Method for compensating polarization mode dispersion in a waveguide and a polarization mode dispersion compensator

DETAILED DESCRIPTION The object of the present invention is thus to specify a method for PMD compensation and a PMD compensator which has numerous setting options and, within the transmission band in use, as far as possible allows desired frequency-dependent polarization transformation for the purpose of specific compensation.
The advantage of the PMD compensator according to the invention is that it can be used universally.
The phenomenon of polarization mode dispersion, which is governed by a number of parameters, can in principle also be compensated for only by suitable adjustment options corresponding to a large number of degrees of freedom.
The individual control voltages allow so many frequency-dependent polarization transformations to be set and carried out during operation that any required PMD for even those which are higher than first order, can be formed with very high accuracy, both for the purpose of PMD compensation and for PMD emulation.
Further advantages are the small physical size which is normal with integrated optical components, and the fact that the functions of polarization transformation and the production of different propagation times for different polarizations can be integrated on one component, a chip, in the PMD compensator according to the invention.
The PMD compensator can likewise be used as a PMD emulator or else as a polarization transformer.
Variants of the PMD compensator allow even more compact methods of construction.
The invention will be explained in more detail with reference to exemplary embodiments.