Fiber-optic amplifier with a facility for monitoring the pump power and input power
US5442479A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 24, 1994 |
| Grant date | Aug 15, 1995 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 24, 2014 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04B2210/08
- WIPO fieldTelecommunications
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
In fiber-optic amplifiers, various parameters, such as the input power, are measured to obtain information on the operating condition of the transmission link and of the fiber-optic amplifier itself. In prior art fiber-optic amplifiers, a portion of the input power is coupled out for this purpose by means of a coupler (2). If low-power optical signals such as digital signals are transmitted, the coupled-out portion of the input power can only be detected with complicated and costly circuitry. In the novel fiber-optic amplifier, the pump power and input power are monitored by coupling out and evaluating the radiation resulting from amplified spontaneous emission (ASE). This provides information on the state of the input signal.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.