Intersymbol interference and timing jitter measurements in a 40-Gb/s long-haul dispersion-managed soliton system

In this work, we have measured timing jitter in a 40-Gb/s dispersion-managed soliton system. By accurately separating out the Gordon-Haus timing jitter from the overall timing jitter, we have demonstrated that intersymbol interference limits the error-free propagation distance in our system. Finally, we show that amplitude noise can enhance the measurement of timing jitter, which can lead to inaccuracy in determining the true system limitations.