Optical Networking And Dense

Wavelength Division Multiplexing

(DWDM)

Abstract
This paper deals with the twin concepts of optical networking and dense wavelength
division multiplexing. The paper talks about the various optical network architectures
and the various components of an all-optical network like Optical Amplifiers, Optical
Add/Drop Multiplexers, Optical Splitters etc. Important optical networking concepts
like wavelength routing and wavelength conversion are explained in detail. Finally
this paper deals with industry related issues like the gap between research and the
industry, current and projected market for optical networking & DWDM equipment
and future direction of research in this field.

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1. INTRODUCTION
One of the major issues in the networking industry today is tremendous demand for
more and more bandwidth. Before the introduction of optical networks, the reduced
availability of fibers became a big problem for the network providers. However, with
the development of optical networks and the use of Dense Wavelength Division
Multiplexing (DWDM) technology, a new and probably, a very crucial milestone is
being reached in network evolution. The existing SONET/SDH network architecture
is best suited for voice traffic rather than today’s high-speed data traffic. To upgrade
the system to handle this kind of traffic is very expensive and hence the need for the
development of an intelligent all-optical network. Such a network will bring
intelligence and scalability to the optical domain by combining the intelligence and
functional capability of SONET/SDH, the tremendous bandwidth of DWDM and
innovative networking software to spawn a variety of optical transport, switching and
management related products.

1.1 Optical Networking

Optical networks are high-capacity telecommunications networks based on optical
technologies and component that provide routing, grooming, and restoration at the
wavelength level as well as wavelength-based services. The origin of optical
networks is linked to Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) which arose to
provide additional capacity on existing fibers. The optical layer, whose standards are
being developed, will ideally be transparent to the SONET layer, providing
restoration, performance monitoring, and provisioning of individual wavelengths
instead of electrical SONET signals. So in essence a lot of network elements will be
eliminated and there will be a reduction of electrical equipment.

It is possible to classify networks into three generations depending on the physical-

level technology employed. First generation networks use copper-based or microwave
technologies e.g Ethernet, satellites etc. In second generation networks, these copper
links or microwave links with optical fibers. However, these networks still perform
the switching of data in the electronic domain though the transmission of data is done
in the optical domain. Finally we have the third generation networks that employ
Wavelength Division Multiplexing technology. They do both the transmission and the
switching of data in the optical domain. This has resulted in the onset of tremendous
amount of bandwidth availability. Further the use of non-overlapping channels allows
each channel to operate at peak speeds.
1.2 Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing (DWDM)
Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing (DWDM) is a fiber-optic transmission
technique. It involves the process of multiplexing many different wavelength signals

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onto a single fiber. So each fiber has a set of parallel optical channels each using
slightly different light wavelengths. It employs light wavelengths to transmit data
parallel-by-bit or serial-by-character. DWDM is a very crucial component of optical
networks that will allow the transmission of data: voice, video-IP, ATM and
SONET/SDH respectively, over the optical layer.

Hence with the development of WDM technology, optical layer provides the only
means for carriers to integrate the diverse technologies of their existing networks into
one physical infrastructure. For example, though a carrier might be operating both
ATM and SONET networks, with the use of DWDM it is not necessary for the ATM
signal to be multiplexed up to the SONET rate to be carried on the DWDM network.
Hence carriers can quickly introduce ATM or IP without having to deploy an overlay
network for multiplexing.

2. DWDM SYSTEM
As mentioned earlier, optical networks use Dense Wavelength Multiplexing as the
underlying carrier. The most important components of any DWDM system are
transmitters, receivers, Erbium-doped fiber Amplifiers, DWDM multiplexers and
DWDM demultiplexers. Fig 1 gives the structure of a typical DWDM system.

Fig.1 Block Diagram of a DWDM System

The concepts of optical fiber transmission, amplifiers, loss control, all optical header
replacement, network topology, synchronization and physical layer security play a
major role in deciding the throughput of the network. These factors have been
discussed briefly in this sections that follow.

2.1. Optical Transmission Principles

The DWDM system has an important photonic layer, which is responsible for
transmission of the optical data through the network. Some basic principles,
concerning the optical transmission, are explained in this section. These are necessary
for the proper operation of the system.

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Channel Spacing
The minimum frequency separation between two different signals multiplexed in
known as the Channel spacing. Since the wavelength of operation is inversely
proportional to the frequency, a corresponding difference is introduced in the
wavelength of each signal. The factors controlling channel spacing are the optical
amplifier’s bandwidth and the capability of the receiver in identifying two close
wavelengths sets the lower bound on the channel spacing. Both factors ultimately
restrict the number of unique wavelengths passing through the amplifier.

