阅读说明：本技术 光中继器和光中继器的控制方法 (Optical repeater and control method of optical repeater ) 是由 见上聪 于 2016-09-15 设计创作，主要内容包括：为了提供能够对多个波长范围进行放大的紧凑且低功耗的光中继器,所述光中继器设置有：激励装置,其生成单个波长范围中的激励光；第一光放大装置,其由激励光激励并且其放大波段是第一波长范围；以及第二光放大装置,其由激励光激励并且其放大波段是与第一波长范围不同的第二波长范围。(In order to provide a compact and low-power-consumption optical repeater capable of amplifying a plurality of wavelength ranges, the optical repeater is provided with: an excitation device that generates excitation light in a single wavelength range; a first optical amplifying device which is excited by the excitation light and whose amplification band is a first wavelength range; and a second optical amplifying device which is excited by the excitation light and whose amplification band is a second wavelength range different from the first wavelength range.)

1. An optical repeater, comprising:

a first excitation device, a second excitation device, a third excitation device and a fourth excitation device for generating excitation light of a single wavelength band;

coupling means for combining and dividing outputs of the first to fourth excitation means and generating first, second, third and fourth excitation lights;

a first optical amplifying device which is excited by the first excitation light and whose amplification wavelength band is a first wavelength band;

a second optical amplifying device which is excited by the second excitation light and whose amplification wavelength band is a second wavelength band different from the first wavelength band, the second optical amplifying device being arranged in parallel with the first optical amplifying device;

a third optical amplifying device which is excited by the third excitation light and whose amplification wavelength band is the first wavelength band; and

a fourth optical amplifying device which is excited by the fourth excitation light and whose amplification wavelength band is the second wavelength band, the fourth optical amplifying device being arranged in parallel with the third optical amplifying device.

2. The optical repeater of claim 1, wherein the coupling means comprises:

first dividing means for dividing excitation light generated by combining an output of the first excitation means and an output of the second excitation means;

second dividing means for dividing excitation light generated by combining an output of the third excitation means and an output of the fourth excitation means;

third dividing means for generating the first excitation light and the second excitation light by dividing excitation light generated by combining one output of the first dividing means and one output of the second dividing means; and

fourth dividing means for generating the third excitation light and the fourth excitation light by dividing excitation light generated by combining the other output of the first dividing means with the other output of the second dividing means.

3. The optical repeater of claim 2, comprising:

first separating means for separating input first signal light into second signal light of the first wavelength band and third signal light of the second wavelength band;

a second separating device for separating the input fourth signal light into fifth signal light of the first wavelength band and sixth signal light of the second wavelength band;

a first multiplexing means for multiplexing the second signal light and the first excitation light and outputting the multiplexed light to the first optical amplifying means;

a second multiplexing means for multiplexing the third signal light and the second excitation light and outputting the multiplexed light to the second optical amplifying means;

a fourth multiplexing means for multiplexing the fifth signal light and the third excitation light and outputting the multiplexed light to the third optical amplifying means;

a fifth multiplexing means for multiplexing the sixth signal light and the fourth excitation light and outputting the multiplexed light to the fourth optical amplifying means;

third multiplexing means for multiplexing the second signal light amplified by the first optical amplification means and the third signal light amplified by the second optical amplification means;

sixth multiplexing means for multiplexing the fifth signal light amplified by the third optical amplification means and the sixth signal light amplified by the fourth optical amplification means; and

control means for controlling the first to fourth excitation means.

4. The optical repeater according to claim 3, wherein the control means controls at least one of division ratios of the first division means to the fourth division means.

5. The optical repeater according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the first optical amplification device and the third optical amplification device amplify signal light of a wavelength band of a C band, the second optical amplification device and the fourth optical amplification device amplify signal light of an L band, and a wavelength of the excitation light is a band of 980 nm.

