Luca Schenato, Luca Palmieri

Notes for the course of "Optical Networks"

EDFA

(Academic year 2022/2023)

Signal amplification
The fiber of an optical link, along with splices, connectors and any other passive
device, cause signal attenuation. To avoid that this attenuation eventually
compromises transmission, the signal has to be periodically amplified along the link.
In the earliest optical fiber links, the amplification required an electro-optic stage, in
which the optical signal was received, electrically amplified, and subsequently re-
modulated on an optical carrier generated by a local laser. Clearly, these systems
were constrained to the data format and rate for which they had been designed; a
system upgrade would have not been possible.
With the invention of EDFAs, the scenario changed drastically, as EDFAs allows the
amplification over an extremely large bandwidth, regardless of the modulation
format used in the transmission. As a result a fiber optic link could support new
modulation format and higher bitrates transparently, the only components to be
upgraded being the transmitters and the receivers. This innovation changed
completely the economics of fiber optic communications and paved the way to WDM
at the high-capacity long-haul systems that are the backboned of today
communication networks.

2
Signal amplification

The research about fiber optic amplifiers started in the 60's and in the early 90's the
erbium doped fiber amplifier (EDFA) became a commercial product.

AE = electric amplifier

AO = optical amplifier

Up to 40 nm of bandwidth at 1550 nm: 5 THz!

3
Optical amplifiers
Optical amplifiers can be classified in 4 main classes based on the physical principle
used to achieve amplification.

1) Inversion population amplifiers. They use optical fibers doped with rare earth
elements that can emit light at the wavelength of interest, such as:
• Erbium (Er) in C+L band (1.5 − 1.6 𝜇𝑚),
• Praseodymium (Pr) in the O band (1.3 𝜇𝑚), Thulium (Tm; 1.8 − 2.1 𝜇𝑚)
• Ytterbium (Yt; 1.0 − 1.1 𝜇𝑚), Neodymium (Nd; 0.9 − 1.1 𝜇𝑚 and 1.3 −
1.4 𝜇𝑚), Holmium (Ho; 2.0 − 2.1 𝜇𝑚), for fiber lasers.

2) Semiconductors amplifiers. These use the ability to generate light of some of

the III-V semiconductors (or alloys of them), such as gallium arsenide (GaAs),
AlGaAs, indium phosphide (InP), etc.

3) Stimulated emission amplifiers. They exploit scattering phenomena (molecular

vibratons) that are intrinsic to the silica. Raman scattering is the most interesting
one for telecommunication application; Brillouin scattering finds important
application in fiber optic sensing.

4) Parametric amplifiers. Based on the non-linear Kerr effect, these devices are not
yet mature commercial products. 4
Light-matter interaction
When the atom is not isolated or is part of a molecule, its energy levels are affected
by the surrounding atoms and/or by the rotational and vibrational states of the
molecule. In a first approximation, this results in a widening of the energy levels, that
tend to become energy bands. By Pauli’s exclusion principle, every energy level is
characterized by a maximum number of electrons. At thermal equilibrium, systems
tend to the configuration of minimum energy; therefore, electrons occupies energy
levels starting from the lower.
Starting from the lower energies, the first non fully filled band is said conduction
band, while the one immediately below is the valence band. If the atoms receives
enough energy, electrons can pass from one energy level/band to a higher one; an
atom in this state is said to be excited.

5
Light-matter interaction
By definition, conductors have the conduction band partially filled at all temperatures.
The availability of empty states allow the electrons to flow "freely" in the material,
originating conductibility.
Differently, the conduction band of semiconductors is empty as the temperature
approaches the absolute zero (0 K); nevertheless, the energy gap is so small that at
practical temperatures the thermal energy is enough to bring some electrons from the
valence band to the conduction one. The "voids" that the electrons leave behind in
the valence band can be described as holes, pseudo-particles with positive charge and
mass related to the semiconductor properties.
Finally, the conduction band of insulators is always empty at practical temperatures
and the band gap is so large (typically higher than 3 eV) that thermal energy is not
enough to promote electrons from valence band to the conduction one.

6
Light-matter interaction

Eg

band not
completely filled
energy

band
completely filled

isolated atom conductor semiconductor insulator

Insulators typically have energy gap larger than 3 𝑒𝑉.

We recall that 1 𝑒𝑉 = 1.6 × 10−19 𝐽, which is about the energy of a photon
with wavelength 1.24 𝜇𝑚.

7
Light-matter interaction
Optical amplifiers cannot be modelled in terms of classical electromagnetic theory, as
their working principle is based on quantum effects. The most accurate physical
theory describing light-matter interaction is actually the quantum electrodynamics
(QED); nevertheless, to the aim of describing optical amplifiers, it is sufficient to recall
few key concepts and phenomena.
To begin with, light should be described as a flux of photons; each photon has an
energy equal to
𝐸 = ℎ𝜈 = ℎ 𝑐 Τ𝜆
where ℎ = 6.6256 … × 10−34 𝐽 ⋅ 𝑠 is the Planck's constant and 𝜈 is the photon
frequency. Moreover, photons have a moment and an angular moment (this last
quantity being related to the polarization of light).
As well known, matter is made of atoms, which form molecules. These interacts
electromagnetically with the surrounding atoms and molecules and, depending on
the strength of this interaction, the matter results to be gaseous, liquid or solid.
Atoms are made of a nucleus of protons and neutrons, surrounded by a cloud of
electrons. By QED, the potential energy of electrons cannot vary with continuity, but
can only assume allowed discrete values. These values, or energy levels, are
characteristic of each element.

8
Light-matter interaction

With respect to an atom with two particular energy levels, 𝐸1 < 𝐸2 , the interaction
between light and matter can be described by means of three fundamental phenomena.

