WDM Light Wave

System

WDM Concept

Evolution of the Technology

Why WDM?
Capacity upgrade of existing fiber networks
(without adding fibers)
Transparency: Each optical channel can carry
any transmission format (different
asynchronous bit rates, analog or digital)
Scalability Buy and install equipment for
additional demand as needed
Wavelength routing and switching:
Wavelength is used as another dimension to
time and space

Wavelength Division Multiplexing

Each wavelength is like a separate channel (fiber)

Ex: SONET

TDM Vs WDM

Wavelength Division Multiplexing

Passive/active devices are needed to

combine, distribute, isolate and amplify
optical power at different wavelengths

WDM, CWDM and DWDM

WDM technology uses multiple wavelengths
to transmit information over a single fiber
Coarse WDM (CWDM) has wider channel
spacing (20 nm) low cost
Dense WDM (DWDM) has dense channel
spacing (0.8 nm) which allows simultaneous
transmission of 16+ wavelengths high
capacity

WDM and DWDM

First WDM networks used just two wavelengths, 1310
nm and 1550 nm
Today's DWDM systems utilize 16, 32,64,128 or more
wavelengths in the 1550 nm window
Each of these wavelength provide an independent
channel (Ex: each may transmit 10 Gb/s digital or
SCMA analog)
The range of standardized channel grids includes 50,
100, 200 and 1000 GHz spacing
Wavelength spacing practically depends on:
laser linewidth
optical filter bandwidth

ITU-T Standard Transmission DWDM windows

c
2

Principles of DWDM

BW of a modulated laser: 10-50 MHz 0.001 nm

Typical Guard band: 0.4 1.6 nm
80 nm or 14 THz @1300 nm band
120 nm or 15 THz @ 1550 nm
Discrete wavelengths form individual channels that can
be modulated, routed and switched individually
These operations require variety of passive and active
devices

c
2

Ex. 10.1

DWDM Limitations
Theoretically large number of channels can
be packed in a fiber

For physical realization of DWDM networks

we need precise wavelength selective
devices
Optical amplifiers are imperative to
provide long transmission distances
without repeaters

WDM Devices

Key Components for WDM

Passive Optical Components
Wavelength Selective Splitters
Wavelength Selective Couplers
Active Optical Components
Tunable Optical Filter
Tunable Source
Optical amplifier
Add-drop Multiplexer and De-multiplexer

Passive Devices
These operate completely in the optical
domain (no O/E conversion) and does not need
electrical power
Split/combine light stream Ex: N X N couplers,
power splitters, power taps and star couplers
Technologies: - Fiber based or
Optical waveguides based
Micro (Nano) optics based

Fabricated using optical fiber or waveguide

(with special material like InP, LiNbO3)

Filter, Multiplexer and Router

Optical Couplers
A fiber optic coupler is a device that can distribute the optical signal (power) from
one fiber among two or more fibers.
A fiber optic coupler can also combine the optical signal from two or more fibers
into a single fiber.
Fiber optic couplers attenuate the signal much more than a connector or splice
because the input signal is divided among the output ports.
A basic fiber optic coupler has N input ports and M output ports.
N and M typically range from 1 to 64.
The number of input ports and output ports vary depending on the intended
application for the coupler.
Types of fiber optic couplers include optical splitters, optical combiners, X
couplers, star couplers, and tree couplers.

Classification of Optical couplers:

Optical fiber couplers are often passive devices in which the power
transfer takes place either:
(a) through the fiber core cross-section by butt jointing the fibers or by
using some form of imaging optics between the fibers (core interaction
type); or
(b) through the fiber surface and normal to its axis by converting the
guided core modes to both cladding and refracted modes which then
enable the power-sharing mechanism (surface interaction type).

(a) core interaction type;

(b) surface interaction type

Multiport optical fiber couplers

Multiport optical fiber couplers can also be subdivided into the following three
main groups.
1. Three- and four-port* couplers, which are used for signal splitting,
distribution and combining.
2.

Star couplers, which are generally used for distributing a single input signal
to multiple outputs.

3.

Wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) devices, which are a specialized

form of coupler designed to permit a number of different peak wavelength
optical signals to be transmitted in parallel on a single fiber.

WDM couplers either combine the different wavelength optical signal

onto the fiber (i.e. multiplex) or separate the different wavelength
optical signals output from the fiber (i.e. demultiplex).

