Abstract: A method of transmitting a data packet from a first data processing device toward a second data processing device, the first and second data processing devices being communicably connectable to one another via respective first and second interface devices and over an optical network includes determining a communication path in the optical network to communicably connect the first data processing device to the second data processing device, accessing, by a coordination module communicably connected to the first interface device, a pre-determined training sequence, transmitting, by the coordination module and over the communication path, the pre-determined training sequence to cause the second interface device to recover a signal clock from the pre-determined training sequence and transmitting, by the first data processing device, the data packet toward the second processing device over the communication path. A coordination module implements the method in a computing unit.

Abstract: A method of transmitting a data packet from a first data processing device toward a second data processing device, the first and second data processing devices being communicably connectable to one another via respective first and second interface devices and over an optical network includes determining a communication path in the optical network to communicably connect the first data processing device to the second data processing device, accessing, by a coordination module communicably connected to the first interface device, a pre-determined training sequence, transmitting, by the coordination module and over the communication path, the pre-determined training sequence to cause the second interface device to recover a signal clock from the pre-determined training sequence and transmitting, by the first data processing device, the data packet toward the second processing device over the communication path. A coordination module implements the method in a computing unit.

Abstract: The systems and methods directed towards a reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer (ROADM). The ROADM comprising: i) a plurality of line cards, wherein each one of the plurality of line cards is configured to receive a plurality of wavelength channels from an optical link in an optical network; ii) a plurality of add/drop cards, wherein each one of the plurality of add/drop cards includes a primary path and a secondary path; and iii) a controller configured to: a) select a set of wavelength channels from the plurality of wavelength channels, b) determine if there is any contention between the set of wavelength channels, c) direct a first subset of wavelength channels from the set of wavelength channels that do not have contentions to the primary path, and d) direct a second subset of wavelength channels from the set of wavelength channels that have contentions to the secondary path.

Abstract: The systems and methods directed towards a reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer (ROADM). The ROADM comprising: i) a plurality of line cards, wherein each one of the plurality of line cards is configured to receive a plurality of wavelength channels from an optical link in an optical network; ii) a plurality of add/drop cards, wherein each one of the plurality of add/drop cards includes a primary path and a secondary path; and iii) a controller configured to: a) select a set of wavelength channels from the plurality of wavelength channels, b) determine if there is any contention between the set of wavelength channels, c) direct a first subset of wavelength channels from the set of wavelength channels that do not have contentions to the primary path, and d) direct a second subset of wavelength channels from the set of wavelength channels that have contentions to the secondary path.

Abstract: A method to select a number of fibers for ROADM-equipped nodes of an optical network by which a controller is operative to determine which links are utilized as well as their usage frequencies and then partition a scale of usage frequencies into a number of intervals. By assigning a number of fibers to each one of the intervals, a number of fibers is assigned to each link, according to their usage frequencies, setting the degree for ROADMs at the nodes. Simulations can evaluate the network's performance in terms of a blocking rate representing an overall signal blocking rate by the ROADMs at network nodes. The number of intervals, their ranges, and the number of fibers associated with each interval can be iterated until an improved or satisfactory network performance is achieved.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus for a reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer (ROADM) cluster node are provided. In some embodiments, the ROADM cluster node includes a set of g line chassis for performing line functionality. In some embodiments, the ROADM cluster node further includes a set of h add-drop chassis for performing add-drop functionality. In some embodiments, each of the g line chassis includes a set of N line cards and a set of M interconnect cards. In some embodiments, the ROADM cluster node further includes a set of M interconnect chassis configured for interconnecting each line chassis to each other line chassis. In some embodiments, the set of M interconnect chassis is further configured for interconnecting each line chassis to each of the h add-drop chassis. In some embodiments, the ROADM cluster node separates the line functionality and add-drop functionality. In some embodiments, 1.15N?M?1.5N.

