Design of optical filter for increased efficiency of wavelength converters based on fiber XPM

An optical filter, that remarkably increases the efficiency of fiber wavelength converters is proposed. Simulations show that required input powers are reduced by 50% and the maximum output powers are increased by a factor of three, when compared with equivalent systems. It is also shown that the proposed filter leads to back-to-back power penalties of 2 dB, increasing the dispersion tolerance of the converted signal by 25%. The filter’s practical implementation aspects of are assessed, showing that the main limitation results from highly demanding spectral characteristics.