Lecture 11

Optical Networks: Switching and Routing

1
Contents

Contents
1 Contents 2 Optical Networks 3 Optical Network Architecture 3.1 Emerging Integrated IP/WDM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Optical Infrastructure 4.1 Unique Properties of Optics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4.2 Optical Networks Evolution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 WDM 5.1 Wavelength-Division (De)Multiplexing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2 Dense WDM (DWDM) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 WDM Standards 6.1 WDM Standards and Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 SONET 7.1 SONET/SDH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.2 Space Division vs. Wave Division Multiplexing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Optical Switching 8.1 Elements of Optical Switching . . . . . . . 8.2 Wavelength Converters . . . . . . . . . . . 8.3 Wavelength Converters . . . . . . . . . . . 8.4 Wavelength Conversion . . . . . . . . . . . 8.5 RRR: Reamplication, Reshaping, Retiming 8.6 Converters and Cross-connects . . . . . . . 8.7 A Cross-connect Without WCs . . . . . . 8.8 Converters and Cross-connects . . . . . . . 8.9 Cross-Connect with WL Converters . . . . 9 Topological Characteristics 9.1 Static and Dynamic WDM Networks 9.2 WC in WDM Networks . . . . . . . 9.3 Topological Dependence . . . . . . 9.4 Number of Wavelengths . . . . . . 9.5 Number of Fibers per Link . . . . . 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 8 9 10 10 10 11 11 11 11 12 12 12 12

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10 Optical Routing 10.1 Wavelength Routing Algorithms . . . . 10.2 Trafc Distribution . . . . . . . . . . . 10.3 Multi-Wavelength TDM Networks . . . 10.4 Alternate Routing . . . . . . . . . . . . 10.5 Maximum H/L Routing (MHLR) . . . 10.6 Least Loaded Routing (LLR) . . . . . . 10.7 Least Congested Path (LCP) Routing . . 10.8 Different Wavelength on Different Links 11 Fairness 12 Research Issues 13 Literature

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13 13 14 15 15 15 15 15 16 16 16 16
11.2

Optical Networks

Optical Networks A single ber simultaneously carries many different and independent wavelengths The technology combining a number of wavelengths onto the same ber is known as wavelengthdivision multiplexing, (WDM) Conceptually WDM is the same as FDM Various channels (wavelengths or frequencies) must be properly spaced to avoid inter-channel interference

IP

ATM

SONET/SDH

WDM

Major concerns Standards for transmission of IP over optical network Critics complain that an optical infrastructure is expensive to deploy Electronic transmission: Data is converted to electrons and transmitted over copper Optical transmission: Data is converted to bits of lights (photons) and transmitted over ber faster than electron Why? Photons weigh less than electron Fiber offers less resistance

11.3

Optical Network Architecture

Optical Network Architecture Today IP over (ATM/SONET) over WDM Trend Integrated IP/WDM with/without optical switching Goal Scalable architecture
11.4

3.1

Emerging Integrated IP/WDM

Emerging Integrated IP/WDM IP/MPLS controllers on top of optical switches (or cross-connects) It uses IP-based addressing/routing (electronics) Data is optically switched Resource provisioning, trafc engineering and protection/restoration based on MPLS Internetworking of optical WDM subnets With interior and exterior (border) gateway routing
11.5

Optical Infrastructure

Optical Infrastructure Since phonetic transmission is different than electronic transmission, switching, routing and other basic tasks are handled differently Optical networks which have traditionally carried Circuit-switched trafc must now adapt to IP networks
11.6

4.1

Unique Properties of Optics

Unique Properties of Optics Virtually unlimited bandwidth, 200 THz 300,000 HDTV channels The weak interaction between information carriers Optical circuits can be crossed in a plane without "short circuits" but not without crosstalk Important consequences for the topologies of integrated circuits optical interconnects Difculty of controlling light by light The strong interaction between light and semiconductors in terms of absorption, amplication, and refraction
11.7

4.2

Optical Networks Evolution

Optical Networks Evolution

Switch Control Todays network Network management Optical switching Elctronic control

Switch Control

Network management

Switch Control All optics Network management

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5.1

WDM
Wavelength-Division (De)Multiplexing

Wavelength-Division (De)Multiplexing WDM is used to increase the capacity of the transmission links Implemented by a variety techniques The role of WDM in switching with/without WCs is a subject of research To perform real switching either control the mapping or use WCs WC can be done all-optically or opto-electronic-opto (OEO) OEO involves in detection, amplication, and light generation WD techniques are most applicable to cross-connects since CC avoids the issue of synchronization
11.9

5.2

Dense WDM (DWDM)

Dense WDM (DWDM) The term Dense WDM refers to the upgrade of the original WDM wave lengths are separated by several 10s or 100s of nm. The technological evolution has been remarkable in two areas Transmission

 Switching Distinction between switching and transmission is becoming blurred Using digital cross-connects and add/drop multiplexers, the transmission layer assumes some of the roles of the switching layer.

