Polarization-independent amplification and frequency conversion in strongly-birefringent fibers

Abstract

The inverse modulation interaction is a degenerate four-wave mixing process in which two strong pumps drive a weak signal, whose frequency is the average of the pump frequencies. Theoretical analyses and numerical simulations of this process are made for wave frequencies that are near the zero-dispersion frequency of a fiber, in which case dispersion is unimportant, and wave frequencies that are far from the zero-dispersion frequency, in which case dispersion is important. The results show that the inverse modulation interaction in a strongly-birefringent fiber amplifies a linearly-polarized signal by an amount that depends on its phase angle, but not its polarization angle. Phase conjugation and Bragg scattering are nondegenerate four-wave mixing processes in which two strong pumps drive a weak signal and a weak idler. Studies show that phase conjugation and Bragg scattering in strongly-birefringent fibers produce polarization-independent phase-insensitive amplification and frequency conversion, respectively.