Fiber Amplifiers
Posted on 2007-08-06 as part of the Photonics Spotlight (available as e-mail newsletter!)
Permanent link: https://www.rp-photonics.com/spotlight_2007_08_06.html
Author: Dr. Rüdiger Paschotta, RP Photonics AG, RP Photonics AG
Abstract: It is often believed that a fiber amplifier with large core and/or higher NA exhibits stronger ASE. However, this is not true for single-mode amplifiers. The article explains why.
Ref.: encyclopedia articles on amplified spontaneous emission and fiber amplifiers
There are models for calculating the power of amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) in a fiber amplifier, which are using a kind of “capture fraction” for spontaneous emission. The idea is simple: spontaneous emission goes in all directions, and only some fraction of the total power, which goes into a certain cone around the fiber axis, will be guided because all other light either has a too large angle of incidence at the core/cladding interface to experience total internal reflection, or simply travels in backward direction. So one expects a higher ASE power for an active fiber with higher numerical aperture (NA), and also for fibers with large core area.
Although all this looks pretty reasonable, the application of such a model to a single-mode fiber is totally wrong, and this is often overlooked. If the fiber is single-mode, and for simplicity we consider a loss-less fiber with a four-level gain medium (as for a neodymium-doped fiber), the power spectral density of ASE depends only on the magnitude of the generated gain. This means that if you slowly increase the core diameter or the NA, the ASE power stays constant as long as single-mode guidance is preserved! At that point, you get a jump in ASE power, as in a multimode fiber the above statement applies to very single mode. As you go to a strongly multimode fiber, you get into a regime where the above-mentioned capture fraction model becomes a good approximation.
So what is the problem with that model in single-mode or few-mode situations? It is of course that effectively one uses a simple ray picture, disregarding the wave nature of light. What also helps is of course a basic knowledge of quantum noise phenomena.
Suppliers
The RP Photonics Buyer's Guide contains 65 suppliers for fiber amplifiers. Among them:
TOPTICA Photonics
Our new highly reliable Raman fiber amplifiers (RFA) are based on patented technology. With their high power of up to 30 W, the amplifiers cover the wavelength range from 1120 to 1370 nm that is not accessible by Yb or Er fiber amplifiers. For wavelengths outside this range, please enquire for a custom system.
The RFA is designed using TOPTICA’s high quality engineering excellence and utilizing a stable European & North American supply chain. The all fiber design requires no re-alignment and provides a high degree of stability. The RFA offers a wide tuning range of up to 10 nm, a relative intensity noise <1% r.m.s. (10 Hz – 10 MHz) and excellent long term RMS power stability of less than 0.5% over 100 hours (with a TA pro seed laser).
Active Fiber Systems
AFS’s customized kW average power and multi-mJ pulse energy ultrafast laser systems are based on AFS leading-edge fiber technology. They unite multiple main-amplifier channels using coherent combination, a technology which AFS has matured to an industrial grade. All essential parameters are software-controlled and can be tuned over a wide range, making them an extremely valuable tool for numerous application.
RPMC Lasers
Serving North America, RPMC offers a wide range of Telcordia grade erbium and ytterbium fiber lasers and amplifiers that are deployed in a wide range of applications, including LIDAR, mapping, 3D scanning and telecommunications. The BKtel suite of lasers and amplifiers are available in a range of wavelengths from 1030 nm to 2054 nm, with average powers up to 40 W, pulsed and CW capabilities, and numerous features, including low noise, compact package size, and a digital control system. Standard and custom solutions available. Let RPMC help you find the right laser today!
AMS Technologies
For both C- and L-band operation, AMS Technologies provides a selection of CW and pulsed erbium-(Er-)doped fiber amplifiers (EDFAs) as well as Yb/Er co-doped fiber amplifiers (YEDFAs) in a wide range of configurations and gains:
- 20 and 15 dB miniature size EDFA modules
- high-power, ?27 dBm EDFA modules
- high-speed, pulsed EDFA modules, SM and PM
- single- or multi-port high-power YEDFA modules
- PM YEDFA modules
- 19”, 1U EDFA racks, also PM
- 19”, 1U YEDFA racks, also PM
- 19”, 2U multiport high-power EDFA racks
- Raman fiber amplifier module
Lumibird
Lumibird manufactures an extensive range of mature and custom-designed optical fiber amplifiers and fiber lasers. High output powers are achieved through the use of double cladding fibers pumped by broad stripe diodes. Several varieties of pumping techniques are used each optimized for specific applications. Lumibird also develops key components for producing unique and innovative light sources.
Cycle
Based on Cycle's own femtosecond fiber lasers, the company also offers fiber-based amplifiers (EDFA) with a center wavelength of 1550 nm to 1700 nm. This variant of the SOPRANO-15 is a very attractive solution to amplify the output of beam arrival monitors in synchrotron or FEL facilities, for example. Other custom-made fiber amplifiers are available upon request.
DK Photonics
DK Photonics offers various erbium-doped fiber amplifiers for telecom applications, including compact amplifier modules as well as bench-top instruments with controls and displays.
Ytterbium-doped amplifiers for the 1-μm wavelength region are also available.
MPB Communications
In 1995, MPB Communications provided its first generation of high-power boosters and quantum-limited noise-figure EDFAs for long-haul, unrepeatered telecom systems. MPBC amplification solutions have been adopted by system integrators in the terrestrial, submarine and utilities markets and continue to offer exceptional reliability which power communication backbones worldwide.
Today, our fiber amplifier technology can be found in our line of network-ready telecom solutions, as well as in our extensive portfolio of gain modules, and in our single-frequency Raman fiber amplifiers.
AdValue Photonics
AdValue Photonics offers fiber amplifiers for wavelength around 1 μm, 1.5 μm or 2 μm. They are suitable for pulsed or continuous-operation, narrow linewidth or broadband light.
For the 1-μm region, we have compact and yet powerful large mode area fiber amplifier modules, which can deliver more than 120 W average output power.
Thorlabs
Thorlabs manufactures erbium (Er)-, ytterbium (Yb)-, and praseodymium (Pr)-doped fiber amplifiers for applications from ultrafast pulse amplification to datacom. Along with these stand-alone benchtop amplifiers, Thorlabs has developed a family of femtosecond lasers utilizing oscillator-amplifier architectures.
Le Verre Fluore
Thanks to their high rare-earth solubility (up to 100,000 ppm) and low phonon energy, LVF fluoride fibers offer dozens of active transitions, enabling a broad range of applications from visible to the mid-infrared, one of which is amplification. For example, LVF praseodymium and thulium doped fibers are used for amplification at 1.3 µm and 1.47 µm respectively. LVF doped fibers for amplification are available as single-mode fiber or double cladding fiber.
Le Verre Fluoré will soon offer laser and amplifier fiber modules. The required fiber will be integrated in a robust housing and connectorized with FC/PC, FC/APC, SMA or custom connectors depending on customer need: this is a plug-and-play module.
Depending on specific needs, modules might include single-mode or multimode splices between fluoride fibers or between silica and fluoride fibers.
This article is a posting of the Photonics Spotlight, authored by Dr. Rüdiger Paschotta. You may link to this page and cite it, because its location is permanent. See also the RP Photonics Encyclopedia.
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