Data-dependent timing jitter in wavelength-division-multiplexing soliton systems

Soliton timing jitter that is due to amplifier noise has been studied extensively. In wavelength-multiplexed soliton systems jitter also results from collisions between solitons on different channels. We derive an expression for the variance in pulse arrival times because of such collisions and predict system performance using this result. Jitter depends not only on perturbations to the fiber but also on the encoding of information. When the expression is applied to a system with loss and amplification, it is shown that extensive wavelength multiplexing may significantly enhance soliton communication systems.