6. A method of controlling an optical repeater, comprising:

generating excitation light of a single wavelength band with a first excitation device, a second excitation device, a third excitation device, and a fourth excitation device;

combining and splitting outputs of the first to fourth excitation means with a coupling means, and generating first, second, third, and fourth excitation lights;

exciting a first optical amplifying device whose amplification wavelength band is a first wavelength band with the first excitation light;

exciting a second optical amplifying device whose amplification wavelength band is a second wavelength band different from the first wavelength band with the second excitation light, the second optical amplifying device being arranged in parallel with the first optical amplifying device;

exciting a third optical amplifying device whose amplification wavelength band is the first wavelength band with the third excitation light;

and exciting a fourth optical amplifying device whose amplification wavelength band is the second wavelength band with the fourth excitation light, the fourth optical amplifying device being arranged in parallel with the third optical amplifying device.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an optical repeater and a control method of the optical repeater, and particularly to an optical repeater including optical amplifiers different for respective wavelength ranges of signal light to be amplified and a control method of the optical repeater.

Background

An optical repeater used in an undersea optical cable system is laid on the seabed, and thus needs to have a small size and low power consumption. Meanwhile, in order to make the submarine optical cable system large in capacity, an optical repeater capable of amplifying L-band signal light and widely used C-band signal light has been studied.

Fig. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of an optical repeater 900 relating to the present invention. Optical repeater 900 is used in an undersea optical fiber cable system. Optical repeater 900 includes a C-band optical amplifier 91 and an L-band optical amplifier 92. In the present specification, the C-band designates a wavelength band of about 1530nm to 1565nm, and the L-band designates a wavelength band of about 1570nm to 1610 nm.

The C-band optical amplifier 91 includes a control circuit 911, an excitation light source 912, and optical amplification media 913 and 923. The light amplification media 913 and 923 amplify the C-band signal light with the excitation light generated by the excitation light source 912. For amplifying the C-band signal light, four Laser Diodes (LDs) in the wavelength band of 980nm are used as the excitation light source 912.

The L-band optical amplifier 92 includes a control circuit 921, an excitation light source 922, and optical amplification media 914 and 924. The optical amplification media 914 and 924 amplify the L-band signal light with the excitation light generated by the excitation light source 922. For amplifying the L-band signal light, four lasers in a wavelength band of 1480nm are used as the excitation light source 922. The excitation light output from the LDs included in the excitation light sources 912 and 922 excites the light amplification media 913 and 914 through the coupler and multiplexer/demultiplexer.

The signal light of the C-band and the L-band is wavelength-multiplexed and input from an UP input (UP IN) IN fig. 6. The input signal light is separated into a C-band and an L-band. The signal light of the C-band is amplified by the optical amplification medium 913, and the signal light of the L-band is amplified by the optical amplification medium 914. The amplified C-band and L-band signals are optically multiplexed and output from an UP output (UP OUT).

Similarly, the signal lights of the C band and the L band input from the DOWN input (DOWN IN) IN fig. 6 are amplified by the optical amplification media 923 and 924. The signal light amplified by the optical amplification media 923 and 924 is output from the DOWN output (DOWN OUT).

It should be noted that, regarding the present invention, patent documents 1 to 3 describe an optical amplifier including a plurality of optical amplification media.

[ citation list ]

[ patent document ]

[ patent document 1] Japanese patent application laid-open No. 2001-024594

[ patent document 2] Japanese patent application laid-open No. 2003-283019

[ patent document 3] Japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2009-081473

Disclosure of Invention

[ problem ] to

As shown in fig. 6, the optical repeater 900 includes a C-band optical amplifier 91 and an L-band optical amplifier 92. The optical amplification media 913 and 923 of the C-band optical amplifier 91 and the optical amplification media 914 and 924 of the L-band optical amplifier 92 are excited by using excitation light sources of different wavelengths. For this reason, when the optical repeater including the C-band and L-band amplification functions is simply designed such that the C-band optical amplifier 91 and the L-band optical amplifier 92 are arranged in parallel, the control circuits 911 and 921 and the excitation light sources 912 and 922 are independently necessary for the respective wavelength bands. In other words, adding the L-band optical amplifier 92 makes the scale of the optical amplifier twice the scale of the optical repeater dedicated to the C-band. As a result, a problem arises in that the size and power consumption of the optical repeater 900 significantly increase.

