Measurement of zero-dispersion wavelength in optical fibers using cross-phase modulation

A simple method for determining the zero-dispersion wavelength in optical fibers is proposed. The method is based on cross-phase modulation between a tunable continuous-wave (CW) signal and co-propagating intense pump pulses in an optical fiber. By positioning the pump wavelength in the normal group-velocity dispersion (GVD) regime, the generated pulses at the signal wavelength change from dark to bright when the signal wavelength is tuned through the zero-dispersion point from the normal GVD side. The method was experimentally demonstrated using a /spl sim/1 km dispersion-shifted fiber. Simulation results also show good agreement with experimental ones.