Eur. Phys. J. Special Topics 225, 2453-2464 (2016)
https://doi.org/10.1140/epjst/e2016-60023-1

Review

Soliton molecules for advanced optical telecommunications

Universität Rostock, Institut für Physik, 18059 Rostock, Germany

^a e-mail: fedor.mitschke@uni-rostock.de

Received: 10 February 2016
Revised: 5 July 2016
Published online: 22 November 2016

Abstract

Recent developments in the technology of optical telecommunications are pushed forward by the rapidly growing demand for data-carrying capacity. Current approaches are discussed; most lines of investigation are limited to the linear (i.e. low power) regime. It is shown how this restriction poses a limit for further evolution. If, on the other hand, the nonlinear regime is entered, recent developments about soliton molecules offer a possibility to advance further.