By the use of the Fourier series analysis technique, the influence of
initial frequency chirp on the soliton propagation is analyzed theoret
ically. A Gaussian function is adopted to describe the chirp profile a
ssociated with the soliton-like pulse generated by a semiconductor las
er: It is found that the critical value of the chirp parameter may be
overestimated ruing a hyperbolic secant pulse-shape soliton with a qua
dratic form of phase variation. (C) 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.