A cost-effective technique for in-service chromatic dispersion monitoring in a 40-Gb/s optical communication system is proposed. Microwave devices are adopted to detect the electrical power of a specific frequency band. A simplified theoretical model is proposed and discussed focusing on the relationship between electrical power and chromatic dispersion at different frequency bands. The dynamic monitoring of chromatic dispersion is achievedusing devices such as PIN detector, microwave amplifier, narrow-band microwave filter, and electrical power detector. The maximum detectable chromatic dispersion is 130 ps/nm and a resolution of 5.2 ps/nm/dB has been achieved in the frequency band centered at 12 GHz.