title: Demonstration of the feasibility of large-port-count optical switching using a hybrid Mach-Zehnder interferometer-semiconductor optical amplifier switch module in a recirculating loop.
abstract: For what we believe is the first time, the feasibility of large-port-count nanosecond-reconfiguration-time optical switches is demonstrated using a hybrid approach, where Mach-Zehnder interferometric (MZI) switches provide low-loss, high-speed routing with short semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOAs) being integrated to enhance extinction. By repeatedly passing signals through a monolithic hybrid dilated 2×2 switch module in a recirculating loop, the potential performance of high-port-count switches using the hybrid approach is demonstrated. Experimentally, a single pass switch penalty of only 0.1 dB is demonstrated for the 2×2 module, while even after seven passes through the switch, equivalent to a 128×128 router, a penalty of only 2.4 dB is recorded at a data rate of 10 Gb/s.
authors.forename: Q
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wonfor
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.forename: R V
authors.initials: RV
authors.lastname: Penty
authors.forename: I H
authors.initials: IH
authors.lastname: White
mesh_terms: D000669:Amplifiers, Electronic; D003195:Computer Communication Networks / Q000295:instrumentation*; D004867:Equipment Design; D019544:Equipment Failure Analysis; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005246:Feedback; D007368:Interferometry / Q000295:instrumentation*; D055096:Optical Devices; D012666:Semiconductors; D012815:Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000295:instrumentation*