Abstract :
Summary form only given, as follows. The article highlights the importance of WDM in the US long haul network, giving an overview of fiber deployment status, along with the approximate cost of deploying fiber in the ground. This is used as evidence to show the importance of WDM. Some history of deployment of WDM is given, as WDM technology (wide band) is being used in many networks for the past 10-15 years (if not longer). The article also shows the importance of the quality of service and the competitive nature of the industry in the US. This leads into the need for technologies which are essentially fiber-hog, thus making the WDM (narrow band) technology an essential commodity. It touches upon various technology that are being considered for use in conjunction with WDM and a few explicit applications for WDM. An overview of a high level planning/design methodology is also given, as there is a paradigm shift in the cost model of new optical networks. A case is made for revising the traditional way of designing the networks
