequate [Ref. 331. Such a transimpedance pre-
amplifier circuit which is generally u sed wit h a Jri-Il ph otodiod e is shown in
Fig. 10.21. The choice of the operational amplifier is dependent on the gain
versus bandwidth product for the device. In a simple digit al receiver design all
t hat may be required in addition to the circuit shown in Fig. 10.21 is a logic
(e.g. TIL) interface stage following the a mplifier.

10.3.2 Automatic Gain Control (AGe)

It may be noted from the previous section thai the receiver circuit must
provide .a steady reverse bias voltage for the optical detector. With a fr i- n
photodiode this is not critical and a voltage of between 5 and 80 V supplying
an extremely low current is sufficient. The avalanche photodiode req uires a
much larger bias voltage o f between 100 and 400 V which defines the rnul-
tiplication factor for the device. An op timum multiplication factor is usually
cho sen so that the receiver signal to noise ratio is max imized (see Section
9,3.3). The multiplication fac tor for the APD varies with the device
temperature (see Section 8.9.5) making provision of fine control for the bias
volt aa e neces..ry in order (0 maintain tile optimum multiplication factor.
However, the multiplicatiOn fa.et:or can be - held constant by some form of
l.101II&lIc .lla oontrol (AGe). All ad<IldOllal advlll.... ilIthe u11 of AOC Ia
 410 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES A ND PRACTICE

AJ'O Ill. ""1'9Ir

'-\

I "
I c

Fig. 10.22 Bias of an APD wit~ a eonstant cur rent scorce to provide simpl e AGe ,

that it reduces the dynamic range of the signals applied to the preamplifi er
giving increased optical dynamic range at the receiver input.
On e method of providing A Ge is simply to bias the APD with a constant
d.c. current so urce 1M , as illustrated in F ig. 10.22. The constant current
source is decoupled by a capacitor C at all signal frequencies to prevent gain
modula tion. When the mea n optical input power is known. t he mea n c urrent to
the A PD is defined by the bi.as which gives a constant multiplicatio n factor
(gain) at all temperature s. Any variation in the multiplication factor will
produce a variation in t he charge on C. thus adjusting the bias sing ofthe APD
back to the required multiplicatio n facto r. Therefore the output c urrent from
the photoderecto r is o nly defined by the input c urrent from the constant
current source, giving fu ll automatic gain control. However , this sim ple A Ge
technique is dependent on a constant , mean optical input power level. and takes
no a ccount of dark current generated within the detector.

r'0'1>1_w
I f,.h ' /"
- ," <,
-,- s- o..,pa'
r-, ~,

V 11- ~,

= C'

Rg. 10.23
- ~
------ , •
,

Bial of I n APQ by peek del ecl lOt1 al'Id f. .dbllCk to proy lcM AQc.

•. J;i;"~" '."1, '.. •

'"
,.
 OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEM S 411

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412 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLE S A ND PRACTIC E

A more widely used met hod whic h allows fo r the effect of va riatio ns in the
det ector dar k current whilst providing critical AGe is to pea k d etect the a.c.
coupled signal after suitable low noise amplification as sho wn in Fig. 10.23.
The signa l from tbe final stage of the main amplifier is com pa red with a preset
reference leve1 and fed back to adj u st the high voltage bias supply in order to
maintain a constant signal level. This effectively creates a constant current
source with the d ark current subtracted.
A fu rther advantage of this technique is that it may also be used to provide
AGC for the main amplifier giving full control of the receiver gain .
A di gital receiver circuit for an APD employin g full AG e is shown in Fig.
10 .24 IRef. 34 ]. The A P D is followed by a transi mpeda nce preamplifier
em ploy ing bipolar transisto rs. the o utput of which is connected into a ma in
am plifier consisting of a va riable gain a mplifier fo llowed by a fixed gain
am plifier. T he first stage of the main amplifier is p rovided by a d ual gate FET
w hich give s a variable gain over a range of 20 dB. This variabl e gain amplifier
also inco rporates two stages, e ach of which consist of an em itter coupled pair
with a gain variation of 14 dB . The following fi xed gain amplifier gives a 2 V
peak to peak signal to the low pa ss fil ter, the output of which is maintained at
I V pe ak to peak b y the A GC, Peak detection is provided in the AGe where
t he signal level is compared with a p reset reference prior to control of the gain
fo r both the A P D a nd the ma in amplifier. T he gain of the AP D is contro lled
via a sim ple d.c. to d .c. converter w hich supplies the bias fro m a low voltage
input. whereas the gain o f the main a m plifi er is cont ro lled by a n input o n the
dual gate F ET front end. This circuit al low s a gain va ria tion o f 26 a nd 4 7 d B
for the: A P D and the main am plifier respectively. The APD bias circuit is
d esigned to protect the dev-ice against possible excess po.....er d issipation at very
high optical input power levels as well as excess po w er dissipatio n when there
is no optical input.

, 0.3.3 Equalization
The linear cha nnel provided by the o ptical fiber receiver is o ften required to
perform equalization as well as a mplificatio n of the detect ed o ptica l signal. In
o rde r to d iscu ss the fun ct ion o f the equalizer it is u seful to ass ume the light
fa lling on the detector to con sist of a series of pu lses given by :

••
E<>o
Pn(t) = k __ Ukhp(t -kt) (1 0.1)

where hp(t) is the received pu lse shape, Uk = 0 or I corresponding to the binary

info rmation transmitted and t is the pulse repetition time o r pu lse spacing, In
d igital transmission t correspondi ng to the bit period. although the p ulse length
does not necessarily fall the ent ire lime period t. For a typical optical fiber link,

•
• •
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 413

the received pulse shape is dictated by the transmitted pulse sha pe II. (I) and the
fiber impu lse response hl(t} following :
(10.2)

where . denotes convolution. Hence determination o f the received pulse shape

req uires knowledge of the fiber impulse response which is generally difficult to
characterize. However, it can be shown (Ref. 37 ] for fiber which exhibits mode
coupling, that the impulse response is close to a Gaussian shape in both the
time and frequency domain.
It is likely that the pulses given by Eq. (10 .1) will overlap due to pulse
broadening caused by dispersion on the link giving intersymbol interference
(l SI). F ollowing detection and amplification Bq. (10.1) may be written in term s
of a voltage VA ( I) as:

v,,(t) =
-.t UthA(I-kt ) (10.3)
t'''" -<10

where the response hA(I) includes an y equalization required to compensate for

distortion (e.g. integration) introduced by the amplifier. Therefore, although
there is equalization for degradations caused by the a mplifier, distortion
caused by the channel and the resulting intersymbol interferen ce is still
included in h4 (t - kt). The pulse overlap causing this lnteraymbol interference
may be reduced through the incorporation of a suitable equalizer with a fre-
quency response Hc~(ro) such th at :

(10.4)

where hO'Jl. (t ) is the desired output pulse shape and 1 indicates F ourier
transformation. A block diagram indicating the pulse shapes in the time and
frequency domains at the various points in an o ptical fiber system is shown in
Fig. 1O.2S.
An equalizer characterized by Eq. ( lOA) will provide high frequency
enh ancement in the linear channel to compensate for high frequency roll 00' in
the received pulses, thus giving the desired pulse shape. However. in o rder to
construct such an equalizer we require knowledge of h,,(t) and therefore hp(t).
In turn this needs information on the fiber impulse respon se hf(t) which may not
be easily obtained.
Nevertheless the conventional transversal equalizer shown in F ig. 10.26
may be incorporated into the linear channel to keep lSI at tolerable levels. even
it it i, difficult to deaip a circuit which gives the optimum system response
Indi.&lId In I!q. (l0A~

..
c:
414 OpnCA L FIBER COM MUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

.. (I l
I<;f...)

R«ri<.. ~u"iI..
..." b «IwoIiud l ord..."
..,.rtif"" disl oMi""

- ~~I l • • ~(t) . ,~ •• ('J

lI,..(w ) • H~f w )lf""( w)

flg .10.25 Block schematic of an opt ical flber system illustrat ing the transm itted and
received opti cal puis. shapes together with electrical pulse shape at the
linear channel output .

The transversal equalizer consists of a delay line lapped at t e second

intervals. Each tap is connected through a variable gain device with tap
coefficients C'; to a s umming amplifier. Inrersymbol interference is reduced by
filtering the input signal and by the computing values for the tap coefficients
which minimize the peak lSI. It is likely that further reduct ion in lSI will be
accomplished using adaptive equalization which has yet to be rigorously
applied to optical fiber communications. This topic is discussed further in
Ref. 40.

l op'"
" '.

I,
x) xl '. x
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•
• 2:
All. '0.21
-
The tra,......'..' eqUIlin ' . mploylng e la pped dl ley lin• .
OPT1CA L FIBER SYSTEM S 41.

10.4 SYSTEM DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS

Man y of the problems associated with the design of optical fiber communica-
tio n systems occur a s a result of the unique properties of the glass fiber as a
transmission medium . However, in common with metallic line tran smission
sys tems, the dominant de sign criteria for a specific application using either
digital or analog transmission techniques are the required transmission
dista nce and the rate of inform ation tran sfer.
W ithin optical fiber communica tions these criteria a re directly related to the
major transm ission c haracteristics o r the fiber. namely optical attenuatio n and
dispersion . Unlike metallic conductors where the attenuation (which tends to
be the dominant mechanism) can be adj usted by simply c hanging the con -
ductor size. entirely different factors limit the information tran sfer capability of
optical fibers (see Chapter 3). Nevertheless it is mainly these fac tors. together
with the associated constraints within the terminal equipment, which finally
limit the maximum distance that may be tolerated between the optical fi ber
tran smitter and receiver. W here the terminal equipment is more widely spaced
th an this maximum distance, a s in lon g-haul telecommunication applications,
it is necessary to insert repeaters at regular intervals as shown in Fig. 10.27.
The repeater incorporates a line receiver in order to convert the optical signal
b ack into the electrical regime where, in th e case of an alog tra nsm ission, it is
am plified and equalized (see Section 10_3.3) before it is retransmitted as an
o ptical signal via a line transmitter. When digital transmission techniq ues are
used the repeater also regenera tes the original digital signet in the d ectrical
regime (a regenerative repeater which is often simply called a regenerator)
before it is retransmitted as a digital optical signal. In this ca se the repeater
may additionally provide alarm. supervision and engineering ord er wire
facilities.
The installatio n of repea ters SUbstantially increases the cost and complexity
o f any line commu nication system. Hence a major design consideration
for lon g-haul telecommunication systems is the maximum distance of
unrepeatered transm ission so that the number of in term ediate repeaters may

1'0'"" f .. d

Opt;.;.l fib....

h l"'''''' 11.<1'' '''0<

... '0.17 fb. uu of ~ltlJ1 In I lonlil"".ul opticdl fb llr communiClllon l\'Item.

.' . ' --
 416 OPTICAL FIB ER CO M MUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

be reduced to a minimum, tn this respect optical fiber systems display a

mar ked improvement o ver alternative line transmi ssion systems using metallic
cond ucto rs. However, this maj or adva ntage of opticalliber com munications is
some what reduced due to the present req uirement for electrical signal process-
ing at the repeater. This necessitates the supply of electrical po wer to the inter-
mediate repeaters via metallic conductors a s may be o bserved in Fig. 10,27.
Before an y system design procedu res can be initiated it is essential that
certain ba sic system requirements are specified. These specifications include :
Cal transmission type : di gital or analo g ;
(b) a cceptable system fidelity gener ally specified in terms of the received HER
for digital s ystems o r the received SN R a nd signa l distortion for a nalog
, sy ste ms ;
(c) required tra nsmission b andwidth;
(d ) acceptable sp acing bet ween the terminal equ ipmen t or intermed iate
repeaters;
(e) co st ;
(f ) reliability,

Ho wever, the exclusive use of the above specificati ons inh erently assumes that
sys tem components are available which will allow any system, once specified,
to be designed and implemented . Unfo rtunately this is not a lways the case.
especially when the desired result is a wideband, long-haul system. In thi s
instance it may be necessary to ma ke choices by considering factors such as
a vaila bility, reliability, cost a nd ease o f installation a nd operation, before
specifica tions (a}-{d) can be fully d etermined A sim ilar approach must be
ad opted in lower-bandwidth . sho rter-ha ul applications where there is a req uire-
ment for the use of specific components w hich may restrict the system perfor-
mance. H ence it is likely that the system designer will find it necessary to con-
sider the possible component choices in conjunction with the basic sys tem
req uirements.

10.4.1 Component Choice

I
Th e sys tem designer has many choices when selecting co mponents for an
I optic al fi ber com munication system. In order to exclude certain co mponents at
I, the o utset it is useful if the operating wavelength of the system is established
(i.e. shorter wavelength region 0.8- 0.9 IJ.m or longer wavelength region
1.1- 1.6 IJ.m). This decision will largely be dictated by the overall requirements
I for the system performance. the ready availability of suitable reliable com-
ponents, a nd cost. H ence the maj or component choices a re :
(a) Optical fi ber type and parameters. M ultimode o r single mode; size, refrac-
tive index profile, a ttenuatio n, dispersion, mode couplin a, stren gth, cablinj,
jointing, etc.
",- - -
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 417

(b) Source type and characteristics. Laser or LED; optical power launched
into the fiber, rise and fall time, stability, etc.
(c) Transmitter configuration. Design for digital or analog transmission; input
impedance, supply voltage, dynamic range, optical feedback, etc.
(d) Detector type and characteristics, p-n, jri-n, or avalanche photodiode;
responsivity, response time, active diameter, bias voltage, dark current, etc.
(e) Receiver configuration. Preamplifier design (low impedance, high impe-
dance or transimpedance front end), BER or SNR, dynamic range, etc.
(f) Modulation and coding. Source intensity modulation; using pulse modula-
tion techniques for either digital (e.g. pulse code modulation, adaptive delta
modulation) or analog (pulse amplitude modulation, pulse frequency
modulation, pulse width modulation, pulse position modulation) transmis-
sion. Also encoding schemes for digital transmission such as biphase
(Manchester) and delay modulation (Miller) codes [Ref. 7]. Alternatively
analog transmission using direct intensity modulation or frequency modu-
lation of the electrical subcarrier (subcarrier FM). In the latter technique
the frequency of an electrical subcarrier is modulated rather than the fre-
quency of the optical source as would be the case with direct frequency
modulation. The electrical subcarrier, in turn, intensity modulates the
optical source (see Section 10.7.5).
Digital and analog modulation techniques which require coherent detec-
tion are under investigation but system components which will permit these
modulation methods to be utilized are not widely available (see Section
10.8).
Decisions in the above areas are interdependent and may be directly related to
the basic system requirements. The potential choices provide a wide variety of
economic optical fiber communication systems. However, it is necessary that
the choices are made in order to optimize the system performance for a
particular application.

10.4.2 Multiplexing
In order to maximize the information transfer over an optical fiber com-
munication link it is usual to multiplex several signals onto a single fiber. It is
possible to convey these multichannel signals by multiplexing in the electrical
time or frequency domain, as with conventional electrical line or radio com-
munication, prior to intensity modulation of the optical source. Hence, digital
pulse modulation schemes may be extended to multichannel operation by time
division multiplexing (TOM) narrow pulses from multiple modulators under
the control of a common clock. Pulses from the individual channels are
interleaved and transmitted sequentially, thus enhancing the bandwidth utiliza-
tion of a. single fiber link.
Alternatively, a number of baMlband channels may be combined by fre-
quonoy dlvlllo!l mlllllp1txlnJ (FDM~ In FDM tho optlooJ OhOMoI bandwidth
 418 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

is divided into a number of nonoverlap ping freq uency bands and eacb signal is
assigned one of these b and s of freq uencies. T he individ ua l signals c an be
, extracted from the combined F DM sign al by appropriate electrical filterin g at
1 the receive terminal. Hence fr equency division m ultiplexing is generally per-
formed electrically a t the transmit ter minal prior to intensity modulation of a
'I single optical so urce. However. it is possible to utilize a number o f o ptical
sources each operating at a different wavelength on the single fi ber link. In this
techniq ue. often referred to a s wavelength d ivision multiplexing (W D~f), the
:I separation and extraction of the multiplexed sign als (i.e. wavelength separa -
tio n) is performed with optical filters (e.g. interference filters, diffraction
grating filters, or pris m filters) [Ref 411.
F mal ly , a multiplexing technique whic h does not involve the application of
sever al message signals onto a single fiber is known as space division mul-
tiplexing (SDM ). In SDM each signal channel is carried on a separate fiber
within a fiber bu ndle o r multifiber ca ble form . The good optical isolation
• offered by fibers means that cross co upling between channels can be made
negligible. However , this technique necessitates an increase in the number of
optical co mponents required (e.g. fiber . connectors, sources, detecto rs) with in
a p artic ular system a nd therefore is not widely used.

10.5 DIGITAL SYSTEMS

Most of the future expansion of the telecommunication network is being

planned around d igital telephone exchanges linked by digital transmission
systems. T he shift towards digitizing. the netwo rk followed the introductio n of
d igital circuit techniques a nd . especially, integrated circuit technology which
made th e transmission of d iscrete time signals both advantageous and
economic. Digital tra nsmission systems generally give superio r performance
over th eir analog counterparts as well a s providing an ideal channel for data
communic ation s and comp atibility with digital computing techniques.
O ptical fiber communication is well suited to baseband digital tran smis sion
in severa l importa nt ways. For instance. it offers a tremendous advantage with
regard to the a cceptable signal to noise ratio (SN R ) at the optical fiber receiver
over analog transm ission by some 20-30 dB (for practical systems) a s
indicated in the noise considerations of Sectio n 9.2. Also the use o f baseband
digital sign alling reduces pro blem s involved with optical source (and some-
times detector) nonlinearities and temperature dependence which may severely
affect a nalog transmission. Therefore. most high capacity o ptical fiber corn -
mnnlcauon systems convey d igital information in the baseband using intensity
modulation (L\1) of the optical source.
In common with electrical transmission systems, analog signals (e.g. speech)
may be d igitized for t ransmission utilizing pulse code modulation (p e M).
Encoding the analog signal into a digital bit pattern is performed by Initially
'I
-. ~
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 419

sa mpling the analog signal at a frequency in excess of the N yquist rate (i.e.
greater than twice the ma ximum signal frequency). Within the European
telecommunication network where the 3 dB telephone bandwidth is defined as
3.4 kHz, the sampling rate is 8 kH z. Hence, the amplitude of the constant
width sampling pulses varies in proportion to the sample values of the analog
signal giving a discrete time signal known as pulse amplitude modul ation
(PAM) as indicated in Fig. 10.28. The sampled analog signal is then quantized
into a number of discrete levels, each of which are designated by a binary code
which provides the PCM signal. T his process is also illustrated in Fig. 10.28
using a linear quantizer with eight levels (or seven steps) so that each PAM
sample is encoded into three binary bits. The analog signal is thus digitized and
ma y be transmitted as a baseband signal or alternatively be modulated by
amplitude, frequency o r phase shift keying IRef. 431. However. in practical
PCM systems for speech transmission, nonlinear encoding (A law in Europe
and j.t law in North America) is generally employed over 128 levels (27 ) giving
eight binary bits per sample (seven bits for code levels plus one polarity bit).
He nce, the bandwidth requirement for PCM transmission is substantially
greater (in this case by a factor of approximately 16) than th e corresponding
baseband analog transmission. This is not generally a problem with optical
fiber communications becau se of the wideband nature of the optical channel.
Nonl inear encoding may be implemented via a mechani sm known as co m-
panding where the lnpur signa l is compressed before transmission to give a
nonlinea r encoding characteristic and expanded again at the receive terminal
after decoding. A typical nonlinear input-output characteristic giving com -
pression is shown in Fig. 10.29. Companding is used to reduce the quar aiza.
tion error on small amplitude analog signal levels when they are encoded from
PAM to PCM. The Quantization error (i.e. the ro unding off to the nearest

...,
A N~
.,
C..,. "'-I,
7- . -
,
•
,-
1-1- -
0+, , , , ,,
, ,, , • a c Code ""mocr

101 III 110 01 1 nn 000 010 Binu.,· r<pr<",ntloti""

p, .
Jl.I1 n n. .n Jl _ .It. PCM 1IigR. (N il-I)

". '0.11 Tht Ql,IIntlutlon tnd . ncod1ng of . n enelog Ilgnal Into PCM wing e lin&af
q ~ wtm tlQm IMlIe.
420 OPTICAL FIBER CO MMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPl.ES AND PRACTICE

."

roo. to.29 A typica l nonlinear lnput -outpe t charectensuc which provides compression.

disc rete level) is exhibited as distortion or noise on the signal (often called
qua ntization noise). Companding tapers the step size. thu s red ucing the
dist ance between levels for small amplit ude signals whilst increasing the
dista nce between levels for higher amplitude signals. This substantially reduces
the qu antization noise on small amplit ude signals at the expense of slightly
increased quantization noise, in term s of signal amplitude. for the larger signal
levels. The corresponding SNR improvement for small a mplitude signals sig-
nificantly reduces the overall signal degradation of the system due to the
qua ntization process.
A bloc k schematic of a simplex (one direct ion only) baseband PC M system
is sho wn in Fig. 1O.30(a). The optical interface is not show n but reference may
be made to Fig. 10.1 which illustrates the general optical fiber communica tion
system. It may be noted from Fig. 10.30(a) that the received PC M waveform is
decoded back to PAM via the rever se process to encoding , and then simply
passed th rough a low pass filt er to recover the original analog signal.
Th e conversion of a continuous anal og waveform into a discrete PCM
signal allows a number of an alog channels to be time division multiplexed
(TOM) for simulta neous tran smission down one optical fiber link as illustrated
in Fig. 1O.30(b). Th e encoded sa mples from the different c hannels a re
interleaved within the multiplexer to give a single composite signal consisting
of all the interlea ved pulses. This signal is then tra nsmitted over t he o ptical
cha nnel. At the receive terminal the interleaved samples are separated by a
sync hronous switch or demultiplexer before each ana log signal is recon-
structed from the appro priate set of samples. Time division multiplexing a
num ber of channels onto a single link can be used with a ny form of digital
transmission and is frequently employed in the transmission of dat a as well as
with t he transmission of digitized analog signals. However, the telecommunica-
tion network is prima rily designed for the tran smi ssion of analog speech
signals although the compatibility of PCM with data signals has encouraged
the ad option of digital tran smission systems.

..... ~" " '~ "

.-
",
 OPTICA L FIBER SYSTEM S 42'

.",, ,
.....
""'-
inpu,
~m"" -~ """". ~
I
I
I
I
Qu""Ii<o.. . '- ..... ""-
.~
~-
.~,

I I
1= """ ,........or I I
Tn """,""",,, ~ ••

'"
c .....""'toto. eo.....utum .~~-I~""=~·~--'---I =:. I
'''''''1'''''''') l..,bIry ...rtch) ••
•
.
, I;~l

"Sy~du"J\i. . t""" ~
,,
,,
,, ""'- ,, 1- ,,
H
11'°" , n,<><Iinl I
,,, "-- I"" .~'. 1------,
FIIII.10.30 PCM t ransmission : (el block schem atic of a baseband PCM trans rr ussron
system for sing le channel transm ission; Ibl ti me division m ultipl exin g of thre e
PCM channels onto a single uensmtsston link and subsequent dernvltlple xinq
at the link o utput.

A cu rrent European sta nd a rd for speech transmissio n using PCM o n

met allic conductors fi.e. coaxiat lme) is the 30 channel system. In this system
the PAM samples from each cha nnel are encoded into eight binary bits which
are incorpor ated into a single time slot. Time slot s fro m respective channels are
interleaved (multiplexed) into a fra me consisting of 32 time slots. The two
ad ditional time slots do not carry encoded speech but signalling and synchro-
nization inform ation. Finally, 16 frames are incorporated into a multifrarne
which is a self-conta ined timing unit. The timing fo r this line signalling
structure is show n in Fig. 10.3 1 a nd c alculated in example 10. 1.

b.mpl.10.1

The sampling rate for each sp4l8ch chann el on the 30 channel PCM svet em is B kHz
' nd each sample is encod ed into eig ht bits, Det ermine:
(I) the transmission or bit rate tor the system;
(bl the duration of a ttm e slot;
(el th e duration of a tramll li nd rnultifre rne.

S olution: l si The 30 channel PCM syst em has 32 time 51015 ea ch !!ight bits wide
w hich make up a t reme. Therefore.
num ber of bltl In • tra lT'e _ 32 x B = 256 bill

ThII ftt rne tnIoIft 1M It'anamlttlCl wfdtirl!tll MlTlpllng J*lod and thul B x 10'lrl m"

....
 ; ,

422 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS; PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

a re transm'tted per s econd. He nce. t he uaflsm;n ;on rat e tor the sV'S le m is :
I, 8 x 10J x 256 = 2.04 8 Mbit 5-
1

(b ) The b it d ura tion is s imply:

1
.,-- - = =
2 .048 x 10'
488 n iS

The refo re . the d urat io n of 8 time sial is :

8 x 488 ns = 3 .9 ItS
leI The dUfation at a frame is thus:
32 )( 3 .9 ~ = '2 5 ~

and the duration of <II m ultiframe is:

16 x 125J1S = 2 ms

;"
The signalling structure shown in Fig. 10.31 applies to 30 channel PCM
systems which were originally designed to transmit over metallic cond uctors

, •

, , 1• , • , ,
•
- - - -1,,,, - -·_-
.
,
J.9 ...
1• r,
.
~ ~l :B •
~ TS:l' ::l 11
, ,
1-._- - - - - .~ ,, ~-. _- ---- --J
tOO

..
•

I'nom 0 , , 1
• , • t e • rc
" " "
,. rs
•
---------- ,..~---------
t.,
Fta.10.31 The timing for I hlll line sigl'll lling structure of the Eu.o~.n IS'anC18rd 30
enaM el PCM SySllm : lel bill per time slot ; Ibl time 1I0ti par fram.:
leI fram • • par mu'tlfr.me.
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 423

Table 10.1 Digital bit rates for multichannel PCM transmission

transmission in Europe and North America

Europe North America

Telephone Bit rates Telephone Bit rates

channels Mbit s-' channels Mbit S-1

30 2.046 24 1.544
120 8.448 48 3.152
480 34.368 96 6.312
1920 139.364 672 44,736
7660 565.000 4032 274,176

using a high density bipolar line code (HDB 3). The increased bandwidth with
optical fiber communications allows transmission rates far in excess of
2.048 Mbit S-I. Therefore an increased number of telephone channels may be
sampled, encoded, multiplexed and transmitted on an optical fiber link. In
Europe the increased bit rates were chosen as multiples of the 30 channel
system, whereas in North America they tend to be multiples of a 24 channel
system. These bit rates and the corresponding number of transmitted telephone
channels are specified in Table 10.1.
It must be noted that a bipolar code with a zero mean level (i.e. with positive
and negative going pulses in the electrical regime) such as HDB 3 cannot be
transmitted directly over an optical fiber link unless the mean level is raised to
allow both positive and negative going pulses to be transmitted by the intensity
modulated optical source. The resultant ternary (three level) optical transmis-
sion is not always suitable for telecommunication applications and therefore
binary coding after appropriate scrambling, biphase (Manchester encoding),
delay modulation (Miller encoding), etc., is often employed. This involves
additional complexity at the transmit and receive terminals as well as
necessitating extra redundancy (i.e. bits which do not contain the transmitted
infonnation, thus giving a reduction in the information per transmitted symbol)
in the line code. This topic is considered in greater detail in Section 10.6.7.

10.8 DIGITAL SYSTEM PLANNING CONSIDERATIONS

The majority of digital optical fiber communication systems for the telecom-
munication network or local data applications utilize binary intensity modula-
tion of the optical source. Therefore we choose to illustrate the planning
considerations for digital transmission based on this modulation technique.
au,band PCM transmission using source intensity modulation is usually
dlo!tnated II PCM·IM.
424 OPTI CA L FI BER COM MU NICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRA CTICE

10.6.1 The Regenet.tlye Repe.tat

In the case or the long-ha ul, high -capacity digital systems, the most im port ant
overall system performance pa ra meter is the spacing of the regenerative
repeaters. It is therefore useful to consider the performan ce of t he digital
repeater, especially as it is usually designed with the same optical components
as the terminal equipment. Figure 10.32 shows the functional parts of a typ ical
regenerative repeater for optical fiber communications. The attenuated and
dispersed optical pulse train is detected and amplified in the recover unit. This
consists of a photodiode followed by a low noise preamplifier. The electrical
signal thu s acquired is given a further increase in power level in a main ampli-
fier prior to reshaping in order to compensate for the tran sfer characteristic of
the optical fiber (a nd the a mplifier) using a n equalizer. Depending on the
photodiode utilized, automatic gain control may be provided at this sta ge for
both the photodiode bias current and the main amplifier (see Section LO.3 .2).
Accurate timing (clock) information is then obtained from the amplified and
equalized waveform using a timing extraction circuit such as a ringing circuit
or phase locked loop. This enables precise operation of the following
regenerator circuit within the bit intervals of the original pulse train. The func-
tion of the regenerator circuit is to reco nstitute the originally trans mitted pulse
train, ideally without error. This can be achieved by setting a threshold above
which a binary one is registered, a nd below which a binary zero is recorded, as
indicated in Fig. 10.32. The regener ator circuit makes these decision s at limes
corresponding to the center of the bit intervals based on the clock information
provid ed by the timing circuit.
Hence the decision times art usually set at the mid-points between the deci-
sion level crossings of the pulse train. The pulse train is sampled at a regular
frequency equal to the bit rate, and at each sample instant a decision is
made of the most probable symbol being transmitted. The symbols are
then regenerated in their original form (either a binary one or zero) before

, ."('i bn Oplk.al
a<t<ct",
~

rllJoo<.,...
llrrl~
~

m h ",...
. - - - - - - --~

·----r---"
: b.w, o1<'te<ti<>" :
• 1\1.0,,,,
Opli<. 111
, &hle ""!f'"
'-./ ~::,~'~j~ <T
and photod iod <
_ ~pl~~
En ' 1'
ll' re,hol d d,tcctioo
and f<i, ,,,,.. liG n . .
f- On"
'.<~ll l u,
0 I" " '7
Fiber
cobl<

(,c~,ncrHor " " CU11 1 ~

/
.bia, con trol q"a " " ..;'u".

h"'.t~< " Opt",.1

~ -, /
T iminl

- I
<X lroclw, n
nnri
fIg .10.32 Block schem. tie Wlowlng 8 typical reoeneret~ . repe• •er for dlglt.' oP'tlcal
fiber eommunicetio....
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 426

retransmission as an optical signal using a source operated by an electronic

drive circuit. Hence the possible regeneration of an exact replica of the
originally transmitted waveform is a major advantage of digital transmission
over corresponding analog systems. Repeaters in analog systems filter,
equalize and amplify the received waveform, but are unable to reconstitute the
originally transmitted waveform entirely free from distortion and noise. Signal
degradation in long-haul analog systems is therefore accumulative being a
direct function of the number of repeater stages. In contrast the signal
degradation encountered in PCM systems is purely a function of the quantiza-
tion process and the system bit error rate.
Errors may occur in the regeneration process when:
(a) The signal to noise ratio at the decision instant is insufficient for an
accurate decision to be made. For instance, with high noise levels, the
binary zero may occur above the threshold and hence be registered as a
binary one.
(b) There is intersymbol interference due to dispersion on the optical fiber link.
This may be reduced by equalization which forces the transmitted binary
one to pass through zero at all neighboring decision times.
(c) There is a variation in the clock rate and phase degradations (jitter) such
as distortion of the zero crossings and static decision time misalignment.
A method which is often used to obtain a qualitative indication of the perfor-
mance of a regenerative repeater or a PCM system is the examination of the
received waveform on an oscilloscope using a sweep rate which is a fraction.of
the bit rate. The display obtained over two bit intervals duration, which is the
result of superimposing all possible pulse sequences is caned an eye pattern or
diagram. An illustration of an eye pattern for a binary system with little distor-
tion and no additive noise is shown in Fig. 1O.33(a). It may be observed that
the pattern has the shape of a human eye which is open and that the decision
time corresponds to the center of the opening. To regenerate the pulse
sequence without error the eye must be open thereby indicating a decision area
exists, and the decision crosshair (provided by the decision time and the deci-
sion threshold) must be within this open area. The effect of practical degrada-
tions on the pulses (i.e. intersymbol interference and noise) is to reduce the size
of, or close, the eye as shown in Fig. 1O.33(b). Hence for reliable transmission
it is essential that the eye is kept open, the margin against an error occurring
being the minimum distance between the decision crosshatr and the edge of the
eye.
In practice, a low bit error rate (BER) in the region 10- 7_10- 10 may be
tolerated with PCM transmission. However, with data transmission (e.g. com-
puter communications) any error can cause severe problems, and it is
necessary to incorporate error detecting and possibly correcting circuits into
thereienerator! Thi. invariably requires the insertion of a small amount of
redundancy Into ~ trllllmittod pulse train (see Section 10.6.7).-
,
426 OPTICAL FIBE R COMMUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

,
,.,
Po<ioioll , .....

Fig.10.33 Eye patte rns in binary d i; ita l ua nsrnlsslcn : h~ )

'"'
tile pattern obta ined wi th a
ba " dwldt h limitation but no addi tive norse (op e" eve]: (b) the pattern
obta ine d with a ba ndw idt h limitation and ad ditiv e noise (pa rt ia lly clos ed e vel.

Calculation of the p ossible repeater spacing must take a ccount of the follow-
ing system component performances:
(a) The average optical power launched into the tiber based on the end of life
transmitter performance.
(b) The receiver input power required to achieve an acceptably low BER (e.g.
10- 9 ) , taking into account component deterioration during the sys tem's
lifetime.
(c) The installed fiber cable loss, including jointing and co upling (to source
and detector) lo sses as well a s the effects of ageing and from anticipated
environmental changes.
(d) The temporal res po nse of the system including the effects of pulse disper-
sion on the channel. This become s an important consideration with high bit
rate m ultimode fi ber systems which may be dispersion limited.
These considerations are discussed in detail in the following sections.

10.6.2 The Optical Transmitter

The average optical power launched into the fiber from the transmitte r
depend s upon the type of source used and the required system bit rate as
indicated in Section 10.2.1. These factor s may be observed in F ig. 10.34 IRd.
451 which compares t he optical power available from an injection laser and an
LED for tra nsmission over a multimode fi ber with a core diameter of SO JIm
and a numerical aperture of 0 .2. Typically the laser launches aro und 1 mW
whereas us ually the LED is limited to about 100 }!W. It may also be noted that
both device types emit less optical power at higher bit rates. However, the
LED gives reduced output at modulation bandwidth s in excess of SO MHz
whereas laser output is unaffected below 200 MHz. Also the fac t that generally
the optical power wh ich ma y be la unched into a fi ber fro m a n LED even at
low bit-rates is 10-1 5 d B dow n on that available from a laser is an important
consideration. es pecially when receiver noise is a limiting factor within the
system .
OPTICAL FIB ER SYSTEMS .27

I ,,'lo'

'"'lo' L_~
'"
Bi, ,.,, (M M , "

Fig.10.34 The average powe r launched into multi mod e optical fi ber from t ypical injec-
tion lasers and LEOs as a function of digital bit rate (upper bands). Also
included in th e low er band Is th e received opti cal power required for binary
NRZ puls es transm itted with a BER of 10- ' . Reproduced wi th permission
from D. C, Glog e and T, LI, 'M ultim ode-fiber tecl1 oology for di gita l trans-
m ission', Pm c. /EU . 88. p. 1269 , 19 80 . Copyright iC 1980 IEEE.

The input o ptical power req uired at th e receiver is a function of the detector
combined \101m the electrical components wi thin the receiver structure. It is
stron gly dependent upon the noise [i.e. quantum , d ark current and thermal)
as so ciated with the optical fi ber receiver. The theoretical minimum pulse
energy or quantum limit required to maintain a given HER was d iscussed in
Sectio n 9 .2.4.
It was predicted that a ppro ximately 21 incident photons were necessary at
an ideal phoeoderector in o rder to register a binary o ne with a BER o f 10-9 •
However. thi s is a fundamental limit which cannot be achieved in practi ce and
therefo re it is essential th at estimates of the minimum required o ptical input
power are made in relation to practical devices and components.
Although the statistics of qu antum noise follow a Poisson distribution, other
important sources of noise within practical receivers (e.g. thermal) are
characterized by a Gaussian probability distribution . Hence estimates of the
required SNR to maintain particular bit error rates may be obtained using the
procedure adopted for error performance of electrical digita l systems where
the noise distribution is considered to be white G aussian . This Gaussian
approximation [Ref. 46J II lufficientJy accurate for design purposes and is far
w1er to evaluate than lh' more exact probability distribution within the
reolfvit IJlat. 41J. TbI rtCIIvw 1C111ltMtiet e&lculaud by ulina the Oaul5i&1l
....
428 OPTI CAL FIB ER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLE S AND PRACTICE

a pproximation are generally within I dB of those calcula ted by other methods

(Ref. 291.
Although the transmitted signal consists of two well-defined light levels. in
the prese nce of noise the signal at the receiver is not as well defined. This situa-
tion is shown in Fig. 1O.35(a) which illustrates a binary signal in the presence
of noise. The signal plus the additive noise at the detector may be defined in
terms of the probability density functions (PD Fs) shown in Fig. 1O.35(b).
These PDFs describe the probability that the input current (or output voltage)
has a value i (or v) within the incremental range di (or dv). The expected values
of the signal in the two tran smitted states, nam ely 0 and I. a re indicated by
PQ(x) a nd PI (x ) respectively. When the additive noise is assumed to ha ve a
Gaussian distribution, the PDFs of the two slates will also be Gaussian. Th e
Gaussian PDF which is continuous is defined by :

1
/Xx) ~ . / exp -Hx - mf/ 2a' I (10.5)
V (2")
where m is the mean value a nd a the standard deviation of the distribution.
When p(x) describes the probability of detecting a noise current or voltage. a
correspond s to the rms value of that current or voltage.
[f a decision threshold D is set between the two signal sta tes as indicated in
Fig. 10.35, signals greater than D are registered as a one and those less than D
as a zero. However, when the noise current (or voltage) is sufficiently large it
can either decrease a binary one to a zero or increase a binary zero to a one.
These error probabilities a re given by the integral or the signal probabilities

lA l"l" .:. " .... , ...

oo ll'J ' ooI...,. . %/

~; "uy o _~...,,,,./~ ... "" - _ ..

