.

Diagramof the lightwave spectrum

lnfra-red

Figure

'D**n

trt &
,

8/18

coucknt\
*\
-a

1.

Electromagnetic spectrum

il1u-ul"etvL d-dr*& wu,a

vv[ n,^f""'*
I
\

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rs defined as the
waveleigth at the-moaimff;ffii'il*:lfi'ensJrn ^o
The spectrar width is given by the standard deviation
o. For a gaussian
signal,

C*"tIq f^yr#<
,

nU

Ct{t-1lu}<

o is the half-width at 0.6 times the maximum power

lo, or:
o = 0.4.
where w is the mid-way spectrar harf-width
A narrow spectrum signartherefore has a ro* ri..ti"r*iotn.

Amplitude
1.0

Wavelength

Figure 2. Emission spectrum of a gaussian signal

8ASe0001

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9/18

The consequence of this phenomenon is to elitend the duration of

pulses. A signal has a certain spectral distribution. lts ditferent
component wavelengths travel at different speeds. After propagation
through the medium, the "fastest" wavelengths arrive befoL tne
"slowest", which has the effect of altering and extending the duration of
the pulse. This is referred to as "pulse broadening".
b

lllustration of how a pulse is extended in time

consider 1.1 , L2 and L3 three component wavelengths of a signal. After

propagation, the signal is broadened and its time width has increased.
Spectrum of
the laser
emitter
1"1

Transmitted

Received

+12 +13

s b /xt
or
Le
-a)
i
I

i r (tz

iol

aow
I n \m
I

Broadening of a light pulse

by chromatic dispersion

Tima
rr I re
'

Figure 5. lllustration of chromatic dispersion

hW*i*
-

cn*.*o.h

cr)

frad{

{^,fo* cl*ttro,l6 ^ai hJr{

'"Tt Bzpc-ullnAq cre e.t]-auw it

*f*

,f
'yo'ul

c^,\ferv>ddi ,ra.,-fuc(u c

oUutl"ntaa1 -

( n^,..u'dou0srA vwu T6'(")

8AS 90001 0117 VHZZAEd.I

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15/18

2 .1

.3

Principles of light emission and energy bands

An isolated atom has electrons distributed in layers. These
occupy particular
energylevels. The atom inserted in acrystal (consisting of N
is suoyect
to the influence of neighbouring atoms, which slighily itt.r. "iorri
tne energy levels
of the electrons. ln total, for the N atoms of the crystal, N
energy levels will be

generated. These distinct energy levels, close to one

form a

continuum called an energy band.

"iirtn.r,
Onlythe bands corresponding to the outer electron layer are involved. These
electrons provide the link between neighbouring atoms (valence band)
and
when they become free, in other words when th6 atoms ire ionted, they
artransferred in the conductionband. Theirtotal movement, underthe etfect
of
an electricalfield, gives rise to an electric current.
Energy
Conduction
band

Ec

Emission of
photons by

e-hole

recombination

'vv'\_.'
AE=hV
Valence

band

Figure 10. Energy bands

2 .1

.4 Detection

principle

The advantage of semiconductor materiats (which have three or five electrons

in the outer layer and are also called lll-V materials) is that to pass from the

valence band to the conduction band, the electron must cross a potential
barrier known as the energy gap (Eg).

An electron in the valence band that receives an energy E > Eg (in electrical
or photon form) can move to the conduction band. This free electron can then

participate in creating an electrical current. Photodetection uses this

phenomenon.

When an electron becomes free, it leaves a vacant "space" on the atom that it
was on. This creates a hole in the valence band. This is commonly referred
to as an electron-hole pair.

8AS 90001

011}VHZ7AEd.1 llrrelrrtil
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13146

A photon can induce the recombination of an electron-hole pair. ln this case,

the electron loses energy and restores it in the form of a photon that has exactly
the same characteristics as the photon that induced the recombination. Thii
is the principle of stimulatedemission. ln short, one photon gives rise to
another photon that has the same characteristics, which makes iipossible to

obtain very narrow spectral widths. This is the basic principle of optical
amplification.

2.1 .6 Diagrams illustrating light emission

Conduction
band

'

-lI
I

Gap

lncident
photon

,%

lncident photon

%
l+)

^rJ

I
I

Spontaneous emission

Valence

tnguced photon

Stimulated emission

band

Figure 11. Principle of spontaneous and stimulated emission

2.2

Light emitting diodes (LED)

2 .2 .1 Light emitting diodes (LEDs)

Lightemitting diodes (LEDs) basically consist of a PN junction. Atthe interface
of the junction, a current creates electron-hole pairs which recombine to
generate light by spontaneousemission.

