Abstract

As a nonlinear intermodulation interference,^1-3 four-wave mixing (FWM) is a major problem for multichannel systems. Evaluating the bit-error-rate (BER) degradation due to FWM is indispensable in the design of FDM optical networks. In previous investigations theoretical expressions have been derived for the BER degradation.^4,5 In this work we attempt to experimentally verify the theory given in Refs. 4 and 5 by using a 622-Mbit/s 16-channel heterodyne system. We also predict the allowable power into a dispersion-shifted fiber (DSF) in the frequency- division-multiplexing (FDM) systems carrying several tens of channels.

© 1994 Optical Society of America