\
., '0>
flg .1q.35 Binary transmission: tal Ine binary signal w ith add it ive 1101 8&; (b) probability
del1sity fu nl:tiol1$ for the binary signal sllQWing 1he decision case. pt0/1) ~
t he probability of fal" ly idElnt ifyi ng a binary o ne al'ld ptl101 I, the probebility
of falsely identifying a binary faro.
OPTICA L FIBER SYSTEM S 4'.
outside tbe decision region. H ence the probability that a signa l transmitted as a
I is received as a O. P(O/ I), is proportional to the shaded ana indicated in Fig.
to.35(h). The probability that a signal transmitted a s a 0 is received as a I,
f'{ I/O). is similarly proportional to the other sh aded area shown in the figure. If
P( I) and P tO) are the probabilities of transmission for binary o nes and zeros
respectively, then the total probability of error Pee) ma y be defined as :
P(,) ~ P(J )P(O/ I) + P (O)P(I /O) (10.6)
Now let us consider a sign al c urrent i,ig together with an additive noise
current iN a nd a decision threshold set at D = iv . If at any time when a binary
1 is transm itted the noise current is negative such that :

(l0.7)
then the resulting current i..... + iN will he less th an lo and an error will occur.
The corresponding probability of the transmitted I being received as a 0 may
be written as:

'D
P(O/ I) =
I
~
p(i,i.iol )d i (lO.S)

and following Eq. (1 0.5):

PI (x) =
..
~l, l'i~) =
I
(i~fv(21t) exp -
[(I-I..1'J
2(~) (10.9)

= G s n l i. i,;g, (i~)tl (10.10)

where i is the actual c urrent, i siS is the peak signal current du ring a binary I
(this corresponds to the peak pborocurrent Jp when only a signal component is
present), and j~ is the mean sq ua re noise current. Substituting Eq. (10. 10) into
Eq. (l0. 8) gives:

P (O/ l) = [DGsn [j,i... . (~)tl di

~
(10.11)

Similarly. tile probability that a binary I will be received when a 0 is

t ransmitted is the probability th at the received current will be greater than (/I at
som e time during the zero bit interval. It is given by:

PO / Oj ~ r 'D
p(£, O) 0 0.12)

Asllunina the mean Jquare noise current in the zero state is equal to the
mean IqUINi noiH OW't'tn\ In \he eee "ate <if) (this is an approximation it shot
noi,,1,domlaIolJ, .... lIlIt,or.
zero bil l" - 0, then following Eq. (lO,l ):
.: -.",::'-",..
,i ,; 430 OPTICAL fiBER COMMUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AN D PR ACTICE

'! I
I [ 11- 0)']
x - i O - ex
Pot ) -p( , ) - (i~)tV(21t) P - 2(i~ ) ( 10. 13)

= G~n (;,0. (#:)t j (1 0.14)

H ence substituting Eq. 00.14) into Eq . (lQ,l2) gives:

P O lO) = rtc
Gs n (f, 0 , (i~ )+ I dl ( 10. 15)

The integrals of Eqs. (10. 11) and ( 10. 15) are not readily evaluated but ma y
be written in terms of the error function (err)· where:

( 10.16)

and the complementary error function is:

erfc(u) = l - erf (u)= V2n S"

~ clI:p (_z2)dz (10.17)

Hence

PIO/ I ) ~':
2
[I -err, (II.. -IDI
(11; )1'1' 2
)]
(10. 18)

and

(10. 19)

If we assume th at a binary code is chosen such thai the number of

transmitted ones and zeros are equal, then P (D) = P O ) = to and the net
probability of error is one half the sum of the shaded a reas in Fig. to.35(b).
Therefore Eq. ( 10.6) becomes:

P te) ~ t!P(O/I ) + P( I /O) I (10 .20)

;
a.od substituting for P (O/l ) and P ( I /O) from Eqs. ( 10.18) and 0 0. 19) gives:

II .. Another form of the error function denoted by Erf i8 defined in problem 10.10.
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 431

Pee) = ~ [t erfc (10.21)

Equation (lO.21) may be simplified by setting the threshold decision level at

the mid-point between zero current and the peak signal current such that
iD = i'ig/2. In electrical systems this situation corresponds to an equal
minimum probability of error in both states due to the symmetrical nature of
the PDFs. It must be noted that for optical fiber systems this is not generally
the case since the noise in each signal state contains shot noise contributions
proportional to the signal level. Nevertheless assuming a Gaussian distribution
for the noise and substituting io = i'ig/2 into Eq. 00.21) we obtain:

= 1. erfc
i,;, )
( 2(i~py2 (10.22)
2

The electrical SNR at the detector may be written in terms of the peak
signal power to rms noise power (mean square noise current) as:

(10.23)

Comparison of Eq. (10.23) with Eq. (10.22) allows the probability of error to
be expressed in terms of the analog SNR as:

(SiN)! )
pee) = t erfc ( 2'1'2 (10.24)

Estimates of the required SNR to maintain a given error rate may be

obtained using the standard table for the complementary error function. A plot
of Pee) against t erfc (u) is shown in Fig. lO.36(a). This may be transposed
into the characteristic illustrated in Fig. 1O.36(b) where the bit error rate which
is equivalent to the error probability Pee) is shown as a function of the SNR
following Eq. (10.24).

Using the Gllusslen epprcxlmatlcn determine the required signal to noise ratios
(optlcel end electrlcel) to melntaln a BER of 10-1 on a baseband binary digitsl optical
fiber link, II mey be eHUmld thet the decision threshold is set midway between the
onl end thl liro Ilvll .nc:I thlt 2 )( 10-':: ertc 4,24,
...
hIutItn: u....,;~ "f1iIi· 'OiIIdl~lonl, thl probeblll1y of I,ror I. glvln by
"""><\' 'tWl
 432 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

EQ. (10.24) where,

I Pte) = t erfc ( (S/N)"1- ) = 10-'

,i
,
'V'
Hence

(S/N)t )
ertc ( 2../2 =2 x 10-'

4,24

giving
(S/N1+ = 4.24 x 2../2 ~ 12
The optical SNR- ,may be defined in terms of the peak signal current and rms noise
current as isig/(i~)"-. Therefore using Eq. 11 0.23):

(~r =120r10.8dB
The electrical SNR is defined by Eq. (10.23) as:
.,
I,ig S
~=-= 144or21.6dB
i~ N
These results for the SNRs may be seen to correspond to a bit error rate of 10-'
on the curve shown in Fig. 10.36(bl.

However, the plot shown in Fig. 1O.36(b) does not reflect the best possible
results, or those which may be obtained with an optimized receiver design. In
this case, if the system is to be designed with a particular BER, the appropriate
value of the error function is established prior to adjustment of the parameter
values (signal levels, decision threshold level, avalanche gain, component
values, etc.) in order to obtain this BER [Ref. 48J. It is therefore necessary to
use the generalized forms of Eqs. (10.18) and (10.19) where:

(10,25)

I
, (10,26)

"

wherUi,1 an£).i,<l are the signal currents, in the 1 and 0 states respectively,
and I~l and ~o are the corresponding mean aquere noise currents which may
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 433

Optioal ' ignal to 00;" ..tio I,~/(~), In

10'"
Error prob.bj]j,y 1'«) 4 6 8101214
10- ' "
Bit orror I'ate
10-'

10- •

,0 o 11 13 15 17 19 21 23

"
EI«lri"aj ,ignol'0
nol", ratio IJ./t;. dB

'"'
{a)

Fig. 10.36 Ia] A plot of the probability of error + e rtc lu l against the argument of the error
function u, Ib~ The bit error rate as a function of both the ratio of peak signal
power to rms noise power {electrical SNR) and the ratio of peak signal
current to rms noise current {optical SNR~ for binary transmission.

include both shot and thermal noise terms. Equations (10.25) and (10.26)
allow a more exact evaluation of the error performance of the digital optical
fiber system under the Gaussian approximation [Refs. 48 and 491.
Unfortunately this approach does not give a simple direct relationship between
the BER and the analog SNR the one shown in Eq. (10.24). Thus for estimates
of SNR within this text we will make use of the slightly poorer approximation
given by Eq. (10.24). Although this approximation does not give the correct
decision threshold level or optimum avalanche gain it is reasonably successful
at predicting bit error rate as a function of signal power and hence provides
realistic estimates of the number of photons required at a practical detector in
order to maintain given bit error rates.
For instance, let us consider a good avalanche photodiode receiver which
we assume to be quantum noise limited. Hence we ignore the shot noise con-
tribution from the dark current within the APD as well as the thermal noise
generated by the electronic amplifier. In practice this assumption holds when
the multiplication factor M is chosen to be sufficiently high to ensure that the
SNR is determined by photon noise rather than by electronic amplifier noise,
and the APD used has a low dark current. To determine the SNR for this ideal
APD receiver it is useful to defme the quantum noise on the primary
photocurrent I p within the device in terms of shot noise following Eq. (9.8).
Therefore, the mean square shot noise current is given by:
,
iT, = 2eBI M 2 (10.27)
where e is the electronic charge and B is the post detection or effective noise
bandwidth. It may be observed that the mean square shot noise current i;
given in Bq. (10.27) is increased by a factor M 2 due to avalanche gain in the
APD. However, Eq. (10,27) does not jive the total noise current at the output
oftbe:APD .. tbtrI illII additional noise: contribution from the random jain
mooh. . . 11ltul••, _.. notH faotor inc:urrtcl F(M) WI' di,cu,1Id In
- ",;'., :~-"'" -""""i,
 434 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Section 9.3.4 and defined by Eqs. (9.27) and (9.28). Equation (9.27) may be
simplified [Ref. 50] to give an expression for electron injection in the low fre-
quency limit of:

(10.28)

where k is the ratio of the carrier ionization rates. Hence the excess avalanche
noise factor may be combined into Eq. (10.27) to give a total mean square shot
noise current i~
(10.29)
Furthermore, the avalanche multiplication mechanism raises the signal
current to Mlp and therefore the SNR in terms of the peak signal power to rms
noise power may be written as:

S
(10.30)
N

Now, if we let zmd correspond to the average number of photons detected in

a time period of duration 'r,

(10.31)

where Zm is the average number of photons incident on the APD and 1'\ is the
quantum efficiency of the device. Substituting for I p in Eq. (10.30) we have:

S Zm Tl
-~ (10.32)
N 2BtF(M)

Rearranging Eq. (10.32) gives an expression for the average number of

photons required within the signalling interval r to detect a binary one in terms
of the received SNR for the good APD receiver as:

, (10.33)
I
A reasonable pulse shape obtained at the receiver in order to reduce
intersymbol interference has the raised cosine spectrum shown in Fig. 10.37.
The raised cosine spectrum for the received pulse gives a pulse response result-
ing in a binary pulse train passing through either full or zero amplitude at the
centers of the pulse intervals and with transitions passing through half
c, amplitude at points which are midway in time between pulse centers. For

I raised cosine pulse shaping the full t signalling Bt is around 0.6. Hence the
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS ...
Amplitud<

, •
u,
Av. 10 .31 (al
'"
Raised cosin e soe<ttum . (bl Output of a system with ill raised co sine
OUtPU t spectrum for I singl e input pulse.

average number of photons required to detect a binary one using a good APD
rece iver at a specified BER may be estimated using Eq. ( 10.33) in conjunction
with Eq. ( 10.24).

Exampll 10.3

A good APD is used as a dllt8ctor in an optical fiber PCM receiver designf:ld for
baseband bin ary transrnlasien with 8 decision threshold set midway betwe en th e
eeeo and ere signal level s. The Apt) has a quantum effidll rlCy of 80%. ill u tio of
cam er ionizatioo rates o t 0 ,02 I nd iii operated w ith a mu1ti~;cation tl ct or of 100.
Assuming 8 rai sed cosee signal spec trum at tJ,e receiver , estimate the everage
number of photons which must be i" eidenl on the APD to regir.er I bl"ary one w ith
• B'ER of 10--.
S olution: The elec:l rica ~ S"-R required to obtain II B'ER of 10-' et tt-e receiver is
given by t he curve shown In Fig . 10 .36!bJ. or the solution 10 e" .mple 10 .2 as
2 1.S dB or 144. Also t tlll excess avalanche noise fact or FtM l may be determined
usi ng Eq. \l 0. 2 8) wheee ,

FIM ) =kM -t ( 2 - : ) ll - kl

= 2 -t (2 - 0 .0 1)(1 - 0 .021

.. 3,95 :::: 4
The averege number 01 pholons w hich must be incident al tha receiver in order 10
rneintaln t he SER can be eettm eted usirtg Eq. It O.33 1 lassuming 8t = 0.6 for the
"i!led cosine pulse specteuml as:

- 21l: 0 .6 x4x144

0.'
• 184 photorll
..
'i I
I 436 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

The estimate in example 10.3 gives a more realistic value for the average
number of incident photons required at a good APD receiver in order to
register a binary one with a BER of lo-~ than the quantum limit of21 photons
:1 determined for an ideal photodetector in example 9.1. However, it must be
" emphasized that the estimate in example 10.3 applies to a good silicon APD
receiver (with high sensitivity and low dark current) which is quantum noise
limited, and that no account has been taken of the effects of either dark current
within the APD or thermal noise generated within the preamplifier. It is
therefore likely that at least 1000 incident photons are required at a good APD
receiver to register a binary one and provide a HER of 10-9 [Ref 511.
Nevertheless somewhat lower values may be achieved by setting the decision
threshold below the half amplitude level because the shot noise on the zero
level is lower than the shot noise on the one level.
The optical power required at the receiver Po is simply the optical energy
divided by the time interval over which it is incident. The optical energy Eo
may be obtained directly from the average number of photons required at the
, receiver in order to maintain a particular BER following:
,

II. (10.34)
where hfis the energy associated with a single photon which is given by Eq.
I (6.1). In order that a binary one is registered at the receiver, the optical energy
Eo must be incident over the bit interval r. For system calculations we can
I assume a zero disparity code which has an equal density of ones and zeros. In
this case the optical power required to register a binary one may be considered
to be incident over two bit intervals giving:

I
(10.35)
I'
Substituting for Eo from Eq. (10.34) we obtain:

(10.36)

Also as the bit rate B T for the channel is the reciprocal of the bit interval r, Eq.
(10.36) may be written as:

(10.37)

Equation (10.37) allows estimates of the incident optical power required at a

good APD receiver in order to maintain a particular BER, based on the
average number of incident photons. In system calculations these optical
power levels are usually expressed in dBm. It may also be observed that the
required incident optical power is directly proportional to the bit rate B t which
typifies a shot noile limited receiver.
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEM S 437

h.,."pf.10.4

The rece iver of example 10.3 o perates II I it wavelenglh ot 1 14fTl. A$Sumin9 a ze ro

dis parity bina ry code. e stim, Ie ll'te ine ide nl optica l powe r re q uire d a t Iht> rt>Ct>ive r to
re gilite r a bina ry one with 8 BER of 10 -- ill bit ra tes 01 10 Moit s - ' a nd 140 Mbi\ s -'.
SoIl/rio,,: Unde r the above coocn c r e. the re q uired incide nt o pt ica l pow e r may be
Obt8ined usfflg EQ. i 10.37; wh ere .

864 ){ 6.62 6 " 10....'" x 2.998 )( 10' x 10 '

2 x 1 )( 1(J~

:::: 858.2 pW
= - 60 .7 dBm
Al 140 Mbits-',

864 x 6.626 x 10-:1-4 )( 2 .99 8 X 10" x 14 x 10 '

P" =- - - - - -,--- - -,--,---- - - -
2 )( l x 10 "

= 12 0 15 oW
= -49.2 dBm

Example 10.4 illustrates the effect of direct proportionality between the

optica l power required at the rece iver and the system bit rate. In the case con-
sidered. the required incident optical power at the receiver to give a BE R of
10- " must be increased by around 1L5 d B (faewr of 14) when the bit rate is
increased from 1010 140 M bit S- I. Also comparison with example 9. 1 where a
simila r calculation was performed fo r an ideal pbotoderecror o perating at
to Mbit 5" 1 emphasizes the necessity of performing the estima te for a practical
phctodiode. The good APD receiver con side red in example lOA exhibits
around 16 d B less sensitivity than the ideal photodetectc r Ii.e. quantum limit).
T he assumption s made in the evaluation of examples 10.3 and lOA are not
generally valid when considering p-i- n photodiode rec eiver s because these
devices are seldom qu antum noise limited due to the absence of internal gain
with in the pbotodetector. In this case thermal noise generated within the
electronic amplifier is u sually the dominating noise contribution and is
typically I x 10' to 3 x 10' times larger than the peak response produced by
the displacement current of a single electron- bole pair liberated in the detector.
Hence, for reliable performance with a BER of 10-' . between I and 3 x 1()l
photon. mult be detected when I binary o ne is ineid eRI o n the receiver [Ref.
'31.' .
!bit UWWI into.lentltlvitie. which are about 30 dB or more, less than
••. ". ~ .
". 1 " \~~
 438 OPTICAL FIBER COM MU NICAn ONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

the quantum limit. Finally fo r a ther mal noise limited receiver the input optical
power is proportio nal 10 the square root of both the post detection or effective
no ise bandwidth and the SNR [i.e. Po od(S/ NlB ]i )_ Ho wever, this result is
best o btained from purely analog SNR cons iderations a nd therefore is dealt
with in Section 1O.7. L.

10.6.4 Channel Lo••••

Another important factor when estimating the permissible separation between
rege nerative repe aters or the overall link length is the tot al loss encountered
between the transmitterts) a nd receiver(s) within the system. Assuming there
a re no d ispersion penalties o n the link, the total c hannel loss may be obtained
by simpl y summing in decibels the installed fiber cable loss, th e fiber-fiber
jointing losses and the coupling losses of the optical sou rce and detector. The
fiber cable loss in decibels per kilometer <Ire is normally specified by the
manufacturer, or alternatively it may be obtained by measurement (see Sec-
tions 5.2 and 5.7). It must he noted that the cabled fiber loss is likely to be
greater than the uncabled fiber loss usually measured in the laboratory due to
possible microbending of the fiber within the cabling process (see Section
4.6.2).
Loss due to joints (general ly splices) on the link may also, for simplicity, be
specified in terms of an eq uivalent loss in decibels per kilometer elj. In fact. it is

,i, mo re realistic 10 regard ~ as a distributed loss since the opt ical a ttenuation
resulting from the disturbed mode distribution at a joint does not o nly occur in
I the vicinity of the joint. Fi na lly the loss contribution attributed to th e con-
il, nectors a.:. (in decibels) used for coupling the optical source and detector to the
fiber must be included in the over all channel loss. Hence the total channel loss
C L (in decibels) may be written as :

C, = (o" + a, lL + '" (10.38)

where L is the length of the fi ber cable either between regener ative repeaters or
between the transmit and receive terminals fo r a link without repeaters.

Example 10.5

A n opt ica l fiber link of lengt h 4 km comp rises a fiber cable with an attenuation of
5 dB krr r-'. The splice losses for thll link are estimated at 2 dB km- ' , and t he con-
nect o r losses at the source end detector are 3.5 and 2 ,5 dB respect ive ly. Ignoring
t hll effects of di spersion on th e link det ermine the tot al channel loss.
Solution: The to tal channel klss ma y be sim ply obta ined using ECI. (10 .38) w here:

C l = lOt, + ~ )L + Clc,
.. 15 + 2 14 + 3.5 + 2 .5
.. 34 dB
OPTICA L FIBER SYSTEMS 439

10.6.5 Temporal R.epon••

The system design considerations must also take into account the temporal
response of the system components. T his is especially the case with regard to
pul se dispersion on the optical fiber channel. The form ula given in Eq. ( 10.38)
allows determination o f the o verall channel loss in the absence of any pulse
broadening due to the dispersion mechanisms within the transmission medium.
H owever. the finite bandwidth of the optical system m ay result in overlapping
o f the received pulses or intersymbol interference, giving a reductio n in
se nsitivity at the optical receiver. Therefore either a worse BER must be
tolerated, o r the lSI must be compensated by eq ualization within the receiver
(see Section 10.3.3). The le tter necessitates an increase in optical power at the
receiver which may be considered as an addition al lo ss penalty. Th is additio nal
loss contribution is usually called the dispersion-equahza ttcn or [SI penalty.
The dispersion-equalization penalty D 1• becomes especially signifi cant in high
bit rate multimode fi ber systems and has been determ ined analytically for
G aus sian shaped pul ses [R ef. 48J. In this case it is given by :

[10.39)

wh ere t , is the lie full widt h pulse broadening due to d ispersion o n the link.
and r is the bit interval o r period. For G aussian shaped pulses, r, may be
written in terms of the rms pulse width 0: a s (see A ppendix F):
(10040 )
Hence, su bstituting into Eq. (10 .39) for r.. and writing the bit rate BT as the
rec iprocal of the bit interval t gives :
(10 .41)
Since the dispersio n-equalization penalty as defined by Eq. ( 10.4·l) is
mea sured in decibels, it may be included in the formula fo r the overall channel
lo ss given by Eq. (10.38). T herefo re the total channel loss including the
d ispersion-equaliza tio n penalty eLI) is given by :
(10.42)
The dispersion-equalization penalty is usually only significant in wideband
m ultimode fiber systems which exhibit intermodal as well as intramod al disper-
sion. Single mode fiber systems which are increasingly being utilized for
widebend long-haul application s are not generally limited by pul se broadening
on the channel because of the absence of intermodal dispersion. H owever, it is
often the case tha.t intermodal dispersion is the dominant mechanism within
m ultimode Ilbere. In Sectio n 3.9.1 intermodal pulse broadening was considered
to be a linear Cunction or the fiber length L. Furthermore il wu indic&ted that
the preHoce of mode coupUn, within the fiber made the pulH br'o.dcnin,
•
440 OPTI CAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AN D PR ACTICE

increase at a slower rate pro portio nal to He nce it is useful to consider the o,
d ispersion-equalization pena lty in relation to fibers without a nd with mode
coupling o perating at variou s bit rates.

Example 1 0.6

n.@ rms p ulse broade ning re sulting fro m inter mo da l d ispt.! r$ io n within a mu itimod e
o ptical fibe r is 0 .6 ns km-', Assum ing this to be t he do m ina nt dis pe rsion
mecha n ism, e st im at e Ihe di$pe n;.ion-equeliza tion pena lty over an unrllPf!3 te red fiber
lin k of length 8 km a t b it rate s of lal 26 Mbit s-' and Ibl 1 50 Mbit In both cases ,_I.
e va luate the pen a lly without atld w ith rnoce coupling_The p uls e s ma y be assu med
to haYe a Gauss ia n s ha pe.
S olution: (31 W ith out mode coupling. The to ta t rm s purse broadening ove r 8 km is
g iven b y:
Or = ° )< L = 0 .6 it B = 4 .8 ns
The crsperstcn- equ atlae ttc n penalty is given by Eq . (10.41) where:
DL = 2(20r 81\/ 2 )· ' . 2(2 it 4.8 it 10- 1 it 2 5 x 10' y 2l4

'" 0 .0 3 dB
W ith mode coupling , The tota l rms pu ls e broadeni ng is :
or :::: oVL = 0 .6 x V B = 1. 7 fI!j

Hence the d ispersion-equa liza tion pena lty is:

Dt = 2 (2 '>( 1 .7 lC 10-- " 2 5 " 10" Y21·
= 4 ,2 1( 10 ...... dB li e. negligiblel
(bl W ithout mode coupling.
Or ;;= 4 .8 n s
~ = 2 12 it 4 .8 1( 10- 1 x 15 0 x H'-v'2 l" = 3 4 38 d B
With mrxJ~ couoling.
•ot = 1.7 ns
DL = 212 x 1.7 = to-- x. 150 x l o- v'2 "' = O. ~ dB

Example 1O.6(a) demonstrates that at low bit rate s the dispersion-equalize-

tion penalty is very small if not negligible. In this case the slight advantage of
the effect of mode coupling on the penalty is generally outweighed by
increased attenuation on the link bec ause of the mode coupling, which may be
of the order of 1 dB krrr" . Example 1O.6(b) indicates that at higher bit rates
with no mode coupling the dispersion-equalization penalty dominates to the
extent that it would be necessary to red uce the repeater spacing to between 4
a nd 5 km. However, it ma y be observed that encour agement of mode coupling
on the link. greatly red uces this penalty and outweighs apy additional attellua·
tion inc urred through mode l;OUplina within the fiber. In swnm&t)'. it ia clear

• ," .
opn CAL FISER SYSTEMS ...
that the d ispersion-equalizatio n penalty need only be applied when consider-
ing wideband system s. Moreover it is frequently the case tha t lower bit ra te
syste ms may be up-graded at a later d ate to a higher capacity without incur-
ring a penalty which might necessitate a reduction in repea ter spacing.
An alternative approach involving the calculation of th e system rise time
can be employed to determine the po ssible limitation on the system bandwidth
resulting from the temporal response of the system components. Therefore, if
there is not a pressing need to ob tain the maximum possible bit rate over the
maximum po ssible distance, it is sufficient 'within the system design to establish
tbat the to tal temporal response of the system is adequate for t.be desired
sys tem bandwidth. Nevertheless th is approach does allow fo r a certain a mou nt
of o ptimizatio n of the system components, b ut at the exclusio n of considera-
tions regarding. equalization and the associated penalty.
The total system rise time may be d etermined from the rise times of the
indi vid ua l system components which include the source (o r transmitter). the
fiber c able, and the detec tor (or receiver ). These times are defined in terms of a
Gaussian response as the 10-90% rise (or fall) times of the individual corn-
ponents. The fi ber cable 10--90% ri se time may be separa ted into rise times
arising from intermodal To and intramodal or chromatic dispersion T~ . The
to tal system rise time is given by (Ref. 561:
T,y</. = l.l(T§ + T~ + T~ + T~)+ (l0.43)
where Ts a nd To are the source and detector 10- 90% rise times respectively,
and all the rise times a re measured in nanosecond s. C omparison of the rise
time edge with the overall pulse d ispersion results in the weighting factor of
J.J.

Inpu l 'ol'03O . ... (1)

, ,. ,

-. .,, . •

" ' " . ~n • ,Nt.,

flit. '0.11 III TM,..... of. tow ~.. At: filt,r circuit to a YOtu;_ .~ep input. (b) The
fGr tM oIroutl ln ,.).
442 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

The maximum system bit rate BT(max) is usually defined in terms of T,.)'ll
by consideration of the rise time of the simple RC filter circuit shown in F ig.
1O.38(a). Fo r a voltage step input of amplitude V, the output voltage waveform
v_ell as a function of time I is:
v",A t) = V(1 - e-liRe ) (10.44)
Hence the 10--90% rise time tr for the circuit is given by:

2.2
~ -­ (10.45)
RC

The transfer function for this circuit is shown in F ig. 10 .38(b) and is given by :

I
IH(")I ~ (I + m'C' R'll (10.46)

Therefore the 3 d B b andwidth for the circuit is

I
B = 7""""0-= ( 10.47)
2rtRC

Combining Eqs. ( 10.45) and (10.47) gives,

I ~ ~ ~ "Occ
35
· :-.
I
,,
I
(10.48)
, 27(1/ B

The re sult for the 10-90% rise time indicated in Eq. (10.48) is of general
validity, but a different constant term may be obtained with different filter
circuits . However, for rise time calculation s involving optical fiber systems the
constant 0.35 is o ften utilized and hence in Eq. ( 10.48), i, = Tly", ' Alter-
natively, if an Kieal (unrealizable) filter with an ar bitrarily sharp cutoff is con-
sidered, t ile constant in Eq . (10.48) becomes 0 .44. However , alt hough this
value for the constant is frequently employed when calculating the o ptic al
bandwidth of fiber from pulse dispersion measurements (see Section 5.3.1), the
more conservative estimate obtained using a constant term of 0 .35 is generally
favored for use in system rise time calculations (Refs. 56 a nd 571. AIM), in both
cases it is usually accepted (Ref. 4 31 th at to conserve the shape of a pulse with
a reasonable fidelity through the RC circuit then the 3 d B bandwidth must be
at least large enough to satisfy the condition Bt = I, where r is th e p ulse dura-
tion. Combining this relation with Eq. ( 10.48) gives :

Ts,.. = i, = 0 .J5t ( 10.49)

F or an RZ pulse format, the bit rate BT = B - l i t (see Section 3.7) and

hence ,ub,titutina into Bq, (10.49) Jive.:
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS

0.35
B r (max) = - - ( 10.50)
r.;
Alternatively for an NRZ pulse format Dr = B/2 = 1/21' and therefore the
m axim um bit rate is given by :

0.7
B r (max) = - - (10.5 1)
T,y,!
Thus the upper limit 00 T o)... should be less than 35% of the bit interval for an
RZ pulse format and less than 70% of the bit interval for an NRZ pulse
format.
The effects of mode coupling a rc usually neglected in calculations involving
system rise time. a nd hence th e pulse dispersion is assumed to be a linear func -
tion of the fiber length. This results in a pessimistic estimate for the system rise
time a nd therefore provides a conservative value for the ma ximum possible bit
rate.

Eumple 10.7

Ar1 op lical fjbe, $V5tam i s 10 be d ~ign ed 10 operate oyer an 8 km lengl h withou l

repeaters. The rise ti lTle$ of th e cbcsen compo nems a re :
Source (LEDl 80<
Fib"r: inlermodal 5 ne km-'
(p u lse b,oad@n;ngJ ;nlra mooa l , ns km - '
Detector (p - i--n ooctoctode l 6"
From system rise time con siderations. estima te I he m aJ<imum bit rate I hal may b e
a c hie ved on "'e li nk When us ing an NRZ tormat.
S oil/lion: The total system rise lime is given by Eo (10 .4 31 as :
f_ = 1.lfTs + T~ ... T~ + '1 )1

"" 1.1l8 3 ... (8 )( 511 + (8 " l l3 + 6 3 1'

= 4 6.2 !"IS
He... ce I he maKim um bit rate fo r the 1;1'l ~ us i"g an NRZ fOfmal is given by Eq.
11 0.5 11 wher,,;

0 .7 0 .7
S. (m/ll(l = - = - , 5 2 Mbil e- '
T'Y$1 46.2 " 10-'

Thl rise tlme Cl lculalKlT"l1> toncate t hat th e lin k w ill s uppo rt a maJ<imum bit rate of
15.2 Mbil $ _1 wtlich tor 81' NRZ formal is equ iya~el1l 10 a 3 dB opl io;al bandw idth of
7 .6 MHz (I... the !IIRZ form at II.. two bit i"llrvals per we velenglhj .

Once it l.e.lIbl1lhld that put" dispersion is not a limiting factor, the major
de. ' '.II'CI1I1 .11 UlI opdHI power bud,et for the system.
;' .
; ,1 , ~; tw~k " ~}\i ,:.".
444 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS ; PRINCIPLES A ND PRACTICE

10.6.6 Optical Power Budgeting

Power budgeting for a digital o ptica l fi ber commu nication system is performed
in a simila r way to power bud geting within any communication sy stem. When
the transmitter c haracteristics, fiber c able los ses and receiver sensitivity are
known, the relatively simp le process of power budgeting allows the repeater
spacing or the maximum transmission distance for the system to be evaluated .
However, it is neces sary to incorpo rate a system margin into the o ptic al power
b ud get so that small variations in the system operating pa rameters do not lead
to a n u nacceptable decrease in system performance. The operating margin is
o ften included in a safety margin ,\-1. which also tak es in to account possible
sou rce a nd modal noise together with receiver impairments suc h as equaliza-
tion error. noise degradations and eye o pening impairments. The safety margin
dep end s to a large extent o n the syst em compon ents 8S well as the system
design procedure and is typically in the range 5~10 d B. Syste ms us ing an injec-
tion laser transmitter generally require a larger safety mar gin (e.g. 9 dB) than
those usin g an LED source (e.g. 7 d B) because the temperatur e variation and
ageing of the LED are less p ronounced.
The optical power budget for a system is given by the following expression:
(10.52)
where Pi is th e mean input o ptical po wer launched into the fiber, Po is the
mean incident optical power required al the receiver a nd C l (or Ceo when
there is a d ispersion-equalization penalty) is the tota l channel loss given by Eq.
( 10.38) (o r Eq. ( 10.4 2)). Therefore the expression given in Eq . (10.52) may be
written a s:
Pi = Po,) + ( CIt.: + ~)L + ct.:.. + M. dB 0 0.53)
Alternatively. when a dispersion-eq ualization penalty is included Eq . ( 10.52)
becomes :
P, = P o T ( O(c + a.,.)L + u, + 01. + M. d B ( 10.54)
Equation s ( 10.53) and ( 10.54) a llo w the maximum link length without
repeaters to be determined, a s demonstrated in ex ample 10.8.

Enmple 10.8

The fo llow ing paramet e rs a re e s ta b lis he d fo r a long-h a ul s ing le mo de o ptica l fiber

sys te m opera ting at a w avelengt h of 0. 8 5 urn.
Mea n p ower launched fro m thl! las e r tra ns mitte r - 3 d8m
Cab led fiber loss 1.9 dB km- '
S p lice loss 0.3 dB km- I
Connecto r lo sses at the lfllns mi!le r and rece ive r 1 dB 88ch
Mean power req uire d at , :, . APD re ce iver :
wtlen ope rr.ing 8' 35 Mbil . - 1 IBER 10- 1) - 65 dBm
WfIe n coer.ling II ~OO":l1t .-1 IBER 10....' -44 . ...
RsqulrH IIfs ty mlrvln
'"~
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEM S 445

Estim ate :
Ial the ma lCimu m powble lin~ leng th w ithout re peale rs w he n ope ra ting a l
3 5 M b it S- 1 (SER to-- J. It ma y be ass umed m et t here is 1"1() drsc erstce-eq..aliza-
lion oe nalty et I his bit UIII.
lbl t he millCimum possible link le ngt h w ithO\lI re pe aters w hen ope ra lin9 al
50 0 Mbit , - 1 (BER 10- 1) a nd a ssu ming no dis pe rsio n- e qu alization pe na lly,
lcl th e red uct lcn in th e maxim um poss ible li nk length w ithO\.l I rep eal ers of Ibl wh e n
there is a d ispers10 n-equ alization oenalty of 5 d8, It ma y be assum ed to r I" e
p urp o ses of th is es timate th at t he reoc ced link hmgln has tne 5 d B pen alty.

S atutton: (a) W hen the s yste m is opa fa ling a l 3 5 Mbit ,-' en op tica l power
budge t may be p erformed using Eq {l 0 .53). w he re

P j -Po = (a ft ..- 01 1L .. u". + Ma dB

- 3 dBm - I- 55 d Bml = [Cit" + a, Il .. tl,;, ..- M •
....." .
lcx,c ..- uj lL = 52 - acr - M
Z.U = 52 - 2 - 9

41
L ~ - = 1 9. 5 km
2 .1

Ib l A g ain using EQ. (1 0. 5 31 when the system is opela l jn ~ at 500 Mb il s-' ;

- 3 dBm - 1-44 da m) = l tll<: + tlj II + 0.." ..- M

iu,c + 1Ijw. = 41 - 2 - 9
30
L = - - = 14.3 km
2 .1

lei ~rfonn i nil Ihe oplical powe r oodge l using Ea . (1 0.5 4) g'ff$:

H8t'lCe.
2.l L = 4 1 - 2 - 5 - 9
,.d
25
L=- = 1 1.9 km
2.1

Thu s ~fll is a reduction of 2 .4 kin 1n the m aximum possible link le ngt h WilhO\l t
rep oa tllrs.

Although we have demon strated in example 10.8 the use of the optical
power budget to determine the maximum link length without repealers. it is
1110 frequently used to aid decisions with relation to the combination of com-
ponentl required for. particular optical fiber communication system. In this
~ tM-~~wn .l ranl milltoo diatlnee II1d the required bandwidth ma)'
. ...... ,~... opllcaI powor bllclplil uNcI to provldo I
 446 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

basis for optimization in the choice of the system com ponents. whilst also
establishing that a particular com ponent co nfi guration meets the system
req uirements.

' . . . . . . 10.9

Comp(lI'llllnt s are chosen for a digital OP1;&81 f .ber lin k of overa ll Ie-rag", 7 k m end
opera ting a t a 20 Mbit s - ' us ing a n Rl code. It ts d e c ided I" al a n LED e m in in g e t
0 .B5 11 m w ith graded in d e~ fiber to a p-I _n photo ejce e is a su itabl e c" oi ce fo r Ihe
system com ponents, givin g no dispersion- equalizatio n penalt y. An LED w hich is
capab le of laun ch i ng an averag e of 100 IJW of optical p ow er !inc luding t he COIl-
ne cto r rcss! into a 50 u m cor. diamete r grade d i"dell fiber is c hose n. The p roposed
fi ber cab le has a ... anenua ncn o f 2 .6 d B km -' and requires splicing e ve ry kilo meter
,I, ,, with e loss of 0 .5 dB per spl ic ll. 'rhe-e is a lso a connector lo s s a t the receive, 0 1
1.5 d B. Th e rec eive r re qui res mea n inc ide nt o ptical po we r of _4 1 d B'll in o rde r to
give t he necll'SS<lry BE R of 10- tII , a nd il is pred icled t bet a Silfely ma rg in of 6 dB w ill
be reQuire d .
Wri te down th e optica l power ood ge l lo r th e s yste m an d h arme d e te rmine its
viabilltv.
S olution:
Me an opt ica l pow e r lau nched into the fibe r fro m
" ,. trans miu .u l100rnWI - 10 d Bm
Receiv er s ensitivity al 20 Mo;t s - ' 16 ER 10 . ' °1 - 4 1 dBrn

Tota l svste m Ifla rgin 31 ea

Ce bllld libel loss (7 K 2 .6 d B km - ' l 18 .2 d B
Splice loss e s (6 x 0. 5 d B) 3 .0 dB
Conn e cto r lo s s (1 x 1.5 d B ) 1.5 d B
5afeiy' ma rA';'n 6.0 dB

TOle l s yste m loss 28 .1 dB

b cess p owe r marg in 2.3 ca

Based o n the figu re s g iven th e s ystem is viable al1d pro vid es a 2.3 dB exce s s p o w er
m argin. Th is co uld give a n extra safety m argin to allow fo r pos s ible futu re sp lic e s if
thes e w e re not ta ke n into acco u nt wit hin the o riginal s a fe ty ma rgin.

10.6.7 Une Coding

The previo us d iscu ssions of digital sys tem design have assumed that o nly
information bits are transmitted. a nd that the 0 a nd 1 symbols are equally
likely. Ho wever, within digital line transmission there is a requirement for
redundancy in the line coding to provide effic ient timing recovery and syn-
chronization (frame align ment] as well as possible error detection and correc-
tion at the receiver. Line coding also provides suitable shaping of the
tra nsmitted signal powe r spectral density. Hence the choice of line code is an
important consideration within d igital o ptical liber system desi,n.
Binary line codes are generally preferred because of the larle bltldwldth
available In optical fiber communication•• In addition thlli. code...... lei'
•••
J;I . ."-
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 447

susceptible to any temperature dependence of optical sources and detecto rs.

U nder these conditions two level codes are more suitable than codes which
utilize an increased number of levels (multilevel codes). Nevertheless. these
factors do not en tirely exclude the use o f m ultilevel codes. a nd it is likely that
tern a ry codes (three levels 0,·to l) which give increased information t ransmis-
sion pe r sym bol over binary codes will be considered for some system applica-
tions. T he corresponding symbol transmission rate (t.e. bit rate) for a ternary
code may be reduced by a factor of 1.58 (log, 3) whilst still providing the same
information transm ission rate as a simila r system using a bi.nary code. It must
be noted that this gain in information capacity for a particular bit rate is
obtain ed at the expense of the dynam ic range between adjacent levels as there
are three lev..els inserted in place of two. This is exhibited as a 3 dB SNR
penally at the receiver when compared with a binary system at a given BER.
Therefore te rnary codes (and higher mu ltilevel codes) are not attractive fo r
long-haul systems.
For the reasons described above most digit al optical fiber communication
systems currently in u se employ binary codes. In practice, bin ary codes are
designed which insert extra symbols into the information data stream on a
regul ar and lo gical ba sis to minimize th e num ber of consecutive identical
received symbols. and to faci litate efficient timing extraction at the receiver by
prod ucing a high density of deci.sion level crossings. The red uction in consecu-
tive iden tical sym bols al so helps to minimize the variation in the mean signal
level which provides a reduct ion in the low freq uency response requirement of
the receiver. This shapes the transmitted signal spectrum by reducing the de.
com po nent. However. thi s factor is less important for optical fi ber systems
where a.c. coupling is perfo rmed with capacitors unlike metallic cable systems
where transformers are o ften used, and the avoidance of d.c. components is
critical. A further advantage is app arent within the optical receiver with a line
code whic h is free fro m long ide ntical symbol sequences. and where the con-
tinuous presence of 0 and I levels aids decision level control and avoids gai n
instability effects.
T wo level block codes of the nBmB type fulfil the abo ve req uirements
through the addition of a limited amount of red unda ncy. These codes convert
blocks of n bits into blocks of m bits where m > n so tha t the diffe rence
bet ween the number of tra nsmitted ones a nd zeros is on average zero. A simple
code of this type is the I B2B code in which a 0 may be transmitted as 0 J, and
a 1 a s 10. This encoding format is shown in Fig. 1O.39(b) and is com monly
referred to as biphase or Manchester encoding. It may be observed that with
this code there are never more than two consecutive identical sym bols, and
that two sy mbols mu st be transmitted for one info rmation bit. giving 5O?b
red undancy. Thus twice the transmission bandwidth is required for t he IS28
code which restricts its use to system s where pul se dispersion is not a limiting
factor" Another example of a IB2B code which is illustrated in Fig. 1O.39(c) is
the coded mark inversion (C MI) code. In this code a digit 0 is transmitted as
OJ and the diJit I alternately as 00 o r 11.
"I
I 448 OPTJCAl FI BER COMM UNICATIONS; PRINCIPLES AN D PRACTICF

, ., ,
,
•

I
, ,, , ,, , ,,
,,• ,,, , , ,,, ,, ,, ,,,
~
,,
• •
, , •
, ,, , , ,,
'" ,
, ,,
,

, , , f]~UJ~1 i
. .: : . . . . . . . ; . . . J

LtiOL......:.
Flg.10.39 Exam ples of binary 1828 codes used in opti cal fiber com m unicati ons:
l a) uneocooed NRZ da ta; !b) btpbase 0' M aflcl"lester encoding: Ie) coded
ma rt inven;io n (e M il e ncoding.

