In general, decrease in the pulse pump light width results in higher spatial resolution of measurements. This decrease in pulse width (and resulting increase in resolution) in moreover, limited by the minimum time (28 ns) required to stimulate the phonon waves in fiber.

In PPP-BOTDA technique, the pulse shape in the pump laser is modified to 1 step function. This allows one to stimulate the phonon moves prior to the arrival of measuring pump pulse, increasing resolution upto 10 cm.