Increases ber capacity Transmits multiple signals using different WL of light, simultaneously. Each WL represents a different transmission channel. Currently, DWDM lets a single ber carry up to 128 WLs. attempts are being made to make it to 1,000 channels within a single ber. each WL can carry 2.5 Gbps.

Other advantages of optical networks Less error-prone No interference from power lines clearer audio/video
11.10

WDM Standards

WDM Standards and Operations The standard for signal format for ber optic transmission line Synchronous Optical Network, SONET in North America Synchronous Digital Hierarchy SDH in other parts of the world The transmission rate of the basic SONET is 51.84 Mbps Called Synchronous Transport Signal, STS-1 Each frame consists of 90 columns 9 rows of bytes 90 9 8 = 6480 bits transmitted every 125 s 8000 frames per second Transmission rate = 8000 6480 = 51.84 Mbps Each frame consist of 3 columns of control information Data rate = 8000 6264 = 50.112 Mbps STS-N is N STS-1
11.11

6.1

WDM Standards and Operations

WDM Standards and Operations Undergoing electrical-to-optical conversion and scrambling for efcient transmission, the resultant physical-layer optical signal is called OC-N (optical carrier) ANSI only recognizes the values N = 1, 3, 12, 24, 48, and 192. In SDH, the basic rate is STS-3 = 155.52 Mbps called Synchronous Transport module level 1, STM-1 STS-M, M=1,4, 16, and 64 supported by ITU (International Telecommunication Union) How SDH and SONET work together? N = 3M In contrast to SONET, SDH does not distinguish between a logical electrical signal (e.g., STS-N in SONET) and a physical optical signal (e.g., OC-N) Both signal types are designated by STM-M

SONET level OC-1 OC-3 OC-12 OC-24 OC-48 OC-96 OC-192

OC-N and STM-M Electrical level Line Rate Mbps STS-1 51.84 STS-3 155.52 STS-12 622.08 STS-24 1244.16 STS-48 2488.32 STS-96 4976.64 STS-192 9953.28

SDH equivalent STM-1 STM-4 STM-8 STM-16 STM-32 STM-64

11.12

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7.1

SONET
SONET/SDH

SONET/SDH Synchronous Optical Network/Synchronous Digital Hierarchy. These switches are used in optical segments of optical-electronic networks. They convert data signals from the electronic network to optical and visa-versa The conversions slow down the switching process a new breed of optical equipment is necessary for all-optical networks.

 All optical network

DWDM 2.5/10 Gbps

DWDM 155.5/622.1 Mbps Server

ATM

DWDM

Optical Switch ATM

7.2

Space Division vs. Wave Division Multiplexing

Space Division vs. Wave Division Multiplexing

Space division multiplexing OC-N OC-N OC-N OC-N TX TX TX TX 4 1 2 1 ,2 ,3 ,4 3 WDM 4 RX OC-N , 3 1 RX 2 RX RX OC-N OC-N OC-N

TX light source

RX photodetector
11.14

Optical Switching

Photonic Switching Consider 100,000 subscriber at a digital exchange, each generating 64 Kbps Total aggregated trafc 10 Gbps Now consider 100 Mbps instead of 64 Kbps Total aggregated trafc 10 Tbps Fiber optics can cope with this from transmission point of view How about switching?

 Two types of optical switches; Relational and Logical switches. Relational Switches: Used in circuit switched environments. Set up virtual circuits for data packets that are bound for the same location. Logical Switches: Can be used in packet switched environment. Do not depend on virtual circuits. Can send packets bound for the same location along different routes if necessary.
11.15

8.1

Elements of Optical Switching

Elements of Optical Switching Two major components: WL changers and cross-connects Wavelength changers: WLs may require to change WLs from one segment to the next In general, WL changers convert optical signals to electronic signals and a laser reproduce the signal with different WL Optical Cross-connects: two tasks, move transmissions between ber segments enables network management Optical Cross-connects require integration of a number of fast optical-switch elements, monitoring and control circuits. Most optical equipment are cutting-edge patented devices expensive.
11.16

8.2

Wavelength Converters

Wavelength Converters WDM is being extensively deployed on point-to-point links. Optical cross-connects can switch entire WL from an input ber to an output ber. allow end-to-end connection called lightpath. Future transport networks are expected to incorporate both electronic and optical switching.
11.17

8.3

Wavelength Converters

Wavelength Converters

Internet

Voice Customer applications Data Multimedia

Access network Existing format ATM/ SDH Future format

IP

Electronic layer

WDM

Optical layer

Wavelength-routing networks employ spatial reuse of WLs Allow the same WL to be used by multiple lightpaths in the same network provided that they dont share a common link. Allow scalability, may be limited in non-recongurable networks.
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2 6 WDM router

3 1 2

1
4
11.18

8.4

Wavelength Conversion

Wavelength Conversion Simple wavelength-routing, A lightpath between two nodes along a particular route use a single WL. Hunting for the same WL is required along a path. 2-to-4 uses 1 This constraint can be avoided by the use of WCs.

