Adjustable Group Velocity Dispersion and Dispersion Slope Compensation Devices With Wavelength Tunability Based on Enhanced Thermal Chirping of Fiber Bragg Gratings

We demonstrate group velocity dispersion (GVD) and dispersion slope (DS) compensation devices based on enhanced thermal chirping of glued fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs). By gluing a uniform FBG onto a uniform Zn channel for the GVD compensator and a linearly tapered Zn channel for the DS compensator, the thermal sensitivity of the FBG is enhanced. The thermal chirping of the FBG is given by the thermal expansion of a Zn channel, the thermooptic effect, and the thermal expansion of the optical fiber. Controlling the temperature distributions of the uniform FBG performs the tuning of GVD and/or DS, as well as their center wavelengths. These compensation devices can tune their GVD or DS while maintaining a constant center wavelength and change their center wavelengths while preserving constant GVD or DS values. The GVD can be tuned from -123.39 to -57.29 ps/nm with the center wavelength at 1552.9 nm, while the center wavelength can be shifted 2.2 nm with a GVD value of about -105 ps/nm. On the other hand, the DS can be tuned from -8.88 to -24.44 ps/nm2 with the center wavelength at 1554.5 nm, while the center wavelength can be shifted 0.6 nm with a DS value of about -10.4 ps/nm2.