Abstract

The refractive-index modulation generated in optical fibers by electrostriction-induced acoustic waves is investigated directly by a pump-probe measurement technique in a 1-km-long fiber Sagnac-loop interferometer. Pump pulses propagating unidirectionally around the loop generate transverse acoustic waves that produce a time-dependent relative phase shift for the probe pulses. The consequent interferometer transmission changes are used as a measure of the acoustic interaction. The acoustic impulse response function of the fiber is measured by use of short optical pulses with a 1-MHz repetition rate. The response consists of a series of peaks separated by ~21 ns with a maximum value of refractive-index modulation of −1.1 × 10⁻¹¹ generated by the 230-pJ pump pulses. At a higher pulse repetition rate of 100 MHz additional temporal structure is generated in the 0–5-ns period after the pump pulse, leading to a response similar to that observed in long-range soliton interaction.

© 1996 Optical Society of America

Electrostrictive contribution to the intensity-dependent refractive index of optical fibers

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