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Connection 1: Connection 2: Connection 3: Connection 4:

1 2 3 4

- 3 - 4 - 2 - 1

Wavelength conversion results in improvement in network performance. Wavelength converters must be all optical converters. The extent to which all-optical transparent transport will be used remains to be determined.

11.19

8.5

RRR: Reamplication, Reshaping, Retiming

RRR: Reamplication, Reshaping, Retiming Regeneration (reamplication, reshaping, and retiming) is required to build large scalable WDM networks. Currently this is performed using optoelectric (OE). OE regeneration allow network monitoring, by measuring bit error rates.
11.20

8.6

Converters and Cross-connects

Converters and Cross-connects Whether all-optical or opto-electronic, converters complicate the switch design M input and M output bers, each with W WLs. The cross-connect uses W M M space switches.
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8.7

A Cross-connect Without WCs

A Cross-connect Without WCs

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8.8

Converters and Cross-connects

Converters and Cross-connects M input and M output bers, each with W WLs. The cross-connect uses a W M MW space switch, with W M WCs. WC are expected to increase the cost of a WDM network. WC are of great importance in providing interoperability. WC may improve the network performance, by allowing more efcient use of network resources.
11.23

8.9

Cross-Connect with WL Converters

Cross-Connect with WL Converters

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9.1

Topological Characteristics
Static and Dynamic WDM Networks

Static and Dynamic WDM Networks While it is difcult to predict the bandwidth requirements and statistical properties carried by WDM networks, they are important factors in network design. The users of a WDM transport could be Electronic switching equipment SONET/SDH cross-connects ATM switches IP routers Individual workstations and servers

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 Depending on the rate at which the overall trafc demand varies, the lightpaths may remain relatively xed Effectively static offer load. vary considerably over time Dynamic offer load. A real network may have a combination of both. Routing in dynamic WDM can be performed off-line or online. Off-line routing: Routes are known in advance Optimal routes and WL assignments
11.25

9.2

WC in WDM Networks

WC in WDM Networks Performance of dynamic WCs has been studied in terms of blocking probability. load vs. blocking probability Factors impact on WC performance Network topology and size The number of bers on each link. The number of WLs used on each link The routing and WL assignment scheme The trafc arrival process
11.26

9.3

Topological Dependence

Topological Dependence The network diameter is an important performance factor In general, blocking in wavelength-continuous increases with the route length. This is less dramatic in network with WC. Studies have shown that WCs generally offer only marginal performance benets in networks with small diameters. Let Interference length, L, is dened as the expected number of links shared by two light paths which share some link. Without WCs, at any point in time, exactly the same is allocated to all lightpaths on each link. The blocking probability will be reduced to the one-hop BP. no improvement in the performance. WCs may provide signicant performance with large diameters.
11.27

9.4

Number of Wavelengths

Number of Wavelengths Most studies assumed the same number of WL on each link. The performance of a single-wavelength is the same with or without WC. WCs become increasingly signicant as the number of WLs increases. What is the utilization gain when WC are used for a xed blocking probability (BP) What is the utilization gain when WC are used for a xed It is likely that the number of WLs allocated to support rapidly uctuated lightpath demands will be relatively small.
11.28

9.5

Number of Fibers per Link

Number of Fibers per Link Multiple bers are often available on a singe link. Studies have shown that given that number of bers number of wavelength = constant The benets of WC rapidly disappear as the number of bers increases.
11.29

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10 Optical Routing
Optical Routers Also called Lambda-Routers use microscopic mirrors to bounce photonic signals The switch fabric directs signals across 256 channels, each 40 Gbps 1.02 terabits per second.
11.30

10.1

Wavelength Routing Algorithms

Wavelength Routing Algorithms A routing algorithm directly impact the blocking probability. A routing algorithm should consider route length H in hops, interference length L, link congestion level. Some studies suggest that routing algorithm that minimize H/L may provide better performance. A good routing algorithm for wavelength-continuous network will reduce the benet of WCs. Random wavelength assignment: randomly allocates a WL Equalizes the load on each WL.

