Provisioning Spatial Super-Channels in Fiber Space Division Multiplexing (FSDM) Optical Networks: Analytical Model and Performance Analysis (Invited)

Space division multiplexing (SDM) and super-channel technology offer a scalable solution to addressing the “capacity crunch” in optical networks. This study specifically focuses on fiber space division multiplexing (FSDM) technology, which creates spatial super-channels (Spa SChs) by spatially combining the same spectrum across multiple fibers, providing varying bandwidth with different numbers of frequency slots (FSs) and fibers. As an advantage, FSDM enables sharing of common laser sources (LSs) and local oscillators (LSs) for signals transmitted in different fibers while using the same spectrum. To evaluate the performance of the proposed FSDM-based optical network, we develop an analytical model for evaluating its lightpath (LP) blocking probability, and verify the accuracy of the model by comparing it with simulation results obtained based on different test networks. Our results indicate the efficiency of FSDM-based optical networks in provisioning Spa SChs, with the analytical model effectively predicting the LP blocking performance.