Patent ID: 8798469

Claim:
Optical network element, particularly optical line terminal, OLT, for transmitting signals in a downstream direction and receiving signals in an upstream direction via at least one optical fiber link, comprising: transceivers configured to transmit DWDM signals in the downstream direction and to receive CWDM signals in the upstream direction; primary optical pumping means configured to provide optical pump power in the downstream direction to said at least one optical fiber link, said primary optical pumping means configured to provide optical pump power to amplify the CWDM upstream signals in said at least one optical fiber link; secondary optical pumping means configured to provide optical pump power in the downstream direction to a further optical network element, said secondary optical pumping means configured to provide optical pump power to amplify the DWDM downstream signals in the further network element wherein said optical fiber link comprises optical amplification means which comprise a plurality of Raman amplifiers, wherein said primary optical pumping means are configured to provide optical pump power for said plurality of Raman amplifiers, and wherein Raman gain characteristics of said Raman amplifiers are arranged in a way to overlap each other and to overlap wavelengths carrying said CWDM signals.