VOL. 2, NO.

2, JUNE 2011

Possibilities of using amplifiers in bidirectional optical networks

Vladimr Tejkal1, Herve Henry2, Miloslav Filka1, Jan porik1, Pavel Reichert1
1

Fakulta elektrotechniky a komunika nch technologi VUT v Brn Email: {xtejka00, filka, xspori01, xreich01}@feec.vutbr.cz
2

ESIGELEC Ecole Superieure DIngenieurs - Rouen Email: herve.henry@esigelec.fr

Abstract Currently used Passive optical networks (PON) are based on bidirectional transmission. The wavelength for downstream traffic is 1490 nm and the wavelength for upstream traffic is 1310 nm. Optical fiber amplifiers (OFA) can amplify wavelength around 1550 nm. Hence, Semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOA) have been chosen for the simulation. SOAs amplify in both directions, but the spectral width is around 200 nm. Therefore, two different amplifiers have to be used for each direction. The best position of amplifiers in the network has been investigated, because of the saturation at high output power. A bandpass filter placed behind amplifiers has been used to improve the output signal.

1 Introduction
PON is a relatively new and fast-growing method of providing vastly higher bandwidth to consumers and thereby enabling more robust video, internet and voice services [1]. Passive optical networks are characterized by one optical port in the central office being shared by several end users. Passive optical splitters are used for optical signal division. Increasing insertion loss with increasing number of output ports is a major disadvantage. Hence, data transfer over a short distance is a limiting factor. Data is transfer bidirectional in one fiber, the wavelength for downstream traffic is 1490 nm and the wavelength for upstream traffic is 1310 nm. Currently passive optical networks can work with up to 28 dB optical link attenuation. If the real 1:64 splitter with an insertion loss of 21 dB is used in the PON, then the remaining reserve is 4 dB only. Optical fibers according to the ITU-T G.652.D recommendation have a highest attenuation coefficient of 0.35 dB/km at a wavelength of 1310 nm [2]. This means that the remaining reserve can be used for an optical fiber length of 10 km approximately. An insertion loss of splices and connectors must be taken into consideration and thus the real optical length is shorter. A small OLT with a lower number of optical ports can be used for extending the optical link. This remote OLT is connected to the main OLT by the Point-to-point (P2P) optical duplex link. The optical link can be extended up to 60 km but the high costs of addition equipment are the main disadvantage. The application of optical amplifiers offers another possibility of extending the optical length. Optical amplifier can be divided into two classes: Optical fiber amplifiers (OFA) and Semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOA) [3], [4]. Optical amplifiers are currently used as in-line amplifiers to compensate for optical fiber losses. SOA can be used as main gain element but also in devices serves as an

optical switch and to wavelength conversion. These functions are required in transparent optical networks where there is no conversion between the optical and the electrical domain. SOAs have a lower gain, up to 30 dB, a higher insertion loss of 6-10 dB, and a higher noise figure of 7-12 dBm, in comparison with OFAs [5], [6], [7]. Today, SOAs have become key elements in optical networks. In figure 1 the schematic structure of a SOA can be seen [8]. Semiconductor optical amplifiers are driven by an electric current unlike OFAs driven by an optical pump source. An input signal is amplified in the active region via stimulated emission. The output signal is accompanied by noise, the so-called amplified spontaneous emission (ASE). This noise is produced by the amplification process [5], [9].

Figure 1: The structure of a semiconductor optical amplifier. The active region is about 80 nm wide and it can be tuned to any region from 1200 nm to 1600 nm by adjusting the material composition. One SOA can be tuned to amplify the 1490 nm downstream traffic and second SOA can be tuned to amplify the 1310 nm upstream traffic [10], [11]. There are other effects to be considered in the design of SOA-based amplifiers. As with all amplifiers, at high output power the SOA gain saturates (figure 2) [12]. On the other hand, SOA has very fast gain saturation recovery, it is important to keep the operation of SOA within its quasi-linear regime to avoid any patterning effects [8]. While this is a limitation for maximum output power, it is a major advantage in addressing the need to support burst-mode traffic. In PON architectures, the 1310 nm upstream traffic is bursty and SOA technology has demonstrated its ability to support burst traffic [13].

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mote amplifier [5]. In passive optical network, the SOA is placed at the input port of the splitter. 2.3 Preamplifier An SOA in the function of preamplifier is placed in front of the receiver. The function is to increase the power level of an optical signal before detection and demodulation, and the receiver sensitivity can be increased [5]. Real optical receivers add thermal noise to the optical signal, which affects the minimum value of the power below witch error-free detection of incoming signal is not possible. This minimum power is typically characterized by the receiver sensitivity, which defines the received signal strength for a sufficient bit error rate (BER). The use of an optical amplifier before the receiver in order to boost the signal power leads to a reduction of the error-rate [15].

