US 7,746,547 B2Granted

Multi-band hybrid SOA-Raman amplifier for CWDM

AssigneeAT&T Corp.

InventorsPatrick P. Iannone, Kenneth C. Reichmann, Xiang Zhou

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Abstract

A multi-band hybrid amplifier is disclosed for use in optical fiber systems. The amplifier uses Raman laser pumps and semiconductor optical amplifiers in series to produce a relatively level gain across the frequency range of interest. Multiple Raman pumps are multiplexed before coupling into the fiber. The Raman amplified optical signal may be demultiplexed and separately amplified by the SOAs before re-multiplexing. Gain profiles of the Raman pumps and the SOAs are selected to compensate for gain tilt and to alleviate the power penalty due to cross-gain modulation in the SOAs. The disclosed hybrid amplifier is especially useful in coarse wavelength division multiplexing (CWDM) systems.

Claims9

Dependent claims

A method for amplifying a CWDM optical signal having at least first and second frequency bands, the method comprising the steps of:

amplifying the CWDM optical signal using at least one Raman pump coupled to the optical fiber cable, a gain of the at least one Raman pump increasing monotonically within each of said frequency bands;
splitting the amplified CWDM optical signal into the at least two frequency bands;
further amplifying at least one of the frequency bands using a semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA), a gain of the SOA decreasing monotonically within the amplified frequency range, a net gain of the SOA and the Raman amplifier within each frequency band being flatter than either one of the SOA gain and the Raman amplifier gain;
and
recombining the at least two frequency bands.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 12/148,639Filed 21 Apr 2008
Published: US 2009/0251768 A18 Oct 2009
Granted: 29 Jun 2010
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification14 codes

H04B 10/2916
Characterised by the medium used for amplification or processing: using Raman or Brillouin amplifiers
H01S 3/06754
Fibre lasers: fibre amplifiers
H01S 3/2375
Arrangements of two or more lasers not provided for in groups H01S3/02 - H01S3/22, e.g. tandem arrangements of separate active media: hybrid lasers
H04B 10/2914
Characterised by the medium used for amplification or processing: using lumped semiconductor optical amplifiers [SOA]

Family

US 2009/0251768 A1Pre-grant publication · published 8 Oct 2009
US 7,746,547 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.

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