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Novel applications of space-division multiplexing

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Abstract

Space-division multiplexing (SDM) using multi-core fibers (MCFs) and few-mode fibers (FMFs) was proposed as a solution to increase capacity and/or reduce the cost per bit of fiber-optic transmission. Advances in passive and active SDM devices as well as digital signal processing have led to impressive SDM transmission demonstrations in the laboratory. Although the perceived advantages in terms of capacity and cost per bit that SDM offers over parallel SMF bundles are not universally accepted, SDM is beginning to emerge as an indispensable solution in major network segments. The introduction of the spatial degree of freedom allows optical networks to overcome fundamental limitations such as fiber nonlinearity as well practical limitations such as power delivery. We describe these application scenarios that the optical communications industry has already began to explore. From a fundamental science point of view, concepts such as the principal modes, generalized Stokes space, and multi-component solitons discovered in SDM research will likely have a broad impact in other areas of science and engineering.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CREOL, The College of Optics & Photonics, University of Central Florida, Florida, 32816-2700, USA

    Christian Carboni & Guifang Li

  2. College of Precision Instrument and Opto-Electronic Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300072, China

    Guifang Li

Authors
  1. Christian Carboni
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  2. Guifang Li
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Guifang Li.

Additional information

Christian Carboni received his Bachelor of Science degree in nuclear engineering from the University of Florida. He is currently in the process of obtaining a master’s degree in Optics and Photonics from the University of Central Florida. His current research is focused on optical communication.

Guifang Li is currently Professor of Optics, Electrical & Computer Engineering and Physics at the University of Central Florida. He received his Ph.D. degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin at Madison in 1991. His research interests include optical communications and networking, RF photonics and alloptical signal processing. He is the recipient of the NSF CAREER award, the Office of Naval Research Young Investigator award, the UCF Research Incentive Award and the UCF Innovator Award. He is a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors, IEEE, SPIE, and the Optical Society of America. He served as an associate editor for Optical Networks, Chinese Optics Letters, and IEEE Photonics Technology Letters. He currently serves as a Deputy Editor for Optics Express and the Overseas Associate Editor-in-Chief of Frontiers of Optoelectronics.

In the teaching arena, Dr. Li was also the Director of the National Science Foundation Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) in Optical Communications and Networking. He twice received the UCF Teaching Incentive Program (TIP) Award.

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Carboni, C., Li, G. Novel applications of space-division multiplexing. Front. Optoelectron. 9, 270–276 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12200-016-0607-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12200-016-0607-2

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