Patent ID: 7567377

Claim:
An amplifier system for amplifying a data-bearing optical signal, comprising: a signal separator for separating the data-bearing optical signal into a plurality of wavelength bands, the separator having an input for receiving the data-bearing signal and a plurality of separator outputs, each for transmitting one of the wavelength bands; a plurality of discrete, hybrid optical amplifiers, the amplifiers being connected in one-to-one correspondence to the separator outputs, each amplifier comprising: a discrete Raman amplifier including an optical highly non-linear fiber (HNLF) and a backward-propagating Raman pump laser; and a semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA), the SOA and discrete Raman amplifier cascaded; and an overall gain determined by an SOA gain and a Raman amplifier gain sum wherein the SOA gain provides the majority of the overall gain and the Raman amplifier gain compensates for SOA gain tilt; and a gain configuration wherein the overall gain is matched to a predetermined optical bandwidth and the gains of the SOA and Raman amplifier are optimized to provide a compensated SOA gain tilt having a nearly flat response over the predetermined optical bandwidth; and a signal recombiner for recombining amplified wavelength bands from the discrete, hybrid optical amplifiers to form an amplified data-bearing signal, the signal recombiner having an output for transmitting the amplified data-bearing signal.