Optical fiber coupler types and functions: (a) three-port couplers;

(b) four-port coupler; (c) star coupler; (d) wavelength division
multiplexing and demultiplexing couplers

Three- and four-port couplers

The most common method for manufacturing couplers is the fused
biconical taper (FBT) technique.
The fibers are generally twisted together and then spot fused under
tension such that the fused section is elongated to form a biconical taper
structure.
A three-port coupler is formed by removing one of the input fibers.
Optical power launched into the input fiber propagates in the form of
guided core modes.

Structure and principle of operation for the fiber fused biconical taper coupler

Loss Parameters
The excess loss which is defined as the ratio of power input to
power output is given by:

The insertion loss, however, is generally defined as the loss

obtained for a particular port to-port optical path

Loss Parameters
The crosstalk which provides a measure of the directional
isolation achieved by the device is the ratio of the
backscattered power received at the second input port to the
input power which may be written as:

The splitting or coupling ratio indicates the percentage division

of
optical
power
between
the
output
ports.

Fused-Biconical coupler OR
Directional coupler

P3, P4 extremely low ( -70 dB below Po)

Coupling / Splitting Ratio = P2/(P1+P2)
If P1=P2 It is called 3-dB coupler

Fused Biconical Tapered Coupler

Fabricated by twisting together, melting and
pulling together two single mode fibers
They get fused together over length W;
tapered section of length L; total draw length
= L+W
Significant decrease in V-number in the
coupling region; energy in the core leak out
and gradually couples into the second fibre

Definitions
Splitting (Coupling) Ratio = P2 ( P1 P2 )

Excess Loss =10 Log[ P0 (P1 P2 )]

Insertion Loss =10 Log[ Pin Pout ]

Crosstalk = 10 Log( P3 P0 )

P1 P0 cos2 (z )
P2 P0 sin 2 (z )

Coupler
characteristics

: Coupling Coefficient

Coupler Characteristics
power ratio between both output can be
changed by adjusting the draw length of a simple
fused fiber coupler

It can be made a WDM de-multiplexer:

Example, 1300 nm will appear output 2 (p2) and 1550 nm
will appear at output 1 (P1)
However, suitable only for few wavelengths that are far
apart, not good for DWDM

Basic Fiber Optic Couplers

N and M typically range from 1 to 64.

Optical Splitter
An optical splitter is a passive device that splits the optical power carried by a
single input fiber into two output fibers. The input optical power is normally split
evenly between the two output fibers. This type of optical splitter is known as a
Y-coupler. However, an optical splitter may distribute the optical power carried
by input power in an uneven manner. An optical splitter may split most of the
power from the input fiber to one of the output fibers. Only a small amount of
the power is coupled into the secondary output fiber. This type of optical splitter
is known as a T-coupler, or an optical tap.

Optical Combiner
An optical combiner is a passive device that combines the optical power carried
by two input fibers into a single output fiber.

An X coupler combines the functions of the optical splitter and combiner.

The X coupler combines and divides the optical power from the two input fibers
between the two output fibers. Another name for the X coupler is the 2 X 2
coupler.

Star and Tree Coupler

Star and tree couplers are multiport couplers that have more than two input or
two output ports.
A star coupler is a passive device that distributes optical power from more than
two input ports among several output ports.
A tree coupler is a passive device that splits the optical power from one input
fiber to more than two output fibers.

Wavelength Selective Devices

These perform their operation on the incoming
optical signal as a function of the wavelength
Examples:
Wavelength add/drop multiplexers
Wavelength selective optical combiners/splitters
Wavelength selective switches and routers

Fused-Fiber Star Coupler

Splitting Loss = -10 Log(1/N) dB = 10 Log (N) dB

Excess Loss = 10 Log (Total Pin/Total Pout)
Fused couplers have high excess loss

8x8 bi-directional star coupler by cascading 3

stages of 3-dB Couplers
1, 2

1, 2

1, 2 5, 6

3, 4 7, 8

N
Number of 3-dB Couplers Nc = log 2 N
2

(12 = 4 X 3)
Try Ex. 10.5

Fiber Bragg Grating

Fiber Bragg Grating

This is invented at Communication Research
Center, Ottawa, Canada
The FBG has changed the way optical filtering
is done
The FBG has so many applications
The FBG changes a single mode fiber (all pass
filter) into a wavelength selective filter

Fiber Brag Grating (FBG)

Basic FBG is an in-fiber passive optical band reject
filter
FBG is created by imprinting a periodic
perturbation in the fiber core
The spacing between two adjacent slits is called
the pitch
Grating play an important role in:

