Pulse spreading in a single-mode fiber due to third-order dispersion.

Pulse spreading in a single-mode optical fiber is discussed taking into account the third-order dispersion term of the waveguide when the light source is modulated by a Gaussian pulse. A general expression for the pulse shape is analytically obtained, and an asymptotic approximation is used when the third-order dispersion term is small. It is also shown that the pulse width is no longer proportional to the guide length when the third-order dispersion term becomes large.