Signal Direction
An optical fiber helps transmit signal in both directions. Based on this feature, a
DWDM system can be implemented in two ways:

Unidirectional: All wavelengths travel in the same direction within the fiber. It is
similar to a simplex case. This calls in for laying one another parallel fiber for
supporting transmission on the other side.

Bi-directional: The channels in the DWDM fiber are split into two separate bands,
one for each direction. This removes the need for the second fiber, but, in turn reduces
the capacity or transmission bandwidth.

Signal Trace
The procedure of detecting if a signal reaches the correct destination at the other end.
This helps follow the light signal through the whole network. It can be achieved by
plugging in extra information on a wavelength, using an electrical receiver to extract
if from the network and inspecting for errors. The receiver the reports the signal trace
to the transmitter. Taking into consideration the above two factors, the international
bodies have established a spacing of 100GHz to be the worldwide standard for
DWDM. This means that the frequency of each signal is less than the rest by atleast
0.1THz.

2.2 Network classification

A network can be physically structured in the form of either a ring, a mesh, star based
or linear bus based on the connection between the various nodes. Although the
physical topology of a DWDM system might be that of a ring, the logical traffic
distribution topology can be arbitrary. This is done through the use of different
wavelengths to interconnect each node. Until the development of EDFAs the passive
star configuration was the most popular configuration due to its superior power
budget. However, with the advent of EDFAs, the ring network works out much better
after overcoming its power budget problems. What makes the ring network better is
its superior resilience. The Optical Cross Connect (OXC) help pass on traffic between
each of the rings. A Path-in-Lambda architecture for connecting all-optical networks
is under development.

Ring Topology vs Mesh Topology

A ring topology is preferable owing to many of its capabilities. Unlike a mesh
network, the expense of laying out the links is reduced in the ring, because the

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number of links increases only as a linear progression. The rings also have better
resilience and restoration than meshes. The ring topology besides serving as a standby
link helps share the load. The working segment (Refer to Fig.2) and the protection
segment of the fiber together handle the large data burst of the computer network.
This reduces the load on the router and removes the need for buffering

Fig.2 Ring Topology Connecting Nodes A & B

Single-Hop Networks vs Multi-hop Networks
Multi-wavelength networks can be also classified as single-hop networks and multi-
hop networks. In single-hop networks, the data stream travels from source to
destination as a light stream. There is no conversion to electronic form in any of the
intermediate nodes. Two examples of a single-hop networks are the broadcast-and-
select and the wavelength-routed architecture.

Broadcast-and-select networks: It is based on a passive star coupler device

connected to several nodes in a star topology. Basically a signal received on one port
is split and broadcast to all ports. Networks are simple and have natural multicasting
capabilities. Generally used in high speed LANs or MANs. Other elements in this
type of network are tunable receivers and fixed transmitters or fixed receivers and
tunable transmitters.

Wavelength routed networks: The key element here is the wavelength-selective

switching subsystem. There are again two types of wavelength switching. Wavelength
path switching involves dynamic signal switching

from one path to another by changing WDM routing while wavelength conversion the
reuse of the same wavelength in some other part of the network as long as both light
paths don’t use it on the same fiber. Wavelength routing is explained in more detail in
section
In multi-hop networks, each node has access to only a small number of the
wavelength channels used in the network. Fixed wavelength transmitters and
receivers are used for this purpose with a minimum of at least a single wavelength
transmitter and a single wavelength receiver tuned to different wavelengths. This type
of network requires at least one intermediate node for a packet to reach the
destination. Also, at each intermediate node electronic switching of packets take
place. Two examples of actual multihop systems on which packet switching has been
implemented experimentally are Starnet
(developed by Optical Communication Research Laboratory at Stanford University)
and Teranet (developed by Columbia University).

2.3 Optical Amplifiers

Researchers are working on managing traffic optically rather than first converting it to
electronic signals. However, it has been noticed that in long-haul networks, the effects
of dispersion and attenuation are significant. What this means is that a signal cannot

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maintain its integrity over really long distances without having to be amplified.
Towards that end, the production of optical amplifiers became important, which
would help in amplifying signals at regular intervals. This led to development of the
Erbium-doped fiber Amplifiers (EDFA).

