Coherent light generators – Particular beam control device – Tuning
Reexamination Certificate
2001-03-17
2003-05-20
Scott, Jr., Leon (Department: 2828)
Coherent light generators
Particular beam control device
Tuning
C372S019000, C372S098000, C372S032000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06567433
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention generally relates to dense wavelength division multiplexers (DWDM) and in particular to a technique for determining transmission wavelengths of lasers of the DWDM as a function of laser control tuning parameters.
2. Description of the Related Art
A DWDM is a device for simultaneously transmitting a set of discrete information channels over a single fiber optic transmission line. A conventional fiber optic transmission line is capable of reliably transmitting signals within a bandwidth of 1280 to 1625 nanometers (nm), the “low loss” region for silica fiber. Within that overall bandwidth, the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) has defined various transmission bands and specified certain transmission channel protocols for use within each transmission band. One example of a transmission band is the ITU “C” band, which extends 40 nm from 1525 nm to 1565 nm. Within the C band, specific transmission channel protocols of 40, 80, or 160 discrete channels are defined and, for each protocol, the ITU has defined a grid of transmission wavelengths, with each line corresponding to an acceptable transmission wavelength. For the 40 channel protocol, the corresponding ITU grid has 40 lines with channel spacing of 0.8 nm; for the 80 channel protocol, the corresponding ITU grid has 80 lines with channel spacing of 0.4 nm; and so forth. The protocols have been defined to ensure that all DWDM transmission and reception equipment are fabricated to operate at the same wavelengths. Other exemplary ITU transmission bands are the S- and L-bands.
To simultaneously transmit the set of channels on a fiber optic cable, the DWDM employs a set of individual distributed feedback (DFB) lasers, with one DFB laser per channel.
FIG. 1
illustrates a DWDM
100
having forty individual DFB lasers
102
for transmitting optical signals via a single optic fiber
104
. An optical multiplexer
106
couples signals received from the individual DFBs via a set of intermediate optic fibers
107
into output optic fiber
104
. Each DFB laser transmits at a different wavelength of the forty channel ITU C band. This enables forty separate channels of information to be transmitted via the single optical fiber
104
to a de-multiplexer (not shown) provided at the far end of the optical fiber.
To permit the DWDM to transmit forty separate channels simultaneously, each individual DFB must be tuned to a single ITU transmission channel wavelength. A DFB laser can be tuned only within a narrow wavelength band, typically about 4 nm in width. Hence, for the 40 channel protocol of the ITU C band having 0.8 nm transmission line spacing, the typical DFB can only be tuned to one of a few adjacent lines out of the total of 40 lines of the ITU grid. Traditionally, each individual DFB laser is manually calibrated at the factory to emit at one of the corresponding ITU transmission lines. This calibration is achieved by adjusting the laser operating temperature and current to obtain the desired wavelength. The laser is then, in some implementations, locked to the target wavelength by routing the output beam from each DFB laser through a corresponding manually-tunable etalon. (The etalons are not shown in
FIG. 1.
) A manually-tunable etalon is an optical device which produces a periodically-varying transmission spectrum as a function of laser wavelength. By tilting the etalon relative to the DFB laser beam path, a transmission peak of the etalon can be made coincident with the target ITU channel. The wavelength of an etalon transmission peak is calibrated to one of the ITU transmission lines by manually adjusting the angle of the etalon while monitoring the wavelength output from the etalon using an optical wavelength analyzer. The angle of the etalon is adjusted until the output wavelength is properly aligned with one of the ITU transmission lines, then the etalon is mounted in place in an attempt to lock the output wavelength of etalon to the selected ITU transmission line. This is a difficult and time consuming process requiring skilled technicians. Calibration of all forty DFB lasers of a single DWDM can be quite expensive. Mechanical or thermal drift of the etalon over time often moves the transmission peak away from the target ITU channel which requires recalibration.
Once the DFB lasers of a single DWDM are properly aligned with the ITU grid, the DWDM may then be used for transmitting signals over a fiber optic line, such as for transmitting digital data over computer networks (i.e., the Internet) or for transmitting television signals from a television network to one of its affiliates. A single DWDM must be provided for use with each fiber optic line employed for DWDM transmissions and hence a single customer installation, such as a television broadcast center, may require many, many DWDMs. If one of the DFB lasers within a DWDM drifts from its corresponding ITU transmission line or otherwise malfunctions, the entire DWDM typically needs to be replaced requiring the malfunctioning DWDM to be returned to the factory to be re-calibrated or otherwise fixed. As a result, the cost of maintaining a set of DWDMs is often substantial. To help remedy this problem, some DWDMs are provided with an additional widely tunable laser (WTL) which can be tuned separately to any one of the ITU grid lines. Hence, if one of the DFB lasers malfunctions, the single WTL can be tuned to the corresponding transmission wavelength of the DFB to thereby permit the DWDM to continue to operate. Additional WTLs can be supplied with a DWDM to accommodate the failure of two or more DFB channels, and such “sparing” is a major advantage a WTL over a DFB. However, the WTL cannot simply and accurately be tuned to any target ITU channel at a customer installation and must be calibrated at the factory for operation at a specific channel.
Another problem associated with employing DFB lasers within DWDMs is that, because each DFB laser can only be tuned within a narrow range of about 4 nm, each DFB laser can only be calibrated to one of a few adjacent ITU transmission wavelength lines. It may also sometimes be desirable to configure the DWDM to use many lasers for transmitting at a single ITU transmission line to provide more bandwidth on that channel. When using DFB lasers, no more than two or three of the lasers can be calibrated to a single ITU transmission line. Hence, in some DWDMs, WTLs are used exclusively instead of DFB lasers, thus permitting any of the lasers to be manually calibrated at the customers installation to transmit on any of the ITU transmission lines. Although the use of WTLs remedies many of the problems associated with using DFB lasers, WTLs are difficult and expensive to fabricate and initially calibrate, and are susceptible to wavelength drift requiring frequent recalibration at the customers installation by trained technicians and hence necessitating high overall installation and maintenance costs.
Thus, whether using DFB lasers or WTLs within a DWDM, significant problems arise in achieving and maintaining proper wavelength calibration of the lasers to permit reliable operation of the DWDM. Accordingly it would be desirable to provide an efficient method and apparatus for calibrating transmission lasers within a DWDM and it is to that end that the invention is primarily directed.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with a first aspect of the invention, a method and apparatus is provided for calibrating a laser using an etalon and a gas absorption cell containing a gas of known light absorption characteristics. In accordance with the method, an output beam from the laser is routed through the etalon while the laser is tuned through a range of tuning parameters to produce an etalon transmission spectrum as a function of the laser tuning parameters. The output beam from the laser is also routed through the gas cell while the laser is tuned through the range of tuning parameters to produce a gas absorption spectrum as a function of the laser tuning parameters. The etalon t
Jr. Leon Scott
Tunable Photonics Corporation
Welsh & Katz Ltd.
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