Stimulated absorption
When a photon of light having energy 𝐸 = ℎ𝜈 =
𝐸2 − 𝐸1 is incident on an atom in the state 𝐸1 , the
atom may absorb the photon and jump to the higher
energy state 𝐸2 . Let 𝑁𝑖 be the density per unit
volume [𝑚−3 ] of atoms at level 𝑖 and Φ be the flux
of photons, i.e. the number of photons per unit time
and unit surface [𝑠 −1 𝑚−2]; the variation of atom
density at level 2 can be described by the equation
𝑑𝑁2
= 𝜎1,2 Φ𝑁1
𝑑𝑡
where 𝜎1,2 is the cross section of stimulated
absorption 𝑚2 , which is a characteristic of the
material involved in the process.

9
Light-matter interaction

With respect to an atom with two particular energy levels, 𝐸1 < 𝐸2 , the interaction
between light and matter can be described by means of three fundamental phenomena.

Stimulated absorption
𝑑𝑁2
= 𝜎1,2 Φ𝑁1
𝑑𝑡

It can be explained in terms of the probability of an

atom being promoted to this second energy level:
1) This probability is the higher, the larger the
number of atoms at energy level 1 (if there are
no atoms at energy level 1, nothing can happen);
2) This probability is the higher, the larger the
number of photons crossing the material;
3) This probability then depends on the probability
of having an “absorption.” The larger the cross-
section, the larger the absorption to occur. And
the larger the rate of atoms bring at energy level.
10
Light-matter interaction
Spontaneous emission
An atom can be exited by an external source of
energy, so that some of its electrons are at higher
energy levels. Nevertheless, systems tend to the
minimum-energy configuration, therefore over time
the electron will decay to its original state, releasing
the extra energy. For specific energy levels transition
and specific elements, this energy can be released as
a radiation; that is, the decay of an electron
generates a photon. This process is called
spontaneous emission.
If the decay occurs from level 𝐸2 to level 𝐸1 , the
generated photon will have energy (and hence
frequency) equal to
𝐸 = ℎ𝜈 = 𝐸2 − 𝐸1
The mean number of atoms at level 𝐸2 decays
exponentially with time, according to
𝑑𝑁2
= −𝐴𝑁2
𝑑𝑡
11
Light-matter interaction
The mean number of atoms at level 𝐸2 decays exponentially with time, according to
𝑑𝑁2 𝑁2
= −𝐴𝑁2 = −
𝑑𝑡 𝜏𝑠𝑝
where 𝐴 the decay rate and its inverse, 𝜏𝑠𝑝 , is the lifetime of atoms at level 2, which
has units of time [𝑠]. The lifetime can vary largely; depending on the element and the
energy level considered it can range from few picoseconds to tens of seconds.
Depending on the energy source that
brought the atom to the excited state,
spontaneous emission is also called as
thermoluminescence (such as
incandescence ot black body radiation),
photoluminescence (such as
phosphorescence), chemilumiescence
(which includes also bioluminescence,
such as that of fireflies or click beetles),
electroluminescence (as in LEDs) and
sonoluminescence.

12
Light-matter interaction
Stimulated emission
Stimulated emission is the basic principle behind
laser and optical amplifiers. A photon with energy
𝐸 = 𝐸2 − 𝐸1 interacting with the electron of an
excited atom at energy level 𝐸2 , may stimulate its
radiative decay. In this case, the emitted photon has
the same frequency, phase, polarization and
direction of the incident one.
The resulting variation of population at level 𝐸2 can
be expressed as
𝑑𝑁2
= −𝜎2,1 Φ𝑁2
𝑑𝑡
where 𝜎2,1 is the cross section of stimulated
emission 𝑚2 and depends on the specific element
or material involved in the process.
In general this cross section is different from the one
for stimulated absorption, but with a good
approximation we can assume
𝜎2,1 = 𝜎1,2 . 13
Population inversion
Consider a short fiber span of length Δ𝑧, delimited by two sections of area 𝑆, nd
traersed by a flux of photonos orthogona to 𝑆. Neglecting for the moment
spontaneous emission, we can write this simple balance:

𝑆Φ𝑜𝑢𝑡 = 𝑆Φ𝑖𝑛 + 𝑆 Δ𝑧 𝜎Φ𝑁2 − 𝜎Φ𝑁1

Volume

Entering photons Atoms excited by stimulated absorption (i.e.

per unit of time absorbed photons) per unit of time and unit
of volume

Exiting photons Atoms that decays by stimulated emission

per unit of time (i.e. generated photons) per unit of time
and unit of volume

14
Population inversion

The previous relationship yields:

ΔΦ = Φ𝑜𝑢𝑡 − Φ𝑖𝑛 = 𝜎Φ 𝑁2 − 𝑁1 Δz

therefore we can conclude that the output flux of photons is larger than the input
one, if and only if the density of atoms at level 2 is higher than that at level 1, a
condition known as population inversion.

If we consider thermal excitation as the only possible source of energy to populated

energy level 2, by Boltzmann statistics we can conclude that at equilibrium

𝑁2,𝑒𝑞 𝐸2 − 𝐸1 𝑁2,𝑒𝑞
= exp − ⇒ <1
𝑁1,𝑒𝑞 𝑘𝐵 𝑇 𝑁1,𝑒𝑞

where 𝑘𝐵 ≈ 1.3807 × 10−23 𝐽/𝐾 is the Boltzmann constant. This means that
population invention cannot be achieved by thermal excitation.

15
Three-level system
A possible way to achieve population invertion between two energy levels consists in
delivering the required energy with another flux of photons and exploiting a third
energy level, known as pump level. This three-level system works as follows.
1. Pump photons, with a frequency corresponding to the enregy gap 𝐸3 − 𝐸1 are
absorbed by stimulated absorption, bringing atoms to the energy level 3. This energy
level has a very short lifetime, so pumped atoms decay quickly to the energy level 2.
This decay process is non-radiative, meaning that the excess energy is released as
heat and not as photons.
2. The energy level 2 is metastable, i.e. it
has a rather long lifetime; therefore, fast non-radiative
atoms decay spontaneously at a rather decay

pumping
slow pace. We also assume, for the
moment, that there are no photons at
the right frequency to stimulate
emission from level 2 to level 1. Note, in
stimulated
particular that pump photons cannot
emission
stimulate emission from level 2.

