In this paper, we address the performance optimization of Holmium doped fiber amplifier (HDFA) for optical communications in 2–2.15 μm wavelength range based on a single in-band forward pump source. The performance of the HDFA is analyzed with the help of theoretical simulations by considering an optimized length of Holmium doped fiber (HDF), doping concentration of Ho3+, and pump power. The impact of signal wavelength and power on gain, amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) noise, and noise figure (NF) of the amplifier is investigated. Furthermore, we investigate the variations in the gain of the amplifier, its output power, and NF by varying the power and wavelength of the pump source. After optimizing the parameters of the amplifier, the peak gain observed is around 56.5 dB, the 3 dB saturated output power obtained is 33.3 dBm, and the output power is 3 W at signal wavelength of 2.0321 μm for HDF having an optimized length of 12 m and pump power of 3.5 W. Minimum NF of around 8.2 dB is observed at 2.0321 μm for signal power of −5 dBm. The impact of ion-ion interaction on the performance of HDFA is also investigated. A reduction of 24.2 dB and 0.051 W is observed in peak gain and output power of HDFA, respectively by considering the ion-ion interaction.

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