The optical amplifier described in patent document 1 uses excitation light sources different for respective wavelength bands of signal light. Therefore, similarly to the optical repeater 900, there are problems that the size of the optical amplifier is large and the power consumption is large. Patent documents 2 and 3 describe configurations of optical amplifiers in which optical amplification media are connected in series. However, patent documents 2 and 3 do not disclose a configuration for performing amplification on a plurality of wavelength bands while suppressing an increase in size and power consumption.

(objects of the invention)

An object of the present invention is to provide an optical repeater which is small in size and low in power consumption and can amplify over a plurality of wavelength bands, and a control method thereof.

[ solution of problem ]

An optical repeater according to the present invention includes: excitation means for generating excitation light of a single wavelength band; a first optical amplification device which is excited by the excitation light and whose amplification wavelength band is a first wavelength band; and a second optical amplifying device which is excited by the excitation light and whose amplification wavelength band is a second wavelength band different from the first wavelength band.

The control method for an optical repeater according to the present invention includes: generating excitation light of a single wavelength band; exciting a first optical amplifying device whose amplification wavelength band is a first wavelength band with excitation light; and exciting a second optical amplifying device with the excitation light, the second optical amplifying device having an amplification wavelength band of a second wavelength band different from the first wavelength band.

[ advantageous effects of the invention ]

The present invention provides an optical repeater which is small in size and low in power consumption and can amplify over a plurality of wavelength bands.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of an optical repeater 100 according to a first exemplary embodiment.

Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of an optical repeater 100A according to the second exemplary embodiment.

Fig. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of an optical repeater 100B according to the third exemplary embodiment.

Fig. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of the optical repeater 200 according to the fourth exemplary embodiment.

Fig. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of an operation procedure of the optical repeater 200.

Fig. 6 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of an optical repeater 900 relating to the present invention.

Detailed Description

First exemplary embodiment

Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of an optical repeater 100 according to a first exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Optical repeater 100 is used in an undersea optical fiber cable system that amplifies over both the C-band and L-band wavelength bands. "UP IN" and "UP OUT" IN fig. 1 denote input and output of signal light IN the upward direction (left to right IN fig. 1), respectively. "DOWN" and "DOWN OUT" in fig. 1 denote input and output of signal light in the downward direction (from right to left in fig. 1), respectively.

The optical repeater 100 includes a control circuit (controller CTL)101, an excitation light source 102, couplers 103 to 106, multiplexers/demultiplexers 111 to 114 and 121 to 124, and optical amplification media 115, 116, 125, and 126.

The control circuit 101 and the excitation light source 102 are commonly used for C-band amplification and L-band amplification. The excitation light source 102 generates excitation light for exciting the light amplification media 115, 116, 125, and 126. The excitation light source 102 includes Laser Diodes (LD)1 to 4 as four laser diodes of a 980nm band. The control circuit 101 controls the excitation light source 102. The control circuit 101 may include a function of individually controlling the LDs 1 to 4 in such a manner that the output powers of the LDs 1 to 4 become predetermined values. The excitation light output by LD1 and LD2 is coupled by coupler 103. The excitation light output by LD3 and LD4 is coupled by coupler 104.

Coupler 103 distributes the excitation light output by LD1 and LD2 to couplers 105 and 106. Coupler 104 distributes the excitation light output by LD3 and LD4 to couplers 105 and 106. The coupler 105 couples the excitation light input from one output terminal of the coupler 103 and one output terminal of the coupler 104, splits the coupled excitation light, and outputs the split excitation light to the multiplexers/demultiplexers 113 and 114. The coupler 106 couples the excitation light inputted from the other output terminal of the coupler 103 and the other output terminal of the coupler 104 optically, splits the coupled excitation light, and outputs the split excitation light to the multiplexers/demultiplexers 123 and 124.

