Reconfigurable photonic data networks for military aircraft

The authors propose a photonic switched network approach capable of supporting multi-gigabit-per-second data rate transmissions, independent of protocol, over a large number of simultaneous, independent paths. To form the heart of this network, a single chip, gallium arsenide (GaAs), all-optical crossbar switch suitable for application to fighter aircraft has been developed. This monolithic photonic crossbar requires no electrical/optical conversions; thus it provides a transparent network interface. It is capable of digital data transmission at rates from DC to at least 2 Gb/s, independently of communication protocol or format. It can connect any input to any available output without disturbing existing connections, and it is capable of broadcasting signals from one input to multiple outputs. It can reconfigure its input to output routings in less than 1.0 ns. The authors report on optical switch technology assessment, and laboratory evaluation of photonic data bus star repeaters