PERFORMANCE REDUCTION AND DESIGN MODIFICATION OF ERBIUM-DOPED FIBER AMPLIFIERS RESULTING FROM PAIR-INDUCED QUENCHING

We model the deleterious effect of pair-induced quenching (PIQ) in Erbium-doped fiber amplifiers (EDFA's) and describe it in terms of pump power, amplification, and noise factor penalties. Moreover, with a simple model for how PIQ increases with concentration, we show that to achieve a desired amplification, shorter fiber lengths will require higher pump powers, and that there is a lower length limit with realistic pump powers. Rate equations for Erbium-ion pairs are formulated with the assumption of one ion per pair completely quenched. Although our results were obtained for EDFA's, the methods and conclusions are also relevant for high concentration erbium doped integrated waveguides.