The Gaussian approach (GA) is used to assess the impact of in-band crosstalk on the performance of direct-detection orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) optical communication systems. The GA accuracy is compared with estimates of the bit error probability (BEP) and crosstalk penalty obtained using Monte Carlo (MC) simulation. The GA revealed a reduced accuracy when estimating the BEP. However, when estimating the 1 dB crosstalk penalty, the GA exhibited a good accuracy (less than 0.5 dB in comparison with the crosstalk level estimated using MC simulation), for 16-quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) and 64-QAM mappings in the OFDM subcarriers. The GA leads to very discrepant estimates of the crosstalk penalty for high crosstalk levels.

This work was supported in part by Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia in the national MORFEUS - PTDC/EEI-TEL/2573/2012 project.

Direct-detection,Gaussian approach,in-band crosstalk,Monte-Carlo simulation,optical communication systems,orthogonal frequency division multiplexing.

This publication is an output of the following project(s):

• Analysis and Mitigation of crosstalk Effects in multicore fibre -based Networks
• Metro Networks Based on Multi-Band Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing Signals