WDM Compatible 2R and 3R Regeneration based on Saturable Absorber

Abstract

poster [B-38]International audienceA saturable absorber (SA) based on a vertical micro-cavity is of great interest for optical regeneration. In this paper, we report on the high potential of the SA for optical regeneration, both 2R and 3R regenerations are performed. A pigtailed chip SA with 8 independent fibres is assessed for the first time. We demonstrate experimentally the cascadability and WDM compatibility of this 2R module in a recirculation loop at 42.6 Gbit/s. In an all Erbium amplification system, the transmission distance is enhanced by a factor superior than 3 when the 2R regeneration is applied. This performance is obtained for 8 channels and over 13 nm for each channel. For the 3R regeneration set-up, a novel technique of all-optical synchronous modulation using cross saturation absorption in SA is also presented. The all-optical synchronous modulation is driven optically by the recovered clock from a self-pulsating laser device. Thank to this technique, a transmission distance enhancement factor of 22.5 at 42.6 Gbit/s is experimentally obtained