The Future of Fiber Communications: Solitons in an All-Optical System

In an “all optical” fiber system—one without electronic repeaters—a single fiber could transmit as much as 100 Gbit/sec over thousands of kilometers. Such performance would be obtained by using optical gain to overcome fiber loss and by transmitting the signals as nonspreading, soliton pulses.

by Linn F. Mollenauer

Nonlinear Optics with a Micrometer-Size Droplet

Nonlinear optical effects in extended three-dimensional media are sufficiently well known that in textbooks they are commonly treated using plane waves that can grow or deplete along the propagation direction. When two of the dimensions are decreased to micrometer size while the third dimension remains extended, as in the case of propagation along an optical fiber, large nonlinear optical phenomena can occur because total internal reflection can maintain a high electric field intensity over many meters along the fiber.

by Judith B. Snow, Shi-Xiong Qian and Richard K. Chang

Recent Developments in GaAs-Based High-Speed Devices

The recent advances in the crystal growth, device concepts, and fabrication of electronic and optical devices in GaAs and other III-V semiconductors have inspired the scientists in several laboratories to work on combining both types of devices into one circuit to create a new, powerful class of highspeed optoelectronic integrated circuits for optical communications and many other high-speed applications like digital optical computers. Such an approach would enable electronic processing of optical signals on a single chip for such operations as filtering, switching, amplifying, and multiplexing.

by Naresh Chand and Hadis Morkoc