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 First-t wavelength assignment: WLs are ordered and a search is performed for the best t. Gave better performance on a random topologies. Most/least-used wavelength assignment: Performed worst on one study It reduces the probability of nding an available route. MaxSum wavelength assignment: minimizes blocking by minimizing the effect of establishing a new connection. The difference between these schemes are accentuated in a ring topology with multiple bers on each link. Wavelength reservation refers to the dedication of a specic WL on link along the path A threshold for idle WLs can be imposed before a reservation is made on link. This improves blocking probability.
11.31

10.2

Trafc Distribution

Trafc Distribution The majority of analysis of dynamically recongurable WDM have assumed Poisson connection arrival process Negative exponential holding times This provides simplicity in analyst, it is realistic for circuit-switched networks These assumptions are not good approximation for lightpath TDM trafc streams. WC have shown little improvement on bursty trafc The ratio of variance to mean increases.

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 Note that BP is a measure of call, rather than time. Each burst results in rapid usage of WLs blocking small in terms of time large in term of numbers In networks without WC, the probability that a signicant number of WLs on a hop are used decreases as bursts length increases Why? The Pr that more than one hop has many WLs in use decreases. WCs would not improve BP and utilization on burst trafc. Some studies indicate that the network performance is independent of holding time but strongly depends on arrival process.

11.32

10.3

Multi-Wavelength TDM Networks

Multi-Wavelength TDM Networks How TDM and WDM are used in a network? Is function of cross-connect on the optical layer and the electronic switching layer. Fast Space Switching: If the state of the switch can be congured per time-slot basis, better BP can be achieved. Time-slot Interchange (TSI) and WC may be used to improve BP. TSI rearranges the order of slots in a single WL. TSI reduces BP in TDM in the same way WC reduces BP in WDM
11.33

10.4

Alternate Routing
Most studies have focused on x routing. Signicant performance improvement can be achieved when alternate routing is used. Studies focused on wavelength-continuous single ber have shown alternate routing performs better. The performance depends on the scheme.

Alternate Routing

11.34

10.5

Maximum H/L Routing (MHLR)

Maximum H/L Routing (MHLR) Chooses a route among the k shortest route which maximizes the ratio of route length H to the interference L. L is the expected number of links shared by two lightpaths which share some link. First-t wave-length assignment is used in wavelength-continuous networks. For wavelength-continuous as k increases H/L increases some topology BP increases With WC, as k increases BP decreases Why?
11.35

Why?

10.6

Least Loaded Routing (LLR)

Least Loaded Routing (LLR) LLR chooses a route from k alternate routes which maximizes the minimum number of available WLs on any given link along a route. It has shown to decrease BP with/without WCs.

11.36

10.7

Least Congested Path (LCP) Routing

Least Congested Path (LCP) Routing

11.37

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10.8

Different Wavelength on Different Links

Different Wavelength on Different Links Without WC A wavelength should exist along the path Potential for higher BP With WC allow connections on available WLs Provide signicant performance improvement Choice of careful WL assignments is important.
11.38

11 Fairness
Fairness While WCs may reduce BP, continuous WL may also introduce signicant unfairness in the BP. Longer hops (many-hops) routes may experience higher BP It is difcult to locate common WL on each hop
11.39

12 Research Issues
Research Issues Multi-wavelength TDM Several calls are multiplexed into a single lightpath Multiplexing can be performed by Electronic multiplexers Add-drop multiplexers Digital cross-connects Routers (e.g., IP routers) The role of WCs in hybrid (electro-optic) needs further investigation The efcient transport of IP over WDM is a topic of interest The effect of lightpath blocking and packet loss on IP congestion is another issue. WCs transparency transparent all-optical network uncertain device limitation Optimal number of WCs is an issue.
11.40

13 Literature
References

References
[AAFR07] Osama Awwad, Ala I. Al-Fuqaha, and Ammar Rayes. Trafc grooming, routing, and wavelength assignment in wdm transport networks with sparse grooming resources. Computer Communications, 30(18):35083524, December 2007. [PDF]. [Muk00] Biswanath Mukherjee. Wdm optical communication networks: Progress and challenges. IEEE Journal on Selected Areas in Communications, 18(10):18101824, October 2000. [PDF]. [SSR07] Paramjeet Singh, Ajay Sharma, and Shaveta Rani. Routing and wavelength assignment in wdm networks with dynamic link weight assignment. Optik - International Journal for Light and Electron Optics, 118(11):527532, November 2007. [PDF]. [Sys01] Cisco Systems. RDWDM in Metropolitan Area Networks. Cisco Press, Indianapolis, IN : Cisco Press, June 2001. [PDF]. [Sys07] Cisco Systems. Converge IP and DWDM layers in the core network. White Paper, 2007. [PDF]. [Xin07] Chunsheng Xin. Blocking analysis of dynamic trafc grooming in mesh wdm optical networks. IEEE/ACM Trans. Netw., 15(3):721733, 2007. [PDF].
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