Optical technology innovation in metropolitan networks

This paper evaluates the network architectures, the innovation in optical (WDM) system design, and the related transport technologies that have enabled metropolitan networks to scale to hundreds Gb/s of capacity, and to hundreds kin of reach, meeting the diverse service needs of enterprise and residential applications, while maintaining cost lower than traditional long-haul optical transport. The analysis have lead to the development of a multi-service WDM system scalable to more than 300 Gb/s, and 500 km, exceeding the previous related demonstrations in reach and network (OADM) complexity. The most important performance achievements are summarized. The paper finally discusses future important technologies that hold promise to further enhance the cost-effectiveness of metropolitan optical systems.