Quasi-Soliton Pulse-Train Propagation in Dispersion-Managed Silicon Rib Waveguides

Dispersion-managed soliton-like pulse-train propagation in silicon rib waveguides is theoretically investigated by means of the nonlinear Schrödinger equation. A vectorial formulation is employed taking rigorously into account all relevant phenomena. For the purpose of minimizing pulse broadening, the waveguide width is precisely engineered (tapered) along the propagation direction by demanding that the soliton formation condition is locally satisfied. For typical carrier lifetimes (3 ns), bit rates up to 160 Gb/s can be transmitted with negligible pulse broadening and less than 3 dB of free-carrier-induced loss. The application of a carrier-sweep bias allows for the extension of the transmission rate beyond 1.28 Tb/s, matching current trends in silicon-photonic optical time-division multiplexing systems.