Modules for chromatic dispersion and dispersion slope management

Dispersion management of high-speed, broadband, long-distance networks calls for continuous full-slope matching of all DWDM channels, as well as low insertion loss, low PMD and low sensitivity to non-linear effects. Dispersion compensation via the fundamental mode meets most requirements, but is inherently accompanied by very small effective areas, which limit system designs and can elicit problematic nonlinear effects and relatively high loss, especially for higher dispersion transmission fibers. With their currently very low MPI values, high-order-mode dispersion management modules offer all the advantages of DCFs plus very high tolerance to optical nonlinearities and low loss, enabling greater flexibility in system design and better link performance.