Merit of hybrid EDFA/Raman amplification in fixed‐grid all‐optical network exploiting multirate transponders

Summary The constant need to improve network capacity and reduce power consumption in current fixed‐grid WDM networks motivates researchers to find alternative solutions other than replacing the deployed equipment. One of the possible solutions is the use of hybrid EDFA/Raman amplifier, which improves signal‐to‐noise‐ratio in a point‐to‐point link. This work aims at quantifying, by means of a detailed power model, the effect of these novel ideas on the power consumption of the network, which is key to build a future green Internet. In particular, we consider the use of a randomly generated topology of 20 nodes to study the effect of hybrid amplification, fiber type, fiber span length, and sensitivity to average link length and average traffic per node. Results show that hybrid amplification in moderate pumping regime minimizes total network power consumption for networks made up of all 3 fiber types in particular for nonzero dispersion‐shifted fiber. Hybrid EDFA/Raman Amplification (HFA) is an appealing solution to increase network capacity and reduce power consumption in current fixed grid WDM networks. This work aims at quantifying, by means of a detailed power model and different simulation parameters, the effect of HFA on the power consumption of the network, which is key to build a future green Internet. Results show that HFA in moderate pumping regime minimizes total network power consumption for networks made up of different fiber types in particular for nonzero dispersion‐shifted fiber.