Enhancement of the supercontinuum generation performance of a
highly-nonlinear optical fiber (HNLF) is accomplished by incorporating at
least one Bragg grating structure in the HNLF. The Bragg grating results
in reflecting a core-guided signal into signal which also remains
core-guided. The supercontinuum radiation generated by such an
arrangement will exhibit a substantial peak in its energy at the grating
resonance of the Bragg grating and a region of increased radiation in a
narrow wavelength band on the long wavelength side of the peak. A number
of such Bragg gratings may be formed so as to "tailor" the enhancements
provided in the supercontinuum radiation. Various, well-known Bragg
grating modifications (tuning, chirped, blazed, etc.) may also be used in
the inventive structure to enhance the generated supercontinuum.