A comprehensive analysis of the soliton interaction near the zero-dispersion wavelength when higher-order dispersion comes into the play is presented. It is shown that the interaction process depends critically on the existence of the resonance radiation because that radiation cannot be separated from the soliton in time. We propose to exploit a proper phase modulation to stabilize the positions and the amplitudes of a soliton train provided that third-order dispersion is weak and no resonance radiation occurs. Moreover, we show that the resonance radiation may be absorbed by a bandwidth-limited amplifier regardless of the bandwidth. Thus, an appreciable stabilization of the pulse separation as well as the amplitudes can be achieved. The applicability of a convenient first-order perturbation approach to describe correctly the evolution of pulses near the zero-dispersion wavelength is studied in detail.

• Received 21 February 1995

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevE.52.1059