Abstract: Method and communication network for establishing a connection in a communications network are disclosed. The method comprises receiving, by a processor, a connection request for establishing the connection; selecting, by the processor, an input node from a plurality of input nodes in the communications network and an output node from a plurality of output nodes in the communications network; selecting, by the processor, an interconnect node from a plurality of interconnect nodes in the communications network in accordance with an order set out in a pre-determined order list that sets out a specific connection order for each of the plurality of interconnect nodes; determining whether the interconnect node has capacity to connect the input node to the output node; and in response to the interconnect node having the capacity, connecting, by the processor, the input node to the output node via the interconnect node.

Abstract: A method to select a number of fibers for ROADM-equipped nodes of an optical network by which a controller is operative to determine which links are utilized as well as their usage frequencies and then partition a scale of usage frequencies into a number of intervals. By assigning a number of fibers to each one of the intervals, a number of fibers is assigned to each link, according to their usage frequencies, setting the degree for ROADMs at the nodes. Simulations can evaluate the network's performance in terms of a blocking rate representing an overall signal blocking rate by the ROADMs at network nodes. The number of intervals, their ranges, and the number of fibers associated with each interval can be iterated until an improved or satisfactory network performance is achieved.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus for a reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer (ROADM) cluster node are provided. In some embodiments, the ROADM cluster node includes a set of g line chassis for performing line functionality. In some embodiments, the ROADM cluster node further includes a set of h add-drop chassis for performing add-drop functionality. In some embodiments, each of the g line chassis includes a set of N line cards and a set of M interconnect cards. In some embodiments, the ROADM cluster node further includes a set of M interconnect chassis configured for interconnecting each line chassis to each other line chassis. In some embodiments, the set of M interconnect chassis is further configured for interconnecting each line chassis to each of the h add-drop chassis. In some embodiments, the ROADM cluster node separates the line functionality and add-drop functionality. In some embodiments, 1.15N?M?1.5N.

Abstract: In some examples, an optical node includes transition logic to: receive an indication of a data channel to be added across an optical medium, the data channel to occupy a portion of an optical spectrum; in response to a receipt of the indication, divide the data channel into a plurality of sub-channels; and sequentially add each of the plurality of sub-channels across the optical medium in a particular order.

Abstract: A hybrid electronic optical chip has a first photonic element with which a first diode is associated, a second photonic element with which a second diode is associated and a common electrical driver connected to the first and second diodes by a common electrical connection with opposite polarity. The electrical driver generates a common electrical drive signal divided in time into first and second drive signal components for independently driving the first and second photonic elements through the common electrical connection.

Abstract: There is provided methods and apparatuses for transferring photonic cells or frames between a photonic switch and an electronic switch enabling a scalable data center cloud system with photonic functions transparently embedded into an electronic chassis. In various embodiments, photonic interface functions may be transparently embedded into existing switch chips (or switch cards) without changes in the line cards. The embedded photonic interface functions may provide the switch cards with the ability to interface with both existing line cards and photonic switches. In order to embed photonic interface functions without changes on the existing line cards, embodiments use two-tier buffering with a pause signalling or pause messaging scheme for managing the two-tier buffer memories.

Abstract: A method of managing an optical communications network comprising a plurality of nodes interconnected by optical sections. The method comprises: identifying one or more pairs of adjacent DL-equipped nodes at which dummy light (DL) hardware is deployed, respective dummy light (DL) hardware being deployed at fewer than the plurality of the nodes of the optical communications network, the respective DL hardware deployed at a particular node configured to supply dummy light to each optical section extending from the particular node, and defining a respective single-section DL path between each identified pair of adjacent DL-equipped nodes; identifying one or more pairs of non-adjacent DL-equipped nodes at which DL hardware is deployed, and defining a respective multi-section DL path between each identified pair of non-adjacent DL-equipped nodes; and causing the deployed DL hardware to supply DL light to each of the single- and the multi-section DL paths.

