Design and Investigation of High-Capacity Spatial-Division Multiplexing Network Employing a Multimode Fiber

In spatial division multiplexing (SDM)-based communication systems, each spatial mode can act as an independent information-bearing carrier capable of scaling the total transmission capacity by several orders of magnitude. It has been reported that in SDM networks the signal amplitude depends upon the optical-path-length (OPL) difference between the various optical modes. In this work, we realize SDM technique using a multimode fiber (MMF), because MMFs have a potential to increase transmission capacity drastically by transmitting signals over large number of modes separately. The system performance is analyzed on the basis of following parameters: visualizer spatial profile, mode index profiles, fiber transfer function, refractive index profile, bit error rate, and quality factor. Also we measure changes in the optical path length due to a phase-shifting laser beam. We conclude that MMFs have huge scope for future ultrahigh-capacity transmission systems employing SDM.