Minimum- and maximum-entropy routing and spectrum assignment for flexgrid elastic optical networking [invited]

We present two complementary routing and spectrum assignment (RSA) algorithms that use a quantitative fragmentation metric using the concept of Shannon entropy in flexgrid networks. Applying the minimum-entropy (MinEnt) approach to the BT network, support for almost 10% more demands in a static growth scenario is shown. We also present results for a maximum-entropy (MaxEnt) RSA approach, implemented using a genetic algorithm, and operated on the same real BT network topology. The MaxEnt approach avoids fragmentation problems, and it is anticipated that this can increase network utilization.