Moment characterization of phase noise in coherent optical systems

The statistical characterization of the phase noise introduced by a semiconductor laser in a coherent optical transmission system is a key problem in the system performance evaluation. The authors consider the moment characterization, of the complex random process. Starting from the implicit representation of the probability density function through the Fokker-Planck equation, the authors obtain closed form analytical expressions for the moments of the filtered phase noise both in stationary and nonstationary conditions. Then the use of the moments for the computation of probability densities through orthogonal polynomial series expansion and maximum entropy approach is considered in application examples