Fiber ring amplifiers and lasers

An optical amplifier comprising:

• an optical fiber ring;
• and
• a pump source emitting light at at least one primary pump wavelength, said light being optically coupled to said optical fiber ring and generating light at at least one secondary pump wavelength,
• wherein optical signal amplification and secondary pump wavelength lasing occur within the same section of the optical fiber ring, wherein the optical fiber ring includes an optical isolator that allows the light at a secondary pump wavelength to circulate in only one direction within the optical fiber ring.

An optical amplifier comprising:

• an optical fiber ring;
• and
• a pump source emitting light at at least one primary pump wavelength, said light being optically coupled to said optical fiber ring and generating light at at least one secondary pump wavelength,
• wherein optical signal amplification and secondary pump wavelength lasing occur within the same section of the optical fiber ring, wherein said optical fiber has a core and a cladding, said core comprising materials having stimulated Raman scattering cross-sections sufficiently high to provide amplification of light at a secondary pump wavelength and light at an optical signal wavelength, and said core having a refraction index sufficiently higher than the refractive index of the cladding to guide light at the primary pump wavelength and secondary pump wavelength and signal wavelength.

An optical amplifier comprising:

• an optical fiber ring;
• and
• a pump source emitting light at at least one primary pump wavelength, said light being optically coupled to said optical fiber ring and generating light at at least one secondary pump wavelength,
• wherein optical signal amplification and secondary pump wavelength lasing occur within the same section of the optical fiber ring, further comprising a second pump source emitting light at a pump wavelength, said light at a pump wavelength being optically coupled to said optical fiber ring.

An optical amplifier comprising:

• an optical fiber ring;
• and
• a pump source emitting light at at least one primary pump wavelength, said light being optically coupled to said optical fiber ring and generating light at at least one secondary pump wavelength,
• wherein optical signal amplification and secondary pump wavelength lasing occur within the same section of the optical fiber ring, wherein the optical fiber ring includes two wavelength-selective optical coupler devices, said coupler devices coupling light at a primary pump wavelength and light at an optical signal wavelength in and out of the optical fiber ring and allowing light at a secondary pump wavelength to circulate within the optical fiber ring.

An optical amplifier comprising:

• an optical fiber ring;
• and
• a pump source emitting light at at least one primary pump wavelength, said light being optically coupled to said optical fiber ring and generating light at at least one secondary pump wavelength,
• wherein optical signal amplification and secondary pump wavelength lasing occur within the same section of the optical fiber ring, wherein the optical fiber ring includes two optical circulators, said optical circulators coupling light at a primary pump wavelength and light at an optical signal wavelength in and out of the optical fiber ring and allowing light at a secondary pump wavelength to circulate in only one direction within the optical fiber ring.

An optical amplifier comprising:

• an optical fiber ring;
• and
• a pump source emitting light at at least one primary pump wavelength, said light being optically coupled to said optical fiber ring and generating light at at least one secondary pump wavelength,
• wherein optical signal amplification and secondary pump wavelength lasing occur within the same section of the optical fiber ring, further comprising:
• a wavelength selective optical coupler device, said wavelength selective optical coupler device combining light at a primary pump wavelength and light at an optical signal wavelength in a single optical fiber.

An optical amplifier comprising:

• an optical fiber ring;
• and
• a pump source emitting light at at least one primary pump wavelength, said light being optically coupled to said optical fiber ring and generating light at at least one secondary pump wavelength,
• wherein optical signal amplification and secondary pump wavelength lasing occur within the same section of the optical fiber ring, wherein a portion of the light at a primary pump wavelength is allowed to exit said optical fiber ring for second order distributed Raman pumping an optical transmission fiber.

An optical amplifier comprising:

• an optical fiber ring;
• and
• a pump source emitting light at at least one primary pump wavelength, said light being optically coupled to said optical fiber ring and generating light at at least one secondary pump wavelength,
• wherein optical signal amplification and secondary pump wavelength lasing occur within the same section of the optical fiber ring, further comprising:
• an even number of wavelength selective optical coupler devices connected in pairs by respective optical fiber links, said coupler devices designed to couple out and return to said optical fiber ring light at wavelengths corresponding to the even Stokes orders of the primary pump wavelength and to substantially transmit light at all other wavelengths.

An optical amplifier comprising:

• an optical fiber ring;
• and
• a pump source emitting light at at least one primary pump wavelength, said light being optically coupled to said optical fiber ring and generating light at at least one secondary pump wavelength,
• wherein optical signal amplification and secondary pump wavelength lasing occur within the same section of the optical fiber ring, further comprising:
• an optical reflector coupled to said optical fiber ring, said optical reflector reflecting light at a primary pump wavelength exiting said optical fiber ring back into said optical fiber ring.

An optical amplifier comprising:

• an optical fiber ring;
• and
• a pump source emitting light at at least one primary pump wavelength, said light being optically coupled to said optical fiber ring and generating light at at least one secondary pump wavelength,
• wherein optical signal amplification and secondary pump wavelength lasing occur within the same section of the optical fiber ring, wherein 1 to 80% of the light at a secondary pump wavelength is allowed to exit said optical fiber ring for backward distributed Raman pumping an optical transmission fiber.

A multi-staged optical amplifier comprising:

• a plurality of optical amplifiers connected in series, wherein each of said plurality of optical amplifiers includes
• an optical fiber ring;
• and
• a pump source emitting light at at least one primary pump wavelength, said light being optically coupled to said optical fiber ring and generating light at at least one secondary pump wavelength, wherein optical signal amplification and secondary pump wavelength lasing occur within the same section of the optical fiber ring.

A method of amplifying an optical signal, comprising the steps of:

• providing an optical fiber ring;
• emitting light at a primary pump wavelength into said optical fiber ring;
• lasing light at a secondary pump wavelength that substantially circulates only in one direction within said optical fiber ring;
• and
• amplifying light at an optical signal wavelength within said optical fiber ring,
• wherein amplifying light at an optical signal wavelength and lasing light at a secondary pump wavelength occur within the same section of the optical fiber ring.