Dispersion compensation by a tunable all-optical signal regenerator

The effect of dispersion on an NRZ signal in 120 km of SMF28 fiber is partially compensated by a tunable all-optical signal regenerator (TASR). The TASR is comprised of a semiconductor optical amplifier incorporated in an asymmetric Sagnac loop. It is shown theoretically that the primary mechanism underlying dispersion compensation in the TASR relies on its ability to control the optical phase of the carrier. Our results are supported by numerical simulations and experimental results.