We propose the use of pilot-aided (PA) transmission, enabled by single-sideband-subcarrier modulation of both quadratures in the DSP-domain, in single-carrier systems to mitigate jointly laser phase noise and fiber nonlinearity. In addition to tolerance against laser phase noise, we show that the proposed scheme also improves the nonlinear tolerance of both polarization-division-multiplexed (PDM) QPSK and 16-QAM coherent transmission systems by increasing the maximum allowable launch power by 1 dB and 1.5 dB, respectively. The improved nonlinear performance of both systems also manifests itself as an increase in the maximum reach by 720 km and 480 km, respectively. Finally, when digital-to-analog converters (DACs) with lower bit resolutions are used at the transmitter, PA transmission is shown to preserve the same performance improvement over the non-PA case.
© 2011 Optical Society of America