A 1×4 Polymeric Digital Optical Switch Based on the Thermo-Optic Effect

We present a 1 × 4 Y-branch digital optical switch in which S-bend variable optical attenuators are integrated. The S-bend waveguides, which are always introduced to connect the switch and the standard fiber array, are made use of and designed as variable optical attenuators. A compact device with low crosstalk and larger branching-angle is obtained. The device is fabricated on the thermo-optic polymer materials,and the performance of the device is measured. With an applied driving power of less than 200mW, the device has a low crosstalk of less than - 35dB at a wavelength of 1.55 μm.

Analysis and Design for a Micro Mechanical Optical Switch

The mechanical and electric characteristics of a cantilever beam micro opto mechanical switch are studied theoretically,with which the dependence of the flexion on the applied voltage is derived,as well as the formula of the threshold voltage.The applied voltage,having no connection with the width of the beam,is in inverse proportion to the square of the beam's length.The deflection at the beam's tip cannot exceed 1/3 of the distance between two adjacent electrodes.These results are the basis of the switch design and development.

Fabrication and Electromechanical Characteristics of 2×2 Torsion-Mirror Optical Switch Arrays with Monolithically Integrated Fiber Self-Holding Structures

Novel 2×2 torsion-mirror optical switch arrays are fabricated by using the mixed micromachining based on the surface and bulk silicon microelectronics,then are investigated electromechanically in applied direct and alternating electric fields.When the thickness of the elastic torsion beams suspending the aluminum coated polysilicon micro-mirrors of the switches in the arrays is about 1μm,the electrostatic yielding voltages for driving the mirrors to achieve their ON-state are in the range of 270～290V,and the minimum holding voltages for mirrors ON-state are found as 55V or so.Theoretical analysis manifests that the yielding voltage is more sensitive to beam thickness than other design parameters do about the torsion-mirror switch structures.The lifetime can reach 10 8 times.The estimated shortest switching time of the switches at least lasts for less than 2ms.The force analysis on the two kinds of new fiber self-holding structures integrated monolithically in the chip of the optical switch arrays indicates that the structures can feature self-fixing and self-aligning of optical fibers.

A 16×16 Micro Mirror Array for Optical Switches

This paper reports on the design, fabrication,and performance of a high-reflectivity large-rotation mirror array for MEMS （micro-electro-mechanical system） 16 × 16 optical switches. The mirror in the array can enlarge its rotation an- gles up to 90° and keep a steady state to steer the optical signal. According to the large-rotation behavior, an electro- mechanical model of the mirror is presented. By monolithic integration of fiber grooves and mirrors fabricated by a sur- face and bulk hybrid micromachining process, the coarse passive alignment of fiber-mirror-fiber can be achieved. The re- flectivity of the mirror is measured to be 93.1% ~96.3%. The switches demonstrate that the smallest fiber-mirror-fiber insertion loss is 2. ldB using OptiFocusTM collimating lensed fibers. Moreover,only about ＋- 0.01dB oscillating amplitude of insertion loss is provoked after the device is tested for 15min for 5-90Hz in the vertical vibration amplitude of 3mm.

Technologies and applications of silicon-based micro-optical electromechanical systems:A brief review

Micro-optical electromechanical systems(MOEMS)combine the merits of micro-electromechanical systems(MEMS)and micro-optics to enable unique optical functions for a wide range of advanced applications.Using simple external electromechanical control methods,such as electrostatic,magnetic or thermal effects,Si-based MOEMS can achieve precise dynamic optical modulation.In this paper,we will briefly review the technologies and applications of Si-based MOEMS.Their basic working principles,advantages,general materials and micromachining fabrication technologies are introduced concisely,followed by research progress of advanced Si-based MOEMS devices,including micromirrors/micromirror arrays,micro-spectrometers,and optical/photonic switches.Owing to the unique advantages of Si-based MOEMS in spatial light modulation and high-speed signal processing,they have several promising applications in optical communications,digital light processing,and optical sensing.Finally,future research and development prospects of Si-based MOEMS are discussed.