Wavelength filtering
Dispersion compensation
Optical sensing
EDFA Gain flattening
Single mode lasers and many more areas

Bragg Grating formation

2 sin( / 2) uv

FBG Theory
Exposure to the high intensity UV radiation
changes the fiber core n(z) permanently as a
periodic function of z

n( z ) ncore n[1 cos(2z / )]

z:
:
ncore:
n:

Distance measured along fiber core axis

Pitch of the grating
Core refractive index
Peak refractive index

Reflection at FBG

Simple De-multiplexing Function

Reflected Wavelength B 2neff

Peak Reflectivity Rmax = tanh2(kL)

Wavelength Selective DEMUX

ADD/DROP MUX

FBG Reflects in both directions; it is bidirectional

Extended Add/Drop Mux

FBG Properties
Advantages
Easy to manufacture, low cost, ease of coupling
Minimal insertion losses approx. 0.1 db or less
Passive devices
Disadvantages
Sensitive to temperature and strain.
Any change in temperature or strain in a FBG causes the
grating period and/or the effective refractive index to change,
which causes the Bragg wavelength to change.

neff
neff
neff
T

Interferometers

Interferometer
An interferometric device uses 2 interfering paths of
different lengths to resolve wavelengths
Typical configuration: two 3-dB directional couplers
connected with 2 paths having different lengths
Applications:
wideband filters (coarse WDM) that separate
signals at1300 nm from those at 1550 nm
narrowband filters: filter bandwidth depends on the
number of cascades (i.e. the number of 3-dB
couplers connected)

Basic Mach-Zehnder Interferometer

Phase shift of the propagating wave increases with L,

Constructive or destructive interference depending on L

Mach-Zehnder Interferometer
Phase shift at the output due to the propagation
path length difference:
2 neff

L

Four-Channel Wavelength Multiplexer

By appropriately selecting L, wavelength

multiplexing/de-multiplexing can be achieved

MZI- Demux Example

Arrayed Waveguide Gratings

The AWGs consist of a number of input (1) / output (5) couplers, a free space
propagation region (2) and (4) and the grating waveguides (3). The grating consists of
a large number of waveguides with a constant length increment (L). Light is coupled
into the device via an optical fiber (1) connected to the input port. Light diffracting out
of the input waveguide at the coupler/slab interface propagates through the freespace region (2) . Each wavelength of light coupled to the grating waveguides (3),
undergoes a constant change of phase attributed to the constant length increment in
grating waveguides. Light diffracted from each waveguide of the grating interferes
constructively and gets refocused at the output waveguides (5).The light path from (1)
to (5) is a demultiplexer, from (5) to (1) a multiplexer.

Arrayed Waveguide Gratings

Each waveguide has

slightly different length

Phase Array Based WDM Devices

The arrayed waveguide is a generalization
of 2x2 MZI multiplexer
The lengths of adjacent waveguides differ
by a constant L
Different wavelengths get multiplexed
(multi-inputs one output) or de-multiplexed
(one input multi output)
For wavelength routing applications multiinput multi-output routers are available

Dielectric Thin Film Filters

Used as an optical band pass filter.
Basis is a classical Fabry-perot filter structure, which is a cavity formed by
two parallel highly refelctive mirror surfaces.
The structure is called a Fabry-perot interferometer or an etalon.
It is also known as Thin-film resonant cavity filter.

Dielectric Thin Film Filters

When a light signal passes through the cavity and hits the inside surface
on the right, some of the light leaves the cavity and some is reflected.
The amount of light that is reflected depends on the reflectivity R of the
surface.
If the round trip distance between the two mirrors is an integral multiple
of a wavelength (i.e., ,2,3 etc), then all light at those wavelength
which pass through the right facet add in phase.
These wavelengths interfere constructively in the device output beam so
they add in intensity.
These wavelengths are called the resonant wavelengths of the cavity.
The etalon rejects all other wavelengths.

Tunable Optical Filters

Tunable optical filters based on Fiber Bragg gratings involve a stretching
and relaxation process of spacing in the fiber grating, that is in the
periodic variation in the refractive index along the core.
Since glass is a slightly stretchable medium, as an optical fiber is stretched
with the grating inside of it, the spacing of the index perturbations and the
refractive index will change.
This process will induce a change in the Bragg wavelength thereby
changing the center wavelength of the filter.

