50 cm of Zirconia, Bismuth and Silica Erbium-doped Fibers for Double-pass Amplification with a Broadband Mirror

Erbium-doped fiber amplifiers (EDFAs) have saturated the technological market but are still widely used in high-speed and long-distance communication systems. To overcome EDFA saturation and limitations, its erbium-doped fiber is co-doped with other materials such as zirconia and bismuth. This article demonstrates and compares the performance using three different fibers as the gain medium for zirconia-erbium-doped fibers (Zr-EDF), bismuth-erbium-doped fibers (Bi-EDF), and commercial silicaerbium-doped fibers (Si- EDF). The optical amplifier was configured with a double-pass amplification system, with a broadband mirror at the end of its configuration to allow double-pass operation in the system. The important parameters in amplifiers such as optical properties, optical amplification and noise values were also examined and discussed. All three fibers were 0.5 m long and entered with different input signals: 30 dBm for low input and 10 dBm for high input. Zr-EDF turned out to be the most relevant optical amplifier as it had the highest optical gain, longest transmission distance, highest average flatness gain with minimal jitter, and relevant noise figures suitable for the latest communication technology.

Automated summary

This article demonstrates and compares the performance of three different fibers as the gain medium for erbium-doped fiber amplifiers (EDFAs). The study shows that zirconia-erbium-doped fibers (Zr-EDF) perform the best, with highest optical gain, longest transmission distance, highest average flatness gain with minimal jitter, and relevant noise figures suitable for the latest communication technology.