Delay-Differentiated Scheduling in Optical Packet Switches for Cloud Data Centers

We consider differentiated timecritical task scheduling in a N×N input queued optical packet s w itch to ens ure 100% throughput and meet different delay requirements among various modules of data center. Existing schemes either consider slot-by-slot scheduling with queue depth serving as the delay metric or assume that each input-output connection has the same delay bound in the batch scheduling mode. The former scheme neglects the effect of reconfiguration overhead, which may result in crippled system performance, while the latter cannot satisfy users' differentiated Quality of Service(Qo S) requirements. To make up these deficiencies, we propose a new batch scheduling scheme to meet the various portto-port delay requirements in a best-effort manner. Moreover, a speedup is considered to compensate for both the reconfiguration overhead and the unavoidable slots wastage in the switch fabric. With traffic matrix and delay constraint matrix given, this paper proposes two heuristic algorithms Stringent Delay First(SDF) and m-order SDF(m-SDF) to realize the 100% packet switching, while maximizing the delay constraints satisfaction ratio. The performance of our scheme is verified by extensive numerical simulations.

Optical diode behavior of photonic crystal structure with asymmetric Kerr defect

Optical diode behavior of asymmetric one-dimensional photonic crystal with Kerr defect is numerically investigated using nonlinear transfer matrix method. In the linear case, the intensity and the phase of transmitted field are the same for the forward and backward operations. In the nonlinear case, however, the transmitted intensities are much different for the two operations, which display diode characteristic. Physical origin of the anisotropic transmission lies in the different localizations in the defect layer of the two operations.

Multifunctional disk device for optical switch and temperature sensor

A multifunctional surface plasmon polariton disk device coupled by two metal-insulator-metal（MIM） waveguides is proposed and investigated numerically with finite-difference time-domain simulation. It can be used as optical switch and temperature sensor by filling disk with liquid crystal and ethanol, respectively. The simulation results demonstrate that the transmission characteristics of an optical switch can be manipulated by adjusting the radius of disk and the slit width between disk and MIM waveguides. The transmittance and modulation depth of optical switch at 1550 nm are up to 64.82% and 17.70 d B, respectively. As a temperature sensor, its figure of merit can reach 30.46. In this paper, an optical switch with better efficiency and a temperature sensor with better sensitivity can be achieved.

Sub-nanosecond optical switch based on silicon racetrack resonator

We experimentally demonstrate a small-size and high-speed silicon optical switch based on the free carrier plasma dispersion in silicon. Using an embedded racetrack resonator with a quality factor of 7400, the optical switch shows an extinction ratio exceeding 13 dB with a footprint of only 2.2 × 10-3 mm^2. Moreover, a novel pre-emphasis technique is introduced to improve the optical response performance and the rise and the fall times are reduced down to 0.24 ns and 0.42 ns respectively, which are 25% and 44% lower than those without the pre-emphasis.

Observation of V-type electromagnetically induced transparency and optical switch in cold Cs atoms by using nanofiber optical lattice

Optical nanofiber(ONF)is a special tool to achieve the interaction between light and matter with ultralow power.In this paper,we demonstrate V-type electromagnetically induced transparency(EIT)in cold atoms trapped by an ONFbased two-color optical lattice.At an optical depth of 7.35,90%transmission can be achieved by only 7.7 pW coupling power.The EIT peak and linewidth are investigated as a function of the coupling optical power.By modulating the pWlevel control beam of the ONF-EIT system in sequence,we further achieve efficient and high contrast control of the probe transmission,as well as its potential application in the field of quantum communication and quantum information science by using one-dimensional atomic chains.

Investigation of the influence of key parameters on system performance in all-optical label switching based on FSK/ASK orthogonal modulation format

The transmission characteristics of the optical label switching system based on the FSK/ASK orthogonal modulation format is investigated. The factors that affect the transmission performance, such as the FSK tone space, dispersion compensation and coupler split ratio, are studied by numerical simulation. The proposed scheme is also experimentally demonstrated with a transmission of 155 Mbit/s FSK label combined with 10 Gbit/s ASK payload.

