Continuously tunable 116 μs optical delay of 100 Gbit/s DQPSK and 50 Gbit/s DPSK signals using wavelength conversion and chromatic dispersion

We demonstrate a variable optical delay element that uses tunable wavelength conversion and phase conjugation in highly nonlinear fiber and uses chromatic dispersion in dispersion-compensating fiber. A continuous delay of up to 1.16mus, equaling a >110,000 time-delay bit-rate product for 100 Gbit/s non-return-to-zero differential quadrature phase-shift-keying (NRZ-DQSPK) and >55,000 for 50 Gbit/s NRZ differential phase-shift-keying (NRZ-DPSK) modulation formats, is demonstrated. Bit error rates <10(-9) are demonstrated for each waveform at various delay settings.