The multiplexer/demultiplexer 113 outputs the excitation light to the optical amplification medium 115 of the upper line C band. The multiplexer/demultiplexer 114 outputs the excitation light to an optical amplification medium 116 of an upper line L-band. The multiplexer/demultiplexer 123 outputs the excitation light to the optical amplification medium 125 of the lower line C band. The multiplexer/demultiplexer 124 outputs the excitation light to an optical amplification medium 126 of the downlink L-band.

In the present exemplary embodiment, the couplers 103 to 106 are 2 × 2 optical couplers having a division ratio of 1: 1. The multiplexer/demultiplexers 111, 112, 121, and 122 perform demultiplexing or multiplexing of the C-band signal light and the L-band signal light. The multiplexer/demultiplexers 113 and 123 multiplex the C-band signal light and the excitation light. The multiplexer/demultiplexers 114 and 124 multiplex the L-band signal light and the excitation light. As the couplers 103 to 106, fiber fusion couplers or optical waveguides may be used. As the multiplexer/demultiplexers 111 to 114 and 121 to 124, an optical multiplexer/demultiplexer including a dielectric multilayer film filter may be used.

The optical amplification media 115 and 125 are optical fibers that amplify the C-band signal light using the excitation light generated by the excitation light source 102. The optical amplification media 116 and 126 are optical fibers that amplify the L-band signal light using the excitation light generated by the excitation light source 102. The specifications of the optical amplification media 115, 116, 125, and 126 may be determined in such a manner that the output power of the optical repeater 100 falls within a predetermined range. Examples of specifications of the light amplification medium include a dopant concentration.

The multiplexer/demultiplexer 111 separates the signal light input from UP IN into C-band signal light and L-band signal light. The multiplexer/demultiplexer 113 multiplexes the C-band signal light and the excitation light output from one output terminal of the coupler 105, and inputs the multiplexed light to the optical amplification medium 115. The optical amplification medium 115 amplifies the C-band signal light. Similarly, the optical amplification medium 116 amplifies the L-band signal light by using the excitation light output from the other output terminal of the coupler 105. The multiplexer/demultiplexer 112 multiplexes the amplified C-band signal light and the amplified L-band signal light, and outputs the multiplexed light from UP OUT.

Similar to the signal light in the upward direction, the optical repeater 100 also amplifies the signal light in the downward direction. IN other words, the multiplexer/demultiplexer 121 separates the signal light input from the DOWN IN into the C-band signal light and the L-band signal light. The multiplexer/demultiplexer 123 multiplexes the C-band signal light and the excitation light output from one output terminal of the coupler 106, and inputs the multiplexed light to the optical amplification medium 125. The optical amplification medium 125 amplifies the C-band signal light. Similarly, the optical amplification medium 126 amplifies the L-band signal light by using the excitation light output from the other output terminal of the coupler 106. The multiplexer/demultiplexer 122 multiplexes the amplified C-band signal light and the amplified L-band signal light, and outputs the multiplexed light from DOWN OUT.

The couplers 103 to 106 of the present exemplary embodiment all have a 1: 1 split ratio. Therefore, assuming that the excitation optical powers of the LDs 1 to 4 are a, b, c, and d, respectively, when the excessive losses of the couplers 103 to 106 and the multiplexers/demultiplexers 113, 114, 123, and 124 are ignored, the excitation optical power input of each of the optical amplification media 115, 116, 125, and 126 is (a + b + c + d)/4.

