Abstract

Pulses of duration 800 fs (sech² FWHM) at 1550 nm are generated in an NaCl:OH laser having an actively stabilised external non-linear cavity ^[1]. These are coupled into lengths (several km) of standard telecommunications fibre (D=15 ps nm^-1km^-1, effective area = 75 μm²). The spectral and time domain information about the pulses emerging from the fibres is compared with the results of exact calculations. It has been shown that the magnitude of the soliton self frequency shift ^[2] (SSFS) in a given length of fibre is proportional to the inverse fourth power of the pulse width when a single soliton is launched ^[3]. However, the pulse-width(s) of the soliton(s) that form(s) from an arbitrary launched pulse depends on the pulse power and shape. Consider a pulse launched in the form A sech t.

© 1991 Optical Society of America