EDFAs are as the name says, are silica based optical fibers that are doped with
erbium. It is this doping that achieves the conversion of a passive fiber to an active
one. Traditionally it has been used for terrestrial and under-sea purposes. With the
development of EDFA we have basically almost rendered ‘Wavelength Regenerators’
redundant. The element erbium (Er68) boosts the power of wavelengths and eliminates
the need for regeneration. It is the optical amplifier that has made WDM economically
feasible. The usable bandwidth by using EDFAs is about 30nm (1530nm-1560nm).
However, attenuation is minimum in the range of 1500nm –1600nm. Hence that
implies very less utilizations. Also typically what happens is that with the need to
place as many wavelengths (channels) as possible in a single fiber, the distance
between two channels is very small (0.8-1.6nm). This results in the Interchannel
crosstalk becoming a very important issue at this point.

It became imperative that the amplifier's bandwidth had to be increased while

eliminating crosstalk. So this led to the development of Silica Erbium fiber-based
Dual-band fiber amplifier (DBFA). These fibers are similar to the EDFAs and have
been able to generate terabit transmission successfully. However, the most important
feature of the DBFA is its bandwidth => 1528nm-1610nm. The DBFA has two sub-
band amplifiers. The first is in the range of the EDFA and the second one is what is
known as extended band fiber amplifier (EBFA). It has been shown that this EBFA
has several attractive features compared to the traditional EDFA.:

Flat Gain: EBFAs achieve a flat gain over a range of wide range (35nm) as compared
to the EDFAs
Slow Saturation: EBFAs reach saturation slower than the EDFAs. Saturation is the
state where output remains constant even though input level keeps increasing.
Low Noise: EBFAs exhibit lower noise than EDFAs

Therefore, the 1590-nm EBFA represents a huge leap in meeting the ever-increasing
demands of high-capacity fiber-optic transmission systems. A similar product is
Lucent’s Bell Labs of an "Ultra-Wideband Optical Amplifier (UWOA) that can
amplify upto 100 wavelength channels as they travel along a single optical fiber and
has a usable bandwidth of 80nm. This bandwidth spans the 1530-1565nm channel (C-
band) and also the long wavelength channels beyond 1565-1620nm(L-band).

Upto December 1998 industrial capability is such that, wavelength systems were
developed that could carry a maximum of 40 wavelengths per fiber. The various
stages of this development included 4, 8,16,32 –wavelengths per fiber.
2.4 Synchronization
The SONET networks currently support the multiplexing of lower Time Division
Multiplexing (TDM) rates onto higher rates. The Add/Drop Multiplexers (ADM) and
transponder en route provide the much-needed synchronization. This ensures the
quality and guarantees proper delivery of data. But, since DWDM systems support the

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multiplexing of different wavelengths, no timing relation exists for the system. The
need for a clocking system, similar to one used in SONET, is absent.

Nevertheless, synchronization may still be used for assuring good quality. The
numerous regenerators/transponders and other devices in the path of a signal
introduces jitter. Synchronization can be used to ensure quality by cleaning up the
signals transmitted at each node. SONET terminals and ADMs have a special timing
output port, which provides timing to customers. It is sometimes referred to as the
Derived DS1. It is a true DS1 signal, but carries no traffic. All data bits are set to logic
1 to minimize timing jitter. A clock distribution amplifier may be used to split the
Derived DS1 signal, to
synchronize many network elements. In a network, each distribution amplifier output
may be routed to a different network element.
2.5 Security
Optical fibers too facilitate secure connections. Quantum cryptography is one such
operation, which exploits the fundamental properties of quantum complementarity
(The concept that particle and wave behavior are mutually exclusive, but, are together
necessary for the complete description of any phenomena) to allow two remote parties
to generate a shared random bit sequence. Users can safely use their shared bit
sequence as a key for subsequent encrypted communications. In conventional
complexity-based approaches to security, privacy is achieved by posing a difficulty
mathematical problem to the interceptor, which is computationally intensive. In
contrast, Quantum Key Distribution (QKD), as it is called, provides a new paradigm
for the protection of sensitive information in which security is based on fundamental
physical laws.

3. DWDM COMPONENTS
Important components of a DWDM system are the Add/Drop Multiplexer (ADM),
the Optical Cross Connect (OXC), Optical Splitter. The Add/Drop Multiplexer as the
name suggests, selectively adds/drops wavelengths without having to use any
SONET/SDH terminal equipment. We require the ADM to add new wavelengths to
the network or to drop some wavelengths at their terminating points. There are two
types of implementations of the ADM, the Fixed WADM and the Reconfigurable
WDM.

