Managing bits instead of waves: large-scale photonic integrated circuits enable implementation of multi-wavelength "digital" optical networks

The practical development of large-scale photonic integrated circuits (PICs) has allowed the consolidation of many devices and functions into a single optical component. Beyond the obvious cost, space and power benefits this enables, large-scale PICs also act as a catalyst for the wide-spread use of feature-rich electronics in optical networks. Together this enables multi-wavelength optical networks to benefit from greater reconfigurability, better reliability, simpler operations and architecture, and increased service flexibility. These advances are becoming reality through the practical network deployment of large-scale photonic integrated circuits in real-world optical networks.