Tunable Optical Filters

Tunable Light Sources

These devices are based on DFB(Distributed
Feedback Lasers) or DBR(Distributed Bragg Reflector
Lasers) structure that has grating filter in the lasing
cavity .
Wavelength is tuned by either changing the
temperature of the grating (0.1 nm/OC)
Or by altering the injection current into the passive
section (0.006 nm/mA)
The tuning range decreases with the optical output
power.

The total loss incurred by the star coupler comprises the splitting loss
and the excess loss through the device.

Rayleigh scattering

The Rayleigh scattering coefficient is related to the transmission loss factor

Mie scattering
Linear scattering may also occur at inhomogeneities which are comparable
in size with the guided wavelength.
These result from the nonperfect cylindrical structure of the waveguide
and may be caused by fiber imperfections such as irregularities in the
corecladding interface, corecladding refractive index differences along
the fiber length, diameter fluctuations, strains and bubbles.
When the scattering inhomogeneity size is greater than /10, the
scattered intensity which has an angular dependence can be very large

Stimulated Brillouin scattering

Stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) 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.

SBS

Aeff is the effective core area

gB is the Brillouin gain

Stimulated Raman scattering

Stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) is similar to SBS except that
a high-frequency optical phonon rather than an acoustic
phonon is generated in the scattering process.
Also, SRS can occur in both the forward and backward
directions in an optical fiber, and may have an optical power
threshold of up to three orders of magnitude higher than the
Brillouin threshold in a particular fiber.

SRS

Dispersion Management in
Optical Fibers

Dispersion management
Dispersion management refers to the approaches to circumvent the
transmission degradations caused by fiber dispersion using different types
of single mode optical fiber and other nonlinear passive optical devices.
Hence multiple sections of constant dispersion single-mode fiber and
dispersion-compensating elements whose lengths and group velocity
dispersion are chosen to optimize the overall transmission performance of
an optical fiber communication system are usually employed.
It should be noted that single-mode fiber dispersion tends to create limits
for the generation, propagation and application of ultra short pulses.

Dispersion management
In addition, optical amplifiers which are used in long-haul optical fiber
systems also cause dispersion and thus restrict overall transmission
distances.
It is therefore necessary to control and manage the dispersion on a singlemode fiber link to constrain its effect on the optical fiber system.

Dispersion management
A common method for managing dispersion is to combine two or more
types of single mode fiber to produce the desired dispersion over the
entire link span.
The total dispersion can be set at virtually any value as the contributions
from different components may have opposite signs (i.e. either positive or
negative) and hence they can partially, or completely, cancel each other.
Dispersion-compensating fibers can be either placed at one location or
distributed along the length of the fiber link .
In addition, lumped dispersion compensating devices, such as fiber
gratings, can also be incorporated.
Typically, dispersion management must consider single-mode fiber
chromatic
dispersion
over
a
range
of
wavelengths.

Dispersion management

Dispersion management
Figure shows a dispersion management scheme for a single-mode fiber
link.
It incorporates a dispersion management map to compensate positive
dispersion (i.e. identified as D+) on the fiber with the negative dispersion*
(i.e. identified as D) such that the chromatic or total first-order dispersion
DT goes to zero.
Negative dispersion can be achieved by using dispersion-compensating
fiber (DCF) or lumped elements (e.g. fiber Bragg gratings).
The single-mode fiber dispersion varies with wavelength and this property
is referred to as the dispersion slope.

Dispersion management maps

Dispersion management maps are two-dimensional plots of the
accumulated dispersion against the fiber link distance.
The same pattern can be mapped repeatedly extending the total
transmission distance.
Moreover, dispersion management is said to be periodic when the system
repeatedly employs the same dispersion compensation over long
transmission distances.

Dispersion management maps

A typical dispersion management map for two different single-mode fiber

types and lengths

Dispersion management maps

In practice, dispersion management is required in long-haul transmission
systems where the length of the single-mode fiber may differ from one
span to another depending on the particular optical amplifiers and other
nonlinear components employed.
In such cases it will not be possible to use periodic dispersion
management and consideration of the difference in length of fiber spans is
required.
Therefore as a general criterion a dispersion management map is
described for two different fiber lengths
Figure depicts a typical dispersion management map period with two
different single-mode fibers of different lengths L1 and L2 exhibiting
negative
D
and
positive
dispersion
D+,
respectively.