16
Three-level system

3. If the pump is sufficiently intense, atoms that spontaneously decay to level 1 are
quickly pumped back to level 3, thus level 1 is emptied.

In this way it is possible to achieve population inversion, thus light amplification. This
phenomenon is called laser (light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation)
amplification and the transition from levels 2 and 1 is called laser transition.
Pumping can be achieved using different energy sources, among which the most
common are light radiation, electric current and chemical reaction. In the case of
optical fiber amplifiers, pumping is achieved with light radiation generated by a pump
laser.
From the above arguments, the variation with time of atom density at level 3 is
described by the equation of stimulated absorption, i.e.
𝑑𝑁3
= 𝜎𝑝 Φ𝑝 𝑁1
𝑑𝑡
where 𝜎𝑝 is the cross section of transition 1-3.

17
Erbium
The revolution of optical amplification in fiber optic
telecommunication system started with the
invention of the EDFA (erbium-doped fiber
amplifier).
Erbium (Er) is a lanthanide rare-earth element with
atomic number 68; it is a soft, malleable and silvery
metal. It was discovered in 1843 from the Swedish
chemist Carl Gustaf Mosander, who named it after
the Swedish village Ytterby. As of 2019, its price was
about 500 EUR/kg.
Erbium-doped optical fibers can be produced with
two main approaches. The first one is based on
chemical vapor deposition (CVD). With respect to
silica CVD, deposition of Erbium from the vapor
phase is, however, more difficult owing to the
properties the element. The second approach is
based on deposition from liquid phase; in this case Ytterby is a village near Stockholm. Its name
inspired the names of 4 different elements
the porous preform is soaked with liquid solvent discovered in the ores extracted from the local
doped with Erbium; the solvent is then evaporated, mine of gadolinite; namely, these elements are
leaving the element behind. ytterbium, terbium, erbium and yttrium.
18
Erbium

Energy levels of Erbium ion (Er+3) in the glass matrix (Er:glass).

The laser transition used for optical amplification is around 1540 nm, and it can be
pumped with laser radiation at 980 nm or 1480 nm.

19
Erbium

Absorption lines of Erbium ion in the glass matrix (Er:glass).

These lines are due to stimulation absorption at the given frequencies.

20
Erbium-doped fiber amplifiers

The basic scheme of an EDFA comprises the following components:

1. Few tens of meters of active (Er-doped) fiber;
2. The pump laser (a diode laser at 980 nm or, less commonly, at 1480 nm);
3. A dichroic coupler, need to merge pump and signal in the active fiber;
4. A couple of isolators to prevent light from propagating in opposite direction; EDFA
can achieve a very high gain; therefore, a weak feedback can easily transform the
amplifier in an oscillator.

Besides the fundamental components listed above, the EDFA can also comprise:
1. A filter at the output port to stop any residual pump radiation;
2. Electronic devices to control gain or output power of the amplifier.

21
Erbium-doped fiber amplifier

22
Erbium-doped fiber amplifiers

Beside the most standard scheme described in the previous slide, EDFA can exploit
also more complex schemes such as: counter-propagating pump, co- and counter-
propagating pumps, cascading of two or more amplification stages.

EDF EDF

Pump Pump

EDF EDF EDF

Pump Pump

23
Rate equations
To analyze the performance of an EDFA we need a model to describe the dynamic
of a three-level system. This is achieved by the rate equations which consist of
the following:
1. Equations to describe the variation with
time and space the of the intensities of
pump and signal; spontaneous emission
is neglected in these equations, because
it does not contribute to the actual
intensity of the signal.
2. Equations to describe the time variation
of atom densities on the energy levels of
involved in the process; spontaneous
emission is considered these equations,
because it directly affects the
populations of the ground and laser
levels.
3. An equation to express the conservation
on the total density of atoms, which is
constant during the process.
24
Rate equations for the intensities

Consider a section of active fiber, with infinitesimal

length Δ𝑧, section 𝑆 (hence volume Δ𝑉 = 𝑆 Δ𝑧),
traversed by a flux Φ of photons. With respect to
the photons at the laser frequency, we can write
the following balance on the photon flux
contributing to the “useful” signal:

𝑆 Φ𝑆 𝑧, 𝑡 Δ𝑡 Photons entering in Δ𝑉 in the time interval Δ𝑡

+ 𝑆 Δ𝑧 𝜎𝑆 𝑁2 𝑧, 𝑡 Φ𝑆 𝑧, 𝑡 Δ𝑡 Photons generated by stimulated emission (2→1)

− 𝑆 Δ𝑧 𝜎𝑆 𝑁1 𝑧, 𝑡 Φ𝑆 𝑧, 𝑡 Δ𝑡 Photons “removed” by stimulated absorption (1→2)

Photons exiting from Δ𝑉 in the time interval Δ𝑡, evaluated

= 𝑆 Φ𝑆 𝑧 + Δ𝑧, 𝑡 + Δ𝑧/𝑐 Δ𝑡 after the time the photons take to traverse the section

Moreover:
𝜕Φ𝑆 1 𝜕Φ𝑆
Φ𝑆 𝑧 + Δz, t + Δ𝑧Τ𝑐 ≈ Φ𝑆 𝑧, 𝑡 + ቤ + ቤ Δ𝑧
𝜕𝑧 𝑧,𝑡
𝑐 𝜕𝑡 𝑧,𝑡 27
Rate equations for the intensities
Approximating Φ𝑆 𝑧 + Δ𝑧, 𝑡 + Δ𝑧Τ𝑐 by its Taylor polynomial of 1st order, the
balance equation becomes

