Optimized DWDM optical communications system performance using hybrid dispersion compensation based on DCF and FBG

Abstract The need for high capacity optical communication networks has driven the development of dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) as an important technology. Chromatic dispersion is one of the severe impairments that affect the transmission performance by causing pulse broadening, intersymbol interference (ISI), and higher BER, however. In this paper, a hybrid of dispersion compensating (DCF) and Bragg grating (FBG) dispersion compensation technique is proposed and studied to improve the performance of DWDM optical communication system. The proposed system was simulated and the performance metrics such as quality factor ( Q -factor). For a transmission distance of 160 km, the proposed hybrid scheme obtained a value of the Q factor of ∼7, while the value of the Q factor for FBG, DCF, and uncompensated system was ∼4.2, ∼2.2, and ∼0.8, respectively. Furthermore, the BER was reduced to 10 −8 , while the FBG-only, DCF-only, and uncompensated systems achieved BER values of 10 −7 , 5 × 10 −7 , and 10 −6 , respectively. In addition, the hybrid configuration provided the highest OSNR of approximately 28 dB, representing a significant improvement over FBG (22 dB), DCF (18 dB), and the uncompensated system (12 dB). The results achieved show that the combination of FBG and DCF can be used to achieve effective chromatic dispersion mitigation and obtain better signal quality; the proposed hybrid compensation technique is a potential solution for future high capacity and long-haul DWDM optical communication system.