Bit-error rate evaluation for non-linear propagation in optical fibres

The influence of soliton time jitter on the bit-error rate in long-distance single-mode optical fibre transmission lines was studied. It was assumed that mutual interactions between two adjacent solitons were prevented by periodic amplification. It was found that the upper bit rate bound of practically acceptable non-linear transmission is about 50 Gbit s^–1. Above a bit rate of 50 Gbit s^–1 the advantage of non-linear (soliton) transmission, related to dispersion-free linear transmission, disappears.