Design of few-mode fibers with arbitrary and flattened differential mode delay

This letter proposes the use of a refractive index profile with a graded core and a cladding trench for the design of few-mode fibers, aiming an arbitrary differential mode delay (DMD) flattened over the C+ L band. By optimizing the core grading exponent and the dimensioning of the trench, a deviation lower than 0.01 ps/km from a target DMD is observed over the investigated wavelength range. Additionally, it is found that the dimensioning of the trench is almost independent of the target DMD, thereby enabling the use of a simple design rule that guarantees a maximum DMD deviation of 1.8 ps/km for a DMD target between-200 and 200 ps/km. © 2012 IEEE.