Abstract
The rapid growth of traffic inside data centers caused by the increasing adoption of cloud services necessitates a scalable and cost-efficient networking infrastructure. Space-division multiplexing (SDM) is considered as a promising solution to overcome the optical network capacity crunch and support cost-effective network capacity scaling. Multi-core fiber (MCF) is regarded as the most feasible and efficient way to realize SDM networks, and its deployment inside data centers seems very likely as the issue of inter-core crosstalk (XT) is not severe over short link spans (<1 km) compared to that in long-haul transmission. However, XT can still have a considerable effect in MCF over short distances,which can limit the transmission reach and in turn the data center’s size. XT can be further reduced by bi-directional transmission of optical signals in adjacent MCF cores. This paper evaluates the benefits of MCF-based SDM solutions in terms of maximizing the capacity and spatial efficiency of data center networks. To this end, we present an analytical model for XT in bi-directional normal step-index and trench-assisted MCFs and propose corresponding XT-aware core prioritization schemes. We further develop XT-aware spectrum resource allocation strategies aimed at relieving the complexity of online XT computation. These strategies divide the available spectrum into disjoint bands and incrementally add them to the pool of accessible resources based on the network conditions. Several combinations of core mapping and spectrum resource allocation algorithms are investigated for eight types of homogeneous MCFs comprising 7–61 cores, three different multiplexing schemes, and three data center network topologies with two traffic scenarios. Extensive simulation results showthat combining bi-directional transmission in dense core fibers with tailored resource allocation schemes significantly increases the network capacity. Moreover, a multiplexing scheme that combines SDM and WDM can achieve up to 33 times higher link spatial efficiency and up to 300 times greater capacity compared to a WDM solution.
Highlights
The past few decades have witnessed the rapid development of optical communications
data center networks (DCNs) are considered as the first potential candidate for introducing homogeneous multi-core fiber (MCF), where all the cores in the MCF are made of the same material due to their high capacity requirements, short link spans (
A bi-directional core priority map and two spectrum split algorithms are introduced to improve the DCN performance, which is thoroughly examined in terms of blocking probability, network utilization, network capacity, and link spatial efficiency
Summary
The past few decades have witnessed the rapid development of optical communications. In traditional terrestrial networks, wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) and advanced modulation formats were utilized to stretch the capacity limit of single-core single-mode fiber (SMF). DCNs are considered as the first potential candidate for introducing homogeneous multi-core fiber (MCF), where all the cores in the MCF are made of the same material due to their high capacity requirements, short link spans (
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