Asynchronous phase-modulated optical fiber-ring buffer

We investigate the dynamics of a 5-Gbit/s packet of ones and zeros loaded into a 0.5-kbit, phase-modulated optical fiber-ring buffer. A new mode of operation is explored in which the cavity length of the buffer is slightly detuned from the frequency driving the phase modulator. We examine the conditions for successful packet loading and the packet storage behavior. In addition, relaxation oscillations, which affected the storage time of previous high-speed optical ring buffers, are nearly eliminated with a cw holding beam, and significantly enhanced storage times are obtained. (C) 1998 Optical Society of America. OCIS codes: 060.2310, 060.4510, 060.2410, 060.2330.