Abstract
A broadband amplification that utilizes a serial hybrid fiber amplifier is experimentally demonstrated in this paper. Two fully double-pass configurations, namely, setups A and B, are implemented. The difference between these two configurations is that the position of the two amplifiers (erbium and Raman) is swapped. These two configurations are tested under the same input parameter conditions. Two laser pump power wavelengths with a total pump power of 375 mW (1495 nm with 350 mW for Raman and 1480 nm with 25 mW for the erbium amplifier) were used. Under the optimum condition and under a small signal power of -30 dBm, a wide flatness gain bandwidth of 80 nm (1530-1610 nm) with an average gain level of 28.5 and 24 dB is achieved for setups A and B, respectively. A wide bandwidth is achieved by avoiding the amplification overlap between these two amplifiers through choosing the proper pump wavelength. In addition, A gain dynamic range values of 3 dB and more than 15 dB were recorded for setup A and B respectively.