This book discusses ultrafast optical switching devices and systems, which operate at speeds beyond those of normal electronics. Both fundamental physics and engineering applications are treated, and the book provides a complete LOGOUT of some of the key research issues and approaches.

I remember vividly the ?rst time that I heard about the ?ber ampli?er. At that time, of course, it was the erbium-doped ?ber ampli?er, the predecessor of the Raman ampli?er that is the subject of this book. It was an early morning in a forgotten year in Murray Hill, New Jersey at one of our Bell Labs monthly research staff meetings. About twenty directors and executive directors of research organizations clustered around a long table in the imposing executive conference room. Arno Penzias, the vice president of research, presided at the foot of the table. Everyone who participated in those...

I remember vividly the ?rst time that I heard about the ?ber ampli?er. At that time, of course, it was the erbium-doped ?ber ampli?er, the predecessor of the Raman ampli?er that is the subject of this book. It was an early morning in a forgotten year in Murray Hill, New Jersey at one of our Bell Labs monthly research staff meetings. About twenty directors and executive directors of research organizations clustered around a long table in the imposing executive conference room. Arno Penzias, the vice president of research, presided at the foot of the table. Everyone who participated in those...

This edited monograph is written by leading experts in this area and is the first book entirely devoted to Raman amplification. Three sections include extensive background on Raman physics, descriptions of sub-systems and modules utilizing Raman technology, and a review of current state-of-the-art systems.