Enhancing four-wave mixing efficiency in optical fibers: the role of core radius fluctuations and mitigation strategies

Area of Science:

• Optics and Photonics
• Materials Science
• Computational Modeling

Background:

• Core-radius fluctuations in optical fibers significantly impact system performance.
• Accurate modeling of these fluctuations is crucial for designing efficient photonic devices.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce a versatile Gaussian process model for optical fiber core-radius fluctuations.
• To analyze the impact of these fluctuations on four-wave mixing (FWM) efficiency.
• To demonstrate improved FWM efficiency through optimized fiber design.

Main Methods:

• Developed an easy-to-implement Gaussian process model for flexible fiber profile modification.
• Applied the model to study core-radius fluctuations in optical fibers.
• Optimized a step-index fiber design using the developed model.

Main Results:

• The Gaussian process model effectively captures fiber profile characteristics.
• Core-radius fluctuations were shown to drastically reduce FWM system efficiency.
• Optimized fiber design significantly improved FWM efficiency despite large fluctuations.

Conclusions:

• The proposed Gaussian process model offers a flexible framework for analyzing optical fiber properties.
• Fiber design optimization is key to mitigating the negative effects of core-radius fluctuations on FWM.
• This approach enhances the performance of wide-spanning FWM systems.