Design and Simulation of Routing-switching Protocol Based on Optical Switch Array

An optical routing-switching technology based on optical switch array is proposed.The characteristics of the blocking and nonblocking networks are analyzed and compared,odd-even sorting network is used to realize optical routing-switching,relative routing-switching protocol is designed.Simulation test under load shows that it can reduce a blocking effectively and enhance an efficiency of switching.Further,it can transfer the processing and switching within parallel computer from electric domain to optical domain. It can make parallel computer coordinating computing and processing at much more higher speed, storing and transmitting even more efficiently.

Performance analysis of optical burst switching node with limited wavelength conversion capabilities

The systematical and scalable frameworks were provided for estimating the blocking probabilities under asynchronous traffic in optical burst switching(OBS) nodes with limited wavelength conversion capability(LWCC) . The relevant system architectures of limited range and limited number of wavelength converters(WCs) deployed by a share-per-fiber(SPF) mode were developed,and the novel theoretical analysis of node blocking probability was derived by combining the calculation of discouraged arrival rate in a birth-death process and two-dimensional Markov chain model of SPF. The simulation results on single node performance verify the accuracy and effectiveness of the analysis models. Under most scenarios,it is difficult to distinguish the plots generated by the analysis and simulation. As the conversion degree increases,the accuracy of the analysis model worsens slightly. However,the utmost error on burst loss probability is far less than one order of magnitude and hence,still allows for an accurate estimate. Some results are of actual significance to the construction of next-generation commercial OBS backbones.

Realization of 40 GHz Short Time Windows and Their Applications in High Speed Optical Time Division Multiplexing Systems

Optical Time Division Multiplexing （OTDM） is known to be capable of transmitting single channel high bit rate data stream with low speed electro-optical components. A cost-effective, compact and stable short time window with low insert loss, low phase noise, low timing-jitter and high speed performance is essential for ultra-high speed OTDM systems using phase and amplitude modulation formats. In this paper, we review three promising methods to obtain 40 GHz short time window including Electro-Absorption Modulator （EAM）, Dual-Parallel Mach-Zehnder Modulator （DPMZM） and Fiber Loop-Polarization Modulator （FL-PolM）. Sub-picosecond short pulse source generation, optical time division denlaltiplexing and clock recovery are realized respectively by using the short time window based on the three methods. By using DPMZM based pulse source and EAM based Clock Recovery （CR） and dermltiplexer, error free transmission of 640 Goit/s （160 Gbaud/s Pol-Mux DQPSK） single channel signal over 400 km single mode fiber is proven to be experimentally successful.

Optimization of Key Parameters in 622-Mb/s Amplitude Shift Keying Labeled 40-Gb/s Return to Zero Differential Phase Shift Keying Optical Switching Network

Optimized are the label extinction ratio and dispersion compensation of an optical label switching transmission system,which employs 40-Gb/s return to zero differential phase shift keying(RZ-DPSK)payload labeled with 622-Mb/s amplitude shift keying(ASK)control data.In our scheme,the receiver sensitivities of payload and label achieves-27.8dBm and-33.5dBm,respectively.After transmitted over 40km,60km and 80km single mode fiber(SMF)(with dispersion compensation)respectively,the payload can be recovered with no power penalty,while the label can be recovered with less than 2dB penalty.

