TIME EVOLUTION OF POLARIZATION MODE DISPERSION IN OPTICAL FIBERS

The fluctuation of polarization mode dispersion (PMD) due to environme ntal change is an important issue for fiber-optic communication system s. We measure the time evolution of PMD for installed aerial and burie d cables and for a spooled fiber in a temperature controlled chamber. The results show that PMD fluctuates much more rapidly for aerial cabl es than for buried cables. The magnitude of PMD is different for the t hree fibers and our results also show that the magnitude of PMD fluctu ation depends on the magnitude of the PMD.