Skylight switch: New multicast WDM access switch architecture using photonic fast frequency hopping OCDMA technique

Currently, the growth in capacity demand is still increasing by the emergence of a large number of applications that dramatically increase bandwidth demand and generate a large number of resource requirements in the network. To support this growth, current networks are migrating to consolidate a core infrastructure capable of supporting the bandwidth-intensive services and applications while providing flexibility and scalability.; Since the emerging applications require increased bandwidth capacity, the vision of using photonic technology in the communication channel, signal processing, and switching fabric is very promising. Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM) is a well-developed approach that can facilitate the utilization of the optical bandwidth by splitting the optical bandwidth into multiple channels (WDM channels) which can coexist in the same fiber. Using light path technology, wavelength division multiplexing will enable current networks to migrate to new generation optical networks that provide point-to-point transparent connections among intermediate nodes and networking capabilities at the WDM level.; In order to add another dimension to the capacity of each wavelength in the wavelength division multiplexing space, an Optical Code Division Multiple Access technique is utilized to add more intelligence at the optical layer. This thesis presents a novel multicast WDM switch architecture that provides access to light path connections through WDM networks using optical Code-Division Multiple Access. This architecture introduces the implementation of additional functionality at the WDM level that include multicasting and broadcasting, which are difficult to implement in current WDM switch architectures. The architecture is designed based on a Fast Frequency-Hopping Code-Division Multiple Access technique. Encoding and decoding devices are designed based on tunable Fiber Bragg Gratings. Simulations of the spectral response of these devices are presented, showing the simultaneous utilization of time and frequency to achieve optical code-division multiple access.