Archon: A Function Programmable Optical Interconnect Architecture for Transparent Intra and Inter Data Center SDM/TDM/WDM Networking

Abstract

This paper reports all-optical, function programmable, transparent, intra- and inter-data center networking (DCN) using space and time-division multiplexing (SDM/TDM) within data centers and wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) between data centers. A multielement fiber is used for SDM transmission to provide a large quantity of optical links between the top-of-racks (ToRs) and the function programmable cluster switch. Beam-steering large-port-count fiber switches, used as central cluster switches and intercluster switch, provide a single hop optical circuit switching solution, and also enable network function programmability for DCN to support variable traffic patterns and different network functions. A TDM switch as a plug-in function provides intra-cluster communication with variable capacity and low latency. The flat-structured intra data center architecture, with a circuit-switched SDM and TDM hybrid network enables scalable, large-capacity and low-latency DCN communication. In addition, all-optical ToR-to-ToR inter-DCN is realized through metro/core networks. A highly-nonlinear fiber based all-optical SDM-to-WDM converter transfers three SDM signals to three-carrier spectral superchannel signals, which are transmitted to the destination DCN, through the metro/core networks. The all-optical ToR-ToR cross-DCN connections enable the geographically distributed DCNs to appear as one big data center.