Suppressing amplifier transients in lightwave systems

The implementation of the new features such as dynamic wavelength provisioning and automated reconfiguration can lead to optical power transients in a conventional gain-controlled EDFA, which is usually operated under saturation. These signal transients can compromise the flexibility of network architecture and impact overall system performance. Should a network be reconfigured or a component fail, the number of WDM signals passing along a chain of amplifiers will change, thus causing the power of surviving channels to either increase or decrease. The service quality of surviving channels can be impaired through four mechanisms when channel loading changes.