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Fig.3 Block Diagram of the WADM
The Optical Cross Connect acts a cross connect between n-input ports and n-output
ports. It allows the efficient network management of wavelengths at the optical layer.
The variety of functions that it provides are signal monitoring, restoration,
provisioning and grooming.

Fig.4 Block Diagram of the OXC

Optical Splitters are being suggested for use in multicast-capable wavelength-routing
switches to provide optical multicasting. It is a passive device that will help in
replicating optical signals. This is explained in detail in a later section. Optical
Gateways are devices that will allow the smooth transition of traffic to the optical
layer. We can have high-speed ATM networks or a mix of SONET and ATM services
with such a gateway. They provide the maximum benefits of optical networks.

4. OPTICAL NETWORK ARCHITECTURE

Just like every other layer defined in networking, a layer architecture has to be
defined for the optical layer. A multi-wavelength mesh-connected optical network is
used to define the architecture of the optic layer. A light path is defined as the path
between two nodes and is equivalent to a wavelength on each link on that path. Two
aspects of the network topology have been described: physical topology and virtual
topology.
The physical topology has WDM cross-connect nodes interconnected by pairs of
point-to-point fiber links in an arbitrary mesh topology as shown in the following
figure.

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Fig.5 A WDM network consisting of crossconnect nodes interconnected by pairs of point-to-point fiber
optic links(i.e physcial topology)

5. DWDM ARCHITECTURE
Using some of the basic concepts of DWDM systems, it is possible to form an All-
Optical layer. Transport of Gigabit Ethernet , ATM, SONET, IP on different channels
is feasible. By achieving this, the system becomes more flexible and any signal format
can be connected to, without the addition of any extra equipment that acts as a
translator between the formats. In this section we will talk about the various types of
technologies that can be used over DWDM systems. In particular, we will discuss
ATM over DWDM and IP over DWDM.

5.1 ATM over DWDM

As bandwidth requirements increase, Telcos are faced with huge investments in order
to fulfill the capacity demands. Along with this the demand for QoS has increased.
There seems to be a general move towards providing QoS while still maintaining the
same capacity. ATM over DWDM solves the bandwidth and Quality of Service issues
in a cost-effective way. In DWDM networks, if there is a carrier that operates both
ATM and SONET networks there is no need for the ATM signal to be multiplexed
upto the SONET rate. This is because the optical layer can carry any type of signal
without any additional multiplexing. This results in the reduction of a lot of overlay
network.

While there are a lot of advantages of running ATM over DWDM, there are certain
issues that are of importance that need to be considered. They are channel spacing
(four Wave Mixing) and optical attenuation. Hence, we need good wavelength
conditioning techniques to solve this problem. The techniques used are Forward Error
Correction Technique and the pilot light technique. By using the latter technique
network management systems are able to ensure connectivity, signal on each channel
and also identify faults. This network management is similar to the way test cells are
used on specific Virtual Channels in ATM.

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Testing ATM over DWDM
Testing of ATM over DWDM consists of similar concepts to those provided in ATM
over SONET. However, with DWDM it is more complex because we now have
multiple parallel links on a single fiber. So besides the need of taking into account the
connectivity and the conformance to QoS agreements, we need to make sure that
these parallel links are all mutually exclusive. Hence, the following parameters need
to be measured:

Signal-to-noise ratio
Channel power
Channel center wavelength and spacing
Crosstalk
Total Optical Power
Chromatic dispersion
Polarization Mode Dispersion

5.2 IP over DWDM (or IP over lambda)

The ultimate solution would be to take IP directly over DWDM. This will bring about
scalability and cost-effectiveness. Now we have industry products that actually
implement IP over DWDM for example Monterey Networks( bought by Cisco
in August '99) have their Monterey 20000 Series Wavelength Router&trade.They
claim that by using their product, "service providers can traffic-engineer and rapidly
scale up survivable mesh optical cores without introducing intermediate ATM
switches or proliferating legacy SONET multiplexers and cross-connects".

In effect we are totally eliminating ATM and SONET layers from the networks. The
proponents of IP over DWDM say that SONET’s reliability is due to a lot of
redundancy. This overkill prevents the network from using a large portion of its
resources. The real test is whether it would be possible to create an end-to-end optical
Internet operating from OC-3 to OC-48 and build systems around an optical Internet
backbone. Compare that with the news that SONET handles OC-192 smoothly and
can touch OC-768. As of March’99, all the IP over DWDM systems that were
operational were all SONET frame based.

