PIERS Proceedings, Suzhou, China, September 1216, 2011

922

Dynamic Characterization of EDFA Based on ASE

Selective-feedback and Gain-clamping Techniques
Jhe-Min Lin, Wen-Jeng Ho, and Chih-Yung Li
Institute of Electro-Optical Engineering, National Taipei University of Technology
1, Sec. 3, Chung-Hsiao E. Rd., Taipei 106, Taiwan

Abstract We experimental demonstrated a gain clamped C-band EDFA with a stable wide
dynamic range performance by using the ASE selective-feedback gain-clamping technique. The
gain of 16.2 dB with variation 0.26 dB for the input signal power from 35 to 5 dBm and
the maximum NF of 6.6 dB for the input signal power from 35 to 10 dBm were obtained,
respectively. Therefore, a wide dynamic range of the input signal of 2530 dB can be achieved.
We also applied a saturation tone signal (on/off) for simulating the 16-channels DWDM signals
(add/drop) to investigate the gain variation for the probe signal. When the number of channel
signals are added or dropped in our proposed C-band EDFA scheme, the gain variation is less
than 0.13 dB for the signals wavelength range from 1530 to 1564 nm.
1. INTRODUCTION

In addition to enlarging the bandwidth of optical amplification in frequency domain, the optical amplifiers with wide-band uniform-gain characteristics are also play an important role in WDM systems
with the optical add-drop multiplexers (OADMs) [1] and the optical cross-connects (OXCs) [2]. In
the conventional WDM transport systems, the input optical powers of Erbium-doped fiber amplifier
(EDFA) will change when transmission channels are adding or dropping. Since EDFA is usually
operated in saturation region, so its saturation output power is invariable. However, Erbium-doped
fiber has longer transition time, when the carriers are dropped from excited state to ground state.
The total output optical power variation is depended on the number of signal channels working
in the EDFA at all times. The gain of each channel signal is dependent on the present channel
number. Both the gain and the output signal power of each channel will decline when the number
of channels increases, this may degrade the signal reception. In contrast, both the gain and the
output signal power of each channel will increase when the number of channels decreases, this
will degrade the overall performance of the system due to nonlinear effects in fiber [3]. In recent
years, there are three common methods to design gain clamping for optical fiber amplifiers: (1)
using electro-optical feedback in pumping source to compensate [4], (2) by putting an additional
compensation signal [5], (3) by an optical loop to compensate the gain [6]. In this paper, we refer
to the third method and propose an alternative approach to achieve the gain clamping. We focus
firstly on the cost-effective design of a gain-clamped C-band EDFA based on the ring-fiber laser
cavity using a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) technique, then the gain flatness and variations, and the
noise figure was characterization for the further WDM applications.
2. EXPERIMENTAL SETUP

An experimental setup of C-band EDFA with an ASE selective-feedback gain-clamping technique

is shown in Fig. 1. It consisted of a C-band EDFA, a FBG with a 3-dB Bandwidth of 0.142 nm and
centre wavelength at 1532.95 nm, a 1 2 optical coupler, a 3-ports optical circulator (OC), and a
variable optical attenuator (VOA), The ASE power spectrum of EDFA is also shown in Fig. 3. A
specific wavelength signal from ASE spectrum was firstly reflected by FBG. Then the 1532.95 nm
signal from the ASE was backed into EDFA through a circulator (Port 2 to Port 3), a VOA, and
an optical coupler, in which the optical loop was form a ring cavity. The 1532.95 nm-wavelength
signal was re-amplifying by the EDFA and traveling through the above mention optical loop that a
1532.95 nm-wavelength fiber laser was created. The key component FBG in this scheme serves as a
laser feedback wavelength selector and also as a noise filter. The optical power of 1532.95 nm signal
injected to EDFA was controlled by a VOA. A tunable laser source (TLS) was used to simulate a
different input signals level at the wavelength of C-band. The input signal level, output signal level
and gain of the proposed gain-clamping EDFA are characterized by using an Optical Spectrum
Analyzer (OSA, ADVENTEST Q8384) with a resolution of 0.01 nm.

Progress In Electromagnetics Research Symposium Proceedings, Suzhou, China, Sept. 1216, 2011

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Figure 1: Experimental setup of the gain-clamping C-Band EDFA with an ASE selective-feedback.

Figure 2: Optical gain characteristics versus various

input signal power at different attenuation values.

Figure 3: Noise figure as a function of the input

signal power at different attenuation values.

3. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Figure 2 shows the optical gain characteristics versus various input signal power for a single-channel
operating in open-ring and the gain clamped with different attenuation values (VOA = 0 25 dB).
The gain-performance of amplifier working in open-ring (VOA = ) is also shown in the figure.
The power levels of input signal from 35 dBm to 0 dBm at 1550 nm are employed in this study.
The good gain-clamping trends were observed at low attenuation values (e.g., VOA = 0 5 dB)
for a closed-ring system, in which the gain curves were flat within a wide range of the optical power
levels of input signal. The ring-fiber laser power of the proposed scheme was decreased as the
attenuation value is increased. When attenuation was set at a higher value, the experiment scheme
was similar to an open-ring case. If attenuation value 5 dB, however, the dynamic range of 30 dB
with a flatting-gain-curve was achieved for the power of input signal from 35 dBm to 0 dBm.
Therefore, the optical power of the ring-fiber laser must be adjusted to an appropriate attenuation
value to obtain the superlative gain clamping effect. Thus the gain clamped at 16.2 dB with a
flatness of 0.26 dB, which having high gain and wide dynamic range, was obtained at VOA = 5 dB
and the input signal power levels from 35 dBm to 5 dBm. Fig. 3 shows the calculated noise
figure at 1550 nm as a function of the input signal power at different attenuation values. Lower
noise figure values were presented at VOA = 0 5 dB. Noise figure 7 dB, in the proposed scheme,
were obtained when the input signal power of 35 dBm to 10 dBm.
Optical gain of the gain-clamping EDFA versus the wavelength of input signal at different
attenuation values is shown in Fig. 4. The gain of long wavelength was large than that of the short
wavelength, in general, when the VOA < 5 dB. The gain increases with the wavelength within the
range from 1540 to 1560 nm. In contrast, the gain of the long wavelength (15401560 nm) is less
than that of at the short wavelength of 1533 nm when the VOA > 5 dB. In addition, the gain
spectrum of the gain-clamping EDFA with the VOA = 5 dB was flat than that of the VOA < 5 dB
and VOA > 5 dB, respectively.
Figure 5 shows an experimental setup for investigating the gain-variation of probe-signal when
a saturation tone signal was adding or dropping into the gain-clamping EDFA. The saturation tone

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PIERS Proceedings, Suzhou, China, September 1216, 2011

Figure 4: Optical gain versus the wavelength of input signal at different attenuation values.

Figure 5: Experimental setup for investigating the gain-variation of probe-signal when a saturation tone
signal was adding or dropping into the gain-clamping EDFA.

Figure 6: Gain spectrum of open ring and close ring with saturation tone signal adding or dropping.

signal, in this experiment, was used to simulate 16-channel signals in WDM system. The optical
power of probe-signal was set at 30 dBm for each channel (15301560 nm) and the optical power
of the saturation tone signal of 18 dBm at wavelength of 1545 nm was employed.
Figure 6 shows the gain spectrum of open ring and close ring with saturation tone signal at
on-state (adding) and off-state (dropping), respectively. The attenuation value (VOA) was selected
at 5 dB due to EDFA operating in wide-dynamic range and lower noise figure. A large difference
of gain values of 12.0 dB, which the peak gain relative to the flat-region (15401560 nm), in the

Progress In Electromagnetics Research Symposium Proceedings, Suzhou, China, Sept. 1216, 2011

925

open ring case was observed. However, the gain-spectrum was flat and with a minimum difference
in gain values at C-band range (15301560 nm) was obtained in close ring case. Furthermore, the
gain difference at wavelength of 1530 nm to 1564 nm of 0.13 dB was achieved when the saturation
tone signal was added or dropped in the gain-clamping EDFA. The obtained results show that
the proposed scheme is highly appropriate for the applications of wide-dynamic and stable gainclamping.
4. CONCLUSIONS

A gain clamped C-band EDFA has been proposed and demonstrated using an ASE selectivefeedback gain-clamping technique. At attenuation value of 5 dB, the gain of amplifier was clamped
about 16.2 dB with a gain variation of 0.26 dB when the input signal power levels of from 35 dBm
to 5 dBm. The gain-clamped amplifier also has a flattest gain spectrum with gain variation
0.13 dB within the wavelength range from 1530 nm to 1564 nm. The gain spectrum is nearly
unchanged when the input optical power fluctuant with the channels added or dropped. According
to the above results, the proposed gain-clamping amplifier can endure large power variations for
WDM systems.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT

The authors would like to thank the financial support from the National Science Council under
Grant NSC 99-2622-E-027-030-CC3.
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