Spectral switching-based fan-out architecture and information processing in free-space

In this paper, we elaborate different type of spectral switching techniques and spectral switching-based information processing (SSBIP) schemes. On the basis of theoretical, experimental and empirical studies carried out so far on spectral switching, we demonstrate novel type of interference-induced 1 x N (1 input N outputs) and 1 x N x M (1 input N x M outputs) spectral switching-based fan-out architectures for information transmission in free-space. In addition, a comprehensive analysis is presented to explore the feasibility of SSBIP scheme in contrast to the recent technological advancements. The spectral switching-based techniques are contrived ideas but might find potential applications in optical computing, state-of-the-art technique like SIMO (single-input multiple-output), free-space optical (FSO) interconnects and polychromatic light-based FSO communications. (C) 2014 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.