With the development of erbium-doped fiber amplifiers most systems that use IP over
DWDM using SONET frames have removed the SONET multiplexers. GTS Carrier
Service in March launched the first high capacity transport platform in Europe that
uses IP over DWDM technology. Further more, major carriers such as AT&T, Sprint,
Enron, Frontier, Canarie, have all begun to realize the huge economic potential of IP
over DWDM and there is no longer any skepticism about this technology.

6. WAVELENGTH ROUTING IN OPTICAL NETWORKS

An optical network consists of wavelength routers and end nodes that are connected
by links in pairs. The wavelength-routing switches or routing nodes are
interconnected by optical fibers. Although each link can support many signals, it is
required that the signals be of distinct wavelengths.

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Routers transmit signals on the same wavelength on which they are received. An All-
Optical wavelength –routed network that wavelength-routed network that carries data
across from one access station to another without any O/E (Optical/Electronic)
conversions.
Categories of Wavelength Switches (or routers as the authors call them):
Non-reconfigurable switch: These types of switches, for each input port and each
wavelength, transmit onto a fixed set output ports at the same wavelength. These
cannot be changed once the switch is built. Networks that contain only such switches
are called non-reconfigurable networks.
Wavelength-Independent Reconfigurable switch: These types of switches have
input-output pattern that can be dynamically reconfigured. However, the input-output
pattern is independent of the wavelength of the signal i.e. there are only fixed sets of
output ports onto which an incoming signal can be transmitted.
Wavelength-Selective Reconfigurable Switch: These types of switches combine the
features of the first two categories.
Also known as generalized switch, they basically have both the properties of dynamic
reconfiguration and the routing pattern being a function of the wavelength of the
incoming signal.
Reconfigurable routers are of bounded degree, while no reconfigurable routers may
not be. That is, the complexity of non-reconfigurable networks can be ignored as it is
not of a fixed degree. However, the complexity of reconfigurable networks is strongly
dependent on its degree and it is bounded.

7. WAVELENGTH CONVERSION IN OPTICAL

NETWORKS
The networks that we have been discussing about until now can be said to be
wavelength-continuity constraint networks. In such networks, to establish any light
path, we require that the same wavelength be allocated on all of the links in the path.
Suppose we have the following portion of a network. The wavelengths λ1 and λ2 that
are shown in dotted arrows are the free wavelengths between nodes 1, nodes 2 and
node3 respectively. There are 2 wavelength converters, one in node 2 and another in
node 3. Here it is not possible to establish a light path from 1 to 4 without a
wavelength converter because the available wavelengths are different on the link.

Fig.8 Wavelength Conversion

So, we could eliminate this problem by converting data that is arriving on the link
from node 1 to node 2 on λ1 to λ2 on the link between node 2 and node 3. Such a
technique is called wavelength conversion. Functionally, such a network is similar to
a circuit-switched network. For any model of optical routing, we need to make as

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efficient use of the given optical bandwidth that we have as possible. Wavelength
converters have been proposed as a solution to this problem. Wavelength converters
have been defined earlier in this report as those devices that convert an incoming
signal's wavelength to a different outgoing wavelength thereby increasing the reuse
factor. Wavelength converters offer a 10%-40% increase in reuse values when
wavelengths availability is small.

Categories of Wavelength Conversion

No conversion: No wavelength shifting
Full conversion: Any wavelength shifting is possible and so channels can be
connected regardless of their wavelengths.
Limited conversion: Wavelength shifting is restricted so that not all combination of
channels may be connected.
Fixed conversion: Restricted form of limited conversion that has for each node, each
channel maybe connected to exactly one predetermined channel on all other links.
Sparse Wavelength Conversion: Networks are comprised of a mix of nodes having
full and no wavelength conversion.

CONCLUSION:
Here various concepts that are integral to the development of all-optical
network, various new technologies available in DWDM system are discussed. In near
future it is possible that only two optical layers will exist: WDM layer and IP layer.
However SONET equipment has two features: restoration and trouble shooting
capabilities. For this reason that a lot of investment into SONET has taken place,
SONET will survive. As routers become faster, it will be difficult to convert every
wavelength to add or drop off bandwidth. Thus managing hundred plus wavelength
systems is probably difficult. Research is being done to achieve a high speed all-
optical network. New concepts such as all-optical switching are coming up.

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