Figure 2: Dependence of gain on the output power obtained through simulations for amplifiers placed in various positions in the PON.

2 Applications of the SOA

Applications of SOAs can be classified into three classes: 1) Post-amplifier or booster to increase transmitter power, 2) inline amplifier to compensate for optical fiber losses, and 3) preamplifier to amplify low signal level prior to receiving. The placement and the classes of amplifiers in the PON are shown in figure 3.

3 System configuration
Three possibilities of placing the SOA in the passive optical network have been considered: behind the OLT, at the input port of the splitter, and in front of each ONT [16]. Bidirectional signal has to be separated into two single directions to amplify each direction by an individual amplifier. A pair of WDM couplers with an insertion loss of 0.8 dB suitable for Fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) applications is used to separate the optical signal. FTTH application means that the coupler works at wavelengths of 1310 and 1490 nm. One coupler serves to separate the optical signal and the second coupler links the signal together. Couplers based on the same principle are used in OLTs and ONTs. Figure 4 shows the principle of separating a bidirectional optical signal into two directions, with the wavelengths and directions marked.

Figure 3: The placement and the classes of amplifiers in the passive optical network. 2.1 Booster SOA in the function as a booster is connected directly behind the transmitter. Its function is to increase a high power input signal prior to transmission. SOA as a booster can serve to simultaneously amplify several channels at different wavelengths, as is the case of wavelength division multiplex (WDM) systems. In long-haul optical networks a booster serves to increase power budget and to reduce the number of in-line amplifiers or regenerators. SOA can be used to compensate for splitting losses in passive optical networks [14]. 2.2 In-line amplifier In optical communication systems, in-line amplifiers serve to compensate for optical fiber losses. In that case, optical regenerators need not be used. SOAs are transparent with respect to data rate and modulation format and they are suitable for WDM systems. SOAs have lower power consumption and they are compact, which are advantages when used as a reFigure 4: The principle of signal division with wavelengths and directions marked. A pair of amplifiers placed behind OLTs or in front of ONTs works in two different classes. The amplifier for the downstream traffic behind the OLT works in the function of a booster and the amplifier for the upstream traffic works in the function of a preamplifier. The function of both amplifiers before the ONT is opposite. The downstream traffic amplifier is in the function of a preamplifier and the upstream traffic amplifier is in the function of a booster. A pair of amplifiers placed in front of the splitter works both in the function of an in-line amplifier. The downstream traffic amplifier serves to compensate for optical fiber losses and the upstream traffic amplifier serves to compensate for splitter losses.

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4 Simulations
A passive optical network according to the Gigabit PON (GPON) standard [17] with symmetrical 1.244 Gb/s bit rate was chosen for the simulations. The output power from both the OLT and the ONT was set at +2 dBm. A single mode optical fiber (SMF) with an attenuation coefficient of 0.35 dB/km for all wavelengths was connected to the output port from the OLT. A 1:64 splitter with an insertion loss of 21 dB was used for the division of the optical signal. All terminal units ONTs were connected by a 1 km optical fiber to the output ports of the splitter. The maximum fiber length without using amplifiers was tested in the first simulation. Rec. G.984 defines a maximum distance of up to 10 km. The resulting BER at this distance is 10-6 and the received power is -21.55 dBm. The entire distance must be reduced to 5 km in order to obtain a BER of 10-12 and a received power of -19.4 dBm. The optical signal under the received power of -22 dBm has a high BER and there is no possibility of correctly distinguishing between logical levels. Comparable values were measured for both the downstream traffic and the upstream traffic. Two couplers with an insertion loss of 0.8 dB must be used to split a bidirectional optical fiber into two separate directions (shown in figure 4). The length of the optical fiber between the OLT and the splitter was extended up to 60 km in the next simulations. This corresponds with a loss of 21 dB in the case of an attenuation coefficient of 0.35 dB/km. The overall system loss 43.93 dB includes all optical fibers, two couples and the splitter. Splice and connector losses were not calculated. First, the simulations for the downstream traffic will be described. In next simulations we will replace only fiber between the OLT and the splitter. An SOA placed behind the OLT works in the function of a booster. The transmission power from the OLT was set to the typical value +2 dBm. There is an input power of +1.2 dB at the input of the SOA after the signal division in the first coupler. The output signal is amplified to +11.1 dBm after the passage through the SOA. The gain of the SOA is only 9.7 dB and the amplifier works in the saturation regime (can be seen in figure 2) [12]. The second coupler is connected behind the SOA to link both the downstream traffic and the upstream traffic into a single optical fiber. Subsequently, an optical fiber length of 60 km and a 1:64 splitter are connected. The booster amplifier works in saturation. Hence, the gain of the SOA is not high enough to correctly detect in the receiver a signal after its passage through a 60 km optical fiber. For this reason, the length of the fiber was reduced to 25 km. There was a BER of 10-6 at the detector for the received power of -18.39 dBm. In comparison with the configuration without amplifier, the distance can be extended to twice as much. The BER was not reduced while shortening the distance because of the high ASE noise. Figure 5 shows the dependence of BER on the distance for both the downstream traffic and the upstream traffic, which will be discussed later. An amplifier placed in front of the splitter works in the function of an in-line amplifier. The output power from the SOA remained unchanged, i.e. +2 dBm. The input signal to the SOA has power of -19.59 dBm after passing through the