Abstract: A hybrid electronic optical chip has a first photonic element with which a first diode is associated, a second photonic element with which a second diode is associated and a common electrical driver connected to the first and second diodes by a common electrical connection with opposite polarity. The electrical driver generates a common electrical drive signal divided in time into first and second drive signal components for independently driving the first and second photonic elements through the common electrical connection.

Abstract: Short-term optical recovery systems and methods in coherent optical receivers minimize recovery time for fault scenarios and signal reacquisition while maintaining robust signal acquisition. The short-term optical recovery systems and methods include special techniques and algorithms to minimize recovery time, making coherent systems similar in time as conventional direct detection recovery. The short-term optical recovery systems and methods include an expedited acquisition engine that includes a reference clock recovery, a compensator to remove chromatic dispersion, a burst framer, and a compensator to remove polarization dispersion. Importantly, the expedited acquisition engine uses a memory oriented architecture to allow some properties of the acquisition engine to be stored during initial acquisition and, hence, later on be deployed in any fault scenario to expedite further recovery of a signal.

Abstract: A hybrid electronic optical chip has a first photonic element with which a first diode is associated, a second photonic element with which a second diode is associated and a common electrical driver connected to the first and second diodes by a common electrical connection with opposite polarity. The electrical driver generates a common electrical drive signal divided in time into first and second drive signal components for independently driving the first and second photonic elements through the common electrical connection.

Abstract: A system and method for a tunable optical delay line. The tunable optical delay line comprises a coarse delay portion that provides a coarse delay amount, the coarse delay portion including a coarse delay selection element in conjunction with a coarse delay element, the coarse delay selection element incorporated on-chip into a photonic integrated circuit (IC) component, the coarse delay element being disposed off-chip of the photonic IC component and interconnected with the coarse delay selection element; and a fine delay element that provides a fine delay amount, the fine delay element interconnected in series with the coarse delay selection element, the optical delay line being tunable to a target delay amount by agglomerating the coarse and fine delay amounts.

Abstract: A system and method for a tunable optical delay line. The tunable optical delay line comprises a coarse delay portion that provides a coarse delay amount, the coarse delay portion including a coarse delay selection element in conjunction with a coarse delay element, the coarse delay selection element incorporated on-chip into a photonic integrated circuit (IC) component, the coarse delay element being disposed off-chip of the photonic IC component and interconnected with the coarse delay selection element; and a fine delay element that provides a fine delay amount, the fine delay element interconnected in series with the coarse delay selection element, the optical delay line being tunable to a target delay amount by agglomerating the coarse and fine delay amounts.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for operating an optical switching fabric or other optical device are provided. The device has multiple input and output ports to be selectably connected together via optical paths. For a requested configuration, an optical device configuration is determined based on a loss metric, which is based on one or both of: a number of crossings of the optical paths; and a length of the optical paths. The crossings can be waveguide crossings within the switching fabric. The configuration can be obtained by selecting particular intermediate stages of the switching fabric for carrying particular optical paths. The number of waveguide crossings, or the variation in the number of waveguide crossings, can be limited or minimized in the selected configuration. In one embodiment, an initial solution is determined, and the intermediate stages of the switch are re-ordered to obtain an improved solution in terms of the loss metric.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for operating an optical switching fabric or other optical device are provided. The device has multiple input and output ports to be selectably connected together via optical paths. For a requested configuration, an optical device configuration is determined based on a loss metric, which is based on one or both of: a number of crossings of the optical paths; and a length of the optical paths. The crossings can be waveguide crossings within the switching fabric. The configuration can be obtained by selecting particular intermediate stages of the switching fabric for carrying particular optical paths. The number of waveguide crossings, or the variation in the number of waveguide crossings, can be limited or minimized in the selected configuration. In one embodiment, an initial solution is determined, and the intermediate stages of the switch are re-ordered to obtain an improved solution in terms of the loss metric.