Abstract: The optical fiber system includes a connector that is adapted to selectively communicate with an external pump system. The connector communicates with an onboard pump multiplexer which also receives input from an on-board pump via a connector. The on-board pump may be hot swapped by connecting an external pump system to the connector and coordinating the power up of the external pump system with the power down of the on-board pump to replace a failed on-board pump with a new pump.

Abstract: An optical device (10) includes a broad area laser (72) for lasing at a first wavelength (64), a multimode active-doped tapered waveguide laser (6); and a multimode passive planar mode transformer (118) coupling and tapering from the broad area laser (72) to the multimode active-doped tapered waveguide laser (6).

Abstract: A dispersion compensating module, mode converter, coupler and dispersion compensated optical fiber therein. The dispersion compensating fiber has a plurality of core segments, the refractive index profile being selected to exhibit properties such that an LP02 mode at 1550 nm may be propagated a distance (generally 0.5-3.0 km), upon conversion to LP02, to compensate for dispersion of a length of transmission waveguide preferably greater than 25 km propagating in an LP01 mode. In another embodiment, the dispersion compensating module has a mode converter having a reflective fiber grating for converting a first to a second mode interconnected to a dispersion compensated fiber propagating in the second mode. The mode converter has a coupler adapted to operatively couple light propagating in a first mode from a first fiber into a second, and a reflective fiber grating operatively coupled to the second fiber; the grating being capable of converting light from the first into the second mode.