optical fiber length of 60 km and after the division in the first coupler. The output power from the SOA is +3 dBm, which means a gain of 22.6 dB, and the amplifier works in the quasi-linear regime (this can be seen in figure 2). The single direction signal is linked together in the second coupler and goes through the 1:64 splitter.

Figure 5: BER vs. distance for a pair of amplifiers placed behind the OLT where the SOA for the downstream traffic works as a booster and the SOA for the upstream traffic works as a preamplifier. The received power at the detector has the signal power level of -17.7 dBm with the BER of 10-12. The length of the fiber can be extended up to 72.5 km with a BER of 10-6 and a received power of -20.97 dBm. The BER of 10-6 is referred to as the acceptable bit error rate and the receiver can correctly evaluate logical values 0 and 1. In comparison with the configuration without amplifier, the distance can be extended up to seven times. Figure 6 shows the dependence of the BER on distance for both the downstream traffic and the upstream traffic, which will be discussed later.

Figure 6: BER vs. distance for a pair of amplifiers placed in front of the splitter where the both SOAs work as an in-line amplifier.

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In the last simulation all amplifiers were placed in front of each unit ONT in the function of a preamplifier. The transmitted power in the OLT was set to the value +2 dBm. The input power to the SOA is -38.9 dBm after passage through a 60 km optical fiber, through the 1:64 splitter and through the first coupler. The output signal is amplified to the level of 17.1 dBm so that a gain is 22.6 dB. It gives the same gain as in the previously configuration where the in-line amplifier was used. The amplified signal is linked together in the second coupler and goes at the detector in the ONT. The BER is 10-15 and the received signal has the power level of -18.24 dBm. The distance can be extended up to 70 km with an acceptable BER of 10-6 and a received power of -21.37 dBm. This configuration with SOAs in the function of a preamplifier can extend the distance up to seven times. Figure 7 shows the dependence of the BER on the distance for both the downstream traffic and the upstream traffic, which will be discussed later.

The SOA for upstream traffic placed in front of the splitter has a gain of 23 dB and the system can work over a distance of 60 km with a BER of 10-12 and a received power of 16.38 dBm. The simulation results are similar to the results for downstream traffic. The distance can be extended up to 70 km with an acceptable BER of 10-6 and a received power of 20 dBm. Figure 6 shows the dependence of BER on distance for both the downstream traffic and the upstream traffic. The system can work over a distance of 70 km in both directions. An SOA in front of the OTN works in the function of a booster for upstream traffic but it works in saturations with a maximal gain of 11 dB. The system works with a BER of 10-12 and with a received power of -17.96 dBm over a length of 25 km. The BER is lower in comparison with a booster amplifier behind the OLT for the downstream traffic. The distance can be extended up to 31 km with an acceptable BER of 10-6 and a received power of -20 dBm. Figure 7 shows the dependence of BER on distance for both the upstream traffic and the upstream traffic. The SOA as a booster for the upstream traffic limits the maximum distance of the system.

5 Results
The system under test can work over a length of 10 km with an acceptable BER of 10-6. This bit error rate is high enough for the recommendation G.984.2 because of the low transmitted power which was set. The distance corresponds to the limit distance defined in the rec. ITU-T [17]. Further simulations with SOAs have shown the possibility of extending the distance. The dependence of BER on distance for the downstream traffic and the upstream traffic can be seen in figure 8 and 9, respectively. For illustration, the dependence of BER without amplifiers, no ampli, is shown too.