T iming information is obtained fro m the frequent positive to neg ative transi-
II tions. but once again the code is highly redundant requiring twice as man y
transmitted bits as input information bits.
More effi cient codes of th is type requiti ng less redund ancy exist such as the
38 4B, 5B68 and the 78 8B codes. There is a trade-off within this cla ss of code
between the complexity of balancing the number of zeros and ones, and the
added redundancy. The increase in line symbol rate (bit rate) and the
corresponding power penalty o ver unccded binary transmissio n is given b y th e
ratio m :n. Hen ce. considering the widely fav ored 58 68 code. the symbo l rate
is increased b y a factor o f 1.2 whilst the power penall y is also eq ua l to 1.2 o r
abo ut 0.8 d B. It is therefore necessa ry to take into a ccount the increased
I bandwidt h req uirement and th e power penalty resulting from cod ing within the
o ptical fi ber system design.

i~
Simple error monitoring may be provided with block codes. at the expense
o f a sm all amou nt o f additional redund an cy. by parity checking . Each block of
N bits can be made to have an even (even p arity) or odd (odd parity) number
of ones so that any single erro r in a block can be identified. More extensive
error detectio n a nd error correction ma y be provided with inc reased
red un dancy and equipment complexity. This is generally not considered
worthwhile unless it is essentia l that the digital tran sm ission system is tota lly
secure [e.g, data transmission applicat ions). Alternatively, error moni toring
when using block codes may be performed by me asuring the variatio n in
disparity between the numbers of o nes and zeros within the received bil
pattern. Any variation in the accumulated disparity abov.e an upper limit or
belo w a lower limit allowed by a pa rticula r code is indicated as an error.
F urt her discussion of error correction with relat ion to disp arity ma y be found
I in Ref. 65.
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 449

10.7 ANALOG SYSTEMS

In Section 10.5 we indicated that the vast majority of optical fiber communica-
tion systems are d esigned to convey digital information [e.g. analog speech
encoded as PCM). Howe ver, in certain areas of the telecommunication
network or for particular applications, information transfer in analog fonn is
still likely to remain for some time to come, or be advantageous. T herefore.
a nalog o ptical fiber transmission will undoubtedly ha ve a part to play in futu re
communication networks, especially in sit uations where the optical fiber link is
p art of a larger analog network (e.g. microwave relay network). Use of analog
transm ission in these areas avoids the cost and com plexity o f digital terminal
equipment. a s well as degrad ation due to q uantization noise. This is especially
the case with the transmi ssion of video signals o ver short distances where the
cost o f high speed analog to digital (A- D) and D-A converters is not generally
j ustified . Hence. there are ma ny applications such as direct cable television and
com mo n a ntenn a television (C ATV) where analog optical fiber systems may
be utilized.
There are limitations, h owever, inherent to a nalog optical fiber transmissi on.
some of which have been mentioned previously. For instance. t he uniq ue
requirements of analog tra nsmission o ver digital are for high sign al to noise
ratio s at the receiver o ut put which necessitates high optical input power (see
Section 9.2.5), and high end to end linearity to avoid d istortion a nd preven t
cross talk between differen t channels of a multiplexed signal (see Section
10.4.2). Furthermore, it is instructive to compare the SNR constraints for
typica l a nalog o ptical fiber and coaxial cable systems.
In a co axial cable system the fundamental limiti ng n oise is 4KTB. where K
is Boltzmann's constant. T is the abso lute temperature, and B is the effective
noi se band....id th for the chan nel. If we assume for simpl icity that the coaxial
cable lo s. is constant and independent o f frequency, the S N R for a coaxial
sy stem is

(10.55)

w herea N is the a tten uation in nepers between the transmitter a nd receiver, v is

the pea k outpu t voltage, and 2 0 is the im pedance of the coaxial cable.
The SNR for an analo g optical fiber system may be obta ined by referring to
Eq. (9.11) where

(l 0~ 6 )

The expression given in Eq. (10 .56) includes the fund ament&l limiting noise for

•. ~ - ' '
'' ' . -.
. ~. _ T ' ' .. ;-
_V ':~ ~ . ,. ,.~.• •.
.'" ~.,,,,
,,.~ ,,-
~ .,- ..
_ _ '" " '- .. -
,,.~..; ~ . _ .
460 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

o ptical fiber systems which is 2hf B. Although Eq. ( 10.56) is sufficiently

accurate for the purpose of comparison it applies to a n unmodulated optical
c arrier, A more accu rate expression would take into acco unt the depth of
mod ulation for the analog optical fiber system which cannot be unity [Ref.
531.- The average recei ved o ptical power Po ma y be expressed in terms of the
average input (transmitted) o ptical power Pi as
Po = Pi exp (- aN) (l O.l7)
Substituting for Po into Eq . (10.56) gives

5) Piexp(-aN)
("N ... - 2hfB ( 10.58)

Equations 00.55) a nd (10.58) allow a simple comparison to be made of

available SNR (or CNR) between an alog coaxial and optica l fiber systems as
demonstrated in example 10.10.

Exempl.10.10

A c oa.. ial ca b le sys te m o p e rati n g a t iii tern peretin e o f 17 · C ha s a t ra nsmi tt er pe ak

output volt age of 5 V w ith a c ab le impe dan ce of l oo n , An a na log optica l fi ber
system uses an Injeclion l aser source emilling at 0 .8 5 j.lm lind la unches an average
of 1 mW of op t ical pow er Int o t he fibe r eaore. T he o pt ica l receive r co m prise s a
p ho todiode w it h a quantum efficiency of 70%. Assuming t he effective ocee
ba ndwid th a nd the artenu a tlcn b etw een the Tr a nsmitter and r eceiver for the twu
syst e ms is ldellt ical, eSlim ate in deCibels the ratio of t he $ N A 01 100 c oe xia l system
t o th e SNR o f the f iber svste m.
S olurion: Us ing Eqs. ( 1 0 ,5 5) an d (10.58 ) f or the $ NRs of th e co axial and f ib er
syst e m s r6spect ive ty:

( ~ L.
VI e . p l-UNI
Z o4KTS Vl hf
Aati o = ~

rrl e.p !-U N)

(:L 2h18
2K TZoTtP.

Vlhc
~

2Krzo T}!'; )'

He nce.

25 )( 6.62 6 .. 10-)01 )( 2 .998 )( 10-

Rll tio = -,-,-cc",--,.,-c;:--,.,...- -,-c--cc.,--- - -cc.,---,.,----.,.
2 .. 1.38 5 );, 10- 1:1)( 290 );, 100 );, 0.7 .. 1 )( 1 0~ );, 0 .8 5 )( 10-'

• Strictly 'plU1ftJ Eq. 00."6) dl ploU Ch. Optlcal carrllt to not.. ri lic (CNIt).
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 451

The o ptical fiber c hannel in example 10.10 has around 40 dB less SNR
a vailable than the alternative coaxial cha nnel exhibiting similar cha nnel losses.
This results both from 2hfB being larger than 4KTB and from the far smaller
transmitted power with the optical system, F urthermore it mu st be noted that
the comparison was made using an injection laser transmitter. If an LED
transmitter with 10-20 d B less optica l o utput power was com pared, the
co axial system would display an advantage in the region 50--60 d B. For this
reason it is difficult to match with fiber systems the SNR requirements of some
analo g coaxial links, even though the fiber cable attenuation may be sub-
stantially lower than that of the coaxial cable.
The a nalog signal can be transmitted with.in an optical fiber com mu nication
system using one of several modulation techn iques, The simp lest form of
analog modulation for optical fi ber communications is direct intensity modula-
tion (D-I M) of the o ptical source. In this tech nique the optica l o utput from the
source is modulated simply by varyin g the current flo wing in the device around
a suitable bias or mean level in proportion to the message. Hence the informa-
tion signal is transmitted directly in the baseband.
Altern ati vely the baseband signal can be tra nslated o nto an electrical sub-
carrier by means of amplitude, phase or frequency modulatio n using stand ard
techniques, prior to intensity modulation of the optical source. Pulse analog
techniques where a sequence of pulses are us ed for the carrier may also be
utilized. In this ca se a suita ble parameter such a s the pulse amplitude, pulse
width, pulse position or pulse frequency is electrically modulated by the
ba seba nd signal Again the modulated electrical carrier is transmitted optically
by intensi ty modulation of the optical so urce.
D irect modulation of the o ptical source in freq uency, phase or polarization
rather than by intensit y requires these parameters to be well defined
thro ughout the optic al fiber system. Although there is much interest in th is
area (see Section 10.8) pre sent optical component technology does not as yet
completely provide for practical system implementation.

10.7,1 Direct Intenlity Modulation ID-lM)

A block schematic fo r an analog optical fiber system which uses d irect
modulation of the optical source intensity with the ba seband signal is shown in
Fig. to.40(a). Obviously no electrical modulation or demod ulation is required
with this technique, making it b oth inexpensive and eas y to implement.
The transmitted optical power waveform as a function of time P<>pI(t), an
exam ple o f which is illustrated in Fig. IO.4O(b), ma y written as :
( 10.59)

where ~ il the l \'l:fage transmitted optical power (l.e. the unm odulated carrier
power) and m{t) ia the intentity moduJatin. sisnai which is proportional to the
IOUtOi ma.... .a(t). For I cOlinuloidll modulatlna sl,nal:
452 OPTICAL FIBER COM MUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

-
So.o ~ _
""""'
c iAoai<
( Opli.,.1"",",ul. lo.-)
l- I'
,<'b~
"
f ib·a
<k loc

-~
~
" n.pl;!"i"
Low ro-
fill <1'
[l...bond
out put

-~ r -L .l.
,
-- '"
"'. - (/'_ . - ' ,)IP;

Tim"
(h)

Rg.10.4O [e } Analog optic al tiber syste m employing d irect In tensity mOd ulatiOfl.
lbl TIme dom ain fepre sen ta tion 5howing d irec t in tensi ty modulation of me
op t ica l carri er wi th • base ba nd . na lOQ 51g nal.

met) = m. cos romI (10.60)

where m. is the modulation index or the ratio o f the peak excursion from the
average to the average power as shown in Fig. IOAO(b). a nd ro'" is the angular
frequency of the modulating signal. Combining EQs. (10.59) a nd (10.60) we
get:
(10.61)
Furth ermore, assuming the transmission med ium has zero di spersion , the
received optical power will be o f the same form a s Eq. (10.6 1). but with an
average received optical power Po. H ence the second ary photocurreat 1(' )
generated at an A PD receiver with a multiplication factor M is given by:
1(/) = I pM ( 1 + rn. cos t:O", t) ( 10.62)
where the primary photocurrent obtained with an unmodulated carrier II' IS
given b y Bq. (8.8) as ,

I = 1'J i' p ( 10. 63)

P hf 0

The mean SQuare sianai currenll~. which is obtained from Eq. (10. 62) i. given
by :
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEM S 453

( 10.64)
T he total average noise in the sys tem is composed of quant um, dark current.
and thermal (circuit) noise co mponents. The noise contribution from quantum
effects and detector dark current may be expressed as the mean square total
shot noise curren t for the APD receiver i~A given by E q. (9,2 1) where the
excess avalanche noise factor is written Iouowlng Eq. (9.26) as F(M) such
that:
(10.65)
whe re B is the effective noise or post detection bandwidth.
Thermal noise generated by the load resista nce R L and the electronic
amplifier n oise can be expressed in terms of t he amplifier noise figure Fn
referred to R L as given by Eq. (9.17). Thus the total mean square noise current
i;; may be written as:
4KTBF.
;r =2eB(lp + I d )J.f 2 F(M ) +
R,
( 10.66)

The S N R defined in terms of the ratio of the mean sq ua re signa l c urrent 10 the
me an square no ise current (rms signal po wer to rm s noise power) for the AP D
receiver is therefore given by:

(A PD)

(10. 61)
It must be emphasized that the SNR liven in Eq . (10.61) is defined in terms
o f rrns signal power rather than peak signal power used previously. When a
unity gain photodetector is utilized in the receiver (i.e. p-i-n ph otodiode) Eq.
(10,67) reduces to:

(p--i-n) (10.68)

Moreover. the SNR for video transmission is often defin ed in terms of th e peak
10 peak picture sign al power to the rms no ise power and may include the ratio
of luminance to composite video b. Using this definition in the case of the unity
gain detector gives:

(10.69)

It may be observed that. excluding b. the SNR defin ed in terms of the peak
. ipaJ power p ven in Eq. (10.69) is a factor of 8 (or 9 dB) greater than thlt
d.1ln1d In Eq. (10.68)•
'. '"•
I',
454 Opn CAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRA CTICE

Ex-mple'O.11

A $ingle lV c ha n r>e l is lransmille d over a n a " 8 10 g opt ic a l fibe r link os'ng d ;' ect
iotel"sity modu la tion. The video signa l which ha s 8 bandwidth o f 5 MHz and a ra lio
of l\J min ar>c8 t o compceee vid80 of 0 .7 i s transmitt ed w ith a mcdute tlcn indel< of
0 .8 . The re ce iver contaiN; a p---i-(i photod iooe w ith II I~nsi vlly of 0 .5 A W-- ' <lod
a Pfailm pl ifieJ wi th 1:1 " effective in put i mpedanc e o f 1 Mel toge ther w ilh a no ise
fig ure of 1.5 dB. As s um inQ the rec e iver is o pe ratin g 8t a te m pe rat ure of 2 0 ~c a nd
negillct ing the dark c urre nt in t he ph otod iode, de te rmine t he ave rage In cide nt
opti cal pow er req uire d at the receiver u.e.
receiv er sensitivity) in order to maintain a
p lI!! llk 10 peal<. sig nal power t o , m s noiSl'l p OWeI'" re uc 01 55 dB
S olution: Neglecting the photodiode da ..... c urrent. Ihe peak to peak $Ogna l powe r
to nns noise power rat io is given following Eq. 11 0 .69) as.

The photoc unel'lt Ill' ~v b e e xpressed I... te rms of t he a vera ge incide nt optic a l
power al the recewee P o using Eq. (8 .41 as:

Ill' '" RPo

where R is Ihe re&perlsivily of ltIe p t101o diode. aeece .

Rearranging.

(~N )_ 2e8RPo - (~ )
N p.p
4J(TBF~ = O
Rl

w here
(2 m . Rbl l = 4 >( 0 ,64 :>: 0. 2 5 'c 0 .49
= 0.31 4
,
(~N ) ,~
2~R =3. 1 62)( 10' x 2 )( 1.602 >, 10- ' · x 5 1( 10" xO.5

= 2 .53 3 x ' 0 - 1

5 ) 4/(TBFn
- - ,---,- ", 3 ,162 I( l ot X 4 x 1.38 1 I( l Q-l" 1( 2 93 x 5 I( 10 ' x 1.41 3
( R,
N ~
to
Th ere fore,

O.3 14P1- 2.1!i33 x 10-'1'0 -3 .118 x 10-'· _ 0

~ *.~
;
. dS"
_.~ SS ",-"_ . "-'<o'<...
",..';;.,~:.t ;1.
• '.,. -- ":' ', >• • •" ". . .
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS '55

,,'"
2.533xlO- 7 ± v'112.533 )( 10-')' - (-4 )( 0.314 )( 3.616 x 10....'..11
0.62 8

= O.93 1lW

= - 30.3 dBm

It must be noted that the low noise preamplification d epicted in examp le

10,11 may not always be obtained, and that higher thermal noise levels will
adversely affect the receiver sensitivity for a given SNR. This is especially the
case with lower SNRs a s illu strated in the peak to peak signal power to rms
noise power ratio against average received optical power characteristics for a
video system shown in F ig. 10.41. The performance of the sys tem for various
values of mean square thermal noise current iI
= 4K TBFmIR L • where ~ is
expressed as a spectral density in A 2 HZ~I , is indicated. The value for the
receiver sensitivity obtained in example 10.1 J is a pproaching the quantum
limit. also illustr ated in Fig . 10.4 1, which is the best that could possibly be
achieved with a noiseless amplifier .
The quantum or shot noise (when ignoring the photodetector dark current)
limit occurs with large values or signal current (i.e. primary photocurrent) at
the receiver. Considering a p-i-n photodiode receiver, this limiting case which

.
SN/I (p- p/......H d Bl

"

10' · 10· ' I0- ° 10- '

~"""I" ~ "",><:01 ~ ...... IW)

PI,. 10.4' Pllk 10 pellk lig nal pow llr 10 nns l'1oi&e ~r ratio aga irllll t he aY'&rllllll
r..:elvMt optlc.1 power tor • dirilC't lm!!'Sitv modulated vl()llo syr.em ..-.d
¥.r\oI". IlvI II of tt1ermel noi.. given by /1. R'l:Iroduced ....Ith permi" ion from
. G. G, W1ndul c M. r;onl Rev., XLIV. p. 77 , 1881.

' ., ~ '"
 458 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

corresponds to large SNR is given by Eq. ( 10.68 ) when neglecting the device
da rk current as :

(qu antum noise limit) (10. 70)

4eB

Using the relationship between t he average received o ptical power Po a nd

the primary photocurrent given in Eq. (10.6 3) allows Eq . ( 10.70 ) to be
expressed as:
s
.
p -- -4hl
rna Tl
, (S)
-
N rm.
B (10.71 )

Equation (10 .71) indicat es th at for a quantum noise limited analog receiver,
the optical input power is directly pro portio nal to th e effective noise or post
detection bandwidth B. A similar result was obta ined in Eq. (lO.37) for the
d igita l receiver.
Alternatively at low S N Rs thermal noise is domina nt. and the thermal noise
limit when lp is small, which.may also be obtained (rom Eq. (10.68), is given
by:

(~ ) ~ (mJ
N "...
)2R L
p

8K TBFn
(therm al noise lim it) (10 .72)

Again substituting for I" from Bq. 00.63) gives:

Po ~ ~~~ ::R1( ~): B~

CK (10.73)

Therefo re it may be observed from Eq. (10. 73) that in the thermal noi se limit
the aver age incident optical power is directly proportional to B t instead of the
di rect dependence on B shown in Eq. (10.7 1) for the quantu m noise limit. The
dependence expressed in Bq. ( 10.73) is typical of the p--i-n pho todlode receiver
o perating a t low o ptic al input power level s. Thu s Eq. (10.73) may be used to
estimate the required input o ptical power to ach ieve a particu lar SNR for a
p-i- n photodiode receiver which is domi nated by thermal no ise.

l!x8m p I8 1 0. 12
!
A., analog cc ucet fi ber li llk e m ployiog O-IM has <J p-I-n p~otodlQde rece iver I.,
w hich therm al noi~ e i$ do m inant. The $'(sie m compone nts have lhe following
characte r'stiC$ and opeTllti"g co nditio ns.
p--i-n phc todlod e quantu m et'tcren cs
effective load impedance lo r t')(l llhotodiode '''''
60 '"
preamplifier nolJ,9 fig ure
'd'
" ,' "
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEM S '57

operililing wavelent;;th 1 pm
oper8ti r'lg tempe rature 300 '
receive r post detection bandwidth 10 MHz
modulniort Index 0.'
Esttm ete me required a ve rage incide l'1 1 optical power ilIt the receiver in o r!ief to
m aintain a n SlllR, ~fi ned irtterms ol iN> mea n square sig1'\a1c urrent to mean sq vl fe
noise c urren t of 4 5 dB.
Solution: The ave ra t;;e incident opucet po wer 10r a Ihe rmal noise limited p-i- n
photodiode rec erve r may be esnrrte ted using Eq. 110 ,73) whe re :

Po ~ hi (BKTF (-S)' n ) '

Sf
e'lm: RL N rm.

6 ,626 X IO- M x 2.998 x 10-

1.602 -.: 10- a x 0.6 x 0.25 x I >( 10--
= 8.267

' ~ (8 x 1.3 81 l( lO-

u"
3oo)r. 4 )'
) SOx I~

= 1.628 x 10- 12

(.: )~
N rm.
Bf = ~3,' e2 l(1 0")r.l 071+
'" 5.623 x 10 '
Hence,
Po ,.,. 8.26 7 l( 1.628)< 10- 12 x 5,623 x 10'
= 7.57 ..W
= - 21 .2 dBm
Therefore. IS a nticipated. th e recei\re r sensi tivity in the therma l noise limit is low .

10.7.2 Sptem Planning

Many of the general planning considerations for optlcel fiber systems outlined
in Section 10.4 may be applied to analog transmission. However, extra care
must be taken to ensure that the optical source and, to a lesser extent, the
detector have linear input-output characteristics, in order to avoid distortion
of the transmitted optical signal. Furthermore, careful optical power budgeting
is often necessary with analog systems because of the generally high SNRs
required at the optical receiver (40-60 dB) in comparison with digital systems
(20-25 d B). to obtain a similar fKlelity. Therefore, although analog system
optical power budgeting may be carried out in a similar manner to digital
IYlterns (see Section 10.6.6), it is common for the system margin, or the
458 OPTICAL FIBER COM MUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PR ACTICE

difference between the optical power launched into the fiber and t he required
optical power at the receiver, for analog systems to be quite small (perhaps
only 10--20 dB when using an LED source to ,ri- n photodiode receiver).
Consequently analog systems employing direct intensity modulation of the
optical source tend to have a limited transmission distance without repeaters
which generally prohibits their use for long-haul applications.

A D-1M a n a log o p tical fiber lin k. of le ngll'l 2 km e ll"plo'(S a n LED w tllch tec ncbe s
mun optica l pow er o f - IO d Bm into a mul ti mode optical fiber. The fib e r c able
e -.hibits a loss of 3 .5 d B km - ' with splice 1oS!l Il S ca lculated at 07 d B km- ' . In add i-
t ion t he re il> a connecto r 10Sl0 a l t he receiver 01 1.6 d~ The p---i-n photodiode
r eceiver " a s a se ns itivity o f - 2 5 d Bm tor a n $ N A (i4J /i~ 1 of 50 dB e nd WiTh ill
modulation ind ex of 0 .5. It is e s timat ed tha t a safely ma rgin of 4 d B Is requlra d.
Assu ming th e re is no dteperston- equeuaeuoo p enalty :
la) Perfor m e n o ptic a l powe r b udget fo r t" e s'(Sre ", Ope ra ting under Ihe above con-
d it ion s a nd aSDBrta in its viabi lity.
(b) Estimat ll a ny poss ib le Increase in link let1 g th which m ay be ach it>ved usit19 a n
Injectio n reeee source which la ut1c he s me a n opt ica l powe r of 0 d Bm into Ihe
fibef" cab le. In this c ase th e' s afe ly m a rgin must b e inc rea sed 10 7 d B.
S olution: fa) Optrcel powe r bud ge t :
Me a n pc ..... er Iauncned into th e fiber ca ble f rom
t he LEO tranSm iller - 10 d Bm
Mean o ptica l power requ irB(! at the p-i--n pho lodiode
rece ive r fo r SNA o f 50 dB and a modu lat ion ;nd e ~ 01 0.5 -2 5 d Bm

Tota l svst am ma rg in 15 ee

Fiber c a ble IOS5 (2 x 3. 5 ) 7. 0 dB

S p lice lcues 12 )( 0 .7) 1.4 d B
Coonector loss a t IlIe receiver 1.6 d B
S afe ty margin 4 .0 d e

Tolal svs tern lo s s 14.0 dB

Excess power ma rg in 1.0 d B

He nc e the s ys te m is via ble . p ro viding a s ma ll e~cess power margin.
lbl ln order to c a lcul8le any possible increase in l'tlk le ng Th w hetl usi ng the injec-
tion laser sccrce we rete r to Eq. 110. 531. w he re

PI - Po .. (~ + UjIL + O:~f + M a d B
There fore,
o d Bm - I- 2 5 d Bm) = (3. 5 + 0.71L -+ 1.6 + 7.0

' ed
4.U '"" 25 - 8. 6 = 15 .4 dB
g iving

16 .4
L - - _ 3 .9km
U
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 459

He nce th e use a f t he inje Ction IsS&( g ives II possible increu e in Ihe 'in k le ngt h of
1.9 km o r almast a tecto- a f 2. It must be no ted that In this case th e e~ c e ss po we r
m arg if1 nee be ef1 eecuced to zero.

The transmission distance without repeaters for the an alog link o f exampte
10.13 could be extended further by utilizing an APD receiver which has
increased sensitivity. This could facilitate an increase in the maximum link
length to around 7 km , assuming no additional power penalties or exces s
power margin. Although this is quite a reasonable transmission distance, it
must be noted th at a comparable d igital system could give in the region of
13 k m transmission without repeaters.
The tem poral response of analog systems may be determ ined from system
rise time calculations in a s imilar manner to digital system s (see Section
10.6.5). The maximum permitted 3 dB o ptical bandwidth for analog systems in
order to avoid dispersion penalties follows fcom Eq. ( 10.49) and is given by :

(10. 74)

Hence calculation of the total system 10-90% rise time TO)rl allows the
maximum sys tem bandwidth to be estimated. Often this calculation is per-
form ed in ceder to estabdsb that the desired system bandwidth may be achieved
using a particular combination of system compo nents.

Ex.mpl. 10.14

The 10-9096 rise ti me s fa r possibl e comcc nents to be used in a D- 1M an aloq op tical

fibe r link are spec ifi ed betcw :
Sourc e (tE D) 10 ns
Fibe r cable: intermooal 9 ns km- '

Detector lAPDj
inuamodal
,,,
2 ns km - '

The de sired li nk len91h witnou l repe a le rs i. 5 km a lld Ine req uired o ptical ba ndw id lh
is 6 MH.I:_ Oe:e rmine wne lne r the above eom btnaticn Of COlI'\pone n ts gi~ an
ade qWte temporal re s POnse.
S olution: Eq ua tion (1 0 .74) may be used to ca lcula te the ma~imum pe rmitted
syste m rise ti me w hich gives the desired ba ndw idt h whe re:

0. 35 0. 3 5
T1V. 1lma xl = - - - = 58 3 ns
8 ""1 6 X l ea

The lotal syste m rise time using t ile specified compone nts c a n be estimated
ulln; Eq. (10.431 as:
TIIY11 = 1 .llT~ -+ T~ -+ n -+ Tbl t
_ 1.1(10" -+ (9 l< 5)2 ... (2 II 51' ... 3' It
.. ~ e 2 ne
 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

T~erefor!l I ~e specified co m pone nts g i\l 8 a s yste m rise I'me w hich is ad e q ua te fo r

tlwl bandwidth a nd d is tance .eoqu'.ements o f the optic el libe r lin k.. Howe ver. th e re is
lillie le e w a y lo r upg,ading the syste m in terms o f b&ndwid lh o r d is la n ce w itho u t
rep lecing o ne Ot rnore o f m e s yste m oomponen lS.

10.1.3 Subcarrier Inten.ity Modulation

Direct intensity modulation of the optical source is suitable for the transmis-
sion of a baseband analog signal. However, if the wideband nature of the
optical fiber medium is to be full}' utilized it is essential that a num ber of
baseband channels are muhiplexed onto a single fiber link. This may be
achieved with analog transmission through frequency division multiplexing of
the individual baseband chan nels. Initially, t he baseband channels must be
translated onto carriers of different frequency by amplitude modulation (AM),
frequency mod ulation (FM) or phase modulat ion (PM) prior to being
simultaneously transmitted as an FDM signal. The frequency translation may
be performed in the electrical regime where the baseband analog signals
modu late electrical subcarriers and are then freq uency division multiplexed to
form a composite electrical signal prior to intensity modulation of the optical
source.
A block schematic of an analog system employing this tech nique which is
known as subca rrier intensity modulation is shown in Fig. 10.42. The
baseband signals are modulated onto radiofrequency (RF) subcerrters by
either AM . FM or PM and multiplexed before being applied 10 the optical
source drive circuit. Hence an intensity modulated (1 M) optical signal is
obtained which may be either AM-1M, FM- IM or PM- 1M. In practice.
however. system output SN R considerations dictate that generally only the

)Ior1ulUN'l
T" "",," ~"",...l
., Iolorlul.<...-
., o.~
,-,-
Fi"",

( 1_ ......' ' dn..c c;''''''1i .,U'00

RF ... 1>o:un<'11.' J

Ag.10.42. Subcatri er inte nsity modulat ion ' ,!,S1em for a nalog optica l fibe t t.an, ml"lon.

,
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 48.

latter two modulation format s are used. Nevert heless systems may incorporate
two levels of electrical modulation whereby the baseband c hannels a re initially
amplitude modulated prior to freq uency or phase modulation (Ref. 661. The
PM or PM signal thus obtained is then used to intensity modulate the optical
source. At the receive terminal the transmitted optical signal is detected prior
to electrical demodulation and demultiplexing (filte ring) to obtain the originally
transmitted ba seband signals.
A further major advanta ge of subcarrier intensity modulation is the possible
Improvement in SNR that may be obtained during subc arrier demodulat ion . In
order to investigate this process it is necessary 10 o btain a general expression
for the SNR of the intensity modulated optical carrier which may then be
applied to the subcarrier intensity modulation formats. Therefore, as with
D-IM, considered in the previous section, an electrical signal m(t) modulates
the so urce intensity . T he tran smitted optical power waveform is of the same
form as Eq. ( 10.59), where :
(10.75)
Also the secondary pbotocurreer [(1) generated at an APD receiver following
Eq . (10.62) is given by:
Jet) ~ I,M ( 1 + met)~ ( 10.76)
The mean square signal c urrent ~ may be writte n as [Ref. 65 1:

~ = (lpM Y P", ( 10 .77)

where P'" is the total power of m(t). which can be defined in terms of the
spectral d ensity 5",«(1) of m(r) occupying a one-sided bandwidth 8 ", Hz l!s:

P'" = 2ftI f''''

- 21tB m
S", (oo) dw (10.78)

H ence the SNR defined in terms o f tbe mean sq uare signal current to mea n
square noise current (i.e. rms signa l power to rms noise power) using Eqs.
(10.77) and (JO.66) can now be written as:

(D-IM ) ( 10.79)
482 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

where we substitute for I p from Bq. (8.4 ) and fo r notation al simplicity write :

4KTBF,
No = e(lp + Id)F (M ) + ~M:;'C;';-,"- ( 10.80)

The result obtained in Eq. ( 10.79) gives the SNR for a direct intensity
modula ted o ptical source where the to tal modula ting signa l power is p... . In
this context Eq. (10.79) is simply a more general form of Eq. (10.67).
However, we are now in a posit ion to examine the signal to noise performance
of vari o us subcarrier inten sity modulation formals.

10.7.4 Subcarrier Double Sideband Modulation (DSB-IM )

A simple way to translate the spectru m of the baseband message signal a(t) is
by direct multiplication with the subcarrier waveform Ac cos roc t giving the
modulated waveform m(r) a s :
(l0.8 1)
where Ac is the am plitude, and 00.: th e a ngular frequency of the subcarrier
wav eform. F or a cosinusoidal modulating signal (cos (l)", t) the subcarrier
electric field Em(r) beco mes :

A<
Em( t) = T cos ( co.: + to",)t + cos (ID" - <om)t (10.82)

grvmg the upper and lower sidebands. The time and freq uency domain
rep resentations of the modulated waveform are shown in Fig. 10.43. It may be

CO"",, ok "tric
r",1d .. n ~ \il u d "

- - - - - - - T,"'. W

(vrio, .1", Ui<

(....ot om plilUd<

,
Rg.10.43 Tim e and frequency dom.in repre•• ntatlon. of doubl ••Id. b.nd modul.tlon,
OPTICA L FIBER SYSTEMS 463

o bse rved from the frequency domain representation that only the two sideband
components a re present as indicated in Eq. ( 10.82). This modula tion technique
is known as do uble sideband modulation (DSS) or double sideband suppressed
carrier (D SBSC) am plitude modula tio n. It provides a more efficient method of
translating the spectrum of the baseband message signal tha n con'..entioeal full
amplitude modulation where a large carrier component is also present in the
modulated waveform .
The DSB signal shown in Fig. 10.43 intensity-modulates the optical source.
Therefore the transmitted optical power waveform is obtained by combining
Eqs. ( 10.75) a nd (10.8 1) where for sim plicity we set the carrier a mplitude A c to
un ity, giving :

P"", (t) = P,(I + a(t) cos ro" t) ( 10.83)

F urthermore. in order to p reven t overmodulation, the value of the message

signal is normalized such th at la(t) ~ 11 with power Pq ('; 1. The DSB
modulated electrical subcarrier occ up ies a band width 8 m = 28 4 , and with a
carrie r amplitude of unity, Pm = Pa!2. H ence. the ratio ofrms signal power to
rms noi se power obtained within the subcarrier bandwidth at the input to the
double sideband demodulato r is given by Eq. (l0.79), where :

S )
( -N fill.
input DSB =-=(.2R_P"" P",
'. 1,--2
)-=-

x 2B" N
( 10.84)
o

However, an ideal DSB demodulator gives a d etection gain o f 2 or 3 dB

impro vement in SNR (R ef. 671 . This yields an output SNR of :

(S)
- output DSB = 2
(5)
- (RPof p.
input DSB = -'-:-::"::-'- (10.85)
N ..... N f1III. 4BoN o

C o m parison of the result obtained in Eq. (10.85 ) to that using direct

intensity modulation or the baseband signal given by Eq. ( 10.79) shows a 3 dB
degrada tion in SN R when employing DSB- IM under the same conditions of
bandw idth (Le. B m = B a ) , mod ulating signal power (i.e. P", = Pa ) , detector
photocurrent and noise. For th is reason D SB- IM system s (and also AM-1M
sy stems in general) are usually not considered efficient for optical fiber com-
munications. Therefore fa r more attention is devoted to both FM- IM and
PM- 1M systems.

10.7.& Subcerrier Frequency Moduletion (FM - IM)

In thi, modulation format, the su bcarrier is frequency modulated by the
meDiae aland. The conventional form For representing the baseband signal
464 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICAT IONS : PRINCIPLES AND PR ACTICE

which inte nsity modulates the o ptical so urce is (Ref. 67 1:

(10.86)

where kr is the angula r frequency deviation in radia ns per second per unit of
a(t). T o prevent intensity over modulation, the carrier amplitude A< ~ I, The
genera lly accepted expression for the bandwidth which is referred to as
C arso n's rule is given by :
B". ~ 2( D r + I)B a ( 10.8 1)
w here Dr is the frequency de viatio n ratio defined by :

peak frequency deviation !.J

Dr = = - ( 10.88)
bandwidth of a(t) Ba
T he peak frequency deviation in the subcarrier FM signal h is given by:
fo ~ k, max la(I)1 (10.89)
Hence the S N R at t he input to the subcarrier FM demodulator is:

5)
(N ,,"'.
-
. (R Po f(A;12l
Input FM = -'---:':--C:'-_ ( 10.90)
2B", N o
The subca rrier demodula tor o perating a bove th reshold yields an output SNR
IR,f. 65),

5 ) p. (RP. f Vt1!2)
( -N ,.,... output FM = 6D7 (Df + 1) :":':::;'O:'c:,:,,= ( 10.91)
2B", N"
Substituting fo r B", from Eq. ( 10.87) gives :

(5)-
JD! Po( RPofVt ;12j
o utput FM = - ' - -'::-::-:: --'-- ( 10.92)
N rmJ 2B aN.,
The result obtained in Eq . ( 10.92) indicates that a signifi cant im pro vement
in the p o stdetection SNR may be achieved by using wideband FM-IM as
demonstrated in the follo wing example.

E.emple 10.15

(a) A O-l M end an f M_IM octice t f iber com mu nicatio n sySTem are o perated und er
tile sam e comj ition!l of modul a1ing signal pow er 81M wl'ld widtl1. detector
ptlOtOl;Urre<lt and nolse. F",' !he' more, in older to mallimi llt lhit SNR 10 ttle FM -l M
sv-;tem, th e amplhude 01 tt<. auburrie' i. &81 to ",oity . Derw. ao .llp,....
on for the
Im pl'OV4lm em In po rt dete ctloo SNR of 1toeo FM-IM ryttlm 0\11' ttt. D-lM . Vltlm. h
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS
'6'
may be assumed that the SNR is defined in terms of the rms signal power to rms
noise power.
(b) The FM-IM system described in (al has an 80 MHz subcarrter which is
modulated by a baseband signal with a bandwidth of 4 kHz such that the peak
frequency deviation is 400 kHz. Use the result obtained in [a] to determine the
improvement in post detection SNR lin decibels] over the D-IM system operating
under the same conditions. Also estimate the bandwidth of the FM signal.
Solution: (a) The output SNR for the D-IM system is given by Eq, (10,79) where
we can write Pm -P, and 8 m =8 a. Hence:

The corresponding output SNR for the FM-IM system is given by Eq. (10.92)
where setting A c to unity gives:

Therefore the improvement in SNR of the FM-IM system over the D-IM system is
given by:

[3DiP a (RP 0 )~]j(4B~No I

SNR improvement = '--'--"--'--'----''--'--
[(RPo)'P ~ VI 2B8 No )

and,

3
SNR improvement in decibels = 10 109,u - D~
2

=1.76+20Io9,u D j
(b) The frequency deviation ratio is given by Eq. (10,88) where:

fd 400 X 103
Dj = - = =100
B~ 4x10 3

Therefore the SNR improvement is:

SNR improvement = 1.76 + 20 109" 100

= 41.76 dB

The bandwidth of the FM-IM signal may be estimated using Eq. (10.87) where:

8m ~ 2(D j + 1)8~ = 2(100 + 114 x 10 3

= 808 kHz

Thll result Indicates that the system is operating as a wideband FM-IM system,
466 OPTICAL FI BER COM MU NICATIONS: PRINC IPLES AND PRACTICE

E xa m ple 10.15 illustrate s that a substantial improvement in the post detec-

tion SNR over D-IM may be o btained using FM -IM. However. it mu st be
noted that this is at the expense of a tremendous inc rease in the band wi d th
required (808 k Hz) for transmission o f the 4 kHz baseband channel.

10. 7.6 Subcarrier Pha•• Modulation (PM-1M)

Wit h this modulation technique the ins tantaneous phase of the subcarrier is set
pro portional to the modula ting signal. H en ce in a PM-lM system the modulat-
ing signal m(t) may be written as IRef. 67]:

m(t) = A c cos (m~ t + k,a(t)) ( 10.93)

where k p is the ph ase dev iation constant in radian s per unit of aft). Again the
ca rrier a m plitude Ac< I to prevent intens ity overmodulation . Moreover, the
bandwidth of the PM-1M signal is given by Carson's rule as :

(10.94)
where D p is the frequenc y deviation ratio for the PM-1M system . In common
with subcarrier frequency modulation the frequ ency deviatio n ratio is defined
as :

D = Jd (1 0.95)
, B
•
where I.. is the peak frequency deviation of the subca rrier PM signal, which is
given by :

h = J.;,
I I
dart)
max d t (10.96)

The SNR at the inp ut to the subcarrier PM demodulator is :

(
-
S) . (RP. fA 112
mput PM = -'-,:-::'--::'- ( 10.97)
N ",,. 28 ... ,'11"

The o utput SNR fr om an id eal subcar rier PM de modulato r operating above

threshold is I Ref. 651 :

S ) D~PAR Po )l A~ /2
( -N o utput PM = ---'---''-c--''----''--- (1 0.98)
rrn. 2B aNQ
The result given in Eq. ( 10,98) su ggests that an im provem ent in SNR over
D-lM may be obtained usin g PM-1M. especially when the SNR is maximized
with Ac = I. However, comparison of PM-1M with FM-IM ind icates Ibal the
latter modulation format lives the greatest improvement,
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 467

h .• ~.10.1e

A PM-1M and an FM_IM o p1ical fibe r COll'Il'un ica tio n s ystem are o pera ted unde r 1he
same condi1ions of ba ndwidt h, N seband s ig na l power, subce rne r lI mplitude, fre-
que ncy d eyill tion, oetectcr ph01ocur'l!n t lind n oise Assuming the demodulators 10 '
both syste ms are ide a l. de te rmine the ratio (in d ecibels; of the o utput SNR lrom the
FM - IM system to the o ut put SNR fro m t he PM- 1M system.
S alu tlof1; The o ut put SNR from the FM-IM svste re is g iv e n b.,. Eel l t O. 9 2 ' wee -e :

S u bstit uting for Df from Eq. 110 .8 81 9iy~ :

s) 3f~ P.. IRPo )'A~

( - ou tpUI FM = --'---'--c:",--'---
N ,,~ , 2B;,N o

The ou tp ut SN R for th e PM- 1M sys te m is given by Eq. (10 ,98) w he re:

S ubs tituti ng for Dp from Eq. 11 0.9 5 ) gives:

s ). f ~P.. lRPol ·A ~/2

(-N outpu l PM = --=--=,---'----=-
.m& ~N"

The ra tio of the o utput SNR$ from the FM- IM a nd 1he PM- 1M s ys te m is :

~ 3
-" 4.77 d B

Example 10. 16 shows that the FM- IM sy stem has a su perio r o utput S NR
by some 4.77 dB over the corres pond ing PM-1M system. Nevertheless, this
does not prohibit the use of PM- 1M systems for analog o ptical fiber com-
mun ications as they still exhibit a substantial improvement in output SNR over
D- IM systems, as well as allowing frequency division multiplexing. It should
be noted, however , that a similar bandwidth pen alty to FM- IM is incurred
using this modulation format .

