Abstract

Photonic packet switching offers the potential of large switch capacity through the exploitation of wideband photonic switching and routing devices. The wide bandwidth of photonic components, combined with the flexibility of wavelength-division multiplexing and routing techniques, and the high-speed capabilities of nonlinear devices such as optical switches and optical gates open up the possibility of packet-switched networks with throughputs in the terabit per second range. This paper gives an overview of the operating principles and architectures of photonic packet switches. The capabilities of key devices and components suitable for use in photonic packet-switched networks are reviewed.

© 1995 IEEE