𝜕Φ𝑠 1 𝜕Φ𝑆
+ = 𝜎𝑠 𝑁2 − 𝑁1 Φ𝑆
𝜕𝑧 𝑐 𝜕𝑡

The energy carried by each photon is ℎ𝜈𝑠 , so the intensity (𝑊/𝑚2 ) of the photon
flux is 𝐼𝑆 = ℎ𝜈𝑆 Φ𝑆 . The first rate equation for the intensity of the signal than reads

𝜕I𝑆 1 𝜕I𝑆
+ = 𝜎𝑠 𝑁2 − 𝑁1 I𝑆
𝜕𝑧 𝑐 𝜕𝑡

Similarly, noticing that stimulation emission at the pump frequency can be

neglected, the equation for the intensity of the pump reads

𝜕I𝑃 1 𝜕I𝑃
+ = −𝜎𝑃 𝑁1 I𝑃
𝜕𝑧 𝑐 𝜕𝑡

28
Rate equation for the population densities
The rate equations for the intensities are not a closed system, because the densities of
populations at the different energy levels are unknown and dependent on pump and
signal intensities. This dependence is described by the population balance equation.
With respect to the laser level (energy level 2) and the position 𝑧, we can write:

𝑁2 𝑧, 𝑡 ΔV Atoms (Ions) at level 2 in volume Δ𝑉 at time 𝑡

Atoms brought to level 2 (through level 3) in the time

+ 𝜎𝑃 𝑁1 𝑧, 𝑡 Φ𝑃 𝑧, 𝑡 Δ𝑡 Δ𝑉 interval Δ𝑡, by stimulated absorption of pump photons
(1→3→2)
Atoms brought directly to level 2 in the time interval Δ𝑡, by
+ 𝜎𝑆 𝑁1 𝑧, 𝑡 Φ𝑆 𝑧, 𝑡 Δ𝑡 Δ𝑉 stimulated absorption of signal photons (1→2)
Atoms that decay from level 2 by stimulated emission
− 𝜎𝑆 𝑁2 𝑧, 𝑡 Φ𝑆 𝑧, 𝑡 Δ𝑡 Δ𝑉 (2→1)
Atoms that decay from level 2 by spontaneous emission
− 𝑁2 𝑧, 𝑡 Δ𝑡 Τ𝜏𝑠𝑝 Δ𝑉 (2→1)

= 𝑁2 𝑧, 𝑡 + Δ𝑡 Δ𝑉 Atoms at level 2 in volume Δ𝑉 at time 𝑡 + Δ𝑡

29
Rate equations for the population densities

Approximating 𝑁2 𝑧, 𝑡 + Δ𝑡 as

𝜕𝑁2
𝑁2 𝑧, 𝑡 + Δ𝑡 ≈ 𝑁2 𝑧, 𝑡 + ቤ Δ𝑡
𝜕𝑡 (𝑧,𝑡)

and setting 𝐼𝑃 = ℎ𝜈𝑃 Φ𝑃 and 𝐼𝑆 = ℎ𝜈𝑆 Φ𝑆 , we get the rate equation for the density of
population at level 2:

𝜕𝑁2 𝜎𝑃 𝐼𝑃 𝜎𝑆 𝐼𝑆 1
= 𝑁 − 𝑁 − 𝑁1 − 𝑁
𝜕𝑡 ℎ𝜈𝑃 1 ℎ𝜈𝑆 2 𝜏𝑠𝑝 2

A similar equation for the population density at level 1 can be obtained in the same
way but, as shown next, it is not necessary.

30
Conservation equation

For a given section of doped fiber, the number of atoms involved in the three-level
system is constant over time. As a consequence, the sum of the densities of population
on the three-energy level must be constant.
Nevertheless, we assumed that the decay from level 3 is extremely fast, to the extent
that we can reasonably assume that level 3 is always empty, i.e. 𝑁3 = 0. Therefore, we
reach the conservation equation

𝑁1 𝑧, 𝑡 + 𝑁2 𝑧, 𝑡 = 𝑁𝑡𝑜𝑡 𝑧

where 𝑁𝑡𝑜𝑡 𝑧 is the total density of dopant atoms added to the active fiber at
position 𝑧.
The conservation equation easily yields the rate equation for the density at level 1,
which reads

𝜕𝑁1 𝜕𝑁2
=−
𝜕𝑡 𝜕𝑡

31
Rate equations

To summarize, the system of rate equations reads:

𝜕I𝑆 1 𝜕I𝑆
+ = 𝜎𝑠 𝑁2 − 𝑁1 I𝑆
𝜕𝑧 𝑐 𝜕𝑡

𝜕I𝑃 1 𝜕I𝑃
+ = −𝜎𝑃 𝑁1 I𝑃
𝜕𝑧 𝑐 𝜕𝑡

𝜕𝑁2 𝜎𝑃 𝐼𝑃 𝜎𝑆 𝐼𝑆 1
= 𝑁 − 𝑁 − 𝑁1 − 𝑁
𝜕𝑡 ℎ𝜈𝑃 1 ℎ𝜈𝑆 2 𝜏𝑠𝑝 2

𝑁1 𝑧, 𝑡 + 𝑁2 𝑧, 𝑡 = 𝑁𝑡𝑜𝑡 𝑧

This system allows to calculate the behavior of the amplifier in response to a given
input pump 𝐼𝑃 (𝑧, 0) and signal 𝐼𝑆 (𝑧, 0).
Note also that, for practical reasons, quite often the doping is constant along the
fiber, so that 𝑁𝑡𝑜𝑡 can be assumed constant also with respect to 𝑧.