10.7.7 Pul•• Analog Technique.

Pulse modulation techniques for analog tran smission, rather than encoding. the
analog waveform into PCM. were mentioned within the system design con-
.KSeratio:u of Section 10.4. The most common techniques are pulse amplit ude

•
",

468 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

modulation (PAM ). pulse width modulation (PWM). pulse position modul a-

tion (PPM) and pulse frequency modulation (PFM ). All the pulse analog
techniques employ pulse modulation in the electrical regime prior to intensity
mod ulation of the optical source. However, PAM- 1M is affected by source
nonlinearities and is less efficient than D---IM. and therefore is usually
discounted. PWM-IM is also inefficient since a large part of the tran smitted
energy conveys no information as only variations of the pulse width about a
nominal value are of interest. Alternatively, PPM-1 M and PFM- IM offer
distinct advantages since the modulation affects the timing of the pulses. thus
allowing the transmission of very narrow pulses. Hence, PPM-1M and
PFM-IM provide similar signal to noise perfo rmance to subcarrier phase and
f requency modulation whilst avoiding problems involved with source linearity.
T hese techniques therefore prove advantageous for longer-haul analog fiber
links. Although P PM- 1M is slightly more efficient it provi des less SNR
improvement over D- IM. than thal gained with PFM - IM, where wideband
FM gain may be obtained. Furthermore, the terminal equipment required for
PFM - l M is less complex and therefore it is generally the prefe rred pulse
analog technique (Refs. 68 and 72-76). For these reasons the system aspects
of pulse a nalog transmission will be considered in relation to PFM- IM.
A block schematic of a PFM-IM optical fiber system is shown in Fig.
10.44. Pul se frequency mod ulation in which the pulse repetition rate is varied
in sympathy with the modulating signal is performed in the PFM mod ulator
which consists of a voltage controlled oscillator ( VeO). This in turn operates
the optical source by means of either a fix ed pulse width or a fixed duty cycle
(e.g, 50%). Demodulation in the system shown in Fig. 10,44 is by regenerative
baseband recovery. whereby the individual pulses are detected in a wideband
receiver before they are regenerated with a limiter and monostable. This
provides the desired modulating signal as a ba seband co mponent which is
recovered through a low pa ss filter.

. ,. " ..Limit er
~
H'O
r-,
V
Op,l<ol
" 001...
J - Jl
\:!uno" obl.
lI<s<n" ow,
LIt...
",c u it

' '"
Villco ""I""t /
'l!:

""0.44
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 48.

Regenerative baseband recovery gives the best SNR at the sys tem o utput.
A simpler PFM demodulation techniq ue for fixed width pulse transmission is
direct baseband r ecovery. In this case, because a baseband co mponent is
generated at the tr ansmit termin al, detection may be performed with a low
ba ndwidth receiver and the modulating signal obtained directly from a low
pass filter. However, this technique gives a reduced SNR for a given optical
power a nd therefore does no t find wide applica tio n.
The S NR in terms of the pea k 10 peak signal power to rms noise power of a
PFM-IM system using regenerative baseband recovery is given by IRef. 681:

( 10.99)

where To is the nom inal pulse period which is equivalent to the reciprocal of
t he pulse rate 10, fo is t he peak to pea k frequency deviation, R is the
photodiode responsivity, M is the phntodiode multiplication factor, PPJ is the
peak received optical power, TR is the pulse rise time at the regenerator circuit
input, B is the post detec tion o r effective baseband noise band width and i~ is
the receiver mean square noise current. It may be noted th at improved SNRs
are obtained with short rise time detected pulses. Moreover, the: pulse rise time
a t the regenerator circuit input is dictated by the o verall 10-90% system me
lime T.Ju' so there is no advantage in using a wideband receiver with a better
pulse rise time than this. In fact such a receiver would degrade the system
performance by passing increased from end noise. Therefore in an o ptimized
PFM regenerative receiver design. TR = T"", and following Eq. ( 10.43):
TR ~ I.l (T1 + T : + T~ ... T i>V (1 0.100)
where Ts • Tn. T; a nd To are the rise times of the source (or transmitter). the
fi ber (intermodal and intramodal) and the detecto r (or receiver) respectively.

EJuunpl. 10.17

Ar1 optica l fibe r PFM---lM system fo r vc eo tren s missico ee-orcvs rege ne rat i"e
base ba nd recov ev . The svstem uses g taded i..,de _ fi be r lind an APO de tector and
b es lttf! fo llowing o pera tiona l para me ters :
Nom inal pu lse ra te 2 0 M Hz
Pea k; to peak freq ue ncy de viation 5 MH z
AP D responslvhv 0.7
APO mu ltiplicaliOt1 tacto- 60
TOlal syr.em 10- 90% rise til1'lfl 12 ns
Basebe nd noise bllndwidtk 6 M Hz
RI Cll i"ttr mean sq uare noise c urre nt 1 ) l C1 IJ A1
C.lcull ll : Cal tNt cpnmum l&eei" .,r bandWidth; (bl the pltalt to peak signal power to
rml "01'1 powlr rlt kJ Ob11inecl when the pea k input optical powRr to the receive r is
-40dBm.
'ollltlolll (.1 For In optlmlZld dlll; n thl pulee rl., tlml-lt tn, rlg,nlrltor Circ uit
II 470 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AN D PRACTI CE

is eQual to The total system rise time, hence TR = 12 n s. The op umom re c e ive.
bandw idth is s im p ly o bta in e d by ta king t he recip rocal of TR.
Solu rion: (al For an opt im ize d de s ig n th e p u ls e ris e ti me at th e re gen erator circ uit
is lIIC1ual to th@ total syste m rise lime. hence Til = 12 ns. Tt. e optimum receive r
bandwictth is s imp ly o b ta ined by takin g Th e re ciproca l 01 Til giving 8 3 .3 MHz.
lb l Th e nom ina l PC; 'Sl1J period To (= l / fJ is 5 )( 10·· s a ad the p ea k o ptic al PO_I
at In e re ce iver is 1 )( 10-1 W . The refo rB, the p ea k 10 pea k s ignal to .ms noise rene
may be obtained us ing Eq . (10 .9 9 1. w t-oe re :

31 1a foMRP p a )'
(2.TA B 1 ~if.

3( 5 x 10'" x 5 )( 10" )< 60)( 0 .7 J( 10 - ' )'

12 " x 12 x 10-" x 6 x 10")' x 10- 11

= 1. 6 2 x 10 8
= 62 .1 oa

The result o f example 1O. 17(b) illustrates the possibility of acquiring high
SN R s at the o utp ut to a PFM-IM system using a regener ative receiver with
achievable receiver noise levels and with moderate input optical signal power
to the receiver.

10. 8 COHERENT SY STEM S

The detection of an intensity modulated optical carrier is basically a ph oton

counting process where each detected p hoto n is converted into a n electron-
hole pair (or in the case of the A P D a num ber of pairs d ue to avalanche gain).
It w as indicated in Section 7.5 that this process which ignores the phase and
polariz ation of the electromagnetic carrier may be readily implemented with
currentl y available optical components. Thus all the previous disc ussion in this
chapter involvin g both digital and analog systems has been applied to an
intensity mod ulated optical car rier. H owever, receivers designed to detect the
intensit y mod ula ted lightwave are often limited by noise generated in the
electronic amplifier. except at very high SNRs. This red uces receiver sensitivity
below the qu antum n o ise limited conditions by a tleast 1Q-20d B. It has been
demon strated that improved sensitivity may be obtained using well-known
co herent detection techn iques for the optical signal (i.e. heterodyne or
homodyne d etectio n). Tbese methods have been successfully applied in free
space o ptica l communication systems using gas lasers (Ref. 771.
Coherent optical fi ber transmission requires the direct modulation of the
am plitude (direct A.\1). frequency (direct FM) o r phase (direct PM) of a
coherent o ptical carrier prior to demodulation using coherent detection. In the
case of digital transmiseicn thi. implie. amplitude, frequency or phale .hift

.-,. ~
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 4 71

keying (ASK, FSK or PS K ) modulation tec hniques [Ref. 671 . Coherent detec-
tion by heterodyning involves the mixing of the incoming signa l wit h a local
optical oscillator to produce an inte rmediate fr eq uency (In, which is a
difference signal (or difference frequen cy) carrying the modulating information
signal. This signal may then be processed using standard techniques [Ref 67].
Alternatively, with homod yne detection a local oscill ator is set at the same fre-
q uency and phase as the coherent carrier. prior to optical mixing, which then
translates the required infor mation signal into the baseband.
A principal advantage of coherent detection for optical systems is the fact
that the local oscillato r power may be set suc h that the receiver noise is
dominated by the shot noise contribution from the local oscillator. Further-
more, the signal power is proportional to the local oscillator power giving, for
large local oscillator powers, an SNR which is independent of electronic
amplifier noise. This allows a significa nt improvem ent in SNR at the receiver.
In free space optica l communications the SNR at the receiver o utput when
using heterodyne detection may be shown IRef. 78] to be at least a factor of 8
(or 9 dB) higher than that for subca rrier intensity mod ulation; the SNR
impro vement using: homodyne in 3. similar system is at least a factor of 4 (or
6 dB). Conversely, investigation of digital o ptical modul ation formats for
coherent tra nsmission [Ref. 79/ indicates that FSK homodyne detection gives
the best sensitivity by so me 16- 22 dB over ASK baseband direct detection.
PSK heterodyne detection also proves to be the most sensitive heterodyning

Inj ., lion I.,,,, Op t;.;, 1

M<>J "lalo'
i()~ """ill, to, )

f oamm" Un" lool

" '''''-~ <,
---
S"'I1. "'001<
Ii"", ""\>~
- -
1/«:<... Irnn,.oJ
'.r..........",
"'"' I)o Ol(ldLoI. lori
~ ..od. t
Or"••t
~. t<c'a<
0 1'';' "
m" ot
O pt ",,)
ad.ptor

I
t un l OF
_ &1",
( 1oj " 1 ;" ~ I...,.,)
I
Pig. to.41 A coherent optical fibe. syatem empK>y"irog heterodyne deteetion IRef. 841.
' -

.... .._,
472 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

techniq ue with a minimum detectable po w er only 3 d B higher tha n that of PSK

homodyne detection. Hence th is shot no ise limited detection offers to provide a
d istinct increa se in th e potential repeater spacing. fo r optical fiber links .
M oreover, coherent transmission will allow high capacity information tran sfer
using frequency division multiplexing with fine frequency separation. T his in
turn will allow full explo itation of the low lo ss transmission windows in t he
lo nger wavelength regio n (around 1.3 urn and 1.55 JlCl).
However, there are problems associated with coherent optical fiber
tr ansmission which can be observed by considering the bloc k schematic of a
possible system employing heterodyne d etection shown in Fig. 10.45 IRef. 801.
The transmitter comprises an injec tion laser so urce which acts as an o ptical
frequency o scillator, th e outp ut of whi ch is modulated by the info rmation
signal using a suit able optical modulator. The d irectly modulated optical
ca rrier is th en launched into a single mode fi ber through an o ptical adapter.
The received o ptical signal is mixed with the o utput from the local optical
oscillator, which is also provided by a suitable injection la ser. To permit
satisfactory heterodyne detection. the optical mixer mu st combin e the
polarized o ptical signa l field with the similarly polari zed local optica l field in
th e mo st efficient manner: Id eally this device would be realized using
integrated optical techniques (see Section 11.7). Fina lly, the signal is
demodulated to obtain th e originally transmitted information. For such a
system to be pr actical both the source and local oscillator must be spectra lly
pure a nd frequency stabilized with respect to eac h other. Although this ha s
prov ed possible using gas lasers. s uita ble semicond uctor injection la sers a re
not easily obtained. The frequency stabilization of good. pure fre quency. single
mode injection lasers by control of temperature a nd injection current has
received some attent ion [Refs. 8 1 a nd 82 ), bu t wor k is st ill at a preliminary
stage . In this context injection lock ed semico nd uctor laser s or optical voltage
controlled o scillators operating a very low input level may prove essential
IRef. 831.
In order to achieve coherent tran sm ission a single polari zation state o f the
fundamental HEll mode mu st be la unc hed into and maintained in the fiber.
Therefore a suitable optical adapter (e.g. birefringent plate) is required to
adjust the pola rization of t he input optical wave to one of the orthogonal
polarization sta tes of the single mode fi ber cable. Such a n ada pter will a lso
en sure the be st possible matching to maximize the launc hing efficiency into the
fi ber . Finally, the fiber ca ble must be capa ble of maintaining this ca rrier
polarization state over its length for coherent detectio n to tak e place at th e
receiver. This aspect of co herent transmission is also currently under invesriga -
tio n as discussed in Section 3.12.
Therefore the realization o f practical coherent optical fiber tran smission
systems requires further re search and de velopment of th e optical system com-
ponents. N evert heless, the feasibiHty of coherent transmission hll been sbcwn
with the successful demonstration of optical FSK heterodyne detection uslna a
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 473

s e m icond uc tor la ser sou rce and local oscillator fR ef. 84 1. F u rther more the
pote nt ial bene fits of these sy ste m s, especi all y in the a rea o f long -h aul, wid e-
ba nd o ptical fiber comm u nication s ensures that in teresting develop ments m ay
be anticipated in the Mal future.

PROBLEMS

10.1 Discuss the major ccesuerercns in the design of digital drive circuits for;
(a) an LED source;
(b) an injeo:lion laser source.
Illustrate your a nswer with a n example of a dri...e circ uit for each source.

10.2 Outline, with the aid of su itable diagrams , possible tec hniques for ;
(8) the linearization of L ED transmitters;
(b) the maintenance of constant o ptical outp ut powe r from an injection
laser tr ansmitter.

10.3 Discuss, with the aid of II block diagram , the function of the major element s
o f an optical fiber receiver. In addition, describe po ssible techniques for
automatic gain con trol in AP D receivers,

10.4 Equalizatio n within an optical recei...er m ay be pro... ided using the simple fre-
quency 'rollup' c ircuit sho wn in Fig. 1O.46{a). T he normalized frequency
response for this circuit is iIluR.-atw in Fig. 10 .46(b).
The ampl ifier indicated in Fig, 10.46(a) p resen ts a load o f 5 Ul tel the
photodetector a nd together with the photodetector givei a t01a1 capacitance
of 5 pF. However, t he desired response from the amplifier-equalizer con-
figuration has an uppt r 3 d B point or corner freq uency at 30 M Hz. Assum-
ing R2 is fixed It 100 n deter mine the required values for e land R I in order
to obtain such a response,
No,~ " ' . _.
uf Ollt ""....."'"
f ""{_y ~..
c,

" '.
.....L. . ~ 8 ....1JS\l1.. f",qu. JlC)' '"
R;C
,.,
Ag.10.46 The equalize r of prcble rn 10.4: lal the freque ncy 'rollup' circuit; (b] the
spectral tra nsfllr c ha racte rist ic for the circuit.

10.15 De scribe the conversion of an analog signal into a pulse code modulated
wa veform for transmlssion OIl. a digital optical fiber link . F urth ermore
indicate how several signals m l Y be multiplexed o nlO a single fi ber link.
A speech 'illlal is sam ~ at 8 k H z a nd encoded using a 2561eve] birtary
code. What ill the m inimum u anunisston t ate for this single pulse code
mo<tu!Ued JPeCCb .iaw?Comment on the reeun.
474 OPTICAL F1B£R COMM UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

10.8 A U MHz information signal with a dynamic range of 64 mV is sam pled.

quantized and encoded using a direct binary code. The quantization is linea r
with 5 12 levels. Determine:
(a) the m axim um po ssible b it duration ;
(b) th e amplitude of one quant izatio n level.

10.7 Describe. with t he aid of a suitable block diagram. the operation of an optical
fiber regenerative repeater. Indica te reasons for the occ urrence of bit errors in
the regenera tion process a nd o utline a techn iq ue for establishing the quality
of the channel.

10.8 Twenty-four 4 kHz speech cha nnels are sampled. qu ar.tized. encoded and
then lime divisio n multiplexed for transmissio n as binary PCM o n a digital
optical fiber link. T he quantizer is linear with 0.5 mV step s over a dyn amic
range of 2.048 V.
C alcu late:
(a) t he frame lengt h of the PCM transmission. assuming an add itional
channel time slot is u sed fo r signa lling and sync hroni u tion:
(b) the required c h annel blUldwidth assuming N RZ pulses.

10.9 Develop a relationsh ip bet ween the error probability and the received SN R
(peak signal po..... er to rms noise power r al io) fo r a baseband binary optical
fiber s ystem . It ma y be assumed that th e number o f o nes and zeros are
equiprobable and th at the decision th reshold is set midway between t he one
and zero level.
The electrical SNR (defined as above) at the digit al optical receiver is
2004 dB. Determine :
(a) the o ptical SN R;
(b) lhe BER.
It may be a ssumed that erfc (3.7 1) ~ 1.7 X 10 - 1.

10.10 The error function (erf) is defined in the tex t by Eq. ( 10.16). However an
error fuocnoe also used in co mmunications is defined as:

Erf (u) = , j"' eJl p (- x 2/2) dx

V (2. ) ~

where a capital E is used 10 denote this fo rm of !be erro r function. The

corresponding complementary error function is:

Erfc (u) = 1 - Erf(u) : ..; J f~ n p (- x 2/2) dt

(2n) ~

This complem entary error function is also designated as Q(u) in certain texts.
Use of Erfc {u) or Q(u) is sometimes con sidered more con venient within co m-
munication systems.
Develop a relat ionship for erfc ( Ii) in terms of Erfc (u). Hence obtain an
e xpression for the error probability p(e) as a fua ctlc n of the Erfc for a bin u y
digital optical fiber system where the decision threshold is set midway
between the one and zero levels and the number of In.nsmiued ones and
zeros are equiprobabte. In addition liven that Ede (4.1 .s) ~ I x 10'""
eMimate the required peak .iJnal power 10 f1l\I noi. e power fltiol (both
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 475

optical an d electrical) 8t th e receiver o f such a system in order to maintai n a

BER of 10-' .

10.11 Show (hat Eq. (9.27) reduces to Eq. (to.28). lienee determine F (M ) when
k = O.3 and M = 20,

10.12 A silicon APD detect or is utilized in a baseband bin ary pe M receiver where
the decision threshold is set midway between the o ne a nd zero signa l level.
The device has a quantum clJiciency of 70% aod a ratio of carrier ion ization
rates of 0 .05 . In operation the APD has a multiplication factor of 65 . A ssum-
ins 8 ra ised co sine sif.lllli spectrum and a aero dis paritycooe,
and given that
«fc(4.47) =:: 2 " 10- 0:
(a) est imate t he n umber of photons req uired at the recei ver to register a
binary one with a BER of 10-1(1;
(b) calculate t he required incident optical power at the receiver when the
system is operat ing at a wavelength of 0.9 11m and a transmission rate
of 34 MlJit , - I ;
(c) indicate how the val ue obtained in (b) should be modified to com-
pensate for a 3B48 line code.

10.13 A p-i -tl phocodiode receiver requires 2 )( 10· incident pholon s in o rder to
register a binary o ne with a B ER o f 10 -" . The device has a quantum
efficiency o f 65%. Estima te in deci bels the edditjonal signa l level required in
excess of the quantu m limit for th is photcdiode to maintain a BER of 10- 9.

10.14 An optical fiber sy stem employs an LED transmitter which la unches an

a verage of 300 JlW or o p(ical po..... er at a wavelength o f O.81lm inlO the
optical fiber cable. The cable has an o verall atten uation (including joints) of
4 dB k m- 1. The A PD receiver requires 1200 incident photon s in order to
register a binary one with a BER of 10- 10• Determ ine the maximum
transmission distance [without repeaters) provided by rhe syst em when the
tra nsmission rate is I Mbit ~ -I and 1 G btr 5 - 1 such that a BER of 10- 10 is
maintained .
Hence sketch a graph showing the attenuation limit on transmission
distance against the transmission rate for the system.

10.15 An o ptical fiber sy stem uses fi ber cable which e~ h ibits a lo ss o f 7 dB km - I.

A verage splice losses for the system are 1.5 dB km I . aOlI connector losses at
the source and detector are 4 d B each. An er safety margins have been
allowed. the total p ermitted channellos s is 37 d B. Assuming the link to be
a ttenua tion limited. determine the m aximum possible tra nsmissio n distance
witho ut a repeater.

10.18 Assuming a linear increase in pulse bro adening with fiber length, show that
the transm ission rate 8 T (DL) at which a digital optical fiber system becomes
dispe rsion limited is given by :

- when Cl" T(km) ia the total nna pulse broadening per kilometer on the link
(hlnt: refer to Eqa. (3.3) a nd (3. 10»). (

-;,\
 476 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICAT IONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

(a) A digital optical fi ber system using a n injection laser source displays
rms pulse broadening o f I ns km'. The fiber cable has an atten uation
of 3.$ dB k.m- I and joint losses a verage o ut to 1 dB km' ". Estimate
the trancmisslon rate at the dispersion limit wh en the difference in
optical power levels between the input and outp ut is 40 dB .
(b) Calculate the dispersion limited tr an sm ission distance for t he srstem
descri bed in (b) when Ihe t ransmission rates are 1 Mbit s" and
I G bi! S- I . Hence sketc h a graph showing the dispersion limit o n
transmission distance against the tra n smissio n rat e for th e system.

10.17 The digital optical fiber system descr ibed in problem J 0. 16(a) has a tra nsmis-
sion rate of 50 Mbit S- 1 and oper ates over a dis tance of 12 km without
repeaters. A ssuming Gau ssian shaped pulses, calculate the dispers ion-
eq ualization pen alty exhibited by the system for t he cases whcn :
(a) there is no mode cou pling ; and
(b) there is mode coupling.

10.18 A dIgital o ptical fiber system uses an RZ pulse fo rmat. Show rb a: the
rnaxlmum bit rate for th e system BT(ma;.:;) may be estim ated using the es pres-
sicn :

0.35
B T(Ul 8Jf.) = --
T ....

where T,y", is the total system rise time. Comment on the possible u se of the
fact or 0 .44 in place of 0.35 in the above relationship.
A n optic al fi ber link is required to oper ate o ver a dist ance of 10 km
without repeater s. The fiber availa ble exhibits a rise tim e due to intermcdal
dispers ion o f 0.7 na km" , and a rise time due to lntr am od al dispers ion o f
0 .2 ns km - I • In addition the A P D detector has a rise time of I ns. Est imate
the maximum rise time enoweble for the source in o rde r for tbe link to be
s uccessfully operated at a tra nsmission rate of 40 Mbil S- I using a n R Z pulse
format.

10.19 A digital single mode optical fiber system i~ designed for operation at a
wavelength of 1.5 um and a transmission rate of 560 Mbit S~ I over a distance
of SO km without repeaters. The single mode injection laser is capable of
launching a mean optical power of ~J3 d Bm into the fiber cable which
ell hibits a loss o f 0.35 dB km - I • In addition splice losses are 0.1 dB km - I.
The connecto r lo ss at the receiver is 0.5 dB and the receiver sensitivity is
- 39 dBm. F inally an extinction ratio penalty of I dB is predicted for the
system . Perform an o ptical p ower b udget for the system and determine the
safety margin .

10.20 Briefly d iscuss the reason s for the use of block codes in digital optical fiber
transm ission. Indicate the advantages and drawb acks when a 5B6B code is
em ployed.

10.21 A D-IM analog o ptical fiber sy stem utilizes I ~i-n photodiode recei ver.
Derive I n ell.pussion for the n'J1I sign al power 10 rm a noise power nuin in th e
quantum limit for thi s Iyllem .
ThejH-n phococHodt in 1M above Iyltern hu . rnponllvit~ oI' Oo$ .t the
~at1nI .... vtlqth 0( 0," J&ftl. FW1Iwmore tM 1)"1111 Iw • modlAlatlot:l

..._ ...
:";,,,''''~ -
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 477

mdex of0.4 and transmits ove r a bandwidth of 5 MHz. Sketch a graph of the
q uan tu m lim ited receiver sensitivity against the received SNR (rms signal
power to rms noi se power) for t he system over the range 30-60 dB. It may be
assumed that the pho lOdiode dark current if. negligible.

10.22 In practice the an alog optical fiber receiver of problem 10.21 is found to be
t hermal noise limited. T he mean squ are therm al noise current for the receive r
is 2 )( 10-lJ A l Hz- I . Deter mine the peak to peat. signal po.....er to TInS mise
power r atio 11 the recei ver ....b en the a verage Incident o ptical power is
- 17.5 dBm.

10.23 An analog ccncer nter system has a modulation bandwidt h of40 MHz and a
modulation index o f 0.6. T he system utilizes an AP D receiver with a
responsivity o f 0.7 and is qu a ntum noise limited. An SNR (rms signal power
to rms noise power) o f 35 d B is obtained when the incident optical power at
the receiver is - 30 d Bm. Assuming the detector dark current may be
neglected, determine the excess av alanche noise factor a t the receiver.

10.24 A simple analog optical fiber link operates over a distance of 15 m. The
transmitter comprises an LED source which emits an average of I mWof
optical power into air when the drive current is 40 rnA. Plastic fiber cable
with an attenuation of SOO dB km-! at the tran smission wavelength is
utili led. T he minimum optical power level required at the receiver for
satisfactory operation o f th e system is 5 I.LW. Th e coupling tosses at the
transmi tter and receiver are 8 and 2 dB respectively. In addition a safety
margin of 4 dB is necessary. Calculate the minimum LED drive current
required to maint ai n satisfacto ry system operation.

10.26 An amw @: optical fibe r system employs an LED which em its 3 dBm mean
optical power into air. However. a coupling loss of Ii .S d B is encountered ,
when lau nchi ng into a fiber ca ble. The fiber cable wh ich esteods for 6 km
..... ithout repealers exhibit s a loss of 5 d B km " . It is spliced e~·c:ry 1.S km with
an average loss of 1. 1 d B per splice. In ad dition there is a connector Joss at
th e receiver ofO .S dB. The PIN-FET receiver has a sensitivit y of - 34 dBm at
th e operatinl b and wid th of the system. Assum ing the re is no dispersion-
equalization penal ty, perform an optical power budget fo r the system. and
establisb a safel Y ma rgin.

10.26 Indicate the tec hniques which may be used for analog optica l fiber tr enemis-
SKin where an electrical subca rric:r is employed. Illu strate your answer with a
system block diagr am sho wi ng the multiplexing of several signals onto a
single analog optical fiber link.

10.27 A narrowband FM - IM optical signal has a maximu m frequency deviation of

120 kHz when the freq uency deviation ratio is 0.2. C ompare the post detec-
tion SNR of this signal with that of a DSB-IM optical signa l having the same
modulating signal power, bandwidth, detector photocurrent and noise. Also
estimate the bandwidth of the FM~[M signal. Commen t on both results.

10.Z8 A frequency division mliltiplel ed optical fiber system uses FM-IM. It ha s 50

equal am plitude voice channds each bandlimiled to 3.5 kilL A I kH z guard
~ ia provided between the chanrtds and- beJow the rllst clt&nnel. The peak
(requeltCy deviatiorl for the Iy'tern is 1.35 MHz. Determine the transmislion
baMwir:tth (Ot WI YOM ayneat.
-_. '
478 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNIC ATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

10.29 An FM-lM system utilizes pre-emphasis a nd de -emphasis to enhance its

performance in noise IR er. 651. The de-empha sis filter is a first o rde r RC low
pu s IiJter placed at the demodulator to red uce the tOlal noi se power. This
filter ma y be assumed to have an amplitude response H .,.(lll) given by:

w here Ole =2 '" = l i R e .

The SNR improvement over FM - lM without pre -emph asis and de-
emphasis is given by:

SNR. improvcment=':
J
(B.)'
f.
where B~ is the bandwidth of the baseband signal an d f , <c B ~ .
(a) Write down an expression for the amplitude re sponse of t he pre-
emphasis filt er so that there is no over all signal distortion.
(b) Deduce an expression for the post detection SNR improvement in
decibels for th e FM - IM system with pre-em phasis a nd de-emphasis
over a D - IM system operating under the same condition s of modulat-
ing signal power a nd bandwidth, photocurrent and noise. It may be
assumed that f . <c Bil •
(c) A baseband signa l with a bandwidth of 300 k Hz is transmitted using
the FM-IM system with p re-em phasis a nd de -emphas is. The maxi-
mum frequency deviation fo r the system is 4 Mill . In addition the de-
emphasis filter comprises a 500 n resistor a nd a O.IIIF capacitor.
Determine the post detect ion SNR impro vement for this system over a
D--IM system ope-raling under the sa me cond itions o f modulating
signal power and b andwid th, photocurrent an d no ise.

10.30 A PM-L\.i optical fiber system operating above threshold has a frequency
deviation ratio of 15 and a transmission bandwid th of 640 kHz.
(a) Estimate the b a ndwidth of the baseband message signal.
(b) Compute the post detection SNR improvement for the sy stem 0 \-0' a
D-I M syst em operaung ,... ith the same mod ula ting signa l power and
bandwidth, detector photoeurrent and noise.

10.31 D iscuss the advantages an d drawbacks of the variou s pulse analog tech-
niques for optical fiber transmission. Describe t he operation of a PFM-IM
optical fiber sy stem empl oying regener ative baseband recovery.

10.32 An optical fiber PFM - IM system uses regenerative b aseband recovery. The
opt ical receiver which incorporates a Jri-n photodiode has an optimized
bandwidth of 125 M Hz. The other system parameters are:
No min al pulse ra te 35 MHz
Peak to peak frequency deviation a M Hz
J,-i-n photodiode r~ponsivity 0.6 A W- I
Baseband noise bandwidth 10 MHz
Receiver meAD Iquan M ille current 3 )( 10-15 At Hz-I

_ . ~ . " .. ,
OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 47'

(a) Calculate the peak level of incident optical power necessary at the
receiver to maintain a peak to peak signal power to rms noise power
ratio of 60 dB.
(b) The source and detector have rise times of 3.5 and 5.0 ns respectively.
Estimate the maximum permissible total rise time for the fiber cable
utilized in the system such that satisfactory operation is maintained,
Comment on the value obtained.

10.33 Discuss, with the aid of a suitable system block diagram, coherent optical
fiber transmission. Indicate the system component requirements necessary to
achieve successful coherent operation.

Answers to Numerical Problems

10.4 53.0 pF, 472 n 10.19 2.1 dB

10.5 64 kbit s-' 10.21 40 nW, 40 ~W
10.6 (a) 37 ns; (b) 125 ~V 10.22 49.0 dB
10.8 (a) 300 bits; (b) 1.2 MHz 10.23 3.1
10.9 (a) 10.2 dB; (b) 3.4 x 10-7 10.24 35.5 rnA
10.10 p(e) = Erfc «S/N/12), [9.6 dB 10.25 5.4 dB
10.11 7.4 10.27 Ratio of output SNRs (rms sig-
10.12 (a) 1400; (b) -52.8 dBm; (c) nal power to rms noise power)
-51.8 dBm for PM-1M to DSB-IM is
10.13 27.9 dB -9.21 dB, 1200 kHz
10.14 15.76 km, 8.26 km 10.28 3.15 MHz
10.15 3.41 km 10.29 (a) 1 + (ro/rooi;
10.16 (a) 22.5 Mbit S-I; (b) 200 krn, (b) -3 + 20 10gIO (DrB./fc);
0.2 km (c) 59.0 dB
10.17 (a) 16.6 dB; (b) 0.1 dB 10.30 (a) 20 kHz; (b) 20.5 dB
10.18 3.04 ns 10.32 (a) -24.4 dBm; (b) 4.6 ns

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- ... ' .
480 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

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'. . .'. ,,-

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OPTICAL FIBER SYSTEMS 483

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 11
Applications and Future
Developments

11.1 INTRODUCTION

In o rder to appreciate the many areas in which the ap plication of lightwave

transm ission via optical fi bers may be beneficial, it is useful to review the
advantages and special features provided by this meth od of com munication.
The prim ary advantages .o btained using optical fibers for line transmission
were di scussed in Section 1.3 and may be summarized as follows :
(a) enormous potential bandwidth;
(b) s mall size and weight;
(e) electrical isola tion;
(d) im munity to interference a nd c rosstalk;
(e) signal security:
(f) low transmission lo ss;
(g) ruggedness and flexibility;
(h) system reliability and case of maintenance;
(i) potential low cost.
A ltho ugh th is list is v CI)' impressive. it is not exhaustive a nd several other
attribu tes associated with o ptical fiber communications ha ve become a pparent
as th e technology has developed. Perhaps the most significant a re th e red uced
power consumption exhibited by o ptica l fiber systems in co mpariso n with their
metall ic ca ble counterparts and their ability to provide for an expansion in the
system ca pability often witho ut fund am ent al and costly changes to th e system
configuration. For instance. a sys tem may be upgraded by simply changing
from an LED to an injection laser sour ce, by replacing II. ,ri- n photodiode
with a n A PD detector, or alternat ively by operating at a longer wavelength
without replacing the tiber cable.
T he use of fibers for optical co mmunication does have some dra wbacks in
practice. Hence to provide a balanced picture these disad van tage s must be
co nsidered. They are :
(a) the fragility of the bare fibc,,;

-
APPLICATIONS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS 485

(b) the small size of the fibers and cables which creates some difficulties with
splicing and forming connectors;
(c) some problems involved with forming low loss T-couplers;
(d) some doubt in relation to the long-term reliability of optical fibers in the
presence of moisture (effects of stress corrosion-see Section 4.6);
(e) an independent electrical power feed is required for any repeaters;
(f) new equipment and field practices are required;
(g) testing procedures tend to be more complex.
A number of these disadvantages are not just inherent to optical fiber systems
but are always present at the introduction of a new technology. Furthermore,
both continuing developments and experience with optical fiber systems are
generally reducing the other problems.
The combination of the numerous attributes and surmountable problems
makes optical fiber transmission a very attractive proposition for use within
national and international telecommunication networks (PTT applications). To
date applications for optical fiber systems in this area have proved the major
impetus for technological developments in the field. The technology has
progressed from what may be termed first generation systems using multimode
step index fiber and operating in the shorter wavelength region (0.8.....Q.9 11m),
to second generation systems utilizing multimode graded index fiber operating
in both the shorter and longer wavelength regions (0.8-1.6 11m). Furthermore,
fully engineered third generation systems incorporating single mode fiber pre-
dominantly for operation in the longer wavelength region (1.1-1.6 11m) have
been accepted for commercial operation in the public telecommunications
network. In addition many alternative fiber systems applications have become
apparent in other areas of communications where often first and second
generation systems provide an ideal solution. Also the growing utilization of
optical fiber systems has stimulated tremendous research efforts towards
enhanced fiber design. This has resulted in improvement of the associated
optoelectronics as well as investigation of 'passive' optics which are likely to
provide an advance in the current 'state of the art' of optical fiber communica-
tions together with an expansion in its areas of use. Hence, what may be
termed fourth generation systems are already close to realization being con-
cerned with both coherent transmission (see Section 10.8) and integrated
optics (see Section 11.7). Even fifth generation systems could be on the
horizon judging from the results of preliminary investigations [Ref. 1 and 21.
These seek to utilize nonlinear pulse propagation in optical fibers to provide
greatly increased channel capacity whilst exhibiting compatibility with inte-
grated optical systems which function in a nonlinear environment.
In this chapter we consider current and potential applications of optical fiber
communication systems together with some likely future developments in the
general area of optical transmission and associated components. The discus-
sion is, primarily centered around application areas including the public
 486 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

I network, military, civil and consumer, industrial and computer systems which

I are dealt with in Sections 11.2 to 11.6. However, this discussion is extended in
Sections 11.7 and 11.8 with a brief review of integrated optical techniques and
devices so that the reader may obtain an insight into the technological develop-
ments which it is generally believed will instigate further generations of optical
fiber communication systems.

11.2 PUBLIC NETWORK APPLICATIONS

The public telecommunications network provides a variety of applications for

optical fiber communication systems. It was in this general area that the
suitability of optical fibers for line transmission first made an impact. The
current plans of the major PIT administrations around the world feature the
installation of increasing numbers of optical fiber links as an alternative to
coaxial and high frequency pair cable systems. In addition it is indicated
[Ref. 3] that administrations appear to be abandoning plans for millimetric
waveguide transmission (see Section 1.1) in favor of optical fiber communica-
tions.

11.2.1 Trunk Network

The trunk or toll network is used for carrying telephone traffic between major
conurbations. Hence there is generally a requirement for the use of transmis-
sion systems which have a high capacity in order to minimize costs per circuit.
The transmission distance for trunk systems can vary enormously from under
20 km to over 300 km, and occasionally to as much as 1000 km. Therefore
transmission systems which exhibit low attenuation and hence give a
maximum distance of unrepeatered operation are the most economically
viable. In this context optical fiber systems with their increased bandwidth and
repeater spacings offer a distinct advantage. This may be observed from
Fig. 11.1 [Ref. 41 which shows a cost comparison of different high capacity
line transmission media. It may be observed that optical fiber systems show a
significant cost advantage over coaxial cable systems and compete favorably
with millimetric waveguide systems at all but the highest capacities. It may
also be noted that only digital systems are compared. This is due to the advent
of the fully integrated digital public network which invariably means that the
majority of trunk routes will employ digital transmission systems.
The speed of operation of most digital trunk optical fiber systems are based
on the principal digital hierarchies for Europe and North America which were
shown in Table 10.1. Proprietary systems (where one contractor supplies the
complete system in order to minimize interface problems) operating at
34 Mbit S-I and 140 M bit s-' have been installed in the trunk network in the
APPLICATIONS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS 487

140 .'Ib;t ,-I co>x;al

// ,...160 Moit ,-. co,,;,1

R<bti," pm.nt valu,
of .nnual co.t. / ", 140 ~lbit, t uplical filter
/ / ",,/
~~. ~illiln.tti< w.,'e~uide
'0 ---.,-".. 560 \1bit ,-' optio .1 fihot
~/
-.r""
-----"..
-- ~
/
Rou!c length - 100 Oem

'00 woo '000

Cir<uit' .<!deJ per annum

Fig. 11.1 Relative present value cost comparison of different high capacity line transmis-
sion media. Reproduced with permission of the International Telecommunica-
tion Union (ITU), Geneva, Switzerland. from C. J. Lilly, 'The application of
optical fibres in the trunk network', lTV Telecommunication Journal. 49-
11/1982, p. 109.

UK on low and high growth rate trunk routes respectively. In the main these
systems operate in the 0.85-0.9 urn wavelength region using injection laser
sources via graded index fiber to silicon APD detectors with repeater spacings
of between 8 and 10 km. A typical system power budget for a 140 Mbit S-1
system operating over 8 km of multimode graded index fiber at a wavelength
of 0.85 urn is shown in Table ll.l [Ref. 5]. The mean power launched from
the laser into the fiber may be improved by over 3 dB using lens coupling
rather than the butt launch indicated.
High radiance LED sources emitting at 1.3 urn are also being used with
multimode graded index fiber in proprietary trunk systems operating at both

Table 11.1 A typical optical power budget for a 140 Mbit e-' trunk system operating
over 8 km of multi mode graded index fiber at a wavelength 010.85 urn

Mean power launched from the laser transmitter (butt coupling) --4.5 dBm
APD receiver sensitivity at 140 Mbit S-I (BER 10....) --48.0 d8m

Total system margin 43.5 dB

Cabled liber loss (8 x 3 dB km-') 24.0 dB

Splice losses (9 x 0.3 dB each] 2.7 dB
Connector loss 12 x 1 dB each) 2.0dB
Dispersion-equalization penalty 6.0dB
Safety margin 7.0dB

Total system loss 41.7 dB

Excess power margin 1.8 dB

 488 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

34 Mbit S-I and 140 Mbit S-I most notably in a link between London and
Birmingham which is 205 km in length. Field trials of single mode fiber
systems operating in the longer wavelength region have demonstrated
repeaterless transmission at 565 Mbit slover 62 km at 1.3 11m and
140 Mbit S-I over 91 km at 1.5 11m [Ref. 6]. These field trials have been
followed by the installation of proprietary long wavelength single mode
systems utilizing PIN-FET hybrid receivers between Luton and Milton
Keynes, a distance of 27.3 km, and over 52 km between Liverpool and
Preston. The provisional optical power budget for the former system is given in
Table 11.2 lRef.7].
It may be noted that the single mode fiber system depicted in Table 11.2 has
a lower total system margin than the multimode fiber system operating at
0.85 11m outlined in Table 11.1. This is caused by the difficulty of launching
light into the smaller single mode fiber as well as the reduced sensitivity of the
PIN-FET hybrid receiver operating at 1.3 IJ.ll1 in comparison with the silicon
I APD receiver operating at 0.85 11m. Nevertheless the low loss (0.6 dB krrr' ) of
the single mode fiber when operating in the longer wavelength region together
I with the absence of any dispersion-equalization penalties more than com-
pensates for these drawbacks; in this case allowing transmission distance of
27.3 km without repeaters. In the UK public network a 30 km unrcpeatered
transmission distance (or repeater spacing) is quite sufficient since it is the
maximum spacing between existing surface stations and hence power feed
points. This removes any requirement for the installation of a metallic con-
ductor for power feed within the system as well as allowing any repeaters to be
installed above ground in a protected internal environment. Benefits gained
include significantly reduced system costs along with additional reliability and
ease of maintenance.

