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AssigneeBell Communications Research, Inc.
InventorsGee-Kung Chang, Lars E. Eskildsen, Evan L. Goldstein, Muhammed Z. Iqbal, Chinlon Lin
Estimating the term…
In a multiwavelength lightwave communications system automatic self-power regulation on a channel-by-channel basis is achieved with a cascade of multiwavelength amplifier modules (200), wherein each multiwavelength amplifier module in the cascade includes a plurality of pump-shared parallel fiber amplifiers (208) operated in gain-saturation and connected between an optical demultiplexer (203) and multiplexer (209). An optional first gain stage (202) improves performance with higher optical signal-to-noise ratio. By self-regulating the power in each channel, the communications system is scalable, allowing the system to grow without deleterious effects due to power spread.
A multiwavelength lightwave communications system comprising:
In a multiwavelength lightwave communications system in which wave-division-multiplexed (WDM) plural channels are transmitted on an optical fiber, amplifying means for amplifying said plural channels, said amplifying means comprising a plurality of multiwavelength amplifier modules spaced along said optical fiber, each of said multiwavelength amplifier modules comprising optical demultiplexing means for demultiplexing a WDM signal from the optical fiber into a plurality of separate single-wavelength channels on separate outputs of the demultiplexing means, a plurality of fiber amplifiers operated in gain-saturation each one connected to one of the outputs of said demultiplexing means, said plurality of fiber amplifiers separately amplifying each of the single-wavelength channels at each of the outputs of the demultiplexing means, and optical multiplexing means for multiplexing the plurality of amplified single-wavelength channels into one multiwavelength amplifier module WDM output signal.
A multiwavelength amplifier module for amplifying a plurality of channels at a plurality of wavelengths transmitted in a single wave-division-multiplexed (WDM) input optical signal in a multiwavelength lightwave communications system, said amplifier module comprising optical demultiplexing means for demultiplexing the WDM optical signal into a plurality of separate single-wavelength channels on separate outputs of the demultiplexing means, a plurality of fiber amplifiers operated in gain-saturation each one connected to one of the outputs of said demultiplexing means, said plurality of fiber amplifiers separately amplifying each of the single-wavelength channels at each of the outputs of the demultiplexing means, and optical multiplexing means for multiplexing the plurality of amplified single-wavelength channels into one WDM output signal.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.