Gengxian Luo

US Patent:

60942983, Jul 25, 2000

Filed:

Jul 6, 1999

Appl. No.:

9/348112

Inventors:

Gengxian Luo - Aberdeen NJ
Atul K. Srivastava - Eatontown NJ
James W. Sulhoff - Ocean NJ
Yan Sun - Aberdeen NJ
John L. Zyskind - Shrewsbury NJ

Assignee:

Lucent Technologies Inc. - Murray Hill NJ

International Classification:

H01S 330

US Classification:

359346

Abstract:

An Erbium doped fiber amplifier (EDFA) is placed in a laser cavity to clamp the gain of the amplifier. The laser cavity is preferably formed to minimize the effects of relaxation oscillations and of spectral hole burning. In a preferred embodiment, the laser cavity supports a lasing wavelength which makes the saturation energy at the laser wavelength less than that at the signal wavelengths. In an erbium doped fiber implementation, the laser wavelength is shorter than that of the signal wavelengths and is separated from them by no more than approximately 75% of the width of the spectral hole. The compounding of relaxation oscillations may be substantially eliminated by varying the length of the fiber within each laser cavity within a system to change the photon round-trip time within each cavity.

US Patent:

60089326, Dec 28, 1999

Filed:

Oct 7, 1997

Appl. No.:

8/946469

Inventors:

Gengxian Luo - Aberdeen NJ
Atul K. Srivastava - Eatontown NJ
James W. Sulhoff - Ocean NJ
Yan Sun - Aberdeen NJ
John L. Zyskind - Shrewsbury NJ

Assignee:

Lucent Technologies Inc. - Murray Hill NJ

International Classification:

H01S 330
G02B 626

US Classification:

359337

Abstract:

An Erbium doped fiber amplifier (EDFA) is placed in a laser cavity to clamp the gain of the amplifier. The laser cavity is preferably formed to minimize the effects of relaxation oscillations and of spectral hole burning. In a preferred embodiment, the laser cavity supports a lasing wavelength which makes the saturation energy at the laser wavelength less than that at the signal wavelengths. In an erbium doped fiber implementation, the laser wavelength is shorter than that of the signal wavelengths and is separated from them by no more than approximately 75% of the width of the spectral hole. The compounding of relaxation oscillations may be substantially eliminated by varying the length of the fiber within each laser cavity within a system to change the photon round-trip time within each cavity.