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Increasing capacity demands on optical networks have encouraged the researchers to explore new dimensions for multiplexing optical data channels. While wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM) and polarization-division multiplexing (PDM) have been extensively deployed in existing networks, one recently explored approach to significantly increase the capacity of communication systems is to employ spatial-division multiplexing (SDM) of multiple orthogonal modes using a single transmitter/receiver aperture pair, in which each mode carries an independent data stream. Orthogonality ensures that the modes can be efficiently multiplexed at the transmitter, spatially co-propagated, and demultiplexed at the receiver with minimal modal crosstalk.