14146

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8AS 90001 01 1 gVH Z7AEd.1

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rrr q rcr-er' trrs PrrsrrvrrrsrrtJll ul DtllllUlalLE(J emlsslon lS USeO. FOf thls,

photons must be confined in a region containing a high density of

electron-hole pairs. A photon confined in such a region will induce the
emission of a second photon which will be in every respect iden1c4to it.
step-by-step, through successive stimulated emissions, a signal
consistingof "identical" photons is created. The signal created in this way
has a narrower spectralwidth (limiting chromatic dispersion).
A cavity formed by two

semi- reflecting mirrors provides the confinement

photons.
for the
Part of the light is transferred to the active region (light

confinement), the other part is transmitted and forms the laser emission.
This cavity known as the Fabry-perot cavity, selects a number of
wavelength.

Confinement in the active medium can be supplemented by different

techniques (index guiding, gain guiding, etc) defining different Vpes of
laser.

Diagram of laser cavities

Semi-reflecting
mirror

Semi-reflecting
mirror

___-_----_:

rf>
Laser emission

h==_=_=_:_;.----Figure 1 4. Fabry- Perot cavity

8AS 90001 01 1 8 VH ZZA

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rrlrr

reseled. Notto

b copied withoutwritten permission

17146

.
.
.

is referred to as an n

x," if,u;;;Y''r'r'vr

t-vr le rt eIr\r vt.rrPut PUrr$

m'

nls

lnsertion losses
Acouplerwill introduce insertion losses expressed in dB which are generally
less than 1 dB.
Poweroutputdistribution
A coupler is used to tap part of the signal. This is expressed in dB
or as a
percentage with respect to the output power. A coupler would be referred

to as a 50/50 or 9S/5 coupler or a

Reflection rate

-3

dB coupler.

For a coupler, the reflection rdte is also defined equivalent to the fraction
of
powerreflected.

4 .2 .2 Example of using a coupler

lnput signal

95/5 coupler

Outputsignal

OJ

-*'

Power measurement

photodiode
Figure 28. Example of using couplers

8AS 9ooo1 011

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33146

5.3.2

Example

Figure 35. Example of using an optical filter for filtering optical noise

Figure 36. Example ol using a tunable filter for selecting

a wavelength channel

46146

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8AS 90001 011 }VHZ7AEd.1

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to the incident signal, generates an optical noise which reduces

s ig nal -to - noise ratio an d therefore transm ission q ual ity.
1 .1

the

.3 Main physicalphenomena
Absorptlon

Pump

photon

-T
'rn-n+

(dp)

a_t
\

Spontaneous emission

lrs

)'s

lol*-

Stlmulatedemlssion

fs

__t

fs

Figure 2.lllustration of absorption and spontaneous and stimulated emission

1 .1

.4 Basic OA configuration
An amplifier is built around a doped fibre which is the amplifying medium. A
wavelength division multiplexer is used to inject the signalto be amplified and
the optical pump power into the doped fibre.
lnput

connector

Output

connector

amplified
signal

/
Pump
residue

Output signal

lnput signal

Figure 3. Basic configuration of an OA

8AS 90001

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7 121

.3

Types of optical amplifier

The characteristics of amplifiers, make them particularly useful modules for

opticaltransmission systems. Their intended application leadstothe selection
and optimization of certain parameters.

.3.1

Post-amplifiers

These amplifiers are used at the transmitting end to provide a high optical
power (up to +30 dBm). Their characteristics are defined to optimize output
power. They are characterized by high pump powers and special internal
confi gurations (double pumping).

Figure 7. Functional diagram of a post-amplifier

1 .3

.2 Pre-amplifiers
Pre-amplifiers are used at the receiving end to amplify low power signals
beforethe detection stage (< 1 0 dBm). They are optimized to provide high gain
(greater than 20 dB) and very low noise (F < 5 dB). They can be used to
increase the sensitivity of the detector by more than 10 dB.

