A Fully Implemented Strictly Non-Blocking 16X16 Photonic Switching System
19 February 1993
As optical transmission systems continue to grow in both speed and utilization, the need for higher throughput cross-connect systems will increase. With the number of optical terminations in central offices increasing, optical level bandwidth management and restoration applications will become more important. Space division guided-wave optical switching technology can meet these needs. Toward that goal here we report for the first time on a fully implemented dilated, strictly non-blocking 16X16 photonic switch system based on a novel architecture, that offers the potential of bit-rate and wavelength transparency. The switch system utilized 23 fully interconnected lithium niobate switching modules assembled into a modular physical design bay structure with full dedicated electronic and computer control of all switching elements.