Table 11.2 Optical power budget for 140 Mbit S-I single mode fiber trunk system
operating over 27.3 km at a wavelength of 1.3 IJ.m

Mean power launched from the laser transmitter -6dBm

PIN-FET hybrid receiver sensitivity at 140 Mbit S-1 at 1,3 IJ.m
wavelength (BER lO- g ) -36 dBm

Total system margin 30dB

Cabled fiber loss (27.3 II 0.6 dB krn"'! 16.4 dB

Splice losses (27 II 0.15 dB average) 4.1 dB
Connector loss (2 II 1.5 dB) 3,0 dB
Dispersion equalization penalty o
dB
Safety margin 6.0 dB

Total system loss 29,5 dB

Excess power margin 0.6 dB

 APPLICATIONS AND FUTURE DEVELDPMENTS 489

The preferred transmission rate for optical fiber trunk systems based on the
1.5 Mbit S-I digital hierarchy (i.e. North America) is at present 45 Mbit s".
This is largely due to the fact that much higher growth rates are required for
the high speed systems operating at 274 Mbit s-' and above. It is indicated
[Ref, 8] that these high speed systems are more appropriate to very long haul
trunk routes (up to 6400 km) where repeater spacings in excess of 25 km are
required. Hence the incorporation of systems with transmission rates in excess
of 45 Mbit S-I into the trunk network awaits the advent of commercial long
wavelength single mode fiber systems capable of operating at 274 Mbit S-I
over long repeater spans. However, this position is unlikely to remain static for
very long as Bell Laboratories have already demonstrated 100 km
unrepeatered transmission at this rate [Ref. 6]. Furthermore an experimental
single mode trunk system operating at a wavelength of 1.3 11m and a transmis-
sion rate of 400 Mbit s-' has been in operation in Japan since 1981 IRef. 91-
This system which utilizes an APD receiver allows repeater spacings of up to
20 km.

11.2.2 Junction Network

The junction or interoffice network usually consists of routes within major
conurbations over distances of typically 5-20 km. However, the distribution of
distances between switching centers (telephone exchanges) or offices in the
junction network of large urban areas varies considerably for various countries
as indicated in Fig, 11.2 [Ref. to], It may be observed from Fig, 11.2 that the
benefits of long unrepeatered transmission distances in the junction network

lIaly
'00
Cumulative p"",,,ltagc
{n
or 'ho link>

_ _ _ _ _ Ualy
_ . _ , . _ Federal Republic ofl;e,m.ny
'" _ _ _ _ _ Japan
____ ~ United Kingdom
20 _._._ C,,,.d.
__ . U"iled St.t.,

Flg.11.2 Distribution of distances between switching centers in metropolitan areas.

Reproduced with permission of the International Telecommunication Union
(ITUl. Geneva, Switzerland, from 0, Cottatelucci, F. Lombardi and G. Pellegrini,
'The application of optical fibres In the junction network'. lTV reteoommootce-
tJon Jouffle/, 4'~1I/19a2, p, 101,
490 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

offered by optical tiber systems are not as apparent in the j unction network
due to the generally s horter link lengths. Nevertheless o ptical tiber junction
systems are etten able t o operate using no intermediate repeaters whilst
alleviating duct congestion in urban areas.
In Europe opticaJ fiber systems with transmission rates of 8 Mbit 1>1 and for
busy routes 34 Mbit S- I are finding favor in the junction network . A number of
proprietary systems predominantly oper ating at 8 Mbit S- I using both injection
laser and LED sources via multimode graded index fiber to APD detectors are
in operation in the UK with repeater spacings between 7.5 and 12 km. A
typical optical power budget for such a system operaung at a wavelength of
0.88 .. m over 12 km is shown in Table 11.3 (Ref. .51. It may be noted that the
mea n power launched from the laser is reduced below the level obtained with
similar dimensioned muhimode graded index fiber in the optical power budget
shown in Table 11 .1 . This is due to the lower duty factor when using a 2B 3B
code on the 8 Mbit s-' system in comparison with a 788 8 code used on the
140 Mbit s-' system (see Section 10.5).
In North America, 6 Mbit 5- 1 systems otTer flexibility whereas 45 Mbit s-'
systems prove suitable for junction traffic requirements of crowded areas.
However, economic studie s for the US A have indicated that 45 Mbit S-1
systems are the most economic choice for the initial service [Ref 101. Hence a
signifi cant number of co mmercial 45 Mbit 5- 1 junction systems have been
installed. These operate in the shorter wavelength region utilizing injection
laser sources, multimode graded index fiber and APD detectors with repeate r
spacings up 10 7.5 krn. In addition several experimental 32 Mbit s-' junction
systems have been ill operation in Japan since ]980. Th ese systems, which
utilize both injection laser and LED sources to APD detectors. have repeater
spacings up to 2 1 km.

Tabl. 11.3 Typical optica l po w er budget fa..- a i.... nctlco syst em operat ing at a
w aveleng!ll o f 0.88 )ltTl and a tra ns miss ion ra te 018 Mbit a- lover an
uereeeese-ed distance of 12 km

M ean power lauoched Itom the laser transm itter -a,OdBm

R" c@ive. 5eJlsi1ivity 818 M bil e- ' and a wav ehm gth of 0. 8 8 I'm
(SER 10-5 ) -53. 0 dBm

Total system margin 57.0dS

Cll bled fiber loss (12 x 3. 5 d B km -') 42.0 dB

Splice lo sses (13 x 0.3 dB) 3.9 dB
Connector lo sses (2 x , d B) 2.0dB
Dlsperslu n-eq u alizatio n pen li lly OdB
Safet y margin 1.OdB

Total system l oss 54. 9 d B

£xc. .. pow4lr margin 2.1 dB

APPLICATIONS AN D FUTURE DEV ELOPM ENTS 491

" .2.3 Local and Rur.1 Networks

T he loc al and rural network or subscriber loop con nects telephone subscribers
to the local switching center or office. Possible network configu rations are
shown in Fig. 1] .3 and include a ring, tree and star topology from the local
switching center. In a ring network (Fig. 11.3(a » any information fed into the
netwo rk by a subscriber pa sses through all the network nodes and hence a •
number of transmission channels must be provided bet ween all nodes. This
ma y be supplied by a time division multiplex system utilizing a broadband
transmissio n medium. In th is case only information add ressed to a particular
subscriber is taken from the network at that s ubscrib er node. The tree network,
which consists of severa l branche s as indicated in Fig. 11 .3(b), must also

6~
?
2

? 9

"'

• ~"",hi ll.i point/nod ,

o T"""' ",al/",bocribe<

R.. n ,3 Local 80d rural MlwOrk eonfiguratiof1s : (81 ring nehvorlol; (bl t re8 r>lI twotk;
lei r.ar "'.tworlt.
492 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

provide a number of transmission channels on its common links. However, in

comparison with the ring network it has the advantage of greater flexibility in
relation to topological enlargement. Nevertheless in common with the ring
network, the number of subscribers is limited by the transmission capacity of
the links used.
In contrast, the star network (Fig. 11.3(c» provides a separate link for every
subscriber to the local switching center. Hence the amount of cable required is
considerably increased over the ring or tree network, but is offset by enhanced
reliability and availability for the subscribers. In addition simple subscriber
equipment is adequate (i.e. no TOM) and network expansion is straight-
forward. Thus virtually all local and rural telephone networks utilize a star
configuration based on copper conductors (twisted pair) for full duplex
(bothway) speech transmission. There is substantial interest in the possibility
of replacing the existing narrowband local and rural network twisted pairs with
optical fibers. These can also be utilized in the star configuration to provide
wideband services (videophone, television, stereo hi-fi, facsimile, data, etc.) to
the subscriber together with the narrowband speech channel. Alternatively the
enhanced bandwidth offered by optical fibers will allow the use of ring or tree
configurations in local and rural networks. This would reduce the quantity of
fiber cable required for subscriber loops. However, investigations indicate
IRef. 14 J that the cable only accounts for a small fraction of the total network
cost. Furthermore, it is predicted that the cost of optical fiber cable may be
reduced towards the cost of copper twisted pairs with the large production
volume required for local and rural networks.
Small scale field trials of the use of optical fibers in local and rural networks
are being carried out in several countries including France (the Biarritz project
[Ref. 16]), Japan (the Yokosuta field trial [Ref. 14]), Canada (the Elie rural
field trial [Ref. 17]) and Germany (BIGFON~wideband integrated fiber optic
local telecommunications network; a total of ten projects in seven towns
[Ref. 141). These field trials utilize star configurations providing a full range
of wideband services to each subscriber through the use of both analog and
digital signals on optical fibers.
In the UK a small Fibrevision (Cable TV) network has been installed in
Milton Keynes using a switched star configuration [Refs. 20 and 21]. This has
led to planning for the implementation of a full scale local network based on
the same principles which will eventually incorporate more advanced entertain-
ment and information services as well as an interactive capability. The
topology for this multistar network is illustrated in Fig. 11.4 IRef. 221. It con-
sists of three types of transmission link, namely super-primary links, primary
links and secondary links. The two former link types will require high capacity
and significant transmission distances (up to 20 and 5 km respectively) in
order to distribute the wideband services, and hence optical fibers provide an
ideal solution. The primary links service wideband switch points (WSPs) from
hub sites giving access to all program material and services. In the larger
APPLICATIONS AN D FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS 493

H" b oil<

FIg.11 .4 Multislar w ide ba nd local network configuralio n IRef. 221,

schem es these hub sites will in turn be fed from a super head end where most
of the program material and services will originate. Short secondary links (up
to I km) will fan out from the WS Ps to the subscriber premises. The use of
wideband switching reduces the capacity required on these secondary link s.
Economic considerations, especially wh en the cost o f the optoelectronic
interface equipment is incl uded. suggest that at present coax ial cable provides
the best solution. o n cost ground s. for these secondary links. However, it is
indicated [Ref 221 tha t a large scale integration approach for the optical
equip ment, to give a low u nit cost. may a llow optical fiber s to be utilized for
these second ary links in the future.

11.2.4 Submerged Syatems

Undersea cable systems are an integral part of the internation al telecom-
m unicatio ns network. They find application on sho rter routes especially in
Europe. On longer routes. such a s across the A tlantic. t hey provide route
d ivers ity in conjunction wit h satellite links. The num ber of submerged cable
ro utes and their capacities are steadily increasing and hence there is a desire to
m inimi ze the costs per ch an nel. In this context digital optical fiber communica-
tion systems appear to offe r substantial advantages Over c urrent analog FDM
and digital PCM coaxial cable systems. High capacity coaxial cable systems
require high quality, large diameter cable to overcome attenuation, and still
only allow repeater spacin gs of around 5 km. By comparison, it is predicted
[Ref. 23 ) th at single mode optical fiber systems operatin g at 1. 3 or 1.55 11m
will provide repeater spacings of 25-50 km and eventually even longer.
Research and development of single mode fiber submerged cable systems is
proirelisml in • number of countries including the UK , France, the USA and
Jlpan. A luecessfuJ lield trial of a 140 Mbru-I system was carried out by
494 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

STC Submarine Systems in Loch Fyne, Scotland in 1980 using a 9.5 km cable
length, including a single PCM repeater [Ref. 24J. In the same year a 10 km
field trial cable was installed by NTT along the Izu coast in Japan IRef. 231.
Component reliability together with deep sea cable structure and strength are
considered the major problems. However, it is envisaged IRef. 231 that com-
mercial systems for nonrepeatered short-haul routes, and repeatered medium-
haul routes will be installed by the mid-1980s with repeatered long-haul
systems appearing in the late 1980s.

11.3 MILITARY APPLICATIONS

In these applications, although economics are important, there are usually

other, possibly overriding, considerations such as size, weight, deployability,
survivability (in both conventional and nuclear attack [Ref. 26]) and security.
The special attributes of optical fiber communication systems therefore often
lend themselves to military use.

11.3.1 Mobiles
One of the most promising areas of military application for optical fiber com-
munications is within military mobiles such as aircraft, ships and tanks. The
small size and weight of optical fibers provide an attractive solution to space
problems in these mobiles which are increasingly equipped with sophisticated
electronics. Also the wideband nature of optical fiber transmission will allow
the multiplexing of a number of signals onto a common bus. Furthermore, the
immunity of optical transmission to electromagnetic interference (EMI) in the
often noisy environment of military mobiles is a tremendous advantage. This
also applies to the immunity of optical fibers to lightning and electromagnetic
pulse (EMP) within avionics. The electrical isolation, and therefore safety,
aspect of optical fiber communications also proves invaluable in these applica-
tions, allowing routing through both fuel tanks and magazines.
The above advantages were demonstrated with preliminary investigations
involving fiber bundles [Ref. 3] and design approaches now include multi-
terminal data systems [Ref. 27] using single fibers, and use of an optical data
bus [Ref 28]. In the former case, the time division multiplex system allows
ring or star configurations to be realized, or mixtures of both to create bus
networks. The multiple access data highway allows an optical signal injected
at any access point to appear at all other other access points. An example is
shown in Fig. 11.5 IRef. 5J which illustrates the interconnection of six ter.
minals using two four-way star couplers. These devices give typically 10 dB
attenuation between any pair of ports.
An experimental optical data bus has been installed in the Mirage 4000 air-
craft [Ref. 28], However, significant problems were encountered with optical
 APPLICATIONS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS 495

"
Fig_ 11.5 Multiple access bus showing the interconnection of six terminals using two
four-way star couplers [Ref. 5).

connection, fiber fragility and low light levels from the LED source.
Nevertheless it was concluded that these drawbacks could be reduced by the
use of spliced connections, star couplers rather than T-couplers and smaller
diameter fibers (100-150 11m), which would make it possible to produce cables
with smaller radii of curvature, and in which the fiber would be freer.
Studies are also underway into the feasibility of using a 1 Mbit s-' optical
data bus for flight control, avionic weapons and internal data systems within a
helicopter. It is intended that a demonstration system will be installed in an
operational Lynx helicopter by 1987 [Ref. 291. Also an optical fiber data
highway is to be installed in the Harrier GR5 aircraft, for operational use. It
will be incorporated between the communications, navigation and identifica-
tion data converter located towards the rear of the aircraft and the amplifier
control situated beneath the cockpit. The original system specification calls for
, large core diameter plastic fiber for operation around 2.4 Kbit S-I [Ref. 29].

11.3.2 Communication Links

The other major area for the application of optical fiber communications in the
military sphere includes both short and long distance communication links.
Short distance optical fiber systems may be utilized to connect closely spaced
items of electronic equipment in such areas as operations rooms and computer
installations. A large number of these systems have already been installed in
military installations in the UK. These operate distances from several
centimeters to a few hundred meters at transmission rates between 50 bauds
and 4.8 Kbit S-I {Ref. 29]. In addition a small number of 7 MHz video links
operating over distances of up to 100 m are in operation. There is also a
requirement for long distance communication between military installations
which could benefit from the use of optical fibers. In both these cases
advantages may be gained in terms of bandwidth, security and immunity to
 496 OPTICAL FIBER COM M UNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES ANO PRACTICE

electrical interference a nd earth loop problems o ver conventional copper

systems.
Other long d ista nce applica tions include torpedo and missile guidance,
inform ation links between milita ry vessels and maritime, towed sensor arrays.
ln th ese areas th e available ba nd wid th and long unrepeatered tr ansmission
dista nces of optical fi ber systems pro vide a solutio n which is not genera lly
avai lable with conventional techno lo gy, A fiber guided weapons system is
illustra ted in Fig. 11.6 whereby a low los s, high tensile strength fiber is used to
rela y a video signal back to a control sta tio n 10 fac ilita te ta rgeting by an
opera to r.
Investigations ha ve a lso been carried o ut with regard to the use of o ptical
fi bers in tactical communication systems. In order to co ntrol sophisticated
weapons systems in conj unctio n with d ispersed military units there is a
req uirement for tactical co mmand a nd control communications (often termed
C J ). These com munica tio n systems must be ra pidly deployable, highly mobile,
reliable a nd have the ability to survive in military en viron ments. Existing multi-
channel communication cable links employing coa xial cable or wire pairs do
not alw ays meet th ese req uirements [Ref. 301. They tend to be bulky, diffi cult
to install (req uiring lon g installat ion times" and are susceptible to dam age. In
contr ast o ptical fiber ca bles olTer specia l fea tures which may ove rcome these
operatio nal defi ciencies. These include small size. light weight, increased
flexibility, enhanced ba ndwidth, low atten uation removing the need for inter-
mediate repea lers, and immunity to both EMI and EMP. Furthermo re, optical
fiber cables genera lly demonstra te greater rugged ness than co nventional
deployable ca bles, mak ing them appear ideally suited for this a pplica tion.
Optical fiber c ab les have been installed and tested within the Ptarmigan
tactic al co mmunication system developed for the British Army lRef. 311. They
ma y be utilized as a direct replacement for the H F quad cable system pre-
viously employed fo r the intranodal mu ltichannel c able links willtin the system
[Ref 51. The optica l fiber element of the system comprises an LED so urce
em itting a t a wavelength of 0.9 urn, graded index fiber and a n A PD derector. Jt

I ••
,
• ••
j ,,
Guid.1o~ COOllrOl o •
_ "'" lIl00nilor

• •• •
Fig. " •• A fiber g uidld wil po n, 'V l tl m,
APPLICATIONS AND FUTURE DEVELOPME NTS '97

is designed to operate over a range of up to 2 km at data rate s of 256. 5 12 and

2048 Kbit S- I without the use of intermediate repeat ers , The optical fiber cable
assemblies are about half the weight of the HF quad cable, and are quick and
easy to deploy in the field . F urthermore. special ruggedized expanded beam
(see Section 4.1 2) optical connectors have been shown to be eminently suitable
for use in conditions involving dust, dirt, rough handling and extreme climates.
Successful integration of an optica l fiber system into a more complex tactical
communication system for use in the military environment has demonstrated
its substa ntial operationa l end technical advantages over HF meta llic cable
systems.
In summary , it appears that confidence is being esta blished in this new
techn ology such th at its widesca'e use in military applications in the future is
ensured.

11.4 CIVIL AND CONSUMER APPLICATIONS

11.4.1 Civil
The introd uctio n of optical fi ber communication systems into the public
network has stimulated investiga tion and a pplication of these transmission
techniques by public utility o rganiz ations which provide their own com-
munication fac ilities over moderately long distances. For example these
transmission techniq ues may be ut ilized o n the railways and along pipe and
electrical power lines. In these applications. a lthough high capacity transmis-
sion is not usua lly required, optical fibers may provide a relatively low cost
solution ; also giving enhanced protection in harsh environments, especially in
relation to EMI and EMP, Experimental optical fiber communication systems
are under investigation with a number of organizations in Europe, North
America and J apan. For in stance. British Rail have successfully demonstrated
a 2 Mbit s I system suspended between the electrical power line ga ntries over a
6 krn ro ute in Cheshire IRef. 3 J. Also the major electric power com panies are
showing a great deal of interest with rega rd to the inco rporation of optical
fibers within the metallic earth of overhead electric power lines lRef, 341.
It was indicated in Section L1.2.3 that optical fibers are eminently suitable
for video transmission. Thus o ptical fiber systems are starting to find use in
commercial television transmission. These applications include short distance
links between studio and outside broadcast vans, links between studios and
broadcast or receiving aerials, and close circuit television (CCTY) links for
security and traffic surveillance. In addition, the implementation of larger
networks for ca ble and common antenna television (CATV) has demonstrated
the successful use of optical fiber communicat ions in this area where it
provides sisnifi cant advantages. in terms of bandwidth and unrepeetered
transmission distance. over conventionaJ video links.
498 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

One of the first commercial optical fiber video systems was installed in
Hastings, UK, in 1976 by Reditfusion Limited for the transmission of televi-
sion signals over a 1.4 km link for distribution to 34,000 customers. Another
early optical fiber CATV field trial was the Hi-OVIS project carried out in
Japan [Ref. 36]. The project involved the installation of an interactive video
system, plus FM audio and digital data to 160 home subscribers and 8 local
studio terminals in various public premises. The system operated over a 6 km
distribution cable consisting of 36 fibers plus additional branches to the
various destination points: no repeaters were used in this entire network.
Various techniques have been utilized for video transmission including
baseband intensity modulation, subcarrier intensity modulation (e.g. FM-IM),
pulse analog techniques (e.g. PFM-IM) and digital pulse code modulation
(PCM-IM). Generally digital transmission is preferred on larger CATV
networks as it allows time division multiplexing as well as greater unrcpcatcred
transmission distance [Ref 381. It also avoids problems associated with the
nonlinearities of optical sources. An example of commercial digital video
transmission is a 7.8 km optical fiber trunk system operating at 322 Mbit S-I in
London, Ontario, Canada [Ref. 39]. This system carries 12 video channels
and 12 FM stereo channels along 8 fibers installed in a 13 mm cable. A similar
digital trunk system has been installed in a CATV network in Denmark
lRef. 401. This link, using 12 fibers again operating over a distance on.8 km,
has a capacity of 8 video channels and 12 FM stereo channels.
However, digital transmission of video signals is not always economic,
owing to the cost and complexity of the terminal equipment. Hence, optical
fiber systems using direct intensity modulation often provide an adequate
performance for a relatively small system cost. For example, a block
schematic of a long distance analog baseband video link for monitoring
railway line appearances such as road crossings, tunnels and snowfall areas is
shown in Fig. 11.7 [Ref. 41]. Video signals from TV cameras installed at
monitoring points C, are gathered to the concentrating equipment through
local transmission lines. These signals are then multiplexed in time, frequency
or wavelength on to the main transmission line to the monitoring center. An

I MaiL1 oplical fiber Jillk

.\IQL1ilOrillg
1'01111, C, c, c,
I-T,", cr kilomc!e"-l I

Fig.11.7 Block schematic of an optical fiber baseband video system for railway line
monitoring IRef. 41].
APPLICATIONS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS 499

experimental optical fiber system operating at a wavelength of J .32 urn using

multimode graded index fiber and baseband intensity modulation was installed
along a main line of the Japanese national railway [Ref. 41]. Successful video
transmission over 16.5 km without intermediate repeaters was achieved,
demonstrating the use of fiber systems for this application.
A similar CCTV monitoring system has been implemented for the Kobe
Mass Transit System, also in Japan [Ref. 421. This system, which operates
over shorter distances of between 300 m and 5 km, also uses analog intensity
modulation together with wavelength division multiplexing of four TV chan-
nels at wavelengths of 730,780,837 and 879 nm onto multimcde step index
tiber.
In common with the military applications, other potential civil uses for
optical fiber systems include short distance communications within buildings
(e.g. broadcast and recording studios) and within mobiles such as aircraft and
ships. However, perhaps the largest market for optical fiber systems may
eventually be within consumer applications.

11.4.2 Consumer
A major consumer application for optical fiber systems is within automotive
electronics. Work is progressing within the automobile industry towards this
end together with the use of microcomputers for engine and transmission
control as well as control of convenience features such as power windows and
seat controls. Optical fiber communication links in this area provide
advantages of reduced size and weight together with the elimination of EMI.
Furthermore, it is likely they will reduce costs by allowing for an increased
number of control signals in the confined space presented by the steering
column and internal transmission paths within the vehicle through multiplexing
of signals onto a common optical highway.
Such techniques have been under investigation by General Motors for a
number of years and a prototype system was reported lRef. 44[ to have
demonstrated the feasibility in 1980. This system utilized a bundle of 48 high
loss plastic fibers with a simple LED emitting in the visible spectrum. Further
developments in the USA and elsewhere suggest that large core diameter
(l mm) single plastic fibers will be utilized in automobile multiplex systems
within the passenger compartment, whereas glass fibers will be required to
stand the high temperatures (120 °C) encountered in the engine compartment.
Other consumer applications are likely to include home appliances where
together with microprocessor technology, optical fibers may be able to make
an impact by the late 1980s. However, as with all consumer equipment,
progress is very dependent on the instigation of volume production and hence
low cost. This is a factor which is likely to delay wider application of optical
fiber systems in this area.
 500 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

11.5 INDUSTRIAL APPLICATIONS

Industrial uses for optical fiber communications cover a variety of generally

on-premise applications within a single operational site. Hence the majority of
industrial applications tend to fall within the following design criteria [Ref. 47]:

(a) digital transmission at rates from d.c. to 20 Mbit s-", synchronous or

asynchronous, having compatibility with a common logic family (i.e. TTL
or eM OS), being independent of the data format and with bit error rates
less than 10- 9 ;
(b) analog transmission from d.c. to 10 MHz, exhibiting good linearity and low
,
, noise;
(c) transmission distances from several meters up to a maximum of kilo-
I meters, although generally I km will prove sufficient;
II (d) a range of environments from benign to harsh, and often exhibiting severe
I electromagnetic interference from industrial machinery.

Optical fiber systems with performances to meet the above criteria are
I readily available at a reasonable cost. These systems offer reliable telemetry
and control communications for industrial environments where EMI and EMP
cause problems for metallic cable links. Furthermore, optical fiber systems
provide a far safer solution than conventional electrical monitoring in situa-
tions where explosive or corrosive gases arc abundant (e.g. chemical process-
ing and petroleum refining plants). Hence the increasing automation of process
control, which is making safe, reliable communication in problematical
environments essential, is providing an excellent area for the application of
optical fiber communication systems.
For example, optical fiber systems have been successfully employed in
nuclear testing applications in the USA by the Department of Energy. Two
plasma diagnostic experiments developed by the Los Alamos Scientific
Laboratory [Ref. 481 were carried out at the Nevada Test Site in Mercury,
Nevada. These experiments utilized the unique properties of optical fibers to
provide diagnostic capabilities which are not possible with coaxial cable
systems. In the first experiment a wideband fiber system (I GHz bandwidth)
was used to record the wideband data from gamma ray sources. The second
experiment, a neutron imaging system, provided a time and space resolution
for a neutron source on a nanosecond time scale. The neutron source was
attenuated and imaged through a pinhole onto an array of scintillator fila-
ments, each of which was aligned to a single pes fiber for transmission via a
graded index fiber to a photomultiplier. A pulsed dye laser was used for system
calibration. Both amplitude and overall timing calibration were achieved with
an optical time domain reflectometer (see Section 5.7) being used regularly to
record the fiber attenuation. It was estimated [Ref. 48] that this system
provided a bandwidth advantage of at least a factor of 10 over coaxial cable,
at approximately haJf the cost, and around one-fiftieth of tho woi.ht.
APPLIC ATIONS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS 50'

11 .5.1 Senaor Systems

It has been indicated that optical fibe r transmits sion may be advantageously
employed for monitoring and telemetry in industrial enviro nments. Th e
applicati on o f optical fiber communications to such sen sor systems has
stimula ted much interest. especially for use in electrically h azardous environ-
ments where conventiona l monitoring is d ifficult a nd expensive. Th ere is a
requirem ent fo r the accurate mea surement of parameters such as liquid level,
now rate, po sition , temperature and pressure in these environments which may
be facilitated by optical fibe r sys tems. Early work in this are a featured
electrical or electro-optical tra nsducers along with optical fiber telemetry
sys tems. A novel approach of this type involved a piezoelectric transducer
which wa s used to apply local deformations to a single fiber highway causing
phase modulation o f the transmitted signal [Ref, 50). Th e unmod ula ted signal
from the same optical so urce was tran smitted via a pa rallel reference fiber to
enable demodulation of the signa ls from various piezoelectric tran sducers
located on the highway . This technique proved particularly useful when a
numbe r of monitoring signals were required at a central control point.
Electro-optical transducers together with optical fi ber telemetry systems
o ffer significan t benefits over purely electrical systems in terms of immunity to
EM ) a nd EM P as well a s intrinsic safety in the transmission to and from the
transducer. Ho wever. they still utilize electrical power at the site of the
transducer wh ich is also often in an electrically problem atical environment.
T herefore much effort is currently being expended in the investigation and
development of entirely optical sensor systems. These employ passive optical
transducer mechanisms which directly modulate the light for the optical fiber
telemetry link. A number of simple optical techniques which enable direct
measurem ent are illustrated in F ig. 11.8. For instance, a fluid level may be
detected by the sensor shown in Fig. 11.8(a). When the fl uid , which ha s a
refractive index gre ater than the glass forming the optical dipstick, reaches the
chamfered end, total intern al reflection ceases and the light is transmitted into
the fluid . Hence an indication of the fluid level is obtained at the optical
receiver. Although this s yste m is somewh at crude and will not give a con-
tinuous measurem ent of fluid level. it ilO simple a nd sa fe fo r use with flammable
liquid s.
Optical sensor mechanisms wh ich pro vide measurement of displacement a re
shown in Figs. 11.8(b) and (c). The former is a reflective (often called fotonfc )
sensor whereby light is transmitted via a fiber(s) to illum inate a target. Light
reflected from the target is received by a return fiber(s) and is a function of the
distance between the fiber ends and the target d. Hence the position of the
target or displacement may be registered at an optical receiver. Figure II.8(c)
illustrates the measurement o f displacement using a moi re fringe modulator. In
this case the opaque lined gratings produce dark Moire fringes. Transverse
movement of one grating with respect to the other causes the fringes to move
up or down. Therefore a count of the frin ges as the gratings are displaced

,
5.2 OPTICAL FIBER COMMU NICATI ONS: PR INCIPLES AN D PRACTICE

So~" :,, 0..",'"

- --- .- - t"'- - - . ..
- -- . -=~"'- ''' ,- - . --
- - ---- - - .
- - . -.. - - - -
- - - -
- - - - -- 0 ,. --.
-. - - - . . - -

'"
Cro. .. d Pol.roi d.

I
,L ,I..
-. ""' .. t 'C ... 1aN/

,oJ
APPLICATIONS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS 50 3

provides a measurement o f the displacement. Unlike the previous techniques

the Moire fringe mod ulator gives a digital measurement (fringe counting) of
displacement which is ind epend ent o f any d rift. in the characteristics o f the
o ptical source. However. mechanical vibrations may severely a ffect the
measurement accuracy and prove diffi cult to eradicate. Also there are
problems involved with the loss of count if, for any reason, optical power to
the sensor is interrupted.
T he senso rs shown in Figs. 11.8(d) and (e) primarily give a measurement of
strain o r stress. However. this may easily be co nverted too from a displace-
men t, temperature o r pressure. Figure 11 .8(d) illust rates a rnicrobe nding
sensor in which the fiber is bent sharply when a force is a pplied to metal teeth
or an ar ray o f pins. l ight tr ansmitted down the fi ber is lost into the cladding
due to the microbending (see Section 4.6.2) providing a measurement o f the
applied force. Hence chan ges in the applied force (e.g. strain, displacement.
temperature, pressure) cause a change in light intensity of the optical receiver
which may be recorded.
With the photoelestic sensor shown in Fig. 11.8(e) the light transmitted is a
function of stress within the material. This phenomenon. kn own as bi-
refringence, occurs with the application of mechanical stress to transparent
isotropic materials (e.g. polyurethane) whereby they become o ptically
a nisotropic. A n advantage of this technique is th at the stress may he induced
directly by pressure without the need for an intermediate mechanism [i.e.
pressure to displacement). A drawback, however, is that the birefringence
exhibited by photoelastic materials is very temperature-dependent making
measurement o f a single parameter difficult.
Figure 11.9 shows a possible optica l fib er flow meter. A multimode o ptical
fiber is inserted acro ss a pipe such that the liquid fl ows pas t the transversely
stretched fiber. The turbulence resulting fro m the fiber's presence causes it to
oscillate at a frequency ro ughly proportional to the fl ow rate. This results in a
corresponding oscillation in the mode power dis tribution within the fiber giving
a similarly mod ulated intensity p rofile a t the optical receiver. The technique
has been used to meas ure flow rates fro m 0.3 to 3 m s I [R ef. 561. Ho wever, it
can not measure flow rates below those at which turbulence occurs.
The most sensitive passive optical sensors 10 date employ an interferometric
a pproach a s illustrated in Fig. 11 .1 0. These devices interfere coherent
monochromatic light pro pagating in a stra ined or temperature va rying fiber
with light either directly from the laser source, or (as shown in Fig. 11.l O)
guided by a reference fiber isolated from the extern al influence. The effects of

FlII.11.a E:o: e mples of s imp le optical fiber me a su re men ll&Cl'in;que s : IiI optical fluid
level de tllctor; ibl refl ec tive or fotonic dlsola ce ment se nsor; Icl M ol r~ frinlle
moou'ation senso r; la ! Ilber transm iM io n modulation senscr--mic robe nd ing
tre"lllducer; le J oholoelaslic 5en$Or.
 504 OPTICAL FIBE R CO M MUNICATIONS : PR INCIPLES AND PRACTICE

w..Jh t t O 0 ~
lon,,;on fib. , C::"'_C
V:.J

Fig _1' .9 An op tical fibe r flow meter [Ref. 561.

Rd . .. ""• •,.....

r- - - - -- - ,
,,
,
,J
,
J

,
.
M,.,unomcn t cnVlronmoOi
.----t"_ _. _ _ ....J

f lg.11 .10 A two-arm inl erferom el ric seoscr,

 APPUCATIONS AND FUTURE m VEl OPMENTS 50S

strain, pressure or temperatu re cha nge, give rise to differential optical paths by
changing the tiber length, core diameter or refractive index with respect to the
reference fiber . This provides a phase difference between the light emitted from
the two fibers giving interference patterns, as shown in F ig. 11.1 0. Very
accurate measurement s of pressure or temperature ma y be obtained from
these patterns. For example, using fused silica in such a two-arm fiber
interferometer, it can be shown that the temperature sensitivity is a boul
107 rad ° C - 1 m ' " [Ref. 571. Other applications for optical fiber inte rfero-
metric sensors, which are attracting considerable attention, are the optical
fiber gyrosco pe [Ref. 62J and h ydrophone [Ref. 631 . The former device is
based on the classical Sagnac ' ring' interferometer and provides a measure-
ment of rotation, wherea s th e latter effectively measures acoustic pressure.
As a final example, the pol arizatio n sensor shown in Fig. 11.1 1 may be
utilized to measure current along a metallic cond uctor (Ref. 641. This device
consists of a single polarization-maintaining single mode fi ber which passes up
from earth to loop around the curren t-c arrying co nd uctor before pas sing back
to earth. A He-Ne laser beam is linearly polarized and launched into the tibe r
which is then stripped o f any cladd ing modes. The directio n o f polarization of
the light in the fiber core is rota ted by the longitudinal magnetic field a round
the loo p, via the action of the F araday magneto-optic effect [Ref, 651. A
Wollaston prism is used to sense the resulting rotation and resolves the emerg-
ing light into two orthogonal components. These co m ponents are sep arately
detected with a photodicde prio r to generation of a sum and difference signal
of the two intensities (/1 and 12), T he difference signal normalized to the sum

£J«:trio:<Il1
..",d"" ICII, _ _

Fft·tt.lt Single mod e OPtical fiber sensor tor carrern measurement [Ref. 641.

,. ,
506 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS : PRI NCIPLES AND PRACTICE

gives a parameter which is pro portional to the polarization rotation p, follow.

ing IRer. 641 :

(1 1.1)

where K is a constant which is dependent o n the pro perties ofthe liber. lienee
a c urrent measu rement (either d.c. or a.c.) may be o btained which is
independent of the received light power.
The method s outlined abo ve provide a basis for meas urement of the
majorit y of physical parameters using passive optical techniques. and may
usually be inco rpor ated into remote optical fiber telemetry systems. At present
sensors b ased o n these techniques a re generally not co mmercially available,
being ver y much a t the research a nd development or prototype stages.
Although in most cases there are still significant pro blems to be o vercome
before practical sensors can be realized, it is likely that devices utilizing these
or similar techniques will be o n the market in the near future.

11 .6 COMPUTER APPLICATIONS

Modern computer systems consist of a large num ber of interconnections.

These range from lengths of a few micro meters (when considering on chip very
large scale integration (VLSI) connections) to perhaps thousands of kilo meters
for terrestrial links in computer networ ks. The tr ansmissio n r ates over these
interconnections also cover a wide range from aro und 100 bit s-' for so me
telety pe t erminals to several hundred Mbit S-I fo r the on-chip co nnections.
O ptica l fibers a re starting to fi nd application in this co nnection hiera rchy
where secure, interference-free tra nsmission is required.
Altho ugh in its infancy, integrated optics has stimulated interest in connec-
tions within eq uipment. between integrated circuits, and even within hybrid
integrated circuits. using optical techniques. M uch of this work is still at the
research stage a nd therefore will be pursued furthe r in Sections 11 .7 a nd 11 .8.
Nevertheless it is likely that optical transmission techniques and optical fi bers
themselves will find application within data processing equipment. In addition,
investigations have already taken place into the use of o ptical fi bers for mains
isolators and digital data buses within bo th digital telephone exchanges and
computers. Their small size, low loss, low radiation properties and freedom
from ground loops pro vide obvious advantages in these a pplications.
At present, however , a primary potential application for optical fiber co m"
munications occu rs in interequipment connections. These provide noise
immunity, security and removal o r earth loop problems, together ~th
increased bandwidth and reduced cable size in comparison with convention al
APPLI CATIONS AND FUTURE DEVE LOPM ENTS 507

('~R''''
"'_"'1111 J.I''''<l<\
.",
~!O d . ..
""......"
--
"-- , ~~ ( ·. .. WI ( ·000 ' ....
,, ~(t d " "oIi. ~"

kJ
~ r<fmj".,.
l'ron1<f
~
J" ....
T'I",~ mlllu"

iO ~
."'twork

ilJ
,,
j 1.... 1 '"'''1'''' '''
FIrg.1 1.1Z Block scre ee euc of II typical mainframe computer ~st em

coaxial cable computer sys tem interconnections. The imerequipment connec-

tion topology for a typical mainframe computer system (host computer) is
illustrated in Fig. J Ul. The input/output (I/ O) to the host computer is
gener ally handled by a processor, often called a data channel or simply
channel, which is attached to the main storage of the host com puter. It services
all the I/O requirements for the system allowing concurrent instruction
processing by the centra l processing unit (C PU). Each data channel contains
an interface to a num ber of I/O control units. These. in turn. control the I/ O
devices {e.g. telety pes. visual display unit s. magnetic disk access mechanisms.
magnetic tape drives and printers). When met allic cable s are used. the interface
between the data channel and the control units comprises a large number
(often at least 48) of parallel coa xiallines incorporated into cables. An attrac-
tive use of optical fiber interconnection is to serialize this channel interface
[Ref. 66 J using a multiplex system. This signifi cantly reduces cab le and con-
nector bulk and improves connection reliability.
Optical fiber links of this type were demonstrated in 1978 by Sperr y Univac
[Ref 67 ], and subsequently Fujitsu developed a product to perform the same
function. However, neith er of these systems olTered enhanced channel perfo r-
mance as measured by the product of bit rate a nd link length. Developments

. -. -.' ,.. ~' , ,',

508 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

are the refore continuing with regard to high performance c hannel links utiliz-
ing new protoc ols for data exchange. A recently repon ed I Ref. 66J prototype
optical fiber seria l s ubsystem designed by IBM Research o perates at
20Q M bit s-' over d istances of up to I km. This sys tem utilizes a laser chip
mo unted o n a silicon substrate with the fiber encapsulated in mo nolithic dual
in line package, and a single chip. high sensitivity, silicon p-i-n receiver.
The other interconnection requirement for the mainframe co mputer system
is between the I/O co ntrol units and the I/O terminals. Again o ptical fi ber
systems ca n provide high speed, multiplexed, secu re commu nica tion links to
repl ace the multitude of coaxial cables normally required for these interconnec-
tions . An example of suc h a fiber system utilizes a multiplexing system o nto a
single optical fiber cable for connecting an IBM 3274 controller to its terminals
{Ref. 68 J. In this case up to 32 terminals and printers can be linked to the con-
troller in either a point to point o r multidrop" configuration emplo ying a star
co upler o r beam splitters. This interco nnection requirement is often extended
due to the trend of connecting numbers of pr ocesso rs together in order to
balance the system work load, increase system reliability and share storage
and I/ O devices. Hence optical fiber systems are under investigation for use in
loc al a rea networks.