Optical SDMA for applying compressive sensing in WSN

In order to apply compressive sensing in wireless sensor network, inside the nodes cluster classified by the spatial correlation, we propose that a cluster head adopts free space optical communication with space division multiple access, and a sensor node uses a modulating retro-reflector for communication. Thus while a random sampling matrix is used to guide the establishment of links between head cluster and sensor nodes, the random linear projection is accomplished. To establish multiple links at the same time, an optical space division multiple access antenna is designed. It works in fixed beams switching mode and consists of optic lens with a large field of view（FOV）, fiber array on the focal plane which is used to realize virtual channels segmentation, direction of arrival sensor, optical matrix switch and controller. Based on the angles of nodes＇ laser beams, by dynamically changing the route, optical matrix switch actualizes the multi-beam full duplex tracking receiving and transmission. Due to the structure of fiber array, there will be several fade zones both in the focal plane and in lens＇ FOV. In order to lower the impact of fade zones and harmonize multibeam, a fiber array adjustment is designed. By theoretical, simulated and experimental study, the antenna＇s qualitative feasibility is validated.

QoS aware routing and wavelength allocation in optical burst switching networks using differential evolution optimization

The issue of burst losses imposes a constraint on the development of Optical Burst Switching （OBS） networks. Heavy burst losses strongly affect the Quality of Service （QoS） intended by end users. This article presents a QoS aware Routing and Wavelength Allocation （RWA） technique for burst switching in OBS networks. The RWA problem is modeled as a bi-objective Integer Linear Programming （ILP） problem, where objective functions are based on minimizing the number of wavelengths used and the number of hops traversed to fulfill the burst transmission requests for a given set of node pairs. The ILP model is solved using a novel approach based on a Differential Evolution （DE） algorithm. Analytical results show that the DE algorithm provides a better performance compared to shortest path routing, which is a widely accepted routing strategy for OBS networks.

Fabrication of high-quality colloidal photonic crystals with sharp band edges for ultrafast all-optical switching

Application of the pressure controlled isothermal heating vertical deposition method to the fabrication of colloidal photonic crystals is systematically investigated in this paper. The fabricated samples are characterized by scanning electron microscope and transmission spectrum. High-quality samples with large transmissions in the pass bands and the sharp band edges are obtained and the optimum growth condition is determined. For the best sample, the transmission in the pass bands approaches 0.9 while that in the band gap reaches 0.1. More importantly, the maximum differential transmission as high as 0.1/nm is achieved. In addition, it is found that the number of stacking layers does not increase linearly with concentration of PS spheres in a solution, and a gradual saturation occurs when the concentration of PS spheres exceeds 1.5 wt.%. The uniformity of the fabricated samples is examined by transmission measurements on areas with different sizes. Finally, the tolerance of the fabricated samples to baking was studied.

Block-free optical quantum Banyan network based on quantum state fusion and fission

Optical switch fabric plays an important role in building multiple-user optical quantum communication networks.Owing to its self-routing property and low complexity, a banyan network is widely used for building switch fabric. While,there is no efficient way to remove internal blocking in a banyan network in a classical way, quantum state fusion, by which the two-dimensional internal quantum states of two photons could be combined into a four-dimensional internal state of a single photon, makes it possible to solve this problem. In this paper, we convert the output mode of quantum state fusion from spatial-polarization mode into time-polarization mode. By combining modified quantum state fusion and quantum state fission with quantum Fredkin gate, we propose a practical scheme to build an optical quantum switch unit which is block free. The scheme can be extended to building more complex units, four of which are shown in this paper.

Strict non-blocking four-port optical router for mesh photonic network-on-chip

We report a strict non-blocking four-port optical router that is used for a mesh photonic network-on-chip on a silicon-on-insulator platform.The router consists of eight silicon microring switches that are tuned by the thermo-optic effect.For each tested rousting state,the signal-to-noise ratio of the optical router is larger than 13.8 dB at the working wavelength.The routing functionality of the device is verified.We perform 40 Gbps nonreturn to zero code data transmission on its 12 optical links.Meanwhile,data transmission using wavelength division multiplexing on eight channels in the C band(from 1525 to 1565 nm)has been adopted to increase the communication capacity.The optical router’s average energy efficiency is 25.52 fJ/bit.The rising times(10%to 90%)of the eight optical switch elements are less than 10μs and the falling times(90%-10%)are less than 20μs.