In a typical C-band optical amplifier, a 980 nm-band excitation light source is used, and in a typical L-band optical amplifier, excitation light having a wavelength of 1480nm is used. In contrast to this, in the optical repeater 100 of the first exemplary embodiment, the optical amplification media 116 and 126 for the L band are also excited by using the 980nm band LD as the excitation light source of the C band. As a result, the optical repeater 100 can simultaneously amplify the C-band signal light and the L-band signal light by using the same excitation light source. The optical repeater 100 uses excitation light sources commonly used for the C-band and the L-band, so that the size and power consumption of the control circuit 101 and the excitation light source 102 can be smaller than those of a configuration including the control circuit and the excitation light source for the respective wavelength bands (e.g., the optical repeater 900 in fig. 6).

In this way, the optical repeater 100 according to the first exemplary embodiment distributes excitation light of a single wavelength band to a plurality of optical amplification media (for example, the optical amplification media 115 and 116) different in the wavelength band for amplification by using a coupler. As a result, the scales of the control circuit 101 and the excitation light source 102 are reduced, and the size and power consumption of the optical repeater 100 can be made small.

Second example embodiment

In the second exemplary embodiment, an optical repeater capable of changing the division ratio of the coupler is described, and thereby excitation lights of different powers are supplied to respective optical amplification media (for example, an optical amplification medium for C band and an optical amplification medium for L band) that require different excitation light powers to ensure a predetermined optical power.

Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of an optical repeater 100A according to a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Similar to the optical repeater 100 according to the first exemplary embodiment, the optical repeater 100A is used for an undersea optical cable system that amplifies wavelength bands of both the C-band and the L-band.

The optical repeater 100A differs from the optical repeater 100 according to the first exemplary embodiment in that couplers 105A and 106A are included instead of the couplers 105 and 106. Since the configuration of the optical repeater 100A is the same as that of the optical repeater 100 except for the couplers 105A and 106A, descriptions of the elements already described are appropriately omitted hereinafter.

Optical repeater 100A includes control circuit 101, excitation light source 102, couplers 103, 104, 105A, and 106A, multiplexers/demultiplexers 111 to 114 and 121 to 124, and optical amplification media 115, 116, 125, and 126.

Excitation lights of two LDs (LD1 and LD2) in the excitation light source 102 are coupled by the coupler 103, and respective output lights are distributed to the couplers 105A and 106A. The excitation light of LD3 and LD4 is coupled by coupler 104, and the respective output light is distributed to couplers 105A and 106A. The coupler 105A splits the excitation light and outputs the split light to the multiplexer/demultiplexers 113 and 114. The coupler 106A splits the excitation light and outputs the split light to the multiplexer/demultiplexers 123 and 124.

The couplers 105A and 106A are variable division ratio couplers in which the division ratio can be controlled from the outside. For example, a variable division ratio coupler using an interferometer is known. The division ratio of the couplers 105A and 106A can be controlled by an electric signal output from the control circuit 101. Controlling the division ratio of the coupler 105A enables control of the distribution ratio of the excitation light to the optical amplification medium 115 of the C-band and to the optical amplification medium 116 of the L-band. Similarly, controlling the division ratio of the coupler 106A enables control of the division ratio of the excitation light to the optical amplification medium 125 of the C-band and to the optical amplification medium 126 of the L-band.

Since the wavelength band of the signal light to be amplified differs between the C-band and the L-band, the excitation optical power for ensuring a predetermined optical output sometimes differs between the optical amplification media 115 and 116. The optical repeater 100A according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention can supply excitation light of different powers to the optical amplification media 115 and 116, respectively, by controlling the division ratio of the coupler 105A. For example, by controlling the division ratio of the coupler 105A in such a manner that the powers of the amplified signal lights of the C-band and the L-band are matched to each other, it is possible to suppress variations in the power of the signal light between the respective wavelength bands based on the difference in the amplification characteristics between the optical amplification media 115 and 116.

In order to detect the power of the amplified signal light of the C-band and the power of the amplified signal light of the L-band, a tap and a light receiving element may be provided at each output of the optical amplifying media 115 and 116. The light receiving element receives the signal light divided by the tap and outputs a current of an amplitude corresponding to each output power of the optical amplification media 115 and 116. In this case, the control circuit 101 may control the division ratio of the coupler 105A based on the powers of the signal lights of the C-band and the L-band detected by the light receiving element. For example, the control circuit 101 controls the division ratio of the coupler 105A in such a manner that the power of the signal light of the C-band and the power of the signal light of the L-band are equal to each other.

