Dynamics of nonstationary return-to-zero pulses in dispersion-managed systems

We describe an analytical framework for return-to-zero (RZ) propagation in dispersion-managed fiber systems. The pulses may generally not follow the same periodicity as that of the dispersion map (i.e., nonstationary evolution), which can complicate the design and monitoring of such systems. We show that a phase-plane representation of pulses is useful in identifying as well as predicting the salient features of this multiscale and nonlinear evolutionary behavior. Numerical calculations of RZ pulse-train propagation over 4000 km are carried out to demonstrate the correspondence of theory and simulation