Furukawa Electric has developed new Pump Source technology for Raman amplification using incoherent light.
The new Pump Source technology using incoherent light suppresses the effect of fluctuations in the pump light on the signal light. This makes it possible to realize co-propagating Raman amplification, the practical application of which has been difficult in the past. Co-propagating Raman amplification is an effective technology for the improvement of transmission characteristics and extension of transmission distance in optical fiber communications.
This new development is expected to contribute greatly to the development of high-speed and large-capacity optical fiber communications systems, including for digital coherent optical transmission at 600 Gb/s and at over 1 Tb/s, which is being developed around the world in response to the expected rapid increase in traffic in the 5G era.
This new Pump Source technology and its effectiveness in Raman amplified light transmission were presented at Photonics West 2019(note 1), the world’s largest international conference on optical technology held in San Francisco from February 7, 2019, and at OFC 2019(note 2), the world’s largest international conference on optical fiber communication that is being held in San Diego from March 3, 2019.
