Corrections to fixed analyzer measurements of polarization mode dispersion

Abstract

We report computer simulation results of polarization mode dispersion (PMD) measurements using the fixed analyzer technique. We find a new value for the polarization mode coupling factor of 0.805 (a 2% difference with the old value of 0.824). Systematic biases due to sampling density and extrema thresholding are quantified (6-12% for typical measurement conditions), and a simple correction algorithm is presented which removes the effects of these biases within /spl plusmn/1.7%.