Development of Terabit-Scale Compact Hierarchical Optical Cross-Connect System Using Planar Device Integration

The first practical terabit-scale hierarchical optical cross-connect system is realized by employing silica-based planar lightwave circuit devices. The system is scalable to 320 line cross connects + 160 client cross connects, and fully implemented equipment would require a 16-U-high chassis and only a 350-W power consumption. The potential of node cascadability is discussed and experimentally confirmed using partially implemented equipment that has four wavelength-division-multiplexed ports and one waveband switching capability. Stable operation was also confirmed using field-installed fibers.