Gigabit/s optical transmission systems operating on single-mode fibre, which upgrade the transmission capacity of 565 Mbit/s systems now being installed, will become available in the next years. To relieve the burden on electronic circuitry operating at the highest speed the system architecture is chosen such that these circuits can be kept simple. All complicated signal processing functions are carried out at tributary speed and can be implemented with Si IC technology, while for the highest speed circuits GaAs technology may be appropriate. Excellent linearity of optical sources allows multilevel modulation of the optical signal. Feasibility of a 1.13 Gbit/s system with 8 plesiochronous in- and outputs at 140 Mbit/s, realized with todays industrially available electronics, sources and detectors, and operating over 33 km of single-mode fibre, has been demonstrated. Multigigabit/s systems are preferably operated in the 1550 nm wavelength region, taking advantage of the low fibre attenuation. Ultimately the fibre dispersion characteristic should be shaped to have low dispersion in this low attenuation region.

Date Published: 1 January 1987
PDF: 6 pages
Proc. SPIE 0841, Fiber Optic Networks and Coherent Technology in Fiber Optic Systems II, (1 January 1987); doi: 10.1117/12.967581

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 0841:
Fiber Optic Networks and Coherent Technology in Fiber Optic Systems II
John D. Chipman; Harish R. Sunak, Editor(s)