Abstract
Modal noise is a non-Gaussian noise source associated with the interference of fiber modes at a detector. Most derivations of the statistics of modal noise assume a limiting case of overfilled launch conditions where there are many modes propagating in the fiber. However, if the transmitted power is contained in a few modes, commonly referred to as restricted-mode launch conditions, the general assumptions for modal noise theory are not valid. Here, we present experimental measurements of the noise distributions for both full- and restricted-mode launch cases and show that the noise statistics for a restricted launch are significantly different than for a full-mode launch. In particular, the variance of the noise distribution is larger than in the over-filled launch case leading to a degradation in the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). Modifications of existing theory are then used to develop a numerical model for the noise statistics of a restricted-mode launch and good agreement between this model and experimental data is achieved.
[IEEE ]
PDF Article
More Like This
Cited By
You do not have subscription access to this journal. Cited by links are available to subscribers only. You may subscribe either as an Optica member, or as an authorized user of your institution.
Contact your librarian or system administrator
or
Login to access Optica Member Subscription