32
Rate equations in the stationary regime

In the common practice, the pump intensity is kept constant in time, except for slow
variations possibly induced by a feedback control. Moreover, the three-level process is
characterized by a time scale, which is typically much longer than the time scale of
Gbit-per-second signals. Following this argument, it is reasonable to limit the analysis
of an EDFA in the so-called stationary regime, in which the EDFA reacts only to the
time-averages intensities of pump and signal; in this regime the time derivatives in the
rate equations can be neglected, yielding the simplified system

𝜕I𝑆
= 𝜎𝑠 𝑁2 − 𝑁1 I𝑆
𝜕𝑧

𝜕I𝑃
= −𝜎𝑃 𝑁1 I𝑃
𝜕𝑧

𝜎𝑃 𝐼𝑃 𝜎𝑆 𝐼𝑆 1
0= 𝑁 − 𝑁 − 𝑁1 − 𝑁
ℎ𝜈𝑃 1 ℎ𝜈𝑆 2 𝜏𝑠𝑝 2

𝑁1 𝑧, 𝑡 + 𝑁2 𝑧, 𝑡 = 𝑁𝑡𝑜𝑡 𝑧

33
Rate equations in the stationary regime

The last two equations form a linear system that can be easily solved, to get the
population densities at the two energy levels:

𝐼𝑆 𝐼𝑃 𝐼𝑆
1+𝐼 𝐼𝑃,𝑠𝑎𝑡 +𝐼
𝑆,𝑠𝑎𝑡 𝑆,𝑠𝑎𝑡
𝑁1 = 𝑁𝑡𝑜𝑡 𝑁2 = 𝑁𝑡𝑜𝑡
𝐼𝑃 𝐼𝑆 𝐼 𝐼
1+𝐼 + 2𝐼 1 + 𝐼 𝑃 + 2𝐼 𝑆
𝑃,𝑠𝑎𝑡 𝑆,𝑠𝑎𝑡 𝑃,𝑠𝑎𝑡 𝑆,𝑠𝑎𝑡

where we introduced the saturation intensities of pump and signal as

ℎ𝜈𝑃 ℎ𝜈𝑆
𝐼𝑃,𝑠𝑎𝑡 = 𝐼𝑆,𝑠𝑎𝑡 =
𝜎𝑃 𝜏𝑠𝑝 𝜎𝑆 𝜏𝑠𝑝

Notice that according to the above equation, we can have population inversion only
if the pump is above a certain threshold; actually

𝑁2 > 𝑁1 ⇔ 𝐼𝑃 > 𝐼𝑃,𝑠𝑎𝑡

34
 Rate equations in the stationary regime
Inserting the expressions for 𝑁1 and 𝑁2 in the rate equations for the intensities, we finally find the rate equation in the
stationary regime

𝐼𝑆 𝐼𝑃
𝑑𝐼𝑃 1+ 𝑑𝐼𝑆 1−
𝐼𝑆,𝑠𝑎𝑡 𝐼𝑃,𝑠𝑎𝑡
= −𝜎𝑃 𝑁𝑡𝑜𝑡 𝐼 = −𝜎𝑆 𝑁𝑡𝑜𝑡 𝐼
𝑑𝑧 𝐼𝑃 𝐼𝑆 𝑃 𝑑𝑧 𝐼𝑃 𝐼𝑆 𝑆
1+𝐼 + 2𝐼 1+𝐼 +2𝐼
𝑃,𝑠𝑎𝑡 𝑆,𝑠𝑎𝑡 𝑃,𝑠𝑎𝑡 𝑆,𝑠𝑎𝑡

Note:

1) Pump: IP is always reduced during the propagation (not due to losses, but to “promote” ions from the ground to laser
level).

2) A) Signal: IS is amplified only for IP>IP,sat;

B) Given that IP decays, at some point the signal will start to be attenuated (→ optimal length);

3) Pump: The larger IS/IS,sat the faster the decay rate of the pump (the larger the signal the more efficient is the process of
extracting energy out of the pump, because more ion N1 at ground level are available to absorb the pump photon)

4) Signal: Similarly, as the signal increase the rate at which it is amplified slow down… at some point it saturates (due to the
reduce the number of ion at the laser level, N2, available for the stimulated emission, reducing the pop inversion). 35
Behavior of the EDFA in the stationary regime

While the stationary rate equations cannot be solved in closed form and must be
evaluated numerically, they still allow to draw important qualitative conclusions about
the behavior of an EDFA.
1. The derivative of the pump intensity is always negative. Indeed, the pump does
not undergo amplification, so it gets attenuated as it propagates along the fiber.
Note however that this attenuation is not due to losses (in this simplified model)
but to energy conversion to the signal frequency (see also point 5).
2. The derivative of the signal is positive is and only if 𝐼𝑃 > 𝐼𝑃,𝑠𝑎𝑡 , i.e., if and only if
population inversion has been achieved. To obtain amplification, the pump
intensity must be above a certain threshold.
3. Even if the input pump is sufficiently intense so that 𝐼𝑃 0 > 𝐼𝑃,𝑠𝑎𝑡 , because of
point 1 at some distance 𝑳𝒎𝒂𝒙 the pump will go below threshold and, from that
point on, the amplifier will stop amplifying and will rather attenuate the signal.
There is no advantage is making the active fiber arbitrarily long; nevertheless, the
optimal length depends also on the input signal intensity, so the amplifier can be
optimized only for a specific operational condition.

36
Behavior of the EDFA in the stationary regime

4. As 𝐼𝑆 increases, the factor that multiplies 𝐼𝑆 in the rate equation for the signal
becomes smaller; this means that the amplification decreases. In other words, as
the signal intensity increases, the amplifier saturates.
5. When 𝐼𝑃 > 𝐼𝑃,𝑠𝑎𝑡 , the factor that multiplies 𝐼𝑃 in the rate equation for the pump
(which always positive) increases with 𝐼𝑆 , causing the pump intensity to decrease
at a higher pace. Note that this is not due to power dissipation, but to energy
conversion from the pump to the signal frequency. The higher the signal, the
higher the probability of stimulated emission and, hence, the higher the number
of atoms that decay to level 1, which then increases the rate of stimulated
absorption of pump photons.

