Fitel USA Corporation

K Scott Thornburg, Jr

Steven Eugene Golowich

Sean L Jones

Albert John Ritger

Embodiments of the invention include an optical communications system including a multimode optical fiber having improved overfill-launch bandwidth performance without disturbing existing laser-launch bandwidth performance. The multimode optical fiber has a characteristic differential mode delay with a first portion associated with lower order modes that behaves conventionally and a second portion associated with higher order modes that deviates from conventional behavior in a way that improves overfill-launch bandwidth performance at one operating window without adversely impacting the laser-launch bandwidth performance at the same and other operating windows. Multimode optical fibers conventionally optimized for operation at 850 nm are configured in such a way that their characteristic differential mode delay, at 1300 nm, initially increases in a conventional manner and then flattens out to approximately zero at the higher order modes. At 850 nm, the characteristic differential mode delay initially remains flat at approximately zero, in a conventional manner, and then decreases at the higher order modes. Also, embodiments of the invention include an inventive optical fiber preform configured appropriately to produce the desired differential mode delay, and a method for making the inventive optical fiber preform.

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Tucker, GA, United States of America

K Scott Thornburg, Jr