Trench-assisted 12-core 5-LP mode fiber with a low refractive index circle and a high refractive index ring.

We propose a homogeneous five-mode twelve-core fiber with a trench-assisted structure, combining a low refractive index circle and a high refractive index ring (LCHR). The 12-core fiber utilizes the triangular lattice arrangement. The properties of the proposed fiber are simulated by the finite element method. The numerical result shows that the worst inter-core crosstalk (ICXT) can achieve at -40.14 dB/100 km, which is lower than the target value (-30 dB/100 km). Since adding the LCHR structure, the effective refractive index difference between LP and LP mode is 2.8 × 10, which illustrates that the LP and LP modes can be separated. In contrast to without the LCHR, the dispersion of LP mode has an apparent dropping, which is 0.16 ps/(nm·km) at 1550 nm. Moreover, the relative core multiplicity factor can reach 62.17, which indicates a large core density. The proposed fiber can be applied to the space division multiplexing system to enhance the fiber transmission channels and capacity.