Mode Structure and the Envelope of a Short Pulse in a Graded-Index Optical Fiber with a Longitudinal Inhomogeneity and a Spatial Bending

Abstract

We consider propagation of a short optical pulse in an optical fiber whose refractive index is strongly dependent on the radial coordinate and is weakly dependent on the longitudinal coordinate with allowance for the possible weak spatial bending of the fiber axis. The three-dimensional nonlinear wave equation modelling the pulse propagation is solved asymptotically with respect to a small parameter specifying the order of magnitude of the pulse amplitude. A relationship between the propagating modes and the eigenvalues and eigenfunctions of the singular Sturm-Liouville problem is established. The pulse propagation is shown to have three scales: the high-frequency carrier is modulated by the envelope which evolves in a two-scale manner and is described by a nonlinear Schrodinger equation whose coefficients depend on the longitudinal coordinate. The transverse distribution of the wave field and the envelope soliton are obtained in terms of elementary functions for several types of transverse and longitudinal inhomogeneities of the fiber. The possibility of controlling the pulse parameters by varying the transverse and longitudinal inhomogeneities of the fiber is pointed out.