Progress towards a 1300 nm fibre amplifier

Candidates for a 1.3 micron fibre amplifier include praseodymium doped fluoride (PDFA) or a similar device based on chalcogenide glasses, both of which have demonstrated amplification though not yet at practical levels; neodymium doped fluoride glasses for which signal gain is possible but severely limited by competing transitions; and dysprosium doped chalcogenide glasses, from which only fluorescence has been demonstrated. In this presentation we review progress in these three variations of the ubiquitous 1300 nm optical fibre amplifier.