The present invention relates generally to optical amplifiers used in fiber optics for telecommunications. More particularly, the invention relates to Raman Scattering and dynamic self-adjusting gain tilt optimization for equalizing amplified optical output.
In optical fiber communication systems, communication channels can be provided by transmitting signals impressed on laser beams having different wavelengths (WDM). Although optical fiber communication systems utilizing wavelength distinct modulated channels may, carry information over long distances, signals transmitted through optical fibers are attenuated mainly by the cumulative and combined effects of absorption and Rayleigh Scattering. While the signal attenuation per kilometer in optical fibers used for communications is typically low, signals transmitted over increasing transmission distances require periodic amplification.
Stimulated Raman Scattering induces a power tilt over. the signals within the C-band and L-band range of transmission frequencies. The power tilt is linear in first order on a logarithmic scale and depends on the overall signal and noise power injected into the fiber and on the fiber Raman coefficient. The tilt does not depend on the distribution of the channels within the band. For instance, the tilt per span amounts to about 0.7 dB per 100 mW signal power in single mode optical fiber (SMF) and about 1 d13 per 100 mW signal power in LEAF. In this example, tilt can be defined as the difference in span loss between channel #80 (around 1603 nm) and channel #1 (around 1570 nm). The tilt accumulates linearly (in dB) with the number of spans of optical fiber.
In the prior art, the Raman power tilt is compensated for by introducing a gain tilt in an ILA.
When channels are accidentally dropped, for example, due to a fiber cut or equipment failure, ILAs 200 maintain the overall gain constant by adjusting the amplifiers to take into account the lower ILA, input power. However, as a lower channel count on the fiber leads to a reduced power tilt, the ILAs typically overcompensate for the power tilt and introduce a negative power tilt as shown in
Certain prior art systems have attempted to address this problem with varying success. U.S. Pat. No. 6,088,152 to Berger et al, entitled “Optical Amplifier Arranged To Offset Raman Gain”, discloses an invention wherein an optical amplifier adjusts the gain. that the amplifier applies to optical signals so the gain favors the signal components at the low end of the bandwidth. A program uses a value representing power into the fiber to index a fable of pre-tilt values. The program then determines the difference between a pre-tilt value read out of the table and a pre-tilt value obtained from an optical monitor and adjusts a variable attenuator unit as a function of the difference to obtain the desired pre-tilt of the output signal. The Berger system is comparatively slow. It also requires a static lookup table that must be reprogrammed upon certain fiber or amplifier changes.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,356,384 to Islam, entitled “Broadband Amplifier And Communication System”, discloses a tilt control device to control gain tilt coupled to splitters, Raman amplifiers, EDFAs and combiners. Islam does not, disclose or suggest a method or controller system for fast automatic tilt correction of gain control.
United States Patent Application Publication No. 2042/0044317 to Gentner, et al., entitled “Control Method And Optical Data Transmission Path For Compensating Changes In Srs-Induced Power Exchange”, discloses a device for determining the tilt of all optical spectruns, and then using a quick control and slow control for compensating the tilt. Gentner requires laser equipment for quick response to power fluctuations which raises system cost and complexity.
Therefore, a need exists for a method and a device which permits compensation of the titling of the spectrum fast enough to prevent system shutdown upon loss of channels, and cheaply enough to reduce the cost of deployment in an optical transport system.
The present invention is an improvement over the prier art by providing a control scheme that can perform fast automatic tilt correction.
The present invention recognizes that the gain tilt is proportional to the fiber input power. As a result, the measured fiber output power (or ILA input power) if scaled by the span loss, can be used to adjust the ILA gain tilt. ILA gain tilt adjustment is then used to offset the tilt induced by Raman Scattering in a rapid automatic fashion to avoid system shutdown due to accidental loss of channels. A controller continuously reads the output power of the ILA and compares it to an earlier value. A change in output power is calculated by subtracting the current ILA output power from the past ILA. output power. After the change in output power is calculated, a change in the ILA gain tilt is calculated by multiplying the change in output power by a negative constant. A negative constant produces a positive change in tilt when channels are dropped. The controller transmits a control signal to the ILA to make the necessary corrections. The tilt control hardware and algorithm are incorporated into the ILA hardware. Because of the simplicity of the algorithm and the proximity of the hardware to the ILA, adjustments can be made to the gain tilt within approximately 100 μs. System failures caused by negative tilt accumulation are avoided.
The invention will be better understood from the following more detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
A better understanding of the invention can be obtained from the following detailed description of one exemplary embodiment as considered in conjunction with the following drawings in which:
If the change in power is less than the threshold value, then the controller takes no action and allows the power to remain constant and loops back to step 505. If the change in power is determined to be greater than the threshold value at 515, then the change in ILA gain tilt is calculated by multiplying the change in power by a negative constant, step 520. The constant is set by controller 620 to reflect fiber type, fiber characteristics, or a default average of about 8 dB/W. Controller 620 then transmits a signal to adjust the tilt control by the calculated change in tilt, step 525. After adjusting the tilt control, controller 620 loops back to step 500.
The invention provides for three different types of tilt control. First, tilt control may be provided by a single stage, double stage or multi-stage amplifier combined with a VOA. To change the tilt, the VOA is activated to attenuate all wavelengths equally. To compensate for the attenuation, the gain of one or more stages of the amplifier is increased. The tilt is changed due to the larger gain of the amplifier stages even though the overall gain of the amplifier-VOA combination remains constant.
In a second embodiment, a dynamic gain equalizer (DOE) attenuates the loss from the amplifiers on a channel-by-channel or band-by-band basis. The dynamic gain equalizer can be adjusted without adjusting the amplifiers.
In a third embodiment, an optical filter can be designed to introduce a broadband tilt. This tilt can be tuned by changing the voltage or similar adjustment of the optical filter.
Because of the simplicity of the algorithm and because the algorithm reins on the hardware within the ILA to be adjusted, adjustments can be made to the gain tilt within approximately 100 μs and system failures from upstream channel failure caused by negative tilt accumulation are avoided. Manual tilt changes, tilt changes via the management channel, triggered by a tuning algorithm, or any other methods for making tilt changes are still possible.
Although the invention has been described with reference to one or more preferred embodiments, this description is not to be construed in a limiting sense. There is modification of the disclosed embodiments, as well as alternative embodiments of this invention, which will be apparent to persons of ordinary skill in the art, and the invention shall be viewed as limited only by reference to the following claims.
This application is a divisional application under 35 U.S.C. § 121 of U.S. application Ser. No. 10/427,898, filed Apr. 30, 2003 entitled “Compensation For Spectral Power Tilt From Scattering”. This application claims priority to Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/377,084, entitled “Compensation for Spectral Power Tilt from Stimulated Raman Scattering” by Eiselt, filed Apr. 30, 2002.
Number | Date | Country | |
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60377084 | Apr 2002 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 10427898 | Apr 2003 | US |
Child | 11515438 | Aug 2006 | US |