11.6.1 Local Ar•• Network.

A local area netwo rk (L AN) is generally defined a s an interco nnection
topology entirely confined within a geographical area of a few square
kilometers. It is t herefo re usually confined to either a single building o r a group
of buildings con tained within a site or establishment (industrial. military,
educationa l. etc.). Hence. the data processing and peripher al eq uipment
together with any communication links a re usually under th e control of the
owning body rather th an a co mmon carrier.t As mentioned previo usly such a
network ma y support terminals connected to a host computer, o r provide com-
munication between mult iple processors a nd terminals o r work stations. In the
latter ap plication tbe LAN may al so provide an interface to the loc al telecom-
munications network . F urthermore: within a manufacturing facility it may
provide inte rconnection of a host computer to remote process controllers
allowing computer aided manufacture (C A M).
In common with local a nd rura l networks (see ~t jon 11.2.3) L A N~ may
~ At present the multidrop bus configuration will not allow interconnecti on of as many as 3 2
terminals du e to the insertion losses obta ined at the beam splitt ers or Tcccuplers.
t Another po ssible definition of a LA N, based on speed and range of operation, is that a LA N
ty pically or-ales a1 .. tl'an~i ssion Tate o r between 100 kBil s" and 100 Mbil s- ' ove r
di!itanct$ of 500 m 10 10 km. " ecce it LA N is inte:rmalia te bet... een a short ranae, mul -
tiprocessor r:awork (usually data bus) and a wide lIRlI network which provides rdatively
lo w speed data transmi u ion (up to lOO kbits-') over very Ion l distlnCl:1 Ulinl c:onYe11tionll
rommunicltions technology. However, it must be ncr.al thlt there arc ah..ayl exceptions to
theR leMIl def'mitions ...hi ~h wiu dotibtleu incre..e ill number u the tochnokJIYCV&n(:ft,
,
,
A PPLICATIONS AND f UTURE DEVELOPM ENTS

g
) l . l .... "'p 1>1I, ,<no<"''''
( (

1.pn-<:<l<.lll1«
_ _ T~ ' oct, ,,,,,
( (

EJ
I ~ taf>«

_ lIos' """I'nou:
wo ,~ " " ",n

,~
, .. .. ..
16 b '

, •> D"" , Source

...\~ r< .. ' 0')""
Dou Ch« k"","

'"

Ring , tru, tu "

:5'wt of p«.U'
1>;, (SOl')
,, , • • • • ,,
De,tin.lion Sou re. " ' lion
form. ,
Minip""k. t
,t" i,," "u," boo, number I D" o I D.llI

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~
<ontrol
<m pl) 010";"" W ........
.._ CM

Fi9- 11 .1 3 Loca l are ~ ne twor ks : (a l t rill Ethe rnet netwOlit topology a nd pe cket format :
{b! the Cambrid9@ ring topology a nd p a ~ket format.

be designed in three major confi gurations: the star, ring and bus. Work has
been in progress for a number of years on various network architectures and
protocols, in the main utilizing metallic communication links. To date a
standard configuration has not been universally adopted. However, two basic
techniques for the implementation of local area computer network s have
obtained partial acceptance. These two network topologies are illustrated in
Fig. ILl 3 and are known as the Ethernet and the Cambridge ring. The Ether-
net network, developed by Xerox (Ref. 691, consists of a multidrop bus con-
figurat ion whereby host computers or work stations are attached to a coaxial
510 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

cable which forms a transmission line oper ating at a r ate of 3 Mbit S- I . D ata
are transm itted in the form of packets consisting of lip to 4000 data bits
(Fig. 11.13(a» . Packets are addressed, and each work station connected to th e
line is capable of detecting a nd removing a packet addressed to it. In addition,
the work stations can detect when the line is free and hence tr ansmit a message
addressed to a nother station. The system is peer controlled a nd therefore it is
possible for two work stations to transmit at the sa me lime. In this case a colli-
sion between packets occurs . T his is detected by the work stations in....olved
which cease tr ansmission . When each work station is contending for transmis-
sion time o n th e link in s uc h a manner. the result is known as statistical
mult iplexing.
The C ambridge ring network develo ped at the Universit y of Cambridge.
UK a nd illustrated in Fig. 11 . 13(b) also utilizes d ata pa ckets. T he ring consists
of a mo nitor station as well as a number of work stations (or host computers)
with associated repeaters which together form ring nodes. Twin twisted cable
pairs are o ften used for th e loop, and transmission takes place at a rate of
10 M bit S-I . A set n umber of packets are cont ained by the ring of a size known
to the monitor and work stations (usually m inipackets as shown in Fig. l3(b» .
When da ta is transmitted by a work station it is placed in a mini-packet formal
together with its own address and the address of its destination . T he wo rk sta-
tions monitor the ring for packets containing their respective add resses [rom
which they extract the data . When the data are removed fro m a packet. a
response bit is set to indicate collect receipt of the data. The packet is then

,",,I ,, Tronomilli..
, tor , <>Uplot
0 9 ~ O<l')

,
•
••
••
••
•

,,
., ,,
APPLICATIONS AND FUTURE DEVElOPM ENTS 511

returned to th e source which checks it before sending it on empty. Throughout

this process the monitor sta tion is continually checki ng the ring st ructure by
the use of test packets transmitted around the ring.
Although L AN configurations and protocols are still largely under develop-
ment, optical fibers have been successfully utilized to provide such comp uter
interconnection. An e arly experiment using multimode step index fi ber in a
substantially modified Ethernet configuration called Fibemet was undertaken
by X erox IRef. 701. O ptical fibers, however. displayed drawbacks when used
in the multidrop bus network. T hese resulted fro m the high insertion losses
encountered at optica l beam splitters (or T -co uplers) which o nly allowed a
small number of wo rk stations 10 be connected (generally less th an ten). Con-
sequently a passive transmissive star network (Fig. 11.1 4) was adopted for
Fibernet. A 19 port transmissive star coupl er was utilized which gav e an inser-
tion loss of 10 dB between an y 2 ports. Using the Ethernet packet switching
and protocol. data were successfully tran smitted at 150 Mbit s-' and
100 Mbit :r- l over distances o f 0.5 and 1.1 km respectively, with zero err or s.
Perhaps the largest scale applica tions at present for o ptical fiber systems
within local area networks are with regard to single channel and multiplexed
star netwo rks. These networ k configurations tend to match the communication
system design of large main fra mes and minicomputers. A typical network is
shown in Fig. I Ll S. The high bandwidth provided by optical fibers often
allows both asynchronous and synchronous terminals to be driven at full rate

.. "'............ _ ', 1 o.a. PI' .~.

,
MUnfra_.I M&iollr..../
mirlicOlllJ"lm rnini""",l'\IlCI'
(~"'t) IRiih .pc<d fibo. llnk (hoot)

.~ So" a)
uo
""
0pti<:aI lilot< Opbnl Rba
~_.
"""I¢'l<> u
/ FiboIr aNN

Oplicol
~~

Wo."" ", 1t" " i">1 .«o(,)

Sup<:,,,i,,,IY ~ ot . c!I.nnol
Opti,.. f,"or
m "Wplo. ..

V ..... ~t
rlb<f 01'
-~
>~
-~. -~ .
••• .
FIg. 11.11 An ,_ample of an opliea' fibe' local eree nelworlt.

• •
 5 12 o pnCAL FIBER COMMUN lCAnONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

....i tho ut the need for the statistical multiplexing required in the case of F iber-
net. Recent insta llations o f this type include airport data communication
, network s, traffic monito ring and con trol schemes, and company o n-site or
,
loc al intersite networks.
,I
O ptica l fiber systems are also being util ized in the C am bridge rin g con-
figu ration. Th ey have fuelled the development of a higher pe rformance ring
o perati ng at 40 Mbit S- I which promises to find significa nt applicati on.
Furthermore. improvements in optical fiber connector technology and in the
o ptical output power prov ided by light so urces may lead to the extensive u se of
bu s netwo rks in the futu re .

11.7 INTEGRATED OPTICS

, T he multitude o f potential application areas for o ptical fibe r co mm unica tio ns
coupled with the tremendous advances in the field have over the last few years
stim ulated a resurgence of interest in the area of integrated optics (10 ). The
concept o f JO involves the realization of o ptical and electro-optical elements
wh ich m ay be integrated in large numbers on to a single substrate. Hence, 10
see ks to provide an alternative to the conversion of an optical signal back into
the electrical regime prior to signal processing by allowing such processing to
be p erformed on the optical signal. T hin transparent dielectric layers on planar
subs tra tes which act as o ptical waveguides are used in 10 to produce miniature
op tical components and circuits.
The birth of IO may be traced back to basic ideas outlined by Anderson in
19 65 [Ref. 741. He suggested that a microfabrication technology could be
developed for single mode o ptical devices with semiconductor a nd dielectric
materi als in a similar manner to that which had taken place with elec tro nic
circ uits. It was in 1969, however , after M iller [Ref. 75J had introduced the
I' term 'integrated optics' whilst disc ussing the long ter m outlook in the area. that
researc h be gan to gain momentum. Although some o f the wider implication s of
10 . including t he mo nolithic integration of a complete optical system in a
i single technology with a single material. ha ve as yet to be applied in optic al

I fibe r commun ications, th e pace is steadily inc reasing. The technology has now
progressed to a point w here integrated optical devices a nd com ponents are
becoming available and starting to find ap plication in optical fiber communica-
I.
I ' tion sy stems.

I
II
A major factor in the develop ment o f 10 is th at it is essentially based on
single mode optical waveguides a nd is therefore incompatible with mukimode
11 fi ber systems. Hence 10 d id not make a sig nificant con tribution to first and
second generation optical fiber systems. The develo pment, however, of third
generation o r single mode fibe r systems has bee n aided- by integrated optical

- n i. is espc~ llly the clle in rclltion to the rlbrielttoft of' liftalc mOll. l~cUon IUtTI (He
Section ti.ll).
APPLICATIONS AN::> FUTURE DEVELOPM ENTS 013

techniq ues. Furthermore. it is within sin9,Je mode fi ber systems where 10 will
allow o ptical signal processing to replace electronic signal processing through
the creation of a family of thin rum optic al and electro -optical components
which may be located o n a single substrate. T he devices o f interest in 10 are
often the counterparts of microwave or bulk optical devices. These include
j unctio ns an d directional couplers. switches and modu lators, fil ters and
wavelength multiplexers. lasers and amplifiers, detectors and bistable elements.
It is envisaged that developments in this technology will provide the basis for
the fourth generation systems mentioned in Section 11.1 where full monolithic
integration may be achieved.

11.1.1 Pt.net W.veguklas

The use of circular dielectric waveguide structures for confining light is
universally utilized within optical fiber communications. 10 involves an exten-
sion o f this guided wave optica l technology through the use o f planar optical
wav eguides to confine and guide the light in guided wave devices and cir cuits.
The mechanism o f optical confinement in symmetrical pl anar waveguides was
discu ssed in Section 2.3 prio r to investigation of circular structures. In fact the
simplest dielectric wa veguide structure is the planar slab guide shown in
Fig. 11.16. It comprises a planar film of refractive index n l sandwiched
between a substrate of refractive index nl a nd a cover layer of refractive index
n, where rl l > n2 ) II J • Often the co ver layer consists of air where
n l = no = I, and it exhibits a substa ntia lly lower refractive index than the
other two layers. In this case the film ha s layers of different refractive inde x
above and below the gu iding layer and hence performs as an asymmetric
waveguide.
In the discussions o f optical waveguides given in Chapter 2 we were solely
concerned with symmetrical structure s. When the dimensions of the guide are
reduced so are the number o f propagating modes. Eventually the waveguide

Fig. 11.HI A plana r slab waveg uide. The film wit h high refractive index n, acts as the
gukl ing layer and the cover laye r is usu ally air whe re Ila = Il, _ 1.
5 14 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

dimensions are such that on ly a single mode p ropagates, and if the dimensions
are reduced further thi s single mode still continues to propagate. Hence there is
no cutoff for the fundamental mode in a symmetric guide. This is not the case
for an as ymmetric guide where the dimensions may be red uced until the
stru cture cannot support an y modes and even the fund amental is cutoff, If the
thic kness or height of the guide layer o f a planar as ymmetric guide is h (see
Fig. 11.1 6). then the guide can sup port a mode of o rde r m with a wavelength A.
when IRef". 761 :

(11.2)

Equation (11.2) which a ssumes ni > nJ defi nes the limits of the single mode
region for h between val ues when m = 0 and m = 1. Hence for a ty pical thin
film glass gu ide with " 1 = 1.6 and 112 = 1.5. single mode o peratio n is
mai nta ined o nly when th e guide ba s a thickness in the ra nge 0 .45)" " h "
1.351..
An add itional cons ideration of equ al im portan ce is the d egree of confine-
ment o f the light to the gu iding layer. T he light is not exclusively confined to
t he gu iding region and evanescent fi elds penetrate into the substrate a nd cover.
An effective guide lay er thickness h off may be expressed a s :
(11.3)
where X l a nd Xl are the evanescent field penetration depths for the substrate
and cover regions respectively. F urthermore. we can define a no rmalized effec-
tive thickne ss 11 for an asymmetric slab guide as :
H = kh.rr("j - n~ r (t 1.4)

whe re k is the free space propagation constant equ al to 2TC/ A, The normalized
frequency (sometimes called the normalized film thickness) fo r the planar slab
guide following Eq. (2. 68) is given b y :
v= kh(ni - n1 )t ( 11.5)

An ind ication of th e degree of co nfinement for th e asymmetric slab

waveguid e may be observed by plotting the normalized effective thickness
against the normalized frequency fo r the TE modes. A series o f such plots is
shown in F ig. 11 .1 7 [Ref. 77 J for various values of the parameter a which
indicates the asymmetry of the guide, and is defined as:

(1 1.6)

It may be ob served in F ig. 11.19 that the confinement improves with

decreasing film thickness o nly up to a point where V::!!! 2.5. For ox-ample, th
APPLICATIONS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS 515

'f-+-+

V -kh(nJ np'

Fig.11.17 The normalized effective thickness H as a function of the normalized fre-

quency V lor a siab waveguide with various degrees of asymmetry.
Reproduced with permission from H. Kogelnik and V. Ramaswamy. Appl.
Opt.. 13. p. 1857, 1974.

rmrumum effective thickness for a highly asymmetric guide (a = (0) occurs

when H min = 404 at V = 2.55. Using Eq. (1104) this gives a minimum effective
thickness of:

(11.7)
= O.7(ni - nft+
Therefore considering a typical glass waveguide (n j = 1.6 and n2 = 1.5), we
obtain a minimum effective thickness of:
(11.8)
Assuming a minimum operating wavelength to be 0.8 urn limits the effective
thickness of the guide, and hence the confinement to around I urn. Therefore it
appears there is a limit to possible microfabrication with 10 which is not
present in other technologies" [Ref. 79J. At present there is still ample scope
but confinement must be considered along with packing density and the
avoidance of crosstalk.

• The 1 ~m barrier to confinement applies with all suitable waveguide materials. However,
meta! clad waveauides Ire not so limited but are plagued by high losses IRef.781.
516 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICAT IONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

The planar waveguides fo r 10 may be fab ricated from glasses and other
isot ropic materials suc h as silico n dioxide and polymers. Altho ugh these
materials are used to produce the simplest integrated optical components, their
properties cannot be controlled by external energy sources and hence they are
of limited interest. In order to provide extern al control of the entrapped light to
cause deflection. focusing. switching and modulatio n. act ive devices employing
alternative materials must be utilized. A requirement for th ese materials is that
th ey have the correct crystal symmetry to allow the local refractive index to be
va ried by the application of either electrical. magnetic or aco ustic energy."
To date interest has cen tered o n the exploitation of the electro-optic effect
due to the ease of controlling electric fields through the use of electrodes
together with the generally superio r performance of electro-optic devices.
Acousto-opdc devices have, ho wever, fo und a lesser role. primarily in the area
of beam deflection. Magneto-optic devices [Ref 80] utilizing th e Faraday
effect are not wide ly used. as in general, electric fields are easier to generate
th an magnetic fields.
A variety of electro-optic and acousto-optic materials have been employed
in the fa brication of individual devices. Two basic groups can be distinguished
by their refractive indices. These are materials with a refractive index near 2
( LiNb0 1 • LiTa0 3 , NbO s , ZnS and ZnO) and materials with a refractive index
greater than 3 (G a.As, InP a nd co mpounds of Ga and In with elements of A I,
As a nd Sb).
Planar waveguide struct ures are produced using severa l different techniques
which have in large part been derived from lhe microelectronics industry. For
example. passive dev-ices ma y be fabricated by rad iofrequency sputtering to
deposit thin films of glass o nto glass substr ates. Altern atively a ctive devices
are often pr od uced by titani um (Ti) diffu sion into lithium niobate (LiNbO]) or
by io n implantation into gallium arsenide [Ref. 81 1.
The planar slab wav eguide shown in Fig. 11.16 confines light in only one
d irection. a llowing it to spread across the guiding layer. In many instances it is
useful to confine the light in two dimensions to a particular path on th e surface
of the s ubstrate. This is achieved by defming the high index guid ing region a s a
thin strip (strip guide) where tot al internal rellection will prevent the spread of
th e light beam a cros s the subs trate. In addition the strips ca n be curved o r
br an ched as required. Exa mples of such strip wav eguide structures are shown
in Fig. 11 .1 8. They may be formed as eithe r a ridge on the surface of the sub -
st rate or by diffusion to provide a region of higher refr active index below the
substrate, or as a rib of increased thickness within a thin planar slab. Tech-
niques employed to obtain the st rip pattern include electron and laser beam
lithography as well as photolithography. The rectangul ar wa veguide configura-
tions ill ustrated in Fig. 11 .1 8 prove very suitable for use with electro-optic

• UIinJ the decuo-optic, map'no-optic or ~il: dfcccs IRef. 6$J,

APPLI CATIONS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS 517

",
, ~.if • ._"' '.L"'

\
\
'" "' '"
Fig. 11 .18 Closs secroe of some strip w av egu ide st ructur es : (1/ ridge guide : Ibl diffu sed
ch" l'l'1 el le mbedd ed strip! guide : leI ri b (l<..l idll

def lectors and modulators giving a red uctio n in the voltage requi red to achieve
a particular field strength . In addition they allo w a number of o ptical paths to
be provided on a given substrate.
Losses exhibited by both s la b and strip waveguides are generally m uch
gre ater than those obtained in optical fibers. Typi cal losses which are both
wavelength and material dependent are in the range 0.5-5 d B em' I . Further-
more, although the effect s of interest in 10 are usually exhibited over short
di stances of the order of a wavelength, efficient devices require relatively long
intera ction lengths, the effect s being cumulative. Thus typical de vice lengths
ran ge from 0.5 to 10 mm.

11 .8 INTEGRATED OPTICAL DEVICES

In this section some exam ples o f various types of integrated optical devices
together wi th their salien t fea tures are cons idered . However, the n umerous
dev elopm ents in this field exclude any attem pt to provide other than gen eral
exam ples in the maj or areas of in vestigation wh ich are pertinent to optical fibe r
com munications. The req uirement for multichan nel communication within the
va rious systems consid ered in C hapter 10 dema nds the combination of infor-
ma tion from separate channels. transmission of the combined signals o ver a
single o ptical fiber link. and separa tion of the individual channels a t the
recei ver prior to routing to th eir ind ivid ual destinations. lienee the application
o f 10 in this area is to provide o ptical methods for mult iplexin g, modulation
and routing. These various fu nctions m ay be performed with a combination of
optical beam splitters, switches, modulators, filter s, sources and dete ctors.

11.8.1 Beam Splitte,• •nd Switches

Beam splitters are a basic element of many optical fiber com munication
systems often providing a Y-junct ion by which signals fro m separate sources
can be combined, or the received power divided between two o r more chan-
nels. A passive Y-junction beam splitter fabricated from UNbOJ is sho wn in
Fl,. 11;19, .Unfortunately the power transmission throup such. s pliner
518 OPTICAL F\BER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

,
Light
input •

Fig.11.19 A passive V-junction beam splitter.

decreases sharply with increasing half angle y, the power being radiated into
the substrate. Hence the total power transmission depends critically upon y
which, for the example chosen, must not exceed 0.5 0 if an acceptable insertion
loss is to be achieved [Ref. 821. In order to provide effective separation of the
output arms so that access to each is possible. the junction must be many
times the width of the guide. For example, around 3000 wavelengths are
required to give a separation of about 30 urn between the output arms.
Therefore. for practical reasons, the device is relatively long.
The passive V-junction beam splitter finds application where equal power
division of the incident beam is required. However, the Y-junction is of wider
interest when it is fabricated from an electro-optic material, in which case it
may be used as a switch. Such materials exhibit a change in refractive index on
which is directly proportional to an applied electric field" E following.
Sn = +nyrE (11.9)
where n l is the original refractive index, and r is the electro-optic coefficient.
Hence an active V-junction may be fabricated from a single crystal electro-
optic material as illustrated in Fig. 11.20. Lithium niobate is often utilized as it
combines relatively low loss with large values of electro-optic coefficients'[ (as
high as 30.8 x 10-12 m V-I). Metal electrodes are attached so that when bias-
sing is applied. one side of the waveguide structure exhibits an increased refrac-
tive index whilst the value of refractive index on the other side is reduced. The
light beam is therefore deflected towards the region of higher refractive index
causing it to follow the corresponding output arm. Furthermore, the field is
maintained in the electrodes which extend beyond the junction ensuring con-
tinuation of the process. With switching voltages around 30 V, these devices
prove to be quite efficient allowing for larger junction angles to be tolerated
than those of the passive V-junction beam splitter. However, a physical length
of several hundred wavelengths is still required tor the switch. These devices
therefore serve the function of optical signal routing. In addition, high speed

• The linear variation of refractive index with the electric field is known as the Pockels effect
[Ref. 65].
t The change in refractive index is related by the applied field via the linear and quadratir:
eleetro-optie coefficient. [Ref. 801.
A PPLIC ATION S AND FUTUR E DEVELOPM ENTS 519

"',oJ tJ.. ' rool..

I
,

---..
::::---.
, "
Fig. 11 .20 An e leetron--opt ic Y'lunctlon sw itch.
--
.. "ot....... -e...

switches can be used to provide time division mu tnplexing of severallower bit

rare c hannels o nto a single mode fiber link.
Switches may also be fabricated by pla cing two pa rallel stri p wa veguides in
close proximity to each other as illustrated in F ig. 11.21. The evanescent fields
gen erat ed outside the guiding region allow transverse coupling between the
guides. When the two waveguide modes have equal propagation con stants ~
with amplitudes A and B (F ig . 11.21), then the coupled mod e equ ations may
be written as [Ref. 84 J:

dA
- ~ - j jlA + JCB
dz (11.10)
dB
- =-JPB +jCA
dz
where C is the coupling coefficient per unit length. In this case. assuming no
losse s. all the energy fro m waveguide X will be transferred to waveguide Y
over a co upling length L, Furthermore it can be shown [Ref. 8S) that for th is
complete energy transfer 10 is given by rJ 2C. If the waveguide mod es h ave
d ifferent p ropagation constants. h o.....ever> o nly p art of the energy from guide X

/(;UldO
Ught
inl'Ut • :=;:x
e

A.... 11.2 1 Electro-optically lwilched directional coupler. The COBRA configu' alion
Utlr.g two .'-ctrodn (Raf. 861.
520 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

9'

.--//
Ov"I,i,r
d,ctrotl«

Fig.11.22 The stepped ll.~ reversal coupler switch.

will be coupled into guide Y, and this energy will be subsequently recoupled
back into X.
It is also noted that when the propagation constants differ the coupling
length I is reduced from the matched value '0
and although less energy is
transferred, the exchange occurs more rapidly. This property may be utilized
to good effect in the formation of an optical switch. The mismatch in propaga-
tion constants can be adjusted such that the coupling length I is reduced to
10/2. In this case, energy coupled from one guide into the other over a distance
10/2 will be recoupled into the original guide over a similar distance. Hence two
distinct cases exist for a switch of length 10 , namely the matched case whereby
all the energy is transferred from one guide to the other and the mismatched
case when 1 = 10/2 where over a distance 10 the energy is recoupled into the
original guide.
Optical switches of the above type use electrodes placed on the top of each
matched waveguide (Fig. 11.21) so that the refractive indices of the guides are
differentially altered to produce the differing propagation constants for the
mismatched case. A widely used switch utilizing this technique is called the
COBRA (Commutateur Opaque Btnaire Rapide) IRef. 861 and is normally
formed from titanium diffused lithium niobate. Fabrication of the device,
however, is critical in order to provide a coupling length which is exactly 10 or
an odd multiple of 10 , An electrode structure which avoids this problem by
dividing the electrodes into halves with opposite polarities on each half is
shown in Fig. 11.22. With this device, which is called the stepped 6.~ reversal
coupler, it is always possible to obtain both the matched and mismatched cases
described previously by applying suitable values of the reversed voltage. Hence
the fabricated coupling length is no longer critical as the effective coupling
length of the device may be adjusted electrically to achieve 10.
APPLICATIONS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS 521

11.8.2 Modulators
The limitations imposed by direct current modulation of semiconductor injec-
tion lasers currently restricts the maximum achievable modulation frequencies
to a few gigahertz. Furthermore, with most injection lasers high speed current
modulation also creates undesirable wavelength modulation which imposes
problems for systems employing wavelength division multiplexing [Ref 871.
Thus to extend the bandwidth capability of single mode fiber systems there is a
requirement for high speed modulation which can be provided by integrated
optical waveguide intensity modulators. Simple on/off modulators may be
based on the techniques utilized for the active beam splitters and switches
described in Section 11.8.1. In addition a large variety of predominantly
electro-optic modulators have been reported lRef. 881 which exhibit good
characteristics. For example, an important waveguide modulator is based
upon a Y-branch interferometer which employs optical phase shifting
produced by the electro-optic effect.
The change in refractive index exhibited by an electro-optic material with
the application of an electric field given by Eq. (11.9) also provides a phase
change for light propagating in the material. This phase change is accumula-
tive over a distance L within the material and is given by [Ref. 89]:

When the electric field is applied transversely to the direction of optical

propagation we may substitute for onfrom Eq. (11.9) giving:

Furthermore taking E equal to VL!d, where V is the applied voltage and d is

the distance between electrodes gives:

(11.13)

It may be noted from Eq. (ILl3) that in order to reduce the applied voltage V
required to provide a particular phase change, the ratio Lid must be made as
large as possible.
A simple phase modulator may therefore be realized on a strip waveguide in
which the ratio L/d is large as shown in Fig. 11.23. These devices when, for
example, fabricated by diffusion of Nb into LiTa0 3 with an Lid ratio of 1000
(i.e. 2 cm/20 urn) provide a phase change of 1t radians with an applied voltage
around I V [Ref. 891. However, as mentioned previously, this property can be
 522 OPTICAL FIBER COMM UNICATIONS: PR1NCIPl ES AND PRACTIC E

/
~

Fig. ".23 A simple s trip w aveg uide phase modulato r.

employed in an interferometric intensity modulator. Such a Mach-Zehnder

type interferometer is shown in Fig. 11.24. The device comprises two Y-
junctions which give an equ al division of the input optical power. With no
potential applied to the electrodes, the input optical power is split into the two
arms a t the first Y-junction and arrives at the second Y-junction in phase
giving an intensity maximum at the waveguide output. This condition
corresponds to the 'on' st ate. AlternativeJy when a potential is applied to the
electrodes, which operate in a push-pull mode on the two arm s of the
interferometer, a differential pha se change is created between the signals in the
two arms. The subsequent recombinat ion of the signals gives rise to construc-
tive or destructive interference in the output waveguide. Hence the process has
the effect of converting the pha se modulation into intensity modulation. A
ph ase shift of 1t between the two arm s gives the 'off" state for the device.

~,

fIg .11.24 A V-junction Inlerf8rom8tric modul8lor biNd on m. Mtch-Zetlnder

Interfero m. t. r.
,

..
-~ ' .~~ ~"
APPLICATIO NS AN D FUTURE DEVELOPM ENTS 523

High speed interferom etric modulato rs ha ve been demonst rated with

titani um doped lithium niobate waveguides. A 1.1 GHz mod ula tio n band wi d th
has been reported IRd . 901 for a 6 rom interferometer employing a 3.8 V
o n/off voltage across a 0.9 u m gap. Similar d evices incorpora ting electrodes
on one arm only may be utilized as switches and are generally referred to as
balanced bridge interferometric switches IRef. 88).
Useful modulators may also be obtained employ ing the accu sto-optic effect.
These de'..ices which d eflect a light beam are based on the diffraction of light
produced by an acoustic wave travelling through a tra nsparent medium. The
acoustic wave produces a periodic variation in density (i.e. mechanical strain)
along its path which, in tum , gives rise to correspond ing cha nges in refractive
index within the medium d ue to the phoroelastic effect. Therefore, a moving
optical phase-diffraction grating is prod uced in the medium . Any light beam
pa ssing through the medium a nd c rossing the path of the aco ustic wave is
diffracted by this phase gra ting from the zero order into higher order modes.
Two regimes of oper ation are of interest: the Bragg regime and the
Raman-Nath regime. The interaction, however, is of greatest magnitude in the
Bragg regime where the zero o rder mode is partially deflected into only one
higher order (i.e. first order) mod e, rather than the multiplicity of higher order
mod es o bt ained in the R aman- Nath regime. Hence mo st ecousto-optic
mod ulators o perate in the Bragg regime providing the highest mod ulation
depth for a given acoustic power.
The Bra gg regime is o bta ined by effecting a suita bly long interacti on length
for the device so thai it performs as a "thic k' diffractio n grating. An 10
acocsto-optic Bragg deflection modulator is shown in Fig. 11 .25. It co nsists of

/' /'

'lun"a<. ........'" . ...

l oosl,t b<~' u
-J.-
--___ J1lo
- ~L -. -,
--- -. -, -. -
~_

-- ,....-._--
----- ~~
-- Thin fUm

/ ~
<>p t" :l! ",.."glliu o
".""Iee IIi<:
I' ;
"'\'\.I" to

..... 11 .11
-- ...m/

/vi. . COl4to--optlc w • ...-gul~ modulator. The d "'ice glw-I de rlectlOl'l of • light

bum dlW to ~-VII dlftrtetlon by ....rl. e- ecoultlc W I V. ..
524 OPTICA L FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

a piezoelectric substrate (e.g. lithiu m niobate) onto the surface of whic h a thin
fil m optical waveguide is formed by, for example. titanium inditfusion or
lithium o utdiffusion. An acoustic wave is la unched parallel to the surface ofthe
waveguide form ing a surface acous tic wave (S A W) in which mo st o f the wave
energy is co ncentrated with in a depth of o ne aco ustic wavelength. The w ave is
generated from an interdigital electrode system comprising pa rallel electrodes
deposited on the substra te. A light beam guided by the thin film waveguide
in teracts with the SAW giving beam deflectio n since both the light a nd the
aco ustic en ergy are confined to the same surface layer. The conditions fo r
Br agg diffraction between the zero a nd first order mode are met when IR ef.
81 1,
A,
sin l\. = - (I 1.14)
2A
where e
R is the angle between the light bea m and the aco ustic beam
wevefronts. Al is the wavelength of light in the thin film waveguide and A is the
acoustic wavelen gth. In this case the light is deflected by 2011 from its o riginal
path as illustrated in F ig. 11.25.
The fraction o f the light beam deflected depends upon the generatio n
effi ciency and the width of the SAW, the latter also defining the inter action
length for the device. Alth ough diffraction efficiencies are usually low (no more
tha n 20% ). the diffracted o n/off ratio can be very high. H ence these devices
provide effective switches as well as amplitude or frequency modulato rs.

1 1.8.3 Periodic Structur.s for Rlt.rs and Injection Las....

Periodic structures ma y be incorpora ted into planar wa veguides to fo rm
inte grated o ptic al fil ters an d resonators, Light is sc attered in su ch a guide in a
similar m anner to light scattered by a diffraction grating. A common exam ple
of a periodic w aveguide structure is the corrugated slab waveguide shown in
Fig. 11.26. When light propagating in the guide impinges o n the corrugation.
some of the energy will be d iffracted o ut of the guide into either the cover o r
the substrate. The device. however, acts as a one-di mensional Bragg diffraction
gratin g, and light which satisfies the Bragg cond ition is reflect ed back along
the guide at 180 0 to the o riginal direction of p ropaga tion (Fig. 11.26). The
Bragg co ndition is given b y [R ef. 801 :
'A. = 2n. D ( I U l)
where 'A. is the optical wavelength in a vacuum, fl~ is the effective refr active
index of the guide, and D is the corrugation period. When the reflected light is
incident at an angle 0 (F ig. l 1.26) then :

n. = II, SiD 29 (11 .16)

A PPLICATIONS AND FUTURE DEVELOPM ENTS 52.
, ,
, ,,
> - - t) . --:::....

I '-" I '' - -- ,

Rg.11 .26 A slab w aveglJid@wi th s urface COITUga tio n givil19 renecticn bac\ along tile
guide w hen Ihe 8 ragg co ndition is met. He nce the structure perfonns as a
one dimensional Bragg diffracti o" g rating.

where n l is the refractive inde x o f the guide. Hence depending on the corruga -
tion period of the structure all the incident power a t a partic ular wavelength
will be reflected. Such devices therefore behave as frequency selective rejection
filters o r mirrors. Narrow bandwidth fil ters with half power points separated
by as little as I o r 2A have been realized . These devices may find use in
application s suc h as wavelen gth demultiplexing. Altern atively, wide bandwidth
filters may be obtained by forming gratings which exhibit a grad ual change in
th e corrugation period....
Integrated o ptical techn iques are used in the fabrication of sou rces for
optical fi ber communications. They a ssisted in the de velopment of the hetero-
junctio n and stripe geometry devices described in Chapter 6, Th e source.
ho wever. which is directly compa tible with the planar waveg uide structure is
the single mode injectio n laser. In common with mukimode lasers, these
devices are fabricated fro m the grou p Ilt-Y semico nd uctor compounds (see
Section 6.6). F urthermore. two single mode laser structures incorporate the
corrugated gratings discu ssed above. In th is application corru gated gratings
a re utilized ( 0 fo rm a resonator within the dev ice. T he gratings are located at
the end of the normal active layer of the laser to replace the clea ved end
mirrors used in the F abry- Perot typ e optical resonator . In this configuration
they form the distributed Bra gg reflector (D BR) structure illustrated in
Fig. 11.27. This device displays the ad vantage of separating the perturbed
regio ns from the active region but proves to be somewhat los sy due to op tical
ab sorption in the unpumped distributed reflectors. In order to avoid t his
problem, a grating may be applied over the whole active length of the laser
where it pro vides what is known a s distributed feedback. Th is configuration

• Thne gratir.&$ are said w have .. chirped structure [Ree. 911.

528 OPTICAL FIBER COM MUNICATIONS : PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

- •
(:""tart _ taliulion I
I
,'~
p·A1.Co,_""

,......... IKdo. !oyer)

\
...AJ.CO, _. .... ,..,iI!ina by"')
,...AL,Ga, _.A<

M·-e..... to"WrIte.

Ag. 11 .27 Schematic cross section of a GaAs/AIGaAs ORR laser elflploying Bragg
reflectors rat hef th an clea'led end mirrors 10 provide optical feedback..

ag ain dispenses with the use of cleaved mirrors. The distributed feed back
(D FB) la ser structure is shown in Fig. 6.30.
Bo th the DBR and DFB structures exhibit good longitudinal mode
discrimination giving low frequency sensitivity to va riat ion s in drive current
and hence temper ature. F urthermore, these grating resonator lasers are
particularly adapted to the con struction of integrated o ptical a ssemblies in
which the device and other components are fabricated o n a single semi-
cond uc to r chip.

11 .8.4 Blatable Optical D.vlc••

Bistable optical device s have been under investigation for a number of years to
provide a series of optical processing functions . These include optical logic and
memory element s, power limiters and pulse shapers. and A -D converters. An
optic aJ device may be made bista ble when th e optical tran smission within it is
nonlinear and there is feedback o f the optical output to control this tran smis-
sion. The transfer ch aracteristic for a typical bistable optical device ( BO D) is
illustrated in Fig. 11 .28 where hysteresis may be observed. Bistable optical
device s may be separated into two ba sic classes : all o ptical devices which
ut ilize a nonlinear optical medium," and h ybrid devices in which an artificial
nonlinearity such as an electro -optic medium is combined with an electronic
feed bac k loop. Initial developments [Refs. 94 and 951 of the former devices

• The device which has att ract ed the greatest interest in this cattgory is the nonlinear
Fabry- Perot which oonsists of a medium with a nonlinear refraetive indel (e.g. sodium
vapor, rob y crystal) inside a Fabry-Perot cavity. In this device. the value of ~ refractive
ilWSe.. in the cavily. which if; to runction of the oUtpUt liahl iDtenmy. diml" the optical
tnull(l'liL'lion aiviD, blab optical output on re~ &lUI low opdcal output off retOCl&:lCe.
APPLICATIONS AND FUTURE DeVELOP\tENTS 627

Fiv. 11 .28 The transfe r cha, a cle ristk (optical Outpul pow e r aga inst o ptical input power)
to, • typica l bi$ta ble o ptical devic e.

required extremely high optical power den sities and therefore have limited
application within 10.
Hybrid devices using electro-optically induced nonlinearities have been
fab ricated in integrated optical form. The configuration of such a device is
shown in Fig. 11.29 [Ref 961. It consists of a titanium d iffused optical
waveguide on a lithium niobate substrate with cleaved a nd silvered end faces
which form a Fabry-Perot resonator. The light em itted from the cavity is
detected by an avalanche photodiode. The electrical signal is then fed back to
the electrodes deposited on either side of the cavity. Th us the length of the
cavity is controlled using the electro-optic e ff ect. In such an interferometric
structu re. the r atio of input optical power to output light intensity is an

Mi. ro, o_ object;". r i in<liflu..d .....guid,

C>: U-' bO, "'!Jotr' I0---.J

1
"---C1"'od'_"'lb~
.. t. ", .,...1iDp

fig . l' .29 A hybr id integ rated biste blll op tical de vice [R!!f. 961.
i .2. OPTI CAL FI BER COM MU NICAn ONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Lood ..... ,ot

AI'. 11 .30 A hybJid b4 stabl~ OPliU I d evic e using an e lec: tro -o ptic:a lly s witched
directional co uple r [Ref. 9 7 1.

oscillatory function of th e effe ctive cavity length. The device therefore exhibits
hysteresis (Fig. 11. 28) and bistability.
A hybrid BOD can also be achieved using an electro-optically switched
directional coupler as illustrated in Fig. 11.30 [Ref 97]. The device shown is
fab rica ted from lithium niobate with a titanium indiffusion. Multisection
electrodes deposited on t he waveguides are connected so t hat there is a
reversal of the electric r~ld at each section in order to obtain low crosstalk
switching. One of the o utput ports is connected to an optical detector which
controls the drive voltage to t he electrodes. Hence btstability is obtained
without using a Fabry- Perot resonator. Furthermore remot e optical switching
of channels may be performed with this four-port device which could prove
useful in o ptical fiber communication applications.
Recent investigations I Ref. 991 of optical bistability in semiconductors , may
eventua lly produce bistable o ptic al devices which will supersede the hybrid
devices. Optical bistabiliry has been demonstrated in cool ed" InSb and Ga As
using th e property of no nlinear refraction in the regio n j ust below the bandgap
exhibited by these group III-V compounds. This properl y allows nonlinear
Fa bry- Perot action a nd hence bistability is achieved. O ptical transistor '[
actio n has also been observed in similar one- eleme nt Fabr y-Perot devices
fa bricated from l oSb. Thus in addition to bistability these semiconductor
devices display differential gain when two carbon monoxide laser beams are
introduced inside the cavity . The phenomenon which crea tes a large change in
one beam for a small change in the other (optical amplification) may be
explained using the theory of degenerate four -wave mixing. This theory is
beyon d the scope of this text bul is discussed for loSb in Ref. 100.