Alternatively, the control circuit 101 may store in advance the driving state of the excitation light source 102 and the relation of the division ratio of the coupler 105A to the output power or gain of the optical amplification media 115 and 116. The control circuit 101 can control the division ratio of the coupler 105A and the excitation light power of the excitation light source 102 in such a manner that the optical amplification media 115 and 116 each operate at a predetermined output power or gain.

Further, in the down line, the control circuit 101 controls the division ratio of the coupler 106A and the excitation light power of the excitation light source 102 so that the optical amplification media 125 and 126 can be individually controlled in such a manner as to operate with a predetermined output power or gain. During the operation of optical repeater 100A, the division ratio of couplers 105A and 106A can be changed by control circuit 101 that has received an instruction from the outside of optical repeater 100A through a path not shown.

As described above, in the optical repeater 100A according to the second exemplary embodiment, the optical amplification media 116 and 126 for the L band are excited by using the LD of the 980nm band as the excitation light source of the C band. For this reason, similarly to the optical repeater 100 according to the first exemplary embodiment, in the optical repeater 100A, the size and power consumption of the optical repeater can be made small.

Further, in the optical repeater 100A according to the present exemplary embodiment, the couplers 105A and 106A having a variable division ratio are used. With this configuration, excitation lights of different powers can be supplied to the respective optical amplification media of different wavelength bands. As a result, the optical repeater 100A according to the present exemplary embodiment can suppress variations in output power or gain based on the difference in amplification characteristics between the optical amplification media 115 to 116 and 125 to 126.

Third exemplary embodiment

In the second exemplary embodiment, the configuration in which the optical amplification medium is excited with the excitation optical power different between the C-band and the L-band by using the couplers 105A and 106A is described above. In the third exemplary embodiment, a configuration in which excitation light of different power is provided between the uplink line and the downlink line by changing the division ratio of the coupler is described.

Fig. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of an optical repeater 100B according to a third exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Similar to the first and second exemplary embodiments, the optical repeater 100B is used for an undersea optical cable system that amplifies on both the wavelength bands of the C-band and the L-band.

The optical repeater 100B is different from the optical repeater 100 according to the first exemplary embodiment in that couplers 103A and 104A are included instead of the couplers 103 and 104. Since the configuration of the optical repeater 100B is the same as that of the optical repeater 100 except for the couplers 103A and 104A, descriptions of elements that have been described are omitted below as appropriate.

Optical repeater 100B includes control circuit 101, excitation light source 102, couplers 103A to 104A and 105 to 106, multiplexers/demultiplexers 111 to 114 and 121 to 124, and optical amplification media 115 to 116 and 125 to 126.

Excitation light of LD1 and LD2 in excitation light source 102 is coupled by coupler 103A and distributed to couplers 105 and 106. The excitation light of LD3 and LD4 is coupled by coupler 104A and distributed to couplers 105 and 106. The couplers 103A and 104A are similar to the couplers 105A and 106A of the second exemplary embodiment, and are variable division ratio couplers whose division ratio can be controlled from the outside. The division ratio of the couplers 103A and 104A can be controlled by an electric signal output from the control circuit 101.

The coupler 105 supplies excitation light to the optical amplification media 115 and 116 on the upper line via the multiplexer/demultiplexers 113 and 114. Coupler 106 provides excitation light to optical amplification media 125 and 126 on the downstream line via multiplexer/demultiplexers 123 and 124.

