Hybrid contention resolution in optical switching fabric with QoS traffic

This paper describes an optical switching fabric which solves contention in a hybrid context, by exploiting both time and wavelength domains through wavelength converters and electronic queues. The relationship between the hybrid nature of the switch and the quality of service requirements of traffic is investigated. Different buffer solutions are proposed depending on the employment of different lasers, possibly with tunable capabilities. The main outcomes of the paper suggest criteria to design feasible high capacity optical switching fabrics, suitable for next generation networks, in synergy with present day technology constraints and QoS requirements. The proposed solutions show how the choices in terms of hardware equipment and packet scheduling will influence the main performance figures, which are packet loss, delay and optical transparency.