Dispersion management maps

The dispersion management map period (i.e. Lmap = L1 + L2) should be
selected in a manner so that the overall dispersion on both segments of
the fiber link cancel one another and thus the mean value of the
chromatic dispersion
becomes zero, which is given by:

where the generic term DL is also known as the dispersion management

map strength.
It should be noted that the second-order fiber dispersion coefficient 2
can be used to describe chromatic dispersion such that the dispersion
management map strength can also be written as 2L.

Dispersion management maps

For a periodic dispersion management map the same strategy can be
repeated and the mean chromatic dispersion is calculated over the
average path length of the single-mode fiber; hence is sometimes
referred to as the path average dispersion .so,

where the terms 21 and 22 represent the second-order dispersion

coefficients for the two different fiber path lengths L1 and L2, respectively.

Dispersion management maps

For perfect dispersion compensation the dispersion map strengths for the
fiber path lengths L1 and L2 should cancel the negative and positive
dispersion effects on each path and therefore
must be equal to
zero;

where the terms 21 and 22 represent the second-order dispersion

coefficients for the two different fiber path lengths L1 and L2, respectively.

Dispersion management for a multiwavelength

channel

Dispersion management diagram employing dispersion-compensating

fiber (DCF) for three different wavelength channels

Dispersion management for a multiwavelength

channel
The three wavelength channels are indicated as the short, the central or
the long wavelengths which are designated as channels 1, 2 and 3,
respectively.
A typical DCF can be used to compensate for the positive dispersion in
each channel on each fiber span.
In a multiwavelength channel transmission system, if the dispersion is
assumed to vary linearly with wavelength, then some dispersion always
remains on the fiber link even after dispersion compensation.
This remaining dispersion is known as residual dispersion.
The ratio of dispersion slope and the chromatic dispersion (i.e. S/DT) is
known as the relative dispersion slope (RDS) which determines the
amount of dispersion compensation required to produce a zero dispersion
slope for a dispersion management map period*

Dispersion management for a multiwavelength

channel
In multiwavelength transmission if the value of the RDS remains the same
for the two single-mode fiber spans then the same dispersion
management map can be repeated for the entire length of the optical link.
Furthermore, when the RDS for the central wavelength remains the same
as the RDS for the first wavelength, the same periodic dispersion
management map can also serve for the other higher order wavelength
channels
present
in
the
multiwavelength
signal.

Dispersion management for a multiwavelength

channel
If the dispersion slopes for the first and central wavelength signals are
given by S1 and S2 then the dispersion management map period for the
central wavelength must satisfy the condition.

Therefore the dispersion slope for the central wavelength is:

Dispersion management for a multiwavelength

channel
S2 can be rewritten as:

Equation plays an important role in determining the value of the RDS for
the central wavelength of a multi wavelength transmission system in order
to determine the periodic dispersion management map for
multiwavelength channel operation.
For example,when the dispersion slope for the central wavelength is
satisfied for both conditions (i.e. the fiber length and the second-order
dispersion coefficient), the same dispersion management map period can
be used for the other channels present in the multiwavelength signal.

Problem
A dispersion management map strategy to provide dispersion
compensation for a DWDM single-mode fiber system operating in the
wavelength region around 1.55 m is displayed in Figure . The two path
lengths L1 and L2 are 160 km and 20 km, respectively. Furthermore, the
second-order dispersion coefficient for the latter path L2 is 17 ps nm1
km1.

Problem
(a) Calculate the second-order dispersion coefficient for the first path
length L1 in order to achieve zero mean chromatic dispersion.
(b) If the dispersion slope for first fiber path L1 is 0.075 ps nm2 km1 then
determine the dispersion slope for the second fiber path L2.
(c) Verify that the periodic dispersion management map will provide
sufficient confidence to facilitate reliable DWDM transmission.

Problem
Solution: (a) The second-order dispersion coefficient in order for the first
path 21 to achieve zero mean chromatic dispersion can be calculated as:

Problem
Solution: (b) The dispersion slope for the second fiber path is given by:

Problem
Solution: (c) For multiwavelength channel operation the periodic
dispersion management map in Figure is considered to provide confidence
for the other wavelengths present in the DWDM signal if the relative
dispersion slope (RDS) remains the same for the first and the central
wavelengths and therefore that Eq is satisfied following:

Problem
This outcome indicates that the RDS remains the same for the dispersion
management map for the first and the central wavelengths present in the
multiwavelength channel.
Therefore the same dispersion management map can be repeated with
confidence periodically over the entire optical fiber link to provide reliable
dispersion management for the other wavelengths present in the DWDM
signal.