In an optical transmission medium, such as a fiber amplifier, two optically distinguishable signals with complementary modulation are both inputted into the amplifying medium for encoding information, particularly a serial stream of digital data, or alternatively, redundant encoding of pulses. The gain profile in the medium is preferably maintained approximately constant at all times, so that whichever amplified signal is used as the primary information carrier, its output intensity will be substantially stable from pulse to pulse, independent of recent pulse history. The two complementary signals may have different orthogonal linear polarizations or wavelengths with the same stimulated emission cross-section, so that the population inversion profile stays constant, whichever signal happens to be on at a given moment. The two signals may be derived from separate intensity modulated laser diode signal sources, from a single laser diode signal source switched between two emission wavelengths, or from a single laser diode with constant emission coupled to a directional coupler directing two complementary polarized light signals into the fiber amplifying medium.