Tipping Point for the Future Scalable OXC: What Size M × M WSS Is Needed?

Abstract

We propose a highly scalable and compact optical-node architecture that combines the subsystem-modular optical cross-connect (OXC) and transponder-bank add/drop, where multiple M×M wavelength-selective switches are effectively introduced. Numerical experiments verify that the proposed architecture offers large-scale nodes with substantially relaxed hardware requirements while holding the fiber-utilization offset to a minimal level.