Abstract

Microstructured photonic crystal fibers (PCFs) exhibit some unique optical properties compared to standard optical fibers. For instance, tbeir dispersion characteristics can be quite unusual as the zero-dispersion wavelength of these fibers can be pushed far into the visible. Also, the possibility to control the mode area in broad ranges allows various nonlinear optical processes to be greatly enhanced in PCFs. These characteristics make such fibers interesting objects for study of some fundamental features of pulse propagation; conveniently in the near infrared using short lengths of fiber. We report here on experimental observations on strong modulation in the spectrum of short optical pulses propagating in a PCF. The modulation is explained to result from interference between the soliton and the radiation field, which is created when the Gaussian input pulse evolves into an asymptotic soliton.¹

© 2002 Optical Society of America