• Th e effect was OOlletved al (emperat ul"Cll of S an d 77 K in (he invnti l ations detailed in

Rer. 99.
.,. CaUed the Il'lIMphaso: by the aulhon cl Ref. 99.
APPLICATIO NS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS 529

Unfortunately, the switching and amplifying effects in InSb and GaAs

disappear at room temperature which severely limits the usefulness of these
materials. Success et room temperature, however, has been reported by BeD
Labora tories. USA, and Heriot Watt University, UK. using a derivative of
gallium arsen ide and a different excitation effect in lithium niobate respectively
[Ref. 1011. Work is therefore continuing towards the construction of funda-
mental logic gates which will provide the basis for integration of a number of
elements into a single structu re.

n-A1G. A.
A<1 ", R~""
p-Alh"-A
Zn dill"""",
u ~

'"
. I~'

lDGaA IP ....... rqiacl)

Zn diffused region

r»
fl• . 11 .31 Monolil~ic integfltled uafl$mitle, circt>its: lal GeAII/AIGeAs Injection lase,
fa bri cBted WIth a MESFEl on a GaAs substrale ; tDI InGaAsP!lnP inje.."1:ion
Ieser fabric;ated with .. MISFET on a semHllsul;r.ing InP subslra le.

'. "
530 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

11.8.5 Optoelectronic Integration

The integration of interconnected optical and electronic devices is an
important area of investigation for applications within optical fiber systems.
Monolithic optoelectronic integrated circuits incorporating both optical
sources and detectors have been successfully realized over the last few years.
Monolithic integration for optical sources is exclusively confined to the use of
group 111-V semiconductor compounds. These materials prove useful as they
possess both optical and electronic properties which can be exploited to
produce high performance devices. Circuits are often fabricated from
GaAs/AIGaAs for operation in the shorter wavelength region between 0.8 and
0.9 11m. Such a circuit is shown in Fig. 11.31(a) where an injection laser is
fabricated on a GaAs substrate with a MESFET (metal-semiconductor FET,
see Section 9.5) which is used to bias and modulate the laser. Alternatively Fig.
11.31(b) demonstrates the integration of a longer wavelength (1.l-1.6Ilm)
injection laser fabricated from InGaAsP/InP together with a MISFET (metal
integrated-semiconductor FEl) where the conventional 11 type substrate is
replaced by a semi-insulating loP substrate.
Optical detectors for operation in the shorter wavelength region may be
integrated on a silicon substrate. An early design of this type of photodetector
is shown in Fig. 11.32 [Ref. 104]. Light is coupled into the device via a
grating and guided into the silicon substrate at a point where the silicon dioxide
layer terminates. It is in this area where a reversed biassed ]r1l junction
performs the optical detection.
More complex optoelectronic integration is shown in Fig. 11.33 [Ref. 1051
where two possible designs for monolithic integrated circuits which serve as
receive terminals in a wavelength division multiplex system are illustrated.
These wavelength demultiplexers utilize micrograting filters (either transmis-
sion or reflection type) together with an array of Schottky barrier photodiodes
fabricated on a silicon substrate. In each case the filters pick out individual
transmission wavelengths directing them to the appropriate photodiode for

Inddont boom
Rel10cled be.m

GI." (n - 1.57)
G"'ling coupler Electrode.

Silicon

P!g.11.32 An Integrated optical photodetector fabricated on S IlIIcon lubltrltl [R.r.

104).
APPLICATIONS AN D FUTURE DEVELOPM ENTS 531

W ~ "C fiI .....

ol l r ~ I}' p<

,.,
Rg.ll .33 Mo nolitNc irrtegfll fed oence t wa vele ngt h demu ltipl. ...ers fabricilt&d with
micrograting fihers a nd a Schottky barrier photodiodtl a nay on I silicon sub-
s tra te: la l using triln~ iS$~n oralings: fbi using ~f,eC1.ion o'etings [Ref. 10 51.

detection. It is likely that integrated optical circuits of this type will find
application in WDM systems in the near future.
Monolithic integration of both sources and detectors on the same substrate
can be achieved using the group III-V semiconductor compounds. An

,...,.,
"
0.1 ~F .J-~' O\ltput
'"eO' ~·r·lf·~"T-f
,
,,
~ so a
,,
,,
"
,
,,
, .,
.... 11.14 '
*
~Iithic irlletillllliOn of en t ED. p--+-n pholodiode lind an FET a mplifier to
pt'OVide lin lnt~"'led tr'"5111itter. P IN-F ET ~.jyer or repellel IRef. 106).
532 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Proton-implanted detootor,
-----______________
t'
,flighlo"I1'''(

Rib waYc~uidc

Fig.11.35 Monolithic integration of a waveguide directional coupler and a detector to

provide a hybrid bistable optical device [Ref. 1071.

integrated optoelectronic test chip fabricated from AIGaAs on a semi-

insulating GaAs substrate is shown in Fig. 11.34 [Ref. 1061. This chip
demonstrates the integration of an LED, Jri-n photodiode, and FET together
with resistive devices. It may be configured as a linearized source, a PIN-FET
receiver, or as an integrated repeater.
Improvements in the performance of hybrid bistable optical devices have
also been achieved through monolithic integration. Figure 11.35 tRef. 107J
shows an electro-optic directional coupler integrated on a GaAs substrate
together with a proton implanted detector. This circuit, when utilized with an
external amplifier, operates in a similar manner to the configuration shown in
Fig. 11.29 but displays an enhanced switching speed of 1 IlS and an optical
switching energy less than 1 nJ.

11.8.6 Summary
Many of the functions provided by integrated optical devices and circuits for
use in optical fiber communication systems cannot be fulfilled by other
technologies without recourse to the electrical regime. Furthermore, hybrid
integration of discrete optical circuit components fabricated on diverse sub-
strates is already reasonably well established and capable of providing
integrated optical devices for use with single mode fiber systems. It is,
however, within monolithic integration using III-V semiconductor substrates,
where sources and detectors together with all other types of both optical and
electronic component may be combined, which holds most attraction for
fourth generation optical fiber systems. The fabrication of integrated optical
transmitters, receivers and repeaters onto a single chip which has already been
APPLICATIONS AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS 533

demonstrated will doubtless soon find application within practical systems.

Such integrated optical circuits may appear quite large in comparison to
purely electronic integrated circuits due to limits on confinement and interac-
tion length. Their speed of operation, however, displays no such limitation"
and it is envisaged that monolithic integrated optical circuits will allow the
enormous potential bandwidth of single mode optical fibers to be fully
exploited.
In more general terms, developments in the area of optical bistability and
hence integrated optical logic devices coupled with advances in monolithic
integration have already instigated research towards the optical computer in
both the UK and the USA (Ref. 101]. It is predicted [Ref. 109] that a
prototype system could be in operation before 1993. The main drive for this
development stems from the enhanced switching speeds possible using
integrated optical technology. A subsidiary advantage is the ease of interfacing
such a device with single mode optical fiber systems. Furthermore, there is
likely to be a requirement for such high speed computers at the heart of the
digital switching centers of what may become a predominantly optical fiber
public telecommunications network.

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Fibre Communication, pp. 8 29~845, McGraw- Hm, 1981.
94 H . M. Giws, S. L McCall and T . N. C . venkatesan, ' D ilTerent ial gain and
bistability using sodium nUed Fabry-Perot interferometer' , Phys. Rt'V. Lett.. 36,
pp. 1135-] 138, 1976.
9& T . N . C. venkatesan a nd S. L. Mcceu, ' Optical bist ability and differential gain
between 85 and 296°K in a Fabry- Perot containing ruby" Appl. Phys. Leu.,
30, pp. 282- 284, 1917.
98 P. W . Smith, I. P. K arninc w, P. 1. Maloney and L. W. Stulz, ' Integrated bistable
opt ical devices', App l. Phys. Leu., 33(1), pp. 24--26, 1978.
97 P. S. C ross, R . V. Schmidt, R . L Thornton and P. W. Smith, ' Optically con-
trolled two channel integrated optical switch', IEEE J. Quantum Electron.,
QE-I4(8), pp. 577- 580, 1978.
98 E. Garmire, ' Progress in bista ble optical devices', Proc, Soc. Ptvno-opto.
IlI.Slrumen. E ng.• 176 , pp. 12- 16. April L919.
99 D . A. B. Miller, S. D . Smith a nd C . T . Seaton, 'O ptical bislabilit)' in
semiconductors', IEEE J. Quatttum Electron., Q E-I7(3), pp. 3 12-3 17, 198 1.
538 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

100 D. A. B. Miller, R. G. Harrison, A. M. Johnston, C. T. Seaton and S. D. Smith,

'Degenerate four-wave mixing in InSb at 5 K', Opt. Commun., 32, pp. 478--480,
1980.
101 'New optical computers are moving fast', Technology, 7(13), p. 27, 1983.
102 H. Matsueda, S. Sasaki and M. Nakamura, 'GaAs optoelectronic integrated
light sources', J. Lightwave Technology, LT-l(l),~pp. 261-269, 1983.
103 'Monolithic integrated optoelectronics', Electronic Product Design, p. 9,
January 1983.
104 D. B. Ostrowsky, R. Poirer, L. M. Reiber and C. Deverdun, 'Integrated optical
photodetector', Appl. Phys. Lett., 22(9), pp. 463--464, 1973.
105 T. Suhara, Y. Hunda, H. Nishihara and J. Koyama, 'Monolithic integrated
micrograting and photodiodes for wavelength demultiplexing', Appl. Phys. Lett.,
40(2), pp. 120-122, 1982.
108 N. Forbes, A. C. Carter and R. C. Goodfellow, 'Monolithic integration of active
and passive components in GaAlAs/GaAs multilayers', Proceedings of First
European Conference on Integrated Optics, London, 14-15 Sept. 1981, pp.
83-84, lEE, 1981.
107 A. Carenco and L. Menigaux, 'Optical bistability using a directional coupler
and detector monolithically integrated in GaAs', Appl. Phys. Leu., 37(10), pp.
880--882, 1980.
108 J. C. Campbell, A. G. Dental, J. A. Copeland and W. S. Holden, 'Optical AND
gate', IEEE J. Quantum Electron., QE-I8(6), pp. 992-995, 1982.
109 'It's no optical illusion, it's a computer', Guardian (London), 15 February,
1983.
 Appendices

A. THE FIELD RELATIONS IN A POLAR GUIDE

Let us consider an electromageedc wave having an angular frequency w propagating in

the z direction with p ropagation vector (phase constant) p. Then as indicated in Section
2.3.2 the electric and magnetic fields can be expressed as:
E "" Re tEJx, y) exp j «(J}/ - ~:)} (A l)

H = Re tHJx , y) exp j(rot - ~z) l (A2)

For the planar guide the Cartesian components of E o and H o become:

(Al)

(M )

aE, aE~ .
- - - = - J!.L,. J.io mH. (A S)
ax ay

(A6)

(A7)

(AB)

If we assume that the plan ar structure is an infinite film in the y- z plane, then for an
infinit e plane wave travelling in the z direction the partial derivative with respect to y is
zero (al ay = 0). Employin g this a ssum ption we can simplify the above equations to
demonstrate fundamental relationships between the fiel ds in such a structu re, These
are:
(A9)

S39
540 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

(AW)

ss;
- - ' =-jllrlJ<J(j)Hz (TE mode) (All)
ox
j~Hy = jrof'.,.toEx (TM mode) (A 12)

OH,
-J"I1H ---~J"(j)£ ~~E (TEmode)
f' x ox r-v y
(A13)

oHy •
--=J(j)£rtoEz (TMmode) (A14)
ox
It may be noted that the fields separate into TE and TM modes corresponding to
coupling between E y , tr., Hz> (E z = 0) and H,., Ex, e, (Hz = 0) respectively.

B. VARIANCE OF A RANOOM VARIABLE

The statistical mean (or average) value of a discrete random variable X is the numerical
average of the values which X can assume weighted by their probabilities of
occurrence. For example, if we consider the possible numerical values of X to be Xl,
Xl, " .. X" with probabilities of occurrence P(Xj), P(X2)' •• p(x;), then as the number of
measurements N of X goes to infinity, it would be expected that the outcome X = Xl
would occur Np(xl) times, the outcome X = Xl would occur NP(X2) times and so on.
In this case the arithmetic sum of all N measurements is:

(BI)

The mean or average value of all these measurements which is equivalent to the
mean value of the random variable may be calculated by dividing the sum in Eq. (81)
by the number of measurements N" Furthermore, the mean value for the random vari-
able X which can be denoted as X (or m) is also called the expected value of X and may
be represented by E(X). Hence:
N

X = m = E(X) = 1: x,p(x,) (B2)

;- I

Moreover Eq. (82) also defines the first moment of X which we denote as M I" In a
similar manner the second moment M 2 is equal to the expected value of X 2 such that:
N

(B3)

M 2 is also called the mean square value of X which may be denoted as X 2,

For a continuous random variable, the summation of Eq. (82) approachea III
APP ENDIX B S41

integr ation over the whole ra nge of X so that the e xpected value t>f X :

At I = E(X) "" f: dx (84 )

-
xp z(:c)

where Px(x) is the probability den sity function o f the coonnccus random variable X.
Similarly. the expected value o f X 2 is given by:

M 2 = E(X 2) = f"" x 2px(x)dx

-
(Bl)

It is often convenient to subtr act the first moment M 1 = m prior to computation of

the second moment. This is analogous to moments in mech anics whic h are referred to
the center of gravity rather than the orilin of the coordinate system. Such a mom ent is
generally referred to as a central moment . The seco nd centra l moment represented by
the symbol d' is therefore defined as :

cr=E (X -m)! "" J"" (x -m)lp.(x )dx (B6)

where d' is called

-
the varian ce of the random variable X . Moreover the quantity CI
which is l oo", n as the standard deviation is the root mean square (nns) value of
(X - m ).
Expanding the squared term in Eq. (116) a nd integrating term by term we futd :
t:? = Elx2 - 2mX + m2 J
= E(X1 ) _ 2mE(X) + E(m 2)
(Bl)
"" E(X2 ) _ 2m 2 _ m2
= E(X 2) _ ",,2

As E(X2) ""M 1 and m=M 1• t he variance may be wriuen as :

2
0 "".\#1 - (M t )l

C. VARIANCE OF THE SUM OF INDEPENDENT RANDOM

VARIABLES
If a random var ia ble W = g(X. n
is a function of two r andom varia bles X and Y, then
extending the definition in Eq. (B4) fo r expected values gives the expected value of W
as:

E (W) :::: f"" J"" g(x, y)pxy{x,y) dx dy ten

-:«' :-<'"

where pxv <x,y) is the joint probabili ty function. Furthermore the two random varia bles
X aDd Y arc statisticaUy mdependent when -

rcz)
 542 OPTICAL FIBER COMMUNICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

Now let X and Y be two statistically independent random variables with variances
cr} and o~ respectively. In addition we assume the sum of these random variables to
be another random variable denoted by Z such that Z = X + Y, where Z has a
variance (J~. If the mean values of X and Yare zero, employing the definition of
variance given in Eq. (86) together with the expected value for a function of two
random variables (Eq. (Cj ) we can write:

(J~ = f'" f"" (x + yfPXy(x,y)dxdy

~ ~
(e3)

As X and Yare statistically independent we can utilize Eq. (e2) to obtain:

= r
--<0
;(!Px(x)dx+ f'"
_
y2p y (y) dy + 2 foo xpx(x)dx f'" ypy{y)dx
··ctO -00
(C4)

The two factors in the last term of Eq. (C4) are equal to the mean values of the
random variables (X and Y) and hence are zero. Thus:
a
= Ox + G~

D. SPEED OF RESPONSE OF A PHOTODIODE

Three main factors limit the speed of response of a photodiode. These are:
(a) Drift time of carriers through the depletion region
The speed of response of a photodiode is fundamentally limited by the time it takes
photogenerated carriers to drift across the depletion region. When the field in the
depletion region exceeds a saturation value then the carriers may be assumed to
travel at a constant (maximum) drift velocity Vd' The longest transit time, t drifl , is
for carriers which must traverse the full depletion layer width IV and is given by

W
ldrift =-- (Dl)
'0

A field strength above 2 x 10" v cm-? in silicon gives maximum (saturated) carrier
velocities of approximately 107 cm S-I. Thus the transit time through a depletion
layer width of 10 urn is around 0.1 ns.
(b) Diffusion time of carriers generated outside the depletion region
Carrier diffusion is a comparatively slow process where the time taken, t diff' for
I,I carriers to diffuse a distance d may be written as

d'
, t diff = - (D2)
2D,

,
APPENDIX D 543

where Dc is the minorit)' carrier dilTusion coefficient. For example, the hole dilTu-
sion time- lhrough 10 pm of silicon is 40 ns whereas the electron diffusion lime over
a similar distance is around 8 ns,
(c) Time constOIll incurn'd by the capacito'la of 'M pllOiodiod~ ...·itll its toed
A reversed biassed photodiode exhibits a voltage dependent capacitance caused by
the variation in the stored charge at the junction. T he junction capacitance C j is
given by

C- = -
,
....
w
( 03)

where e, is the dielectric constant of the semiconductor material and A is the diode
junction area. Hence. a small depletion layer v.idth w jncreeses the junct ion
capacitance. The capacita nce of the photodiode Cd is that of the junction together
with the capacitance of the leads and packaging. This capacitance must be
minimized in order to reduce the RC time constant which also limits the detector
response time (see Section 9.3.2).

E. CLOSEO LOOP TRANSFER FUNCTION FOR THE

TRANSIMPEOANCE AMPLIFIER

The c lose loop tram-fer function H Cl (w) for the transimpcdance amplifier shown in
Fig. 9.9 may be derived by summing the currents at the amplifier input. Ter."'.embering
that the amplme: input resistance is included in R n.. Hence.

(E I )

As VIII = -V~ /G. then

I I I j o£T )
( R + GR + GR (E2)
n + G
f f

Therefore.
~R ,

1 + ( 1/G ) + (Rf/ GRTd + UwCTRr/G)

(E3)

Since,

(E4)
544 OPTICAL FIBER COMMU NICATIONS: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE

then Bq . tEJ) becomes,

-R,

F. GAUSSIAN PULSE RESPONSE

M an y o ptic al fiber's, and in p articular jointed fiber link s, e .\h.ibit pulse o utputs with a
temporal variation that is clo sely a pproxima ted by a Ga ussia n dislributio n. Hence the
va ria tio n in the o ptical output power wit h time may be described as :

(F I)

where (J and 0 2 are t he standa rd deviation and the variance of t he distribution

respectively. If Ie repre sents the time at whic h P 0(t~)1 p 0(0) = li e (i.e. lie pulse width),
then fro m Eq. (FI ) it follows that :
t, = o-y2
M oreover, if the full width of the pulse at the lie points is den ot ed by "L ~ then;

e, = zr, = 20-/ 2
In t he c a se o f the Gaussian response given by Bq. (P I) the standard oevience 0 is
equivalent to the mas pulse wKith.
The Fourier transform of Eq. (F t) is given b y :

pew) = . I J exp -;
V (2r.)
(00'0' )
2
(F2)

The 3 d B optical b andwidth B.;op is defin ed in Section 7.4.3 as the mod ulation fre-
q uen cy at which the received o ptical power has fallen to one h aif of its constant value.
Thus using Eq. t F2):

1 ~ 3 dB opt )1 2 2
-'---'''''':-'::'''- 0 = 0.693
z

-/2 x 0.8326
w(3 dB opt) = 21tBupl = - ' - - - - ' - -
u

H ence

-,-
V-,-'-:;"_0-,-
.83,--'_
' 0.530 0. 187
B ovt -- -
,." a
When employing return to zero pulse where: the maximum bit rate B T(mlU)"", B...

. ' ,., .
APPENDIX F 545

then:
0.2
Br (max) - - b its- 1
•
Alternatively, the 3 d B electrical bandwidth B occurs ...."hen the received optical
power has dropped to l/y2 of the constant value (see Section 7.4.3) giving:

0.530 0.375 0.133

Be Hz
tr y2 t o' fJ
 Index

Absorplion. 65-68. 234- 238. 328--332 Allorouation measurement s, 186- 189,

p ll'SS. 65-6H 2 18---224
~iconduC1Ot!1. 328- 332. 336-342
Absorptjcn losses illlibo:1. 6~ 8
absorption Ion in "bet'.
cui bad method, 186--1 90
l'JO- l94

U lrlIlSil;.66-6ll optica l time domain rd 'lt ctrometry

int';Il ~>C.
65-66 (OTD R). 2 1 ~224
measuremelll. I90- 194 portable test set, 218- 219
Acceptance illlgle, 14-2 1 scanenng loss in fiber, 194-1 96
meridional rays. 15- 18 tcealfiber, 186--190
sk.e .. U,Y5. 19- 2 1 Automatic gain cvntrol. (A GC) of receiver ,
solid,18 409--4 12
Acc eptance cone. 15 Avalanch e phrxcdiode (APD ) detec tors, 6.
Acrcptor impurity, 246- 247. 252- 253 22 1-22 4. 332. 340-345, 366--372.
Acou$!Q-oPUC.k\ic~ 5 16. SB - S24 4 U --4311
AOOU~IO -orlic e(fect, oS 16. 5 23 asymmetric pulse sn epe. 3·U
A1G aA~ injectscn laser, 266-26 7 carrier multiplication, 34 1
single fI'lOde-, 274-275. 277-278 d rawbacks, 344
AIGIlA'llED. 306-)07,)09 C KCC'!'S noise factor, 366-)7 2, 4 33--4 3 ~
Amrlifler noise, 360. 362- 364 germanium (Gel, 343
A mplit ude shirt L.eyins, 470-411 impact iorriz.alion, 340-34 1
Ana l" g modula tion (IN' alsQ Mod ulation. micropla.l>mM, 332, 341
anidogl. 6, 320, 451 --457. 461 --470 multiplica tion factor, 344-34 5
ifljeetion l.sef. 389 optimum, 367-370
LED. 297, 310-3 11. 389 receiver eo ee, ] 66--372. 4 33--438
p ulse. 46 7-470 reach-through structure ( RA PD).
An a k>g syslems (see also Optica l fiber J!l2 - 34 ]
, ystem'!, arlalog). 6,449-470, 49 2, speed or res coese, 34 1
495- .506
AnalOIl IO dilli llli ( A- D) ccnvereton. a 1H Z) , Bandga p :
m direc t. 248- 252
Ana log signals. 4 18- 4 19. 4 5 1-452. 4 60-468 energy, 245-253. 260- 26 J, 330-33 1
A PD ($..(' A valanche phc todiode) indirect. 250-252
Al'p l i catlo n ~ . 486-512 tailoring, 262, 33 1- 332
civil. 4 9 7-499 Band tail states. 255-256. 312
co mpu ter. 506-5 12 Band to ba nd recom bination, 252- 253
consumer. 499 Bandwidth , 2. ' . 50. 76--80, ]1 ] - 316. 365,
ind um ial, 500-506 375,442--443,459,464--467, 54 6-5 41
milita ry, 494-49 7 anal og system. 4S9 , 464-461
I I'H.l bliC network, 486--494 digital system, 442-44]
submerged systems, 493- 494 elect rical, 78, 31 3- 3 16, ' 4 7
television, 4 97- 499 fiber types . 127_ 132
! Atmospheric tr ansmission, 1-2, 41 1 optical. 18- 80 , 31 3- 316, 54 6
Attenueric n: recei ver. 36 S. J 7S
cOR ~ iR I ca ble, 2 Band width- length produ ct, 80, 97, 12 7- 132,
fiber. 2. 4, 8. 12. 62- 76 391
difierentill\ mode, 89 Beam:
joi nt~ .1 46- 156 expansion. 172- 173
microbending, l3 1S splitters (integrated optic' ). 5 17-' 18
mode coupling, 138 Beat length, 101- 103
Attenuation coefficient (radiation). 14 Bend los, (fiber), 7]-16

.' " ." ",'-~' "