37
Erbium properties

In the most common configuration, the EDF is pumped at 𝜆𝑃 = 980 𝑛𝑚, the second
less common option being 𝜆𝑃 = 1480 𝑛𝑚. For the first case we have

𝜈𝑃 ≈ 306 𝑇𝐻𝑧

𝜎𝑃 ≈ 2.8 × 10−25 𝑚2 ⇒ 𝐼𝑃,𝑠𝑎𝑡 ≈ 72 𝑀𝑊/𝑚2

𝜏𝑠𝑝 ≈ 10 𝑚𝑠

Light is however mainly focused in the core area; therefore, assuming a diameter of
about 9 𝜇𝑚, the actual saturation pump power is about 𝟑. 𝟔 𝒎𝑾.

For completeness, we report the typical values of the other parameters:

𝜎𝑆 ≈ 6 × 10−25 𝑚2 , 𝑁𝑡𝑜𝑡 ≈ 1024 ÷ 1025 𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠/𝑚3

38
EDFA parameters
Different parameters are used to describe EDFAs’ properties.

Gain – Simply the ratio between output and input power at the signal frequency;
𝑃𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝜈𝑆
𝐺=
𝑃𝑖𝑛 𝜈𝑆

Power conversion efficiency (PCE) – By definition the ratio between the power
delivered by the amplifier to the signal and the power delivered by the pump to the
amplifier
𝑃𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝜈𝑆 − 𝑃𝑖𝑛 𝜈𝑆
𝑃𝐶𝐸 =
𝑃𝑖𝑛 𝜈𝑃
Recalling that power is proportional to the photon flux multiplied by the
corresponding energy, we see that the best power conversion is achieved when each
pump photon is converted in a signal photon, i.e., when Φ𝑆,𝑜𝑢𝑡 − Φ𝑆,𝑖𝑛 = Φ𝑃,𝑖𝑛 .
Therefore, we can write
𝜈𝑆 Φ𝑆,𝑜𝑢𝑡 − Φ𝑆,𝑖𝑛 𝜈𝑆 𝜆𝑃
𝑃𝐶𝐸 = ≤ =
𝜈𝑃 Φ𝑃,𝑖𝑛 𝜈𝑃 𝜆𝑆
39
EDFA parameters

Saturation input power – The power of the input signal at which the EDFA gain
decreases by 3 dB with respect to its maximum

𝑠𝑎𝑡
𝑃𝑖𝑛 = saturation input power
𝑃𝑝𝑖𝑛 = pump input power
𝐿𝑜𝑝𝑡 = optimal EDF length
𝐺𝑚𝑎𝑥 = maximum gain

40
EDFA parameters

Saturation input power – The power of the input signal at which the EDFA gain
decreases by 3 dB with respect to its maximum

3 dB

𝑠𝑎𝑡
𝑃𝑖𝑛 = saturation input power
𝑃𝑝𝑖𝑛 = pump input power
𝐿𝑜𝑝𝑡 = optimal EDF length
𝐺𝑚𝑎𝑥 = maximum gain

41
EDFA parameters

Saturation output power – The power of the output signal at which the EDFA gain
decreases by 3 dB with respect to its maximum

𝑠𝑎𝑡
𝑃𝑜𝑢𝑡 = saturation output power
𝑃𝑝𝑖𝑛 = pump input power
𝐿𝑜𝑝𝑡 = optimal EDF length
𝐺𝑚𝑎𝑥 = maximum gain

42
EDFA parameters
Bandwidth – The gain bandwidth of the EDFA is limited by the dependence on
frequency of the cross section 𝜎𝑆 of the laser transition. The most common
operational bandwidth is between 1530 and 1560 nm, where the gain is relatively
flat. Proper pumping schemes can extend the amplification to the L band.

43
Amplified spontaneous emission

So far, we have neglected light generated by spontaneous emission. Despite in a

properly operated EDFA most of the radiation is generated by stimulated emission,
some Erbium ions decay spontaneously, emitting photons that have phase, frequency,
and polarization (spin) not correlated with those of the signal. These spontaneously
generated photons are then amplified by the following section of the EDF, generating
a background noise called amplified spontaneous emission (ASE).

44
Amplified spontaneous emission

The spectrum of the ASE is as wide as the gain bandwidth of the EDFA. Most of this noise can be
filtered out, so in the optimal case, the only contribution affecting the signal is the one that occupies
the same optical bandwidth. In practice, the optical bandwidth of the ASE is limited by the device
used to filter it optically.
It is worthwhile remarking that ASE is not just made of the spontaneously emitted photons, but it is
mainly made by the subsequent amplification of those spontaneous photons.

45
Amplified spontaneous emission

A rigorous theory of ASE is beyond the scope of these notes. It can be proved,
however, that ASE generation can be described by the following equation

𝑑 𝑛𝑆
= 𝜎𝑆 𝑁2 − 𝑁1 𝑛𝑆 + 2𝜎𝑆 𝑁2
𝑑𝑧

where terms have the following meanings:

𝑛𝑆 The average number of photons AT frequency 𝜈𝑆 , including both signal and

ASE
𝜎𝑆 𝑁2 𝑛𝑆 The average number of photons generated, per unit length, by stimulated
emission at the signal frequency
𝜎𝑆 𝑁1 𝑛𝑆 The average number of photons absorbed, per unit length, by stimulated
absorption at the signal frequency
2𝜎𝑆 𝑁2 Forcing term generating the ASE. Qualitatively it corresponds to the
average number of photons generated, per unit length, by the stimulated
emission triggered by 2 spontaneous photons. A rigorous proof of this term
is quite complex, but factor 2 stems from the fact that a single-mode fiber
actually has 2 degenerate modes.
46
Amplified spontaneous emission
The solution of the previous equation can be written in closed forms and reads
𝑛𝑆 (𝑧) = 𝐺 𝑧 𝑛𝑆 (0) + 2𝜂(𝑧)
where
𝑧
𝑁2 𝑧 ′ ′
𝜂 𝑧 = 𝜎𝑆 𝐺 𝑧 න ′ 𝑑𝑧
0 𝐺 𝑧

is the average number of “noise” photons per mode of the ASE (note actually that
this term is non-zero also when the input signal 𝑛𝑆 (0) is zero), and
𝑧
𝐺 𝑧 = exp 𝜎𝑆 න 𝑁2 𝑧 ′ − 𝑁1 𝑧 ′ 𝑑𝑧′
0

is, consequently, the EDFA gain.

