Fast and accurate modeling of nonlinear pulse propagation in graded-index multimode fibers

We develop a model for the description of nonlinear pulse propagation in multimode optical fibers with a parabolic refractive index profile. It consists of a 1 + 1D generalized nonlinear Schrodinger equation with a periodic nonlinear coefficient, which can be solved in an extremely fast and efficient way. The model is able to quantitatively reproduce recently observed phenomena like geometric parametric instability and broadband dispersive wave emission. We envisage that our equation will represent a valuable tool for the study of spatiotemporal nonlinear dynamics in the growing field of multimode fiber optics. (C) 2017 Optical Society of America