INDEX
Be>..«cl functions, 3 1-38
Bi.lTiu project (France), 492
Bicollical connector, 167-1 68
BIGFO N project (Germany ), 4'>12
Bimo lecular recornbi nadoe ( LED). 3 16-3 17
Bire(rill~cncc (modal ). 100-1 04, 50 3
Bistable optical d~CCI (BO D ), 526- '29
hybrid. '27- 528
o ptoelectronic integration. 532
tran sfer cha ra cteristic, 526-527
Bil e1TtX" r ate ( BER), H6, 42 5-4 26, 4 ] 1-438
Bit r ate , 76-7g, 441---443 , 5n
hitTan:hic3, 413
Black body ra diation, 23 1
Block cOlle~, .wI
Bohzmann statistics, 236-2J'>l
Bose- Einstein di~lribution, for incoher ent
li~ hl , 355
Bragg :
di ffraction, 276, 513-525
regimc, 51 3
Brillouin scattering, 72- 13
Broadened laser tra nsition, 242, 212
Buried heterostruct ure laser (BH), 173,
277- 279- 280, 284
Bus netwo rks, 494-49 ' , 509-51 0
Burr us ty pe LED, 304- 306
Butt jointed connectors, J 65- 17 1
C abin, 133-1 44
CO~, 14-0
desisn. 0 8-144
u a mptcs, 14 1- 144
liber butTering. 138- 139, 141-14 3
function of. 133
slltath anj w alCT ban itJ , l ~ 1 4 3
strtsct ural a nd I1r tflgth me mbers.
J3~1 4 3
C am bridge ring. 509- 510 , ' 12
Carner. 24 6, 329
di rrlL~ on , 24 B-2 49, 258- 260, JOl, 33 7.
34 1, H4
d rift.. 329 , 331- 34 1, 544
illjection, 24 7- 249. 253, 25'. 282. 302,
3 10. 316
mmority , 24 1- 248
ml.lltil'lication in APD, 34 1. 344-34'
rn-ombination , 249--253, 296, 30 2- 303
C arricT to noise ratio (C N R), 450
Ca rson's rule. 464 , 466
Ca ustic surfaces (graded indu fiber ), SO
C hanclled substrate lasers , 2 14- 2 75
C ha nnelled substrate plan ar (C SP) la ser ,
274- 27 5
C haracteristic length , fur fiber, 90
C hemic al vapor deposition (CV Dl, 119,
123- 126
C hopper (optical), 186--187
C hromatic dispersion (see Int ra motle\
dispersion]
Civil appl ication., 491--4'J'J
C ladd ing o f fibef, 11 . 33. 4 7, 116- 117, 124,
128- 132, 211-2 14
C ladding mode stri pper. 1f!;7
or
Cleaving fiber, 157, 166-1 67
547
C lose circuil ttle\'isioo (CC TV) applications.
49 1-498
Coaxial ca ble \y ~ICm :
lIltcnllation, 2
cost oornpari\Dll , 4 86-487. 493
local area no:t""01' b . 5O'J- 5 10
. igna l to noi\C ratio (SN R), 449--4 5 1
Codi ng (digital), 77- 71i. 4 17. 446-44S
coded mart inversion (CMI), 44 7---44$
Manchester (bip ha-el, 4 11. 44 1-448
nOOl"l:tllTn 10 zero (NRZ ), 11- 78
ret urn til zc!o (Rr ZJ, 78
Coheretlcc ofwcr liih!, 2J I, 23$-236
Cohere nce length. 10 1- 10 2
Coherence time., 99. 101
Co!u:rcnt det ection. 320 , 470-413
Coherent ratlial iOl'l , 2J 5. 354
C oherent n a n'il1lis!.io n, 47D.-413
Common a ntenna telev ision (e A TV)
a pplication s. 497- 498
Com munic atlc n ns{c m:
coaxial (see Coa Jdal cabl e system]
electrical. 4-5. 4 18-4 23. 50 9- 5 10
general, 4- 5
optical fi ber (see O ptical fiber sy sterns]
Compa nding (pulse code modulation),
419-4 20
Cornl' lIter:
applications 507- 5 12
optical, BJ
Confinement:
o f carrie-s, 258- 260, 263, 266- 167
o f photo ns . 258- 260. 263. 266- 267
Con ducnce hand, 245-24 6
Connectors, 145, 164 - 113
bicomcal, 167- 168
butl joinl cd, 16S- n l
cr ramic ~piIlar), 168
doub le eccenrc, 168- 169
u p.mdcd beam, 112- 173
ferru le, 166-16 7
multiple, I 70- 17i
",i ngk mo de , 168- 110 , 172
triple ball, 169- 170. 172- 17 j
C{'If\\triclcd double beterojllnction (C O H)
la-;er, 274.-2 75, 277
Con~umer applieal ions, 499
Core (filxr ). II , 11 6-11 7.1 24.128--- 132.
2 14-2 15
dia mete r mea surement, 1 14-1 15
Coup led mode equat ions, 5 19
Couplers. 494 -4<) 5, 5 10-5 I I
Coupling coefficient (mod e), 5 19
Cou pling len gth (mode), 519- '20
Crack velocity (fiber), 131
Critical an gle, 13- 14, 16,20
C uttoff condition (model :
gr aded index fiber, 56-57
step index fi ber, 39- 40 , 4 5-4 1
Cutoff wavelength ( phot cdtcoe), 335- 336
C rystal momentum , 250
Dark (;urrenl:
noise, 353
optical detect or, 33 I. ) 38-339, ) 43-344
548
Da rk line dcl"CCl \ :
injoction taser, 284. 211?
LEO . 3 IX
Data channel. o( computer, 507
Dccibel(ol R).63-65
Decision:
lhre~hoId level (regenerat ive repea ter],
424-4 26, 4 28-429
time (regeneratjve rq'l('ater), 424--426
Degenerac y in at o m. 236- 239
Degenerative doping. 254- 255
De gr adatio n :
inject ion laser, 287
LED. 3 18- 320
Depletio n layer (region). 247- 248, 255,
328--3 2'1 , 336- 342
Detectors (see Optical detectors)
Demodulatio n. 1, 5-6. 386-38 7. 4 60-461.
47 1-412
Dickct ric con sta nt fu r semicond uctor, 544
Diele.;tri c MlIc k (injcc tio) n laser). 27 1
Diffraction (Rrllgg). 523-525
Oiffusio n:
coe fficient (m m<,rit)' carr ier), 54 4
carrier, 248. 258-260. 331. 34 1, 544
Digital modulation..5 -6. 320. 4 18-423.
4.S1-44 B.. 4 1Q-4 73
Digua l ~ ;naJs... 71- 78. 4 J8-4 19, 414.
<46-448
Digital tnln smis1lion Isee also O ptica l liber
s yste ms. digitall
bit error ra il' lBE R), 356 , 4 25--420.
43 1-438
erro r probability . 355
hierarchies, 423
intersym bcl interference, 76-77, 42 5, 439
regenerati ve repeater, 424--4 26
Direct bandga p, 248-252
Direct detec tion. 320. 360
Dispersion , 44 ·45. ~ 9, 76-98
full width puhe broadening, 439-440
ertermodal, 44--45. 49, 85-90. 9Q--9 3
intram nd a 1. 8O-S... 95- 98, 39 1
measurements.. IQ6-20 l, 218-219
o ver all fiber, 93-98
wa veg uid e, 114, 95-98
Dispeaio~llaliution pen alty, 43lJ-44O.
II I 116
Dist ributed Br a" re41«tor (O BR) la ser,
525-5 26
Distributed feedbac k (D P B) laser, 276-277,
52 5- 526
Dome LED. 304
Don or impu rity, 246- 247, 252- 253
Donor 10 ac ceptor recom binatio n, 252- 253
Do ping of semicond uctor, 246- 247
Do ppler broadening in laser, 24 J
Do uble eccentri c connector, 168-J 69
Dou ble heteroj uncnc n (OH) :
injection laser, 259-260. 263- 2M .
27&-279
LE D. 302 -305. 308-3 10
Drift of carriers, 328, 337, 5 44
Oynar.1 ic rllll ge. 314
D)namic ranse. of reeeve-, 374, 3 77,
380-381 , 406-408. 4 10
IN DEX
LdgcemiUing LED. 308-3 10
Effective Ihi<;L lle<.\ (a~y mmClric guide).
5 14-5 15
Efficienq- :
injecrioo laser , 264- 265
LED, 298--30 1. 307-308
Eigcnvalc.lc C<.j \lation:
graded index fihe r. 5 1-52
~Iep inu e~ libc'r. 38-39
Einstein coefficient' . 236-238
U oclrical band width, 3 13-.\ 16
Electric al slgnalrc r orse ratio , 4J 1-43 J
Electroiuminescencc. 24 g_25 1
Electro mag netic car rier, I
Electromagnetic mo de theory, 22-41
Ucc m m ag ndic spectrum, 2
Elect ro magnet ic WII~ es, 1-1. 11-24
EJe clrlHl pt;c coefficicet, 5 18, 52 !
Electro.opuc e evices, 516. 518- 520. 527- 528
Electro-op nc effect , 5 16, 5 18-523. 526-5 2&
Elic rural field t rial (Ca nadal., 49 2
Fminion (see Or dcal emissioo)
Energy hall'" structure;
p-rn junc tion, 248, 254- 255
5<.'lt1 icooo\lcror. 2-1 5- 241
F nerg y gap (J"" B.andgap energy)
t: ncrg y Ie.. d ~y ~lems (Ias.cn):
four level, 240, 2l1O
thl"l"e level, 139- 240
two level, 239
Energy st ate!. (atom). 234
Equilibrium mode a istrihutioll, 1l! 4-18S. IS8
Equilibrium mode simulation. ISS
Equilib riu m numeri cal aperture, 184
Equalizer, fl. 372- 3 73 , 379- 380, 404 , 406,
412-4 14, 424,473
transversal, 4 13--4 14
ada ptive, 4 14
Error detection. 424- 425, 448
Error function. 430-433, 474
Error proba bility (digilall, 429-43.\
Errors. (regenerative re~aler), 426
Et bernet ( LA.NI, 509-5 10
E\'jj.ne'>CeTlt fletd. 32- 33, " 7.5 2-5 4
bend 10:05. 13-74
E~ cC$s avalanche nol'iC Iactor , 366-3 72,
43.\-- 4 35
E ~ pandcd beam conl1OCl~ 172- 113
Ex pected value. raodo m varia ble, 54 1- 543
fu lcrnal phOioer.1ission, 327- 328
Extrinsic scmicondueLOr. 146-247
E)'c pauem. 425-426
Fa bry- Perot ca vity, 241, 256. 263
nonlinear action, 528
reso nato r, 527
Fa r field intensity distribution:
fi ber. 185, 105, 210- 2 12
in jecrion laser, 266-267
Farada)" effect (see ma~ nelo-optic errecn
Faultlocation in llber link. 222- 224
fermi- D:rac distribution, 246
Fermi lever, 246-248
qu. 'Ji. l53-255
Fe rN ie conne<:tOl', 166- 167
IN DEX
F ro1 ha o.;~ ccnrrct for inje..'t ioo lasc:r, 288.
·t oll --¥l3
l-"itk:r dr~wing . 1 1 2, 115- 111
Fiber ...-ave guid e (.I~ Optte~ 1 Ilber]
I-"illc rnd (r>JlI. ical LAN ). 5 10--5 II
Fietd clTcet IflI n\.i l.l.or (FET) prcam pli fien (or
rccri,cr. 317- 3S 1
Fid u mea~urcmcn l~ on fi ber. 2 15- 224
Filters:
integra ted o plic:al, 524-525
interference, 189
First genera tion ~}' ,t em" 328, 4 8S
Flame hydrolysis. I I,/·123. 126
H ow senso r, 503- 504
Fo rward bias sed p-n junction. 248-249
Free spa ce tra nsmis sion (ue Atmospheric
tran smis sion)
Frequency di vi~i""j multiplexing (F OM).
460-4 6 1, 4 17- 4 18, 4 72
Frequency modula tio n of pulsed sa bca rrier,
.168---470
Freuency mod utar jon of subcareier, 4 17.
4t>3--466
I'rcqlJ~'fl9' \ lIift keyin g. 47(1-41 3
Fresnel rcncction, 14S- 146, 20 6-208 ,
222- 223, 25 1. J3n
F res nel rcl ation~~ i~, 31-32
Fringes linterfcrcncc), 203
F ull width half pt..'WcT (I'W HPI poinls. 311.
391
FIJ~ion '''fIlices. 156- 159
G aAIA ,(scr AIG aMI
GaA IAs svc«se, 262, J32. 339
G ~ A 1 S b/G a S b , 262, 330. 332
GaAs. 256, 26 1- 262, J IS, 330, 336. 5 16.
528-529. 53 1- 532
a bsorption ccc fficicnt, 330
LED, 303- 304
injc c1ion laser, 263
M F.SFET~ 379-3f1.O, 400. 530
G :tAv AIGaA .... 261- 26 2, 27 1, 287, 297.
530---:532
LED. 302- 30.5, 318-319
injection laser , 266. 268, 213 -214,
216- 211
G~ rmaniwn (<.Ie):
a b~~tion. 3 ~0 ·33 1
phoiodiOtks, J 28••131. 337, 339, 343 . 361.
371
(il.1.' s. 65-68
GOO\ - Hacnchen , hilt. 34
Graded i nd e~ flbcr, 4!1- 51, 7 8~N. 90-') 4,
12l\- U I.2 32
causnc surfaces. 50
intermod al dis persion. 49 . 90-93
mode cutoff, 53 ..·5 7
mode \'(llume, 55-56
no rmalized freq uency, 55-57
numcncut a (lC flU re, SO
o ptimum profile. 9 1- 95
parabolit; p rofile, 41\- 50. 56-57. 9 1-')2
part ially gpd.:tl. 130
propag ation Cl~n~lltlll. 5 I - 54
~n gle mode o peration, 56--57
549
wcrucl, Kra mtrs. Brdlouin (W KB)
:If'I' rolimlllion, SO-56
Gritril h eq uation for fr"cture ~trcf..' fIf a cr ad ; ,
D5
Griffith theor y r<.>r surface flaw:< in glas,• .
134 - U5
Group:
delay, Il l. '14-').5
i" deL 28
~ eJocity. 27-28 , 8 1, 84
G ua rd ring str UClurt (A PD j., 34 1
Gu assian:
a rpro ~ imat i\!n , 427- 433
noise. 42 8
pro bability density function, 428
pulse re spon se, 546-5 4 7
G uide (see Wa veguide }
Hd lum-neon laser, 2 13, 240. 505
Hctcrcjuncuoo s, 258- 260. 263-264
anisurypc. 258
duuble. 259-21.0, 263-267
iWl~· re. 258
H eeeroerucn ..re (Iff also Hetercjunctlcna ].
258
Heterod yne uetect ion. .1 20, 41 1---47.1
Hierarchies (dig;lo1lt 4 23
High density bipolar (H llRJ) code. 4 23
Hi-OVIS project (Japa n ), 498
H<l modyne detect teu. 41 1
H,.le,. 24-6
HO",,* lJKtiofl, 258, 2td , 263, 274
Hybrid :
bistable optical devices (BOO), 527-528
modes (H E, EH), 34- 36
PIN FET re~d \' er, 3 7 9-381,53 1 -5 32
Imp<le l ionizat ion ill APO. 340-342
I m pllrit ~ scmiCOlldllctol , 246-247, 152- 253
Inoh:Jl matching:
fibcr joi nt. 1.l7- I.5 I. reo.
165. 167- 168,
111
ligh.! cmilUn[l: diod e. 305
<lpl.<,;al d etC<.'tOl'. Itt7, 1 9 "~ 1 9 S , 20 1- 209
Indirect Iland gap, 250-25 1
1T\JI"tr iai applications. 5(X)-.-506
Inform ation c:lp3c1ly ,If ct"mlm l.lDicajion
sy stem• .l59. 447
InGa A\!'GlISIl. 2"2, 330. 332
I n(ja A ~P/lnP, 26 2. UIlI, 297. 330. 332.
3.W- 3.10, 34 4, 346-341. 530
AP D, J4l· 3.tJ
LED , 3<.l1- 308. J 10, 3 1~ ~3 19
MfSF I::T. 529- 530
photodctectors. 339- j40, 343-344,
346 34 7
p-i- n pbotodiod c. 339- 3J O
phototran sistor , 346-341
injedion l(ls(T.~ . 2 7"-28 1
lnjecuon efficiency, 258
Injection I~ diode (ILOj., 233. 262 (St"'t' olro
Laser. sern icond uctor)
InP. 330 . 5 16
InP/lnGaA sP, 26 2
550
InSb. 5111- ' 29
Int egrllied ococs (10 1. 4.8S, 506, s12- 5 33
devices. 5 17- 5 33
bea m splitters. 5 J 7- 5 18
bistable optical devices (BO D).
516-529
COBRA. 5 19--520
fitters, 524 - 525
kng.th (t)'pil;all. 5 17
modulators. 5 21- 524
~teppcd A ~ ffver~al COUf\Jer, 520
switches. .5 J 8- 520
opt oelectro nic integration , 530-533
speed uf operation, 533
<;trip guiuc:. 5 16-517
Intensity modulation:
analog , s-e. 320, 451-45 7
digiu l. 5-6, 320. 4 17. 423
Inlcn:il y u e nks, 4116-489
In re-feren ce filters, 1119
Interference fringes. 203
Interference micro scopes . 20 2- 204
lmcrjerc mctric sensors. 503-505
lnrermod al d ispcn io n. 44 -4 5. 49. 85-90,
90-'1'
gradoo index fiber. 49. 90-93
mode coupling. 89- 90. ·U Y...UO
rms l?ulr.e broadening, 87- 89, 91- 9 4
<;tel' index fi bers. 44--45, 85- 90
Intern al phc toemisston, 321- 329
Interoffi ce networ k a pplications, 489--490
Inlcrsymbol interference (lSI). '6-11, 4 25.
4)'I, 444 --4.t6
Inl ra mud.!ll di ~po:rsion , ~()....84. 9$-98, 39 1
material, 81-ll 3. 95-\lS, 391
lutld nns p ulse- broadrning.93- 9 4
waveguide, 33- 84, '}5~9S
Intrinsic semiconductor, 245- 246, 2 ~3 -2 54
lonif.il tiun coefficients ratio of. 34 2, 311
Isoek ctm nic impurity, 25 2- 253
JitlC1".425
Join tin~ 144- 113
Joints:
IInl! ula r coupli ng efficienc y, I Sl- 153
co nnect ors 165- 173
lateral coupling efficiency, 149- 152
signa l distortio n, 156
splice.... 15 7- 16 3
Jo 'nt lo sM's. 14 5-156
mcasvreme at, 222-22 3
lTIultimode fiber. 14 7- 154
single mode fiber. 15.t - 156
J\.lnct;o n c apa cita nce. 347. 390, 544
Junction netwo rk ap plications, 489-490
lambenilln intcn -'lity di~lribu l ion. 298. 309
Laplllcian operator. 23
Large OptICal cavity (l.OC ) users, 271- 278
Lamce :
constant bfT para meter)
matching. 260-- 262. 332. 339
para meter, 260-262. 332
INDEX
Le ser, 4. 6. 23 1- 290. 3t'8-39 I
bro adened transition, 24 2-243
cavity, 24 1- 24 3
ga in-curve, 242-243
helium-neon, 2 13. 240. 505
injec1 ion [see semicoed ucice t
modes. 242-244
neodymium , 28'1- 290
no n>;efll iconduc tor , 239-240, 289-290
oper.. t~)f) uf, 233- 245
o scillAtion. 240- 245, 256
thrcstKJ ld- co ndilon. 244- 245
thresho ld gain, 244-24 5, 257
population inver!oion.138--240. 244.
253-256
ruby (crystan , 239-240.__
eemicoed uct o r, 4, 6. 231-23 3. 25S-25 8,
262-289. 388---391. 4 26---4 27.
529- 530
analog nan smisslco, 264, 389
broad-area device. 265- 266
ca rrier continement, 258- 260, 263,
266--267
cha racteristics, 28 1- 288
oouphf1g (to fi bet ), 288--289, 389.
416--427
cohc.tnec,263
continuous wa ve (e w) o pec-ation. 264 ,
271, 287- 188
current cOf1li nemeot, 266-268
dark line defects, 284, 287
degrad ation. 281- 2S8
drive circuits. 3'>1'1--403
d ynamic response, 283-184
efficiency, 264- 265
clC'Ctricai arwJ optical COfItainmem
h ingle mode opcflllion),
2 72- 278
er nis eion pattern, 266-267 , 269- 270
external power effi ciency. 265
far field inten~jty dislribution, 266-267
feedback control. 400--40 3
Injection locked, 472
kinks. 26 9- 270
linewidl h. 256. 258. 262, 277
light o utput against current
characteristic. 256, 269, 270,
2 79-28 2, 388
longer wavelength o peration. 218--281
materials. 260-262
modes. 26 7- 268 . r so, 272
rrccebopping, U! 6-28 7
multimode, 267-211
nen r lif'kl inten~ty diMr ibul Lcm,
26'1- 210
noise. 285- 286
nonlinca rities. 269-210, 380-389
o perlilional limilaIKms.3 88-39 1
outpu t POWC1". 269-270
I
c urput spectrum, 261, 212-2 73
PlIcl aging, 28S-21l9
prebias~r.g. 184. 390---39 1. 399
radiation confinement, 2 58-260, 263.
266-267
relu.tion oscillation. (ROJ. 283-284
INDEX
ri'iCl ime,39O
sd fpulo;ations, 2!4-28.5
<oi ngle mode. 232- 233. 21 1-28 I, 4 72..
525-.526
~ pot size , 277
stri pe gNmetr y, 26 S-268. 270- 27 1,
27.5.. 280-28 1
~ch -{Jn de lay, 283 - 28 4
temperatere depenckOo.'C, 28 1- 283
390
threshold curren t, 256-257, 260-266,
270-271,275,279-283
threshold CUTTent density, 257-258,
26 3, 28 1- 283
threshold gain coefficient, 257
thres hold tempera ture coeffi cient,
28 \ - 28 3
thermoelectric cooling. 281 , 287
LaSing., 240.. 244-24 5, 253- 258
fro m semicond uctor, 253- 158
leak y mode!.. 39, H
LED (sn' Light emitling diode)
U~t emitting diode, 6. 23 1- 230.\, 296-320,
388-3 9 1,53 1- 5 32
",,"ti. aticn enai Yof bomc geneous
dl:graJ atJon, 318-3 19
advan~, 2%-29 7
analog modulation, 297, 3 10--31 1.. 389
characteristjcs, 3 10--320
coupling (to fi~r ), 299- 30 1, 304-309
d ark line defects, 3 18
draw bac ks, 296
degradation, 3 18-320
drive circuits, 39 1-399
dome, 304
do uble heteroj unctlon (D H), 30 2-30 5,
308-310
edge emitter, 308- 310
efficiency.. 298- 301 , 30 3-304, 307- 308
inj~«l carrier lifeti me.. 3 15- 316
Lasnberrien inlCJUity distribution. 289.. 309
Im s coupling 10 libC'r, 306-308, 389
light output against curreet ch arllctc:riqic..
310-311 , 388
linea rization schemes, 397- 399
linewidth, 2% , 31 1- 313
lo nger .... avel.:llgth o peu lion. 30 7. 3 10.
317- 3 UI
ma terials, 297
modul ation baDdwidtll , 196.. 310., 3 13-3 18
noolinca rilier., J 10--) I I. 388---389
operational limitatioos. 388-39 1
o utput , 310- -31 )
planar, 303
power coupl ed (into fiber), 304- 30 6,
4 26--427
q ua ntum efficiency (internal), 298, 30)
radi ance , 301 -305. 309
reliability, 3 1S-) 20
riseti me, 390, 44 3.. 4 59
speed of response, ) 1.5- ) 18
<;tripe gromrtfy, 309-) 10
structures.. 303-)10
surface minter (bur1U\ trJ;:C;), 304-3()6
temperature depe nden ce, J 12-31 3, 390
trans mission factor, 2911
551
Lin~ar crtroding. 41 9
Lillearly polariztd ( LPI modes. 35--4 1
U nca r rcl arJation (sin!-Ie mode fibal,
101- 102
Line coding, 4 23, 44 6-448
Lincwidth (optical soc rcet, 232. 156. 258.
162. 2 n. 21l6, 3 11- 3 13.. 39 1
Lithium niobare (LiNbO l ) , .51 6. 5 17-520,
523-524 . 529
Local a nd ru ral nll'lwork applications.
4') 1--492
Local area network s ( L A N s)., 508-5 J2
Local office, 4 91 •
Logic:
emitter coupled (Ee Ll, 395, 400
interface (received , 393- 395, 400
transistor--t ransistcr (TT L), 393-39 4
optic al, 526- .5 29
Los ses (see Attll'llUlllionl
Mllgr>eto-optic devices, 5 16
Magneto-optic ll'!Tea 50S
Manclles ter {biphuel code, 41 7. 447--4-48
Malerial abllorption 1ol."lCs:
glass, 66-M
measurement, 190- 194
Matcrial d ispenion, 8 1- 84 , 9}--'J8, 39 1
pa rlllT'.eter, 8 2- 83 . %
LCm point (Z M D1, 96-97
Mu weU's equations. 22
MClI n powe r Ieedback con trol (injection laser)
40 J
Mechan ical splices, 1.56. 159-164
Meridional rays, 14-1 9, 34,49, 79, 85., 90--91
M.ESFET (metal Schottky field effect
transistor), 3 79- 38 1, 530
Microbending loss, 76. 138, 50 3
Microbcnding sensor, 502-503
Microcra cks in fi ber, 134- t 37
Microlcn s. 289. 30 7
Microplasm ~ in APD.. 332. 34 1
Mie scattering losses. 71
Miller capacita:>c<: in FET prea mplifier,
406-407
MClIn (mean squ are value) of random
varia ble, 8 7, 541
Military app!iC.al.iM ~ 49-4...... ~ 7
Minorit y carrier bfet lme
injected. 3 15--3 16
radiative.. 25 t- 252. 258
MISFET (met al inler;rated·scmicmtd octor
field cfTect transislor ), 530
Moda l birefringc:>cc (Jt'~ Birefringence)
MO<Ja l noise. 98-1 00
Modc:
bo undary. 54-.55
coupling, 41-4 2, 89- 90, 183-184,
4 3 ~-440, 5 1 9 -5 20
coefficient, 519
in inter modal dispersion, 89-90.
4 39-44(1
coupling lenglh, 184, .5 19-5 20
di~rersion (StV Inltrmodal di!.persion)
hopping (irIjection I. set). 286---281
mi. cr , 184-185
patterns, 40-41
plan.tr guide (conccp( 00. 24-27
 552
'>Crambkr. 184- 185
S1 rippcr (clatltJ ingl, 18 7
volume. 44-45. 55- 56
Mooe cut..,fr:
gradcl inde , fiber. 53-51
step ind'::ll flbee . J ~O. 4 5--41
Mooe number, 2t>-21, 34- 35. SI -S S
Modes:
differential attcn canon of. 89
cjcctrie r... I,J dist ributions 15- 2 7. 40-4 1
eqnjlibrium di~l ribu ljon. J84 - J 85
exact (Sl~ irldu liber). 34-36
guided. 24 · 21. 37- 40 ,'52- 55
hybrid (li t::. EH1, 34-36
laser, 242- 244. 267-280, 210
leak y. 3'l. 53-54
LE D , 232
linearly po lari zed. ( LP), 3 5--4 J
m diatlOn. J\l . 54
steady -~I:ll e distribution, 11l4 -1 8 S
rra nw crse cln'1tic (TE). 17. JO...4 I. 540
l~a n,,~ er S\" magnetic (1l\.f ). 27, 30--4 I. 540
Mud died chemical vapor dq>m.it ion IMC VD).
11 9. 123- 121'>
M odulano n :
analog , S ~ . 320. 4 17, 449--4 70
dirN:l ln te n ~ity (D-IMl. 451 --457
pulse. 4 t> 7 ·4 70
[luis.: a m plil udc ( PA M), 4 19--42 1. 468
pulse f~u ...ncy ( PFM1. 468-4 70
pulse po.... lion ( P PM), 468
p u lse wid tr. (PWM), 4 68
subca rricr double sideband ( DSR- IM).
462 -463
subc a rricr freyuenc y (FM _ I M). 4 17.
463-466
sub ca rrier intensity, 460-462
sub carrier pha se ( PM- 1M). 466-4fi 7
digital, 5-6. 320. 4 18--423. 44 7-448.
4 70-4 73
indc a. 4 52
Mlod ulalion hO'\fl d wi<Jt h:
inj ecuon ta~er.2IU-2K4, 390
LED. 21,l" . 3 10, 3 13- 3 18. 390
M ....<J ul.. tu n : . No rmalized freq uency. 3 ~ -4(). 44--47, 55-57.
integral~-,j
')ptk al. 5 2 1~5 2 4
M"ore fringe mod ulator, 50 1-503
Mo ment! o f random ~ arill.blc. K7. 5" 1- 5" 2
M.m,..::h rom:llo r. 18" -1 tc 7
Mo no modc fi hEor. 4 .1 (S('f' also Single mode
ti ber)
Multilevel co.J~. 447
Mullimooc fiberl :
griluetl index. 48 ~ 5 7. 78-79. 90-94.
1 2 ~- 1 3 1. 2 3 2
mod e equilibriu m. H!4
mode s, 34-4 1
st ep inde x. 34 - 4 7. 78- 79, 85- 90, 93- 94 ,
127-128. 13 1- 132, 232
Muilirnod c Iasce, 24 3, 267~2 7 1
Multimo<le (JrOjXl l:3Iio n effects (fiber).
183_ IH4
Multiple connectors. 170-11 1
Multiplt . ing. 320, " 18--4 21, 4 72. 49 1--499.
5 10. 530-53 1
freq uenc y di ~ i~ion fF D M}, 4 18-4 19.
460-46I , ·t72
I
INDEX
space diYi.l i,m (5 D101). 4 18
sl.ati, lie,d.5 10
time d;Yi ~,m (lDM ). 320. 41 7, 4 20-4 2 1.
'"
wa ve 1t nsth diy i~ion ( W DMI. " 18. 499,
5 30 - 5J 1
Mullipli.:a!i<lO fac tor in APD. 344-345.
367-372, " 3)--434
Multjsta r network, 41,l2""':'93
Nea r field iml'fl -.i ty dislribution. 204- 205, 261,l
NcoJ ymium lasers, 289-290
Ne twork s:
bus. 494·.495 , 509-5 10
loc al area (LAN), 508-512
ring. 49 1. 509- 510
~ lar. 4 9 1 -4 ':l 3 . 5 10---5 12
tre e. 411 l
11-11 het<:rojUllc rion, 1,S8
Noise:
<lark cu rren t. J5J
figure 'IlmplirlCrl. 3t>J
fnjection laser, 285 - 2R6
modal. '1!l- IOO
q u..an l;711i/)n. 419 -A10
qua ntum :
analog lraJ'I'> mi'\.il ion, 35 7-3.59.
·1-19--4.5 1
~ipla,1 ~gn all j n8. 355- 357. 436-4l8
InJCCh,'ITl lon e r. 285
rccd~ er . l 53 ·.172, 433--438. 441,l-A5 I
AVO, J66-ln 433--438
p-i-n photodiode, 360--364
p- n phorodtodc, 3 60~3 64
,hot. 35 3. 357. 3 60~3 6 1 . 43 6
sources in receiver. 360
thermal. 353. 36 1- 362. 438. 4 55--456
Noi.c equiva lcntp o wer (N'EP1. 364
Nonhncar ~ncodln g, 4 19--4 20
NUll linc-..I r o l!t ic , . 71- 73. 485
Nonra.li.lIive rccomOi na tiou. 249. 25 1. 260,
182
N o nreru m 10 ZCTO lis nlllling (NR ZI. 77-7[1
95-91. 's14- 5 15
Nurm :lli.tfii pro pagation conaam, J 9-4 1
n LH": sc:miconductoc. ! 4 7
N um...n cal ercn urc ( NA). [5- 18. 21. 3K. 50,
e e. 12t1- 1J 2. 184, 209- 211
tldinilio n. 17
equilibrium mode dismbuuon. J 84
~Tatle.:l inde~ libel's. SO. 2 J0
measu rement of, 209- 1 12
practical fi bers. 128- 132
Nyquist ra te (sam pling), 4 19
Optical baridwidth. 7 1:!~I:!O. 3 13- 316
Optical c ho pper . 186- 187
O pt ical comptJlt'r. 533
Oplical delec' io n. 234- 235, 328- 329
Opttca t d Clt'C\On. 3 26--347, 5 30-532
a vala nc he photodiodc (A PDI. 6. 22 1- 224.
H 2. 340-34 5, 366--372, 433-438
ca pacitance. 362. 364-365
da rk CU tre ll!. 33 1, 338-339, 343-3<U
de..,ce l )'pcl, l17-318
I INDEX
germa nlu rn (<id" 328, 3J L 339
heterojenction, 331, J,J9-J.IO, 343- 344,
) 41)-.141
lo ng wavelen gth, 339-340, 343--34 4,
346- 34 7
no ise equi valent po....er (NEP). 364
p ho tllt ra l1 i i'itOf1>. Ii. )4 S- 3 4 7
p-i-n p hc todiode, 6. 338-340. 360-364.
379-38 1.53 1-532
I {J-II l'lIntodiode.6, 328- 329, 3J f>-D8.
J50-JM
~i ticon rsn 328, 338- 339. ) 41- 343, 530
q uant um efficiency. 3J2- .l3S, 342-343,
347
rC "l ui rem ell t~for fiber comm unications ,
J 2ti-3 2 7
r o:s r onsi\·il y. 333-3 35
"'-'fIsillvil)'. 326, 3 29
Optical ~i~!.ion :
\.t:micond u~"'tor ...
245- 262
spontanec a s, 234-2)8. 24S-249,
256-257,296, 302-303.390
'Il.imul.llcd. 234--244, 253-258. 390
Qrtical fi ber:
lIdvanl agc s uf. 7_10. 48 4
angular mom entum barrier, 39
attenuation, 2. 4, 8, 11 - 12, 62- 76
t-andwid th-kngtb prod uct, BO. 97.
121-1 32. 39 1
t>en.-t lou . 73-1b
buffer j ..d"ct., I28--D2. 138-1J51 .
14 1- 10
cahk's. (see a/sQC ables). 133-144
clt:m ...;ttri.~ tiCll (practical), 126- 13 1
dlulding of. II, 33, 4 7, 116- I 11, 124,
l 2~-· 1 3 2 , 2 1 2-2 14
clearing. 157. 166- 167
core or, 11.1 16 - 11 7, 124 , 128-1 32,
2 14 - 2 15
crack " d "City. 137
critic al radius of curvature, 74-76
d.rawback., . 484--4.85
dra ...i nll (see f iber, d.rawing.)
end jl«'(laration, 15 7
far field intensity distribution, 18 5, 20 5.
2 10-2 12
fra ct ure stress. 134- 137
fresnel r eflccticc . 14 5·· 153
~rllded index tsee also G r.lllled indell fiber).
411- 51, 78--79. 90-94 , 128- 131.
m subl;ar rier in{ensily modulation.
Impu lse response, 4 1)
jointi"'g. 144-173
jom t l05I.U (see afro Jointlcssesj,
14's-I S6
losses (see also Alternation), 127- 132
measurement s, 183- 224
med1an ical pro perties of. l 34- 1)7
microbending, 76. 1J8. 503
raulticomponene g'~ s, 11 4. I I 7- 118,
127-I2I!
nca r field [me nshy di~tri b utio n. 2Q.l--205
pi gta il. 28 8
(lla st ic. 132- 133
plastic clad . 13 1- 132
553
p"lari ral io n. 100-104, 4 72
preform. 112. 118 - 123
prepa ration. 11 2-126
proc:.rtcsling, 137
r ay mod el, 12--22, 26. 42- 44, 48- 50.
7l:!- 79, 85-g 1
r equirem ents of, 111
scal le rini los ses, 68- 73
sensors, 50 1- 506
~g na l dislortion aJ joi rlt.. 156
silic a ric h gl a~ II 8-11 9, 12J.--- 128
5ingle mode. 40. 43-14, 4"- ·H, 56- 51.
130- 131, 232, 471
sir es. 127-1 32
splices. 145. 156-1 64
spherical ended, 289. 306-307
sp un. lO4
<.lability of If ansmi ~sion characleri~tics.
D ll
step indn :
mutemco e, J4---.4 1. 71:1-79 . 8S-90.
93---94,127- 128. 131- 132. 232
single reode, 40. 43-44, 44-4 7.
IJo-I 3 I, 23 2, 4 72
str ength anu durability, 134- 138
st ress co rrosion. 136- 137
st ructu re. 11- 12
theoretical cohe sive ~tl't'll<;th. 134- 135
transmission charnCler1s1ics. 62 - 104
rransmi.....iOll loss factor (ITansmi~!.i, j(y).
6~70
tri:lllgular profile. 48 . 51
types CtIIT~tly i1 Yailable, 126- 13 1
W.41
Opt ical fibe r 8ystem s, ~,3 8 &--47 3, 481>---5 12
analog. 6, 449--470, 492, 495-50 6
block schematic dnte nsh y modulation).
45 1-452
di rect i ntensit y modulation (O- I MI.,
4 5 1---4 57
llpt>ca l power bugetin ~ 457-45S
pulse tedlniqllCSo 467-4 70
q u.... tum noise limit. 4 56
ri r,;c time, bug...ling, 459-460, 46',1
signa l to noise ra tio, 357- 359.
449--45 1
su bcarrier dou ble sideba nd mod ulation
(D SM- U..n, 462--463
subcar tier freq uency modulation
(FM- I Ml., 4 11, 4 63--466
..60-46 2
w teemer phase modulation (PM- n .l).
466 -4 6 7
syste m planning. 4 57--460
th er mal noise limit, 456
a pplications. 486--S12
basic syst em req ui rements, 4 16
coding fo r digital transmission. 4 11
cohere nt. 4 7D-4 73
co st rom parison . 48H-87
design considerations, 4 15-4 1g
digiut. .s-6. 4 18-448. 486-500, 506-51 2
bit er ror rat e (HER)., 356,425-426.
431-438
 554
coding, 77-78,417,446--448
dispcrsion--equilizatioll penalty,
444--446, 448
error monitoring, 424-426, 448
error probability, 429--433
eye pattern, 425-426
information capacity, 447
intersymbol interface (ISn, 7(r-79,
425-439
optical power budgets, 487-488, 490
pulse code modulation (peM), 417,
418--423
regenerative repealer, 424-426
redundancy, 446-448
safety margin. 444-446
synchronization, 421-422, 446
timing, 421-422, 447--448
digital planning considerations, 423--448
channel losses. 438-440
optical power budgeting, 444--446
receiver, 427-438
rise time, 441-443
signal to noise ratio. 431--435
temporal response, 439-443
transmitter. 426--427
fault location, 222-224
in Europe, 421--423, 487-488, 490.
492--498
generations of, 485, 512-513
in J~p~n. 489-490, 492-494,
498-499
modulation choice, 417
networks, 492-493, 510-512
nonlinear pulse propagation, 485
in Nort~9~~5e6~~a5dl3, 489-490, 492,
principle components, 386-387
proprietary (UK), 486-487
repeaterv S, 415-416, 424-426
single mode, 444-445, 488-489, 493,
505-506,512~513
video. 453-455. 498
Optical gain (phototransistor}, 347
Optical logic, 526~529
Optical mixer, 472
Optical power meters, 216-217
Optical signal processing. 6, 5 [2~513
Optical signal 10 noise ratio, 431-433
.1 Optical sources (see also specific types), 4, 6,
231-320,388-391
generations of, 232
laser. 4, 6, 231-290, 388-391
nonscmiconductor, 240, 289-290
semiconductor, 4, 6, 231-233,
255-258,262-289,388-391
light emitting diode (LED), 6, 231-234,
260-262,287-288,296-320,
388·-391
Optical time domain reflectromctry (OTDR),
219-224
Optical transistor (transphasor), 528
Optimum multiplication factor (APD),
367-370
Optimum profile (graded index fiber), 91-93
Optoelectronic integration, 530-;.533
,,
INDEX
Outside vapor phase oxidation (OVPO),
119-121,[26
Oxide isolation, 266, 268
Packet:
data, 509-510
wave, 27-28
Parabolic profile fiber, 48-50, 56-57, 91-92
Parity checking. 448
Peak detection feedback control for APD, 412
Permcability,23
Permittivity, 23
Phase shift on reflection, 24-25, 29-32, 34
Phase modulator, 521-522
Phase sensitive detection, 187-189,205
Phase shill keying, 470-472
Phase velocity, 27-28
Phonon. 251, 331
Photocurrent.333-335
Phmmletecuu-s (see Optical detectors and
Photodiodes]
Photodiodes (see also Optical detectors)
absorption region, 331-342
array, 530-531
avalanche operation, 340-341
capacitance, 362, 364~365. 544
cutoff (long wavelength), 335-336
dark current, 331, 338-339, 343-344
depletion layer (region), 328~329,
337-342
depletion width, 337, 339
detection principles, 234-235, 328-329
diffusion of carriers, 337, 341, 544
diffusion region, 337-342
rlrift or carriers, 337, 544
germanium (Ge), 328, 331. 339
p-i-n structure, 338-339
f.Juantum efficiency, 332-335, 342-343
rcsponsivity. 333~335
Schottky barrier, 530-531
sensitivity, 329
silicon (Si}, 328, 338-339, 34 1~343
speed or response, 329, 339, 341-342, 544
time constant, 544
Pbotoelastic effect. 503, 523
Photoelastic sensor, 502-503
Photoemissicn of electrons, 327-328
Photogencration of carrier pair, 329
Photon. 234
Phototransistor, 6. 345-347
Photomultiplier tube, 327-328
p-i-n photodiode. 6, 338-340, 360-364,
379~381,531-532
operation of, 338-339
receiver noise, 360-364
speed of response, 339, 544
structures, 339-340
PIN-FEr hybrid, 379-38 I, 53 1-532
Planar LED, 303
Planar waveguide, 24-34, 513-517
integrated optics, 513-517
slab, 514-515, 517
strip, 516-517
Planck's constant, 234
iNDEX 55.

Plano -OOII \'CJ. waveguide (PC W) 1a!>CT. Qua ternary semieooduclo r a1loy~ 262, 332.
274-2 75, 277 asv
PlaMJI ll-arnn tC'd chemical vapor deposaion
u-cvm 119. 125-1 26 Radi ance, 30 1-305 , 309
Pta vtic-cled fiber" 13 1- 132 Radiati ve re..:o mbination, 249, 25 1-153. 260
Plastie fibers, 132- 133 R ai~d cosine (p ulse shape!- 372, 434--435
e-« helerojUllctiotl, 258--259. 30 2 Rama n scatterin g, 72-73
p-II j uncrion., 24 5-24 S, 258. 268 Ra y model. 12_22.26, 42-4-4, 4 8_50. 78_ 79,
~" phowdiode. 6. 328-329. 336--338, 85-9 1
360-364 Ra ys:
operation of, 336- 338 mcridiOfla l. 14- J9,4 2-43. 49-50. 19.
receiver noise , 360-364 S5-&8.90---9 1
Poisson dist ribut ion for co herent light, 354 skew, 19-22, 34-35, 49- 50
Po larizat io n in single mode fi ber. 100- 104 , Rayleigh scattering. 69- 7 1, 220---223
472, 505- 50 6 Reach thro ugh avala nche photodiode
Polar ization sensor. 50 5- 506 (RAP Ol, 342- 343
Population inversion , 238- 240 , 244, 253 - 256 Receiver:
semicond uctors , 253- 256 analog , 453-451, 46 1-470
an alog system s, 4 S1-45B auto m atic gain coov cr ( AGC). 409-4 12
d igiUtJ syccms, 4U -44-Q ava tanche plwl odiode ( A PD ), 366- 372,
Power meters (optical). 2 16--2 17 433-4 38
p--p he'.erojuncuon., 258-259. 302 block schemanc , 4(l J..-404
Preform (fibal, 1 J 2. 118- 123 block schemallc noise sources. 360
Probability dem..it)' runClion (PDF!, 428--4 30 capacitance, 364 -365
Profik disper~on. 93. 95--96 digital . 355-357. 427-438
Profil e par ameter (graded index fibers), 48 dynamic range. 314. 371, 380-38 1,
Prooftcsting offiber,IJ7 406-40 8, 4 10
PRopagation conslant. 26-27. 3 7---4{), 5 I-54. equalization , 372- 3 73. 3 79-380. 404.
95 .t06. 4 11-4 14, 414. 4-73
nor malized, 39-4 1. 95 linear cha nnel, 404
\ 3cuum. 24 mam amplifier, 404. 4 11 -4 12
PropagatK>ft vector for wave, 24 noise (SH abo Noise, recer..er], 353--372.
Proton isolation , 261>. 268 433-4 3&,4 48-45 I
Jrp- lleterojunction , 258--259. 302 preamplifie r circ uits. 377- 38 1, 404---409
P type scmtconcuctor, 247 sensitivit y, 356-359, 444-446
Public network a pplications, 486-494 struct ure, , 372-377
Pu lse ampli tude modulation (PAM ). 41 9-4 21, high im pedance front end. 373- 374.
468 379- 380, 406-40 7
Pulse fre4. 11eney modu lation ( P FM), 468-470 low Impedance fro nt end, 372- 373 .
Pulse broadenin g. 76-., 8
rms , 8 1-83. 11&-89. 9 1---95
temporal moments, 87-88
""
transfer fllnct ion~, 37 4-3 75, 377, 54S
u ansimredance front end. 374 -377.
variance. 87. tl3 381 .407--4()9
Pulse rode mod ul8lioo (PC WI), 41 7, 4 18--4 33 Rn :o m binalioo (ca rrier ), 251- 253
JO cl!:>n ncl5ySllmI, 4 21-423 Redundancy in di@ ilal u.nsrnil>~ ion, 423.
Pulse delay fmm rn, teri al di ~per 5 ion , 8)---82 446---448
Pulse po sition modulation ( PPM ), 4 68 Reflection coefficeat, 30---32
Pulse res ponse (Gu assian ). 546--547 Refr action. 13
Pub e ",jdttl (mal, 16--77 Refracti ve index:
Pulse widlh modula tion ( PW Ml, 468 definition, 12
Pumping (la.'\eJ'l, 239-14Q, l90 dip. 205--206
profile, 4 3. 48, 79. I18--l32, 202- Z09
Q",.m tization, 4 1Y-4 1 1 profil( measLJrement. 202- 209
Qu antu m efficiency : Regenerative ba~lIand recovery ( PFM),
injection laser, 252, 1 5~ , 260, 264- 26 5 46 8--469
LED, 298. 303 Regenerator circuit, 424
photodiode, 332-335, 342- 34 3 Relative refractive index difference, 17, 39. 46,
phototr ansisnx , 347 86
Qu antu m limit to detection. 356-35 9. Relia bility:
436--438, 455-456 injection laser. 28 7- 288
Q uanlurn noise. 285, 354-35 9, 4 J6--4 38. LfD , 3 18- 320
4-49--45 I Re pea ter, 5. 4 15- 4 16, 414-426
a nalog transmission. 357- 359. 449--45 I a nalog. 4 25
dig iLa I signallinl' 355-357, 436---438 rcgenerative(digila n, 424-426
inJecrioo laser. 85 spa cirtg. 4 26, 438. 48 7--490
Qulltl turn theory. 234 R e~f'O!lsivity « >plical detector), 333- 335
55.
Return to zero (RZ), signalling, 78
Reverse leakage current, 328-329
Reverse bias, 328-329
Ring networks, 49 J, 509-5 10, 5 12
Rise time:
injection laser, 390
LED, 390, 443, 459
APD, 341-342, 459
p-i-n. photodiode, 339, 443
system, 441--443, 459--460, 469
fIDS impulse response:
step index fiber (multimode), 88-89
graded index fiber (multimode}, 91-92
rms pulse broadening:
intermodal dispersion, 87-89, 91-94
intramodal. 93-94
material dispersion, 81-83
total. 93-94
Safety margin:
analog system, 457--458
digital system, 444--446
Sampling (of analog signal), 419
Saturation:
drift velocity. 341-342, 544
receiver preamplifier, 374
source drive circuit, 392
Scattering:
Brillouin, 72-73
linear, 68-71
measurement, 194-196
nonlinear, 71-73
Raman, 72-73
Rayleigh, 69-71, 220-223
Scrambler (mode). 184-185
Second generation systems, 328, 485
Semiconductor:
absorption, 329-332
absorption coeffecient, 329-332
alloys «nvi 261-262, 328, 331-332
detectors, 339-340, 343-344,
346-347,367,371,530-531
sources, 226-281, 302, 305-310,
529-531
APD (see also Avalanche photodiode), 6,
221-224,332,340-345,366-372,
433--438
bandgap energies, 330-331
degenerative doping, 254-255
dielectric constant, 544
injection laser (see also Laser,
semiconductor). 4, 6, 231-233,
255-258,262-289,388-391,
529-530
LED (see also Light emitting diode), 6,
231-234,296-320,388-391,
531-532
n type, 247
p-i-n photodiode, 6, 338-340, 360-364,
379-381,531-532
p-n photodicde, 6, 328-329, 336-338,
360-364
phototransistor. 6, 345-347
p type, 247
Sensitlvity:
pholodiode, 329
INDEX
receiver, 356-359, 444-446
Scnsors,501-506
Separated multiclad layer (SML) stripe laser,
280-181
Shot noise, 353, 357, 360-361, 436
Signals:
analog, 418--419, 451--452, 460--468
digital, 77-78, 418-419, 424, 446--448
Signal to noise ratio (SNR) at receiver, 76,
352,357-358,363-364,366-370,
431--438,453--457,461--467,469--471
analog system, 357-358, 449--45 J,
453-457,463--470
digital system, 355-357, 431--438
electrical,43 1--433
optical, 431--433
peak signal power to rrns noise power.
431--438
peak to peak signal power to rtns noise
power, 469--471
rms signal power.to rms noise power,
453--457,461--467
Silicon (SD:
absorption. 330-331
detector, 328, 338-339, 34J-343, 367,
371,530
FET,378
photodiodes. 338-339, 341-342, 367, 371
Single mode fiber, 40, 43--44, 44--47, 56-57,
130-131,232,472
connectors. 168-170, 172
joint losses, 154-156
material dispersion parameter, 95
polarization, 100-104,472, 505-506
propagation constant, 94
spot size, 154-155
Single mode laser:
nonsemiconductor, 289-290
semiconductor, 232-233, 271-281,
289-290,472, 525-526
coherent system, 472
mode stabilization, 272-273
operation of. 272
structures, 271-281, 525-526
Single mode systems, 488--489, 493, 505-506,
512-513,521
Skew rays, 19-22, 34-35, 49-50
Slab guide (integrated optics), 514--515, 517
Snell's law, 13
Spectral width (see Linewidth)
Spectrum:
electromagnetic, 2
extrinsic absorption in silica, 67
injection laser (output), 267-268, 272-273
Sources (see Optical sources)
Space division multiplexing (SDM), 418
Speckle patterns, 98-99
Spectral density of D-IM signal, 461
Speed of response:
injection laser, 283-284, 390-391
LED, 315-318, 390
photodiode, 329. 339. 341-342, 544
Splices, 145, 156-164
Spontaneous emission, 234-238, 248-249,
256-257,296,302-303,390
Spontaneous lifetime, 236-237
 INDEX 557

Spun Iibers. 104 injection laser. 3\1'1-403. 529-53 2

Sta r: LED. 39 1 ~399. 531- 532
cocpter, 4'#4-495. 51 0--51J c peoelectromc inlfg ral ioll. 519-532
n~wor t. 491-493. ~ OY-51 1 I' f llll WtiOI1 rates (between atomic er."'ty
!ltatistica l m" llipkxi n@. 5 1O le vels), 236-237
Step ind ex fiber: Transverce electric (TEl moon. 27. J()-4 I.
mode cutoff, 3 ~-40. 45--47 540
mode-., 34-4 1 Transverse elect romagnetic ( TEM) .. ave5, 27
mu lrenode. 34 - 47. 711_ 79. 85 - 90, 9 3-94, Transverse electromagnetic modes (Ia~ ).
127- 12lt, 13 I- I32. 232 241- 243
imermodal dispel' \ion, 44-45, 85- 90 T ransverse junction stripe (TJS) laser, 214
mode \'olllme. 44-45 Trafl~..ersc magnetic (TM I modes. 27, JO.-4I.
rms impul se respo nse, 88-89 504
. pro pagat ion con stant, 37- 40 Tree network, 49 1-491
single mode (see also Single mode fiber}, Triangular profile fiber, 48, 57
40, 43---44, 44-47, 130-131, 232. Tr iple ban conn ector, 169-110, 172-173
412 T r unk netwo rk applications, 486-489
Stimulated emission. 234- 244, 253-258, 3'10
Stl'<:~ S u)frosion of fiber . 136--137
Slrip @: uidc (integrated optiC'll, 5 16-5 17 Un@:uided mod es. 3\1. 54
l:n~uided sy~tclllll. 1. 4 71
Sln ppcr (claddi ng. model. 18 7
Subcarner:
lII"Ub1c sideba nd modulat ion (D S B-l M), v groov e splice'S. 16 1-1 64
462-463 V num ber. 39, 5 14
freq uenc y m odubtioo (F M- IM). 4 17. Vl CII"m photodlcde , 328
46J--46 6 valence ba nd, 245- 246
mlcn<'t~· mod ulaooll. «iO-4 62 m 119,
I
VaflOr optical de position ( "' A
phase modulation (PM - 1M).. 4Mi-467 1 1 1 ~ 1 2 J. 1 16
Su bmerged systems . ..93-494 Va nancc;
Surface ace.... stic wave: (SAW).. 524 plll,« broadening. 87
Surface -emitting LED (Burrus type), 304- 306 ra ndo m varia ble. 87, 54 1-5-U
Switches (integrated optic). 5 18-520 sum of ilulepoendent ra ndo m variables, 9J.
Switch delay feedba l: k controt (injection 543
la ser), 40 1-402 Vo ltage amplifi er. 372-313. 40 5
Voltage co ntrolled oscillator (Ve O). 468
Telephone exch ange. 489, 49 J
Ternary semicond uctor alloys , 261-262, 332 W fiber, 47
1 coupler, 495, 5 10 Wave:
Thermal noise. 353 . 36 1-362, 438, 455--456 propagation ~'CCIOf, 24
limit, 438. 4 55 -456 (l.ldcl.27- 28
Thermal equilibriu m, 2 3$, 246 vacuum pr'lflag~ lion constant. 24
T hird generation sysrems. 485 W a H 'S:
Threcbold current cIen..il y (injection laser), intcrference. 2-l- 2g
257-258, 26 3, 281-283 plane, 24-15
TIIl'e'; hold level (digital ~gt1 aIlin g), 424--4 26. ~ Landi n g.. 25
m transverse cleccroongnttic ([EM), 17
TilfK' l;;Ofl. tan t (receiver), 36 5, 375, 544 WeV<' C\jlUtKm, 23- 24. ;!9, 36-K!
Time division mulliplyin, (TOM), 320, 4 11. Wavefront., 17
4 2l}-4 21. 4l,l 1 WeV<'guide:
To ll net wor~ appliu lion~. 4~6--489 cylind rical, 34-47, 4 ~5 7
TOlal internal reflection. 12- 14. 19-32, 34 p1a nllr. 1 4-34 , j 13-5 17. 539-540
critica l angle. 13-1 4. 16. 20 Wavl,-guide dispersion, 114, 95- 91\
Tra nsducers (see s.:n~ on) pa rameter. 95- %
Tran sfer func tion. 374, 375, 377, 44 2, 54 5 w a velength division multiplexing (W DM),
T ransim pcdance amplifie r. 374- 377, 381, 4 18.499, 530-531
407--40 9 Weakly guiding a pproxi mation. 35--41
Transit time effects (photcdicdes), 337 , 34 1. Weakly guiding fi ber, 35, 88
544 Weibull distrihution pa rameter, 137
Transmission coefficient (flekls), 30--32 Weibullstatistics for failure of'fi ber under
Trensmission b a oc ( LF.D), 29'9 st ress, 136- 137
T IlInsmissi\'ity (fiber), 69-70 Wentzel. Kra mcrs, Brillouin (WKB)
"rransnuuer, 388-403. 529- 532 approximation (gradeJ indC1 fibet),
feed hack comrct, 400-403 50-56
 ·58 INDEX

Widetoand ~w it,h points (W SP). 492- 493 ¥ olms uta ftdd lrial (Japan), 49 2
Young's mod ulus for fi ber. 134- 136
Y junction. 5 17- 5 19. 522 Yllrium- lllllmin",m gamak (YAG). 28li-290

,I
"

..