By controlling the division ratio of the couplers 103A and 104A, the power of the excitation light output by the excitation light source 102 can be distributed at different ratios between the upstream line and the downstream line. For example, when the distance from the output unit on the UP line (UP OUT) to the next repeater is larger than the distance from the output unit on the DOWN line (DOWN OUT) to the next repeater, the optical amplification media 115 and 116 on the UP line need higher optical power (or gain) than that on the DOWN line. In this case, the optical repeater 100B according to the present exemplary embodiment controls the division ratio of the couplers 103A and 104A in such a manner that the ratio on the coupler 105 side becomes larger, so that a larger excitation optical power output by the excitation light source 102 can be distributed to the upstream line side. It should be noted that when a larger excitation optical power can be allocated to the upstream side, the division ratios of the couplers 103A, 104A may be independently controlled, or may be controlled in such a manner. When the optical repeater 100B is installed, the division ratio of the couplers 103A and 104A can be set based on the actual use condition. The actual usage conditions may include the output power and gain of the optical repeater, the distance from an adjacent repeater, and the loss of the optical transmission line. During the operation of optical repeater 100B, the division ratio of couplers 103A and 104A can be changed by control circuit 101 that has received an instruction from the outside of optical repeater 100B via a path not shown.

Optical repeater 100B including such a configuration can provide different excitation optical powers between the upstream line and the downstream line to the optical amplification medium of the same wavelength band. As a result, in addition to the advantageous effects of the optical repeater 100 according to the first exemplary embodiment, the optical repeater 100B can further realize the excitation of the optical amplification medium of the same wavelength band under conditions different from those between the upstream line and the downstream line. For example, optical repeater 100B may provide excitation optical power appropriate for each direction even when the distance from another optical repeater differs between the uplink and downlink.

Modified example of the third exemplary embodiment

The configuration of the third exemplary embodiment in which the division ratio of the couplers 103A and 104A is controlled can be used simultaneously with the configuration of the second exemplary embodiment in which the division ratio of the couplers 105A and 106A is controlled. By using the division ratio variable couplers 103A to 106A instead of the couplers 103 to 106, the division ratio of the excitation light power can be adjusted between the optical amplification medium of the C band and the optical amplification medium of the L band, and also the division ratio of the excitation light power can be adjusted between the uplink line and the downlink line. In other words, with this configuration, the advantageous effects of both the second exemplary embodiment and the third exemplary embodiment can be achieved.

Fourth exemplary embodiment

Fig. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of an optical repeater 200 according to a fourth exemplary embodiment of the present invention. The optical repeater 200 amplifies signal light of a plurality of different wavelength bands. "IN" and "OUT" IN fig. 4 denote input and output of signal light, respectively. The optical repeater 200 includes an excitation light source 201, a coupler 202, multiplexer/demultiplexers 211-214, and optical amplification media 215-216.

The excitation light source 201 generates excitation light that excites the light amplification media 215 to 216. The excitation light sources 201 are used together for amplification over different wavelength bands. The excitation light source 201 includes, for example, a laser diode. The excitation light source 201 outputs excitation light of a single wavelength band, for example, a 980nm band. The excitation light is input to the coupler 202. The coupler 202 distributes the excitation light to the multiplexer/demultiplexers 213 and 214. The coupler 202 is, for example, a 1 × 2 optical coupler.

The multiplexer/demultiplexers 211 and 212 demultiplex or multiplex the signal lights of the first wavelength band (e.g., C-band) and the second wavelength band (e.g., L-band). The multiplexer/demultiplexer 213 multiplexes the signal light of the first wavelength band and the excitation light. The multiplexer/demultiplexer 214 multiplexes the signal light of the second wavelength band and the excitation light.

The optical amplification medium 215 amplifies the signal light of the first wavelength band with the excitation light. The optical amplification medium 216 amplifies the signal light of the second wavelength band with the excitation light.

Fig. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the optical repeater 200. Hereinafter, the operation of the optical repeater 200 is described with reference to fig. 5. The multiplexer/demultiplexer 211 separates the input signal light into the first wavelength band and the second wavelength band (step S01 in fig. 5). The excitation light source 201 generates excitation light (step S02). The coupler 202 divides the excitation light (step S03). The order of steps S01 to S03 is not limited to the above.

