Abstract
In this paper, a variable-coefficient nonlinear Schrodinger equation that describes the optical soliton propagation in dispersion management fiber systems is studied. Two- and three-soliton solutions are obtained by using the Hirota bilinear method. Based on those solutions, the effects of related parameters on optical soliton propagation are discussed. By choosing different values of the third-order dispersion, the amplification of optical solitons can be realized. In addition, the interactions among the solitons can be reduced by setting a proper value of the group velocity dispersion. The results of this paper may be helpful to design optical amplifiers or to improve the quality of optical communications.