Cost-Effective Adaptive Optical Network Technologies for Metropolitan Area Networks

Improving the performance of electronic and optoelectronic components and systems has enabled the investigation of transmitting optical channels with data rates greater than 40 Gb/s. However, for transporting high capacity channels on demand over long distances, considerable signal processing is necessary, with current emphasis being on digital techniques. Meanwhile in the context of optical networks where spectrally adjacent channels may have crossed different routes to interconnect the same source destination nodes, adaptive transmission systems become vital. This paper will study adaptive optical and electronic network technologies that enable transmission of high capacity channels with emphasis to the interplay between realistic performance, feasibility and complexity/cost.