TORUS: terabit-per-second ATM switching system architecture based on distributed internal speed-up ATM switch

A high-speed and distributed ATM switch architecture, called the TORUS switch, is proposed with the aim of achieving a terabit-per-second ATM switching system. The switch is a distributed and scalable internal speed-up crossbar-type ATM switch with cylindrical structure. The self-bit-synchronization technique and optical interconnection technology are combined to achieve gigabit-rate cell transmission, where high-density implementation technologies such as multichip module technology are not required at all. Also, distributed contention control based on the fixed output-precedence scheme is newly adopted. This control is very suitable for high-speed devices because its circuit is achieved with only one gate in each crosspoint. A TORUS switch is fabricated as a 4×2 switch module using optical interconnection technology and very high-speed crosspoint LSIs, constructed using an advanced Si-bipolar process. Measured results confirm that the TORUS switch can be used to realize an expandable terabit-rate ATM switch