Patent ID: 6407853
Filing Date: 2002-06-18
Classification: H01S

Abstract:
An optical amplifier comprising:an optical waveguide having an optical host that contains a rare earth dopant, said host and dopant defining a ground energy state; a first pump that supplies optical energy into said waveguide at a first wavelength to establish a metastable energy state above said ground energy state said first pump being optically coupled to said waveguide; an input coupled to said optical waveguide, said input introducing an optical signal to be amplified, amplification is produced by stimulated emission of photons from said metastable energy state thereby establishing a termination energy state below said first metastable energy state and above said ground energy state; a second pump optically coupled to said waveguide that supplies optical energy to said waveguide at a second wavelength and operates to repopulate said first metastable energy state by depopulating said termination energy state; and a pump control mechanism coupled to at least one of said first pump and said second pump and operable to control the power or wavelength associated with at least one of said first pump and said second pump, thereby altering the amplifier gain spectrum associated with the optical amplifier.