Pre-amp lifier

Figure 8. Functional diagram of a pre-amplifier

8AS 90001 01 19 VH ZZA Ed.1

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11121

1 .3

.3 Line amplifiers
These amplifiers are used for long links requiring amplification of the signal
during transmission. They are characterized by low noise and gains varfing
from 10 to 20 dB. Taking into hccount installation conditions-(for exampl6
submarine networks) where reliability is particularly important, strategic
components such as pump lasers undergo rigorous qualification tests.
Line amplifier

Figure 9. Functional diagram of a line amplilier

1 .3

.4

Example
90 to 10

coupler

Erbium

lsolator

WDM dopedfibre

l. = 1480nm

WDM

Optical
filter

90to 10
coupler

l. = 1480 nm

Figure 10. Post-amplifier on 5 GbiVs submarine system

Characteristics

This amplifier is used to provide a constant output power regulated to

+13 dBm. Part of the output power is tapped by a 90/10 coupler and
measured. The measurement is compared with a set point. The result of
the comparison is used to regulate the power of one of the pumps (by
adjustingthe bias current) to obtain a constant output powerirrespective
of the input power.
The 90/1 0 input coupler is used to detect the presence of the input signal.

12121

V
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8AS 90001 01 1 gVH

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ZZAEd.l

4.3

Operatingprinciple

Figure 7. Wavelength dlvislon multlplexlng principle (example:

4.4

16

channels)

Example:Multiplexingeightwavelengths

Signal transmitted on line

Signalreceived

12

SNR

1558

1560

1fi2 1552 1554

1556

Wavelength (nm)

1O.8 dB

1s58

560

Wavlength (nm)

4000 km

60 Repeaters

Figure 8. Wavelengthdlvlsion multlplexlng

20127

-ft*rtr

8AS 90001 0120 VHZZAEd.I

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4.5 Generatcharacteristics --' f ru-ri''tttwtcqrd4 [#

.

F ,t*,r*u{ol7an /

c'szt'otu'rau-zt

Pre-emphasis:
Amplifiers do not have a gain that is absolutely flat as a function of

wavelength. When severalamplifiers are connected in cascade (as in long

distance links), it is necessary to provide more power on channels for which
the gain is lower, in order to obtain the same SNR for all channels. This
technique is called pre-emphasis.

Dropping and adding a channel:

It is

possible

dem

plexers/mu

u lti

to drop and add wavelengths using optical

lti

plexers(WDM)

-5

-5

-10

10

^E
orv-r.
t
- -20

^-10
6E -rn
It
-o -20

rtt

zCL -25

1558 1560 1562

wavelength

( nm )

-15

E
-ro
E
:o -2s
E -so

-25
e
CL
-30
-35

552 1554 1556

WADMoutput
wlth added channel (A)

cL

1552 1554 1556 1558 1560 1552

-35
-40
1552 1ss4 1556 1ss8 1s60 1562

wavelength ( nm )

wavelength ( nm )

Flgure 9. lllustration of wavelengith add/drop functions

8AS 90001 0120 VH Z7AEd.1

@rlV

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21 127

.5

Example

Commercial spans at 2.5 GbiVs

ADM

110km

+ Post-amplification

215 km

+ Pre-amplification

270km

+ Transponder (FEC)

@
@

Remote

pre-amplification

+ Remote
pre-amplification

Figure 6. Repeaterless submarlne system contigurations according to

transmlsslondlstance
D

f=

[]_.

(lUp.urq\

A/Yt ?cq+ dutA'st'

18127

re'rynJ

/""M

8AS 90001 0120 VH7ZAEd.1

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2 VARIABLE OPTICAL ATTENUATOR

2.1

Functions
The optical attenuator is used to attenuate a signal.

2.2

'

lt is used in particularto attenuate and adjustthe signalatthe output of

a high
power source.

'
'

lt lets you simulate the attenuation of a transmission fibre.

Positioned in front of a receiver, it lets you measure the detection threshold.

Operating principles
This instrument consists of an input port and an output port. There are difierent
technological solutions. one technique commonly used is based on the
following principles.

On a light path, moving the relative position of two prisms consisting of an

absorbantmedium alters the length of material passed through and th6refore
the attenuation.

2.3

Functionaldiagram

lnput

Output
signal

signal

Figure 2. Diagram of an optical attenuator

8/13

rrlrr
V

8AS 90001 0122VH ZZAEd.l

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.4

Characteristics
An optical attenuator has the following characteristics:

.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
2

.5

dynamic attenuation range (from 5 to 50 dB),

resolution (0.1 to 0.01 dB),
precision (of the order of 0.1 dB),
attenuator insertion losses (from 2 to 5 dB),
operating wavelength (can be adjusted on certain types of attenuator),
reflection rate (from 30 to 60 dB),

type: manual or with mechanical or digital control mechanism,

input interface connectors (often modifiable).

Examples of applications

Variable

Laser

emitter

power

Variable

->

attenuator

Fixed power

Figure 3.lmplementation of an adjustable power optical source

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9/13