Assuming that over the bandwidth of interest the ASE spectrum is flat, the ASE
power measured over the optical bandwidth Δ𝜈 centered at 𝜈𝑆 is
𝑃𝐴𝑆𝐸 𝑧 = 2𝜂 𝑧 ℎ𝜈𝑆 Δ𝜈

47
 Noise figure

As well known, the quality of an electrical signal can be assessed by the ratio of the power of the useful
part of the signal over the power of the noise. Similarly, for the optical signal, we can define the optical
signal-to-noise ratio (OSNR) as:*

power of the optical signal

𝑂𝑆𝑁𝑅 =
power of the optical noise

Since it generates ASE, an EDFA amplifies a signal and changes its OSNR. This effect is described by the
amplifier’s noise figure defined as:

𝑂𝑆𝑁𝑅𝑖𝑛
𝑁𝐹 =
𝑂𝑆𝑁𝑅𝑜𝑢𝑡

And the noise figure can’t be smaller than 1, independently of the kind of amplifier. This means that the
output SNR is smaller than the input one.

* Note that some authors define the OSNR as the ratio of the squared optical powers. This choice may be justified because the SNR is the ratio of
electrical power generated by the photodiode, which is proportional to the squared optical power.
48
Noise figure
To evaluate the NF of and EDFA, assume that the input signal is affected only by
quantum uncertainty. The input OSNR is

𝑃𝑖𝑛 𝑃𝑖𝑛
𝑂𝑆𝑁𝑅𝑖𝑛 = =
1
Δ𝜈 2 ℎ𝜈𝑆 Δ𝜈
2 ℎ𝜈𝑆

where ℎ𝜈/2 is the minimum energy of the mode,* Δ𝜈 is the considered optical
bandwidth and the factor 2 is due to the presence of 2 degenerate modes in a single-
mode fiber.
The corresponding output signal will be both amplified and affected by the ASE, so the
output OSNR reads:

𝐺 𝑃𝑖𝑛 𝐺 𝑃𝑖𝑛
𝑂𝑆𝑁𝑅𝑜𝑢𝑡 = =
𝑃𝐴𝑆𝐸 + ℎ𝜈𝑆 Δ𝜈 2𝜂 + 1 ℎ𝜈𝑆 Δ𝜈

* From the point of view of quantum mechanics, a waveguide can be considered as a potential well. It can be
shown that the energy of the fundamental level is not zero, but is approximately equal to ℎ𝜈𝑆 /2. This is a
consequence of the Heisenberg uncertainty principle; in fact, if the energy were zero, also the momentum of
the photon would be zero, which would imply an infinite uncertainty on the position of the photons. This
conclusion is however in contrast with the axiom of quantum mechanics that states that the wave function
must be finite and integrable. 49
Noise figure
From the above results, the NF of the EDFA can be written as

𝑃𝐴𝑆𝐸 + ℎ𝜈𝑆 Δ𝜈 2𝜂 + 1
𝑁𝐹 = = ⇒ 𝑃𝐴𝑆𝐸 = 𝐺 ⋅ 𝑁𝐹 − 1 ℎ𝜈𝑆 Δ𝜈
𝐺 ℎ 𝜈𝑆 Δ𝜈 𝐺

It is not possible to write an explicit closed form of the NF. Nonetheless, it can be
calculated numerically by solving first the rate equations in the stationary regime and
then using the following expression (which can be proved as an exercise)

𝐿
𝑝 𝑧 + 𝑠(𝑧) 1
𝑁𝐹 = 𝑠 0 2𝜎𝑆 𝑁𝑡𝑜𝑡 න 𝑑𝑧 +
0 𝑠 𝑧 1 + 𝑝 𝑧 + 2𝑠 𝑧 𝑠 𝐿

where 𝐿 is the length of the EDF and

𝐼𝑃 𝑧 𝐼𝑆 𝑧
𝑝 𝑧 = , 𝑠 𝑧 =
𝐼𝑃,𝑠𝑎𝑡 𝐼𝑆,𝑠𝑎𝑡

50
Noise figure: Approximate analysis
A simpler expression for the NF can be found assuming that the populations at the
energy levels 1 and 2 is constant along the fiber (a rather rough approximation,
actually). Under this assumption we can write:

𝐺 𝑧 = exp 𝜎𝑆 𝑁2 − 𝑁1 𝑧 𝜂 𝑧 = 𝑛𝑠𝑝 𝐺 𝑧 − 1

where the spontaneous emission factor 𝑛𝑠𝑝 is defined as

𝑁2
𝑛𝑠𝑝 =
𝑁2 − 𝑁1

We reach then

𝑃𝐴𝑆𝐸 𝑧 = 2ℎ𝜈𝑆 Δ𝜈 𝑛𝑠𝑝 𝐺 𝑧 − 1

Note that 𝑛𝑠𝑝 is negative only if 𝐺 < 1, therefore 𝑃𝐴𝑆𝐸 is positive for the cases of
practical interest. Moreover, when 𝑁2 = 𝑁1 = 𝑁𝑡𝑜𝑡 /2 the ASE power is
𝑃𝐴𝑆𝐸 (𝑧) = ℎ𝜈𝑆 Δ𝜈 𝜎𝑆 𝑁𝑡𝑜𝑡 𝑧 .

