Free-space Optical Backplane Research Articles

Free-space optical backplane prototype for telecommunication equipment in the petabit/s range

Dramatically increasing telecommunication equipment bandwidth motivates exploration of new technologies for backplane implementation. Hence, it is necessary to consider optical backplane implementations for realizing petabit/s switches. Current optical backplane implementations usually guide the light from source to destination with embedded fibers. In this paper we present a new implementation variant for an optical backplane. wherein free space is used as the optical signal medium. This realization just requires fixed mirrors in the rear of the line cards and thus the solution is very cost-effective. The transmitter and receiver are realized using high-speed lasers and photodiodes, and each individual link can transport 25 Gb/s of traffic. Some experimental results are also presented. As an evolutionary step for increased bandwidth, the paper considers the use of an array of links. In this case, we also evaluate the possibility of implementing the parallel transmitters and receivers in an integrated device, which would further reduce space, power consumption and cost.

Design and implementation of a modulator-based free-space optical backplane for multiprocessor applications.

Design and implementation of a free-space optical backplane for multiprocessor applications is presented. The system is designed to interconnect four multiprocessor nodes that communicate by using multiplexed 32-bit packets. Each multiprocessor node is electrically connected to an optoelectronic VLSI chip which implements the hyperplane interconnection architecture. The chips each contain 256 optical transmitters (implemented as dual-rail multiple quantum-well modulators) and 256 optical receivers. A rigid free-space microoptical interconnection system that interconnects the transceiver chips in a 512-channel unidirectional ring is implemented. Full design, implementation, and operational details are provided.

A method for rebroadcasting signals in an optical backplane bus system

A guided-wave optical backplane bus system intended for use in high-performance board-to-board interconnects is described. Its multiplexed polymeric holograms can implement optical signal broadcast between boards so that all boards share common optical channels. By introducing an active coupler to the doubly multiplexed hologram at the center board, signals received from any board can be rebroadcast to all other boards. We describe the design concepts for a centralized optical backplane and the resulting performance and assembly advantages over previously developed guided-wave and free-space optical backplane bus systems used for broadcasting signals. These advantages include equalized fan-out power, increased interconnect distance, and simpler fabrication.

Crosstalk and interconnection distance considerations for board-to-board optical interconnects using 2-D VCSEL and microlens array

We describe the design and experimental characterization of a substrate-mode optical backplane using 0.5-, 0.75- and 1-mm spacing two-dimensional (2-D) optical beam arrays. The system uses arrays of multiplexed holograms to implement free space board-to-board interconnects, and employs 250-/spl mu/m pitch 2-D vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSEL) and microlens array as a transmitter to provide 0.5- to 1-mm spacing 2-D beam array, operating at 850 nm. By comparing the optical beam properties at the detector plane including the spot size and power uniformity of the optical beam array, as well as signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), the maximum interconnect distances are justified. Furthermore, we point out the improvement of the throughput that can be achieved by 2D crosstalk analysis within the same design concept. The results of crosstalk analysis obtained here can be used for application to the standard five-board free-space optical backplane system.

Error and flow control in terabit intelligent optical backplanes

The design of a free-space optical backplane which supports error and flow control functions is described. Traditionally, these functions are implemented in custom high-speed electronic application specific integrated circuits, which are physically removed from the optical interconnect layer. In this paper, we consider migrating these functions directly into the optoelectronic layer, yielding an "intelligent optical backplane." Conventional error control protocols are infeasible with optical backplanes since they require excessive amounts of hardware. The design of an efficient error control protocol based upon a multidimensional parity check, along with the effective flow control protocol is proposed and analyzed. The key blocks of the protocol have been implemented in 0.8- and 0.5-/spl mu/m CMOS/SEED devices and are summarized. The protocols require significantly less hardware than alternative schemes, and smart pixel arrays supporting these protocols are scalable to higher bandwidths and lower latencies. A very large scale integration analysis indicates that using 2004 technology, a free-space backplane can potentially be clocked at 1 GHz and support 24 Tb/s of bandwidth. Finally, the proposed error control protocols should be useful in optical disks and holographic memory systems, which also perform error control on large two-dimensional arrays of optical bits.

Design, implementation, and characterization of a hybrid optical interconnect for a four-stage free-space optical backplane demonstrator

A four-stage unidirectional ring free-space optical interconnect system was designed, analyzed, implemented, and characterized. The optical system was used within a complementary metal-oxide semiconductor-self-electro-optic-effect-device-based optical backplane demonstrator that was designed to fit into a standard VME chassis. This optical interconnect was a hybrid microlens-macrolens system, in which the microlens relays were arranged in a maximum lens-to-waist configuration to route the optical beams from the optical power supply to the transceiver arrays, while the macrolens optical relays were arranged in a telecentric configuration to route optical signal beams from stage to stage. The following aspects of the optical system design are discussed: the optical parameters for the hybrid optical system, the image mapping of the two-dimensional array of optical beams from stage to stage, the alignment tolerance of the hybrid relay system, and the power budget of the overall optical interconnect. The implementation of the optical system, including the characterization of optical components, subsystem prealignment, and final system assembly, is presented. The two-dimensional array of beams for the stage-to-stage interconnect was adjusted with a rotational error of <0.05 degrees and a lateral offset error of <3.5 mum. The measured throughput is in good agreement with the lower-bound predictions obtained in the theoretical results, with an optical power throughput of -20.2 dB from the fiber input of the optical power supply to the modulator array and -25.5 dB from the fiber input to the detector plane.

Design, implementation, and characterization of an optical power supply spot-array generator for a four-stage free-space optical backplane

The design and implementation of a robust, scalable, and modular optical power supply spot-array generator for a modulator-based free-space optical backplane demonstrator is presented. Four arrays of 8 x 4 spots with 6.47-mum radii (at 1/e(2) points) pitched at 125 mum in the vertical direction and 250 mum in the horizontal were required to provide the light for the optical interconnect. Tight system tolerances demanded careful optical design, robust optomechanics, and effective alignment techniques. Issues such as spot-array generation, polarization, power efficiency, and power uniformity are discussed. Characterization results are presented.

Optomechanics for a four-stage hybrid-self-electro-optic-device-based free-space optical backplane

We present the design, fabrication, and testing of optomechanics for a free-space optical backplane mounted in a standard 6U VME backplane chassis. The optomechanics implement an optical interconnect consisting of lenslet-to-lenslet, as well as conventional lens-to-lens, links. Mechanical, optical, electrical, thermal, material, and fabrication constraints are studied. Design trade-offs that affect system scalability and ease of assembly are put forward and analyzed. Novel mounting techniques such as a thermal-loaded interference-fitted lens-mounting technique are presented and discussed. Diagnostic tools are developed to quantify the performance of the optomechanics, and experimental results are given and analyzed.