The multiplexer/demultiplexer 213 multiplexes the signal light of the first wavelength band and the excitation light output from one output terminal of the coupler 202, and inputs the multiplexed light to the optical amplification medium 215. The multiplexer/demultiplexer 214 demultiplexes the signal light of the second wavelength band and the excitation light output from the other output terminal of the coupler 202, and inputs the multiplexed light to the optical amplification medium 216. In other words, the multiplexer/demultiplexer 213 multiplexes the signal light of the first wavelength band and the excitation light, and the multiplexer/demultiplexer 214 multiplexes the signal light of the second wavelength band and the excitation light. Then, the multiplexed lights are input to different optical amplification media, respectively (step S04).

The optical amplification medium 215 amplifies the signal light of the first wavelength band, and the optical amplification medium 216 amplifies the signal light of the second wavelength band (step S05). The multiplexer/demultiplexer 212 multiplexes the amplified signal light of the first wavelength band and the amplified signal light of the second wavelength band and outputs the multiplexed light (step S06).

In the optical repeater 200 according to the fourth exemplary embodiment, the same excitation light source 201 is used for amplification on the first wavelength band and amplification on the second wavelength band. For example, the optical amplification medium 216, which normally uses an excitation light source of a wavelength band different from that of the excitation light source 201, is also excited by using the excitation light source 201 for exciting the optical amplification medium 215. As a result, the optical repeater 200 can simultaneously amplify the signal light of the first wavelength band and the signal light of the second wavelength band and commonly use the excitation light source 201 for the first and second wavelength bands, thereby enabling the size and power consumption of the optical repeater to be smaller than those of the configuration in which the excitation light sources are used for the respective wavelength bands.

Another expression of the fourth example embodiment

The advantageous effects of the optical repeater 200 according to the fourth exemplary embodiment can also be achieved by the following modified example. Reference characters of elements corresponding to those in fig. 4 are written in parentheses. In other words, the modified example of the optical repeater 200 includes the excitation light source (201) and the first and second optical amplifying media (215 and 216). The excitation light source (201) is an excitation light source that generates excitation light of a single wavelength band. The first optical amplification medium (215) is an optical amplification medium which is excited by the excitation light of the excitation light source (201) and whose amplification wavelength band is a first wavelength band. The second optical amplification medium (216) is an optical amplification medium which is excited by the excitation light of the excitation light source (201) and whose amplification wavelength band is the second wavelength band. The amplification wavelength band of the second optical amplification medium (216) is different from the amplification wavelength band of the first optical amplification medium (215).

According to the modified example of the optical repeater 200 having such a configuration, the signal light of the first wavelength band and the signal light of the second wavelength band can be amplified simultaneously. By using excitation light sources (201) commonly used for the first and second wavelength bands, the size and power consumption of the optical repeater can be made smaller compared to the size and power consumption of the configuration of the excitation light sources for the respective wavelength bands.

Although the invention of the present application is described above with reference to the exemplary embodiments, the invention of the present application is not limited to the above-described exemplary embodiments. Various modifications that may be apparent to those skilled in the art may be made in the arrangement and details of the invention herein disclosed within the scope of the invention.

Further, the configurations described in the respective exemplary embodiments are not necessarily excluded from each other. The functions and advantageous effects of the present invention can be achieved by a configuration in which all or part of the above-described exemplary embodiments are combined.

This application claims priority based on japanese patent application No. 2015-190597, filed on 29/9/2015, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein.

[ list of reference symbols ]

100. 100A, 100B, 200, 900 optical repeater

91C band optical amplifier

92L band optical amplifier

101. 911, 921 control circuit

102. 201, 912, 922 excitation light source

103 to 106, 103A to 106A, 202 couplers

111-114, 121-124, 211-214 multiplexer/demultiplexer

115. 116, 125, 126, 215, 216, 913, 923 optical amplification medium.