Abstract
We have performed experiments to determine the spectral and temporal properties of stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) in an optical fiber. Theories1-4 that treat the process of spontaneous initiation of the Stokes light predict that the intensity of the generated field fluctuates strongly, even for the case of a cw input pump field. The origin of these fluctuations arises from the fact that the Stokes field is initiated by thermal or quantum noise and the Brillouin medium simply behaves as an amplifier for this field. The spectrum of the Stokes light is also predicted to narrow by a factor of G1/2 from its spontaneous line shape due to the process of gain narrowing. (G = gIL is the value of the single pass gain.) Our experimental observations confirm these predictions.
© 1990 Optical Society of America
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