Figure 7: BER vs. distance for a pair of the amplifiers placed before the ONT where the SOA for the downstream traffic works as a preamplifier and the SOA for the upstream traffic works as a booster. In the following paragraphs, the results for the upstream traffic are discussed. The amplifier was connected first behind the OLT in the function of a preamplifier, then at the input port of the splitter in the function of an in-line amplifier, and finally in front of each ONT in the function of a booster. In the all configurations the transmitted power from the ONTs was set to +2 dB. The SOA as a preamplifier for the upstream traffic behind the OLT works in the same way as the SOA for the downstream traffic connected in front of the ONTs. The simulation results are very similar. The gain of the SOA is set of 23 dB. The system works with a BER of 10-12 and a received power of -18.86 dBm when the fiber length used is 60 km. The distance can be extended up to 66 km with an acceptable BER of 10-6 and a received power of -20.7 dBm. Figure 5 shows the dependence of BER on distance for both the downstream traffic and the upstream traffic. The SOA as a booster for the downstream traffic limits the maximum system distance.

Figure 8: The dependence of BER on distance for downstream traffic. In PONs is necessary to consider the properties of a pair of amplifiers for both the downstream traffic and the upstream traffic when choosing the location of the amplifier in the network. This can be seen in the first simulation when a pair of amplifiers is placed behind the OLT.

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Figure 9: The dependence of BER on distance for upstream traffic. Because of the bidirectional traffic, one optical fiber is split into two single-direction separate fibers. Each direction is amplified by its own amplifier. The system can work in the upstream traffic over a distance of 66 km but the real distance is limited by the amplifier for the downstream traffic in the function of a booster to a length of 25 km. Extending the distance by 15 km length in comparison with the configuration without amplifiers corresponds to an attenuation of 5 dB approximately. A pair of amplifiers placed in front of the splitter works in the function of an in-line amplifier and this configuration allows extending the distance up to 70 km in both directions with an acceptable BER of 10-6. The downstream traffic amplifier compensates for a loss of 24.5 dB in the optical fiber length of 70 km, and the upstream traffic amplifier compensates for a loss of 21 dB in the splitter. Both amplifiers work in the same function of in-line amplifiers with the same input power into the SOA. This configuration can extend the distance by 60 km in comparison with configuration without amplifiers. This corresponds to an increase the power budget by 21 dB. The last configuration with a pair of amplifiers in front of the ONT is rather of a demonstrative nature. It is not possible to place amplifiers in front of every network termination ONT because of the high costs of SOAs. The downstream traffic amplifier in the function of a preamplifier allows extend the distance up to 70 km. The real distance is limited by the amplifier for the upstream traffic in the function of a booster to a length of 31 km with an acceptable BER of 10-6. In comparison with the configuration without amplifiers the distance can be extend by 21 km in length and it corresponds to an attenuation of 7 dB approximately. The configuration, where a pair of amplifiers is placed in front of the splitter gives the best results. We investigated an influence of the bandpass filter on the bit error rate. The bandpass filter with a 1 nm spectral width was placed directly behind amplifier in both directions. The dependence of BER on the input power for the downstream traffic and the upstream traffic can be seen in figure 10 and 11, respectively.

Figure 10: The dependence of BER on the input power downstream traffic. If bandpass filter is used after SOA an ASE noise is partially suppressed and it leads to the BER improvement. For the downstream traffic, the system can work over o distance of 75 km with an acceptable BER of 10-6 with a received power of 21,9 dBm.

Figure 11: The dependence of BER on the input power upstream traffic. For the downstream traffic, the system can work over o distance of 73 km with an acceptable BER of 10-6 with a received power of 21,7 dBm. We achieved a 1 dB improvement, when the bandpass filter was used.

6 Acknowledgment
This paper has been created in support of the project MSM1890600 Electronic communications systems and new generation technologies.

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7 Conclusion
In practice, two configurations can be considered. The first position, preferable for realization, is immediately behind the OLT. A pair of amplifiers can be located in a central office where a power supply is connected. On the other hand, an amplifier with high saturation power must be used [18], [19], [20]. In the simulation, a maximal gain of 11 dB can be set. The system works over a distance of up to 25 km with high ASO noise of 5 dB. In the second case with a pair of amplifiers in front of the splitter the distance can be extended up to 70 km. The necessity to connect an external power supply to the drop terminal is the main disadvantage. Then a passive optical network becomes partly active. The connection in front of the ONT has no sense in the passive optical networks. A SOA in the function of a preamplifier has a practical using in the Point to Point networks [21]. In ONTs can be used a reflective SOA (RSOA) mainly in passive optical network based on wavelength division multiplexing [22]. A banpass filter placed after SOA can improve a BER. Semiconductor optical amplifiers will serve to connect further localities thanks to their lower prices and compactness.

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