51
Noise figure: Approximate analysis
Using the above results we can prove that the noise figure of an EDFA can be
approximated as

1
𝑁𝐹 ≈ 1 + 2 𝐺 − 1 𝑛𝑠𝑝
𝐺
Noticing that 𝑁1 = 𝑁𝑡𝑜𝑡 − 𝑁2 we can write

𝑥 2𝑥 − exp − 2𝑥 − 1 𝛼
𝐺 = exp 2𝑥 − 1 𝛼 𝑛𝑠𝑝 = 𝑁𝐹 =
2𝑥 − 1 2𝑥 − 1
where we defined (𝐿 is the length of the EDF)

𝑁2
𝑥= , 𝛼 = 𝜎𝑆 𝑁𝑡𝑜𝑡 𝐿
𝑁𝑡𝑜𝑡

These quantities are plotted in the following graph. Note that the NF decreases
monotonically with 𝑁2 and is minimum at 𝑁2 = 𝑁𝑡𝑜𝑡 (total population inversion).
This minimum value is 2 − 𝑒 −𝛼 ; 𝛼 is usually much larger than 1 and total population
inversion is hardly reached in practice. Because of these facts, we can conclude that
the NF of EDFAs is practically always larger than 2.
52
Noise figure: Approximate analysis

From a practical point of view 𝑁𝐹𝑑𝐵 > 3 𝑑𝐵 always.

53
EDFA usage
According to the analysis performed so far, when the input signal is rather low (less
than about −30 𝑑𝐵𝑚), the gain is quite high (larger than about 25 𝑑𝐵; note that 𝑁2
decreases monotonically with 𝐼𝑆 ), the noise figure is low, but also the output power is
low (usually no more than few dBm).

Differently, when the input signal is large (above about 5 𝑑𝐵𝑚), the gain is low, the
noise figure is higher, but also the output power is higher since, as we have seen,
higher input signals increase the conversion efficiency.

These two observations suggest that the EDFA can be used in two main different ways:

1. As line amplifier along the link or pre-amplifier at the receiver; the low-power
input signal is strongly amplified with minimal degradation of the OSNR

2. As booster (or power amplifier) at the transmitter; the input signal has a relatively
high power and so the power conversion efficiency is high; the NF is also higher,
but the OSNR of the signal is high too, so there is margin for degradation.

54
EDFA usage

High input signal power Low input signal power Low input signal power Low input signal power
Low gain High gain High gain High gain
High NF Low NF Low NF Low NF

Src: fiberlabs.com 55
EDFA concatenation
Consider the concatenation of an amplifier and a passive device; there are two
possible cases.

Pin Pout Pin Pout

A G, PASE G, PASE A

𝐴𝐺𝑃𝑖𝑛 𝐴𝐺𝑃𝑖𝑛
𝑂𝑆𝑁𝑅𝑜𝑢𝑡 = 𝑂𝑆𝑁𝑅𝑜𝑢𝑡 =
𝑃𝐴𝑆𝐸 + ℎ𝜈𝑆 Δ𝜈 𝐴𝑃𝐴𝑆𝐸 + ℎ𝜈𝑆 Δ𝜈

𝑁𝐹𝑡𝑜𝑡 =
𝑃𝐴𝑆𝐸 + ℎ𝜈𝑆 Δ𝜈 𝑁𝐹
𝐴𝐺 ℎ𝜈𝑆 Δ𝜈
=
𝐴 > 𝑁𝐹𝑡𝑜𝑡 =
𝐴𝑃𝐴𝑆𝐸 + ℎ𝜈𝑆 Δ𝜈
𝐴𝐺 ℎ𝜈𝑆 Δ𝜈
= 𝑁𝐹 +
1−𝐴
𝐴𝐺

This proves that, in this case, pre-amplification performs better because the
subsequent passive device attenuates both the signal and the ASE (if, in the second
scheme, the amplifier is not saturated!!!)

Exercise. Prove that an EDFA with a counter-propagating pump may have smaller NF;
however, this theoretical advantage may be lost when the losses due to the dichroic
56
coupler are considered.
EDFA concatenation
With respect to the cascade shown in the figure below, the output OSNR is

𝐺1 𝐺2 𝑃𝑖𝑛
𝑂𝑆𝑁𝑅𝑜𝑢𝑡 =
𝑃𝐴𝑆𝐸,2 + 𝐺2 𝑃𝐴𝑆𝐸,1 + ℎ𝜈𝑆 Δ𝜈

therefore, recalling that 𝑃𝐴𝑆𝐸,𝑘 = 𝑁𝐹𝑘 𝐺𝑘 − 1 ℎ𝜈𝑆 Δ𝜈, we find

𝑁𝐹2 − 1
𝑁𝐹𝑡𝑜𝑡 = 𝑁𝐹1 +
𝐺1

This expression can be generalized for a cascade of 𝑚 amplifiers, finding

𝑁𝐹2 − 1 𝑁𝐹𝑚 − 1
𝑁𝐹𝑡𝑜𝑡 = 𝑁𝐹1 + + ⋯+
𝐺1 𝐺1 𝐺2 … 𝐺𝑚−1

The result shows that the most impacting NF is the one of the first amplifier, since the
NF of the subsequent ones is mitigated by the accumulated gain.

Pin Pout
G1 , PASE,1 G2 , PASE,2
57
Measurement of the noise figure
It is straightforward to show that the NF of an EDFA can be expressed as

𝜌𝐴𝑆𝐸 + ℎ𝜈𝑆
𝑁𝐹 =
𝐺 ℎ𝜈𝑆

where 𝜌𝐴𝑆𝐸 = 𝑃𝐴𝑆𝐸 /Δ𝜈 is the power spectral density of the ASE.

In practice, Δ𝜈 is the spectral

resolution of the OSA used for
measurement, while 𝑃𝐴𝑆𝐸 is the
power measured at frequency
close to that of the signal.

58
Measurement of the noise figure

Input signal depletes metastable atoms, competing with the ASE

59
Other kinds of optical amplifiers

60
How an EDFA looks like

Src: Huawei 61