Evaluation of core-continuity-constrained ROADMs for flex-grid/MCF optical networks

• Published in: Journal of optical communications and networking Vol. 9; no. 11; pp. 1041 - 1050
• Main Authors: Moreno-Muro, F.-J., Rumipamba-Zambrano, R., Pavon-Marino, P., Perello, J., Gene, J. M., Spadaro, S.
• Format: Journal Article Publication
• Language: English
• Published: Optica Publishing Group 01.11.2017; Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
• Subjects: Complexitat computacional; Complexity theory; Computational complexity; Core-continuity; Enginyeria de la telecomunicació; Flex-grid networks; Multi-core fiber; Multiplexatge; Multiplexing; Optical add-drop multiplexers; Optical fiber devices; Optical fiber networks; Optical fibers; Optical switches; Ports (Computers); RMCSA; Routing (Computer network management); Space division multiplexing; Telecomunicació òptica; Àrees temàtiques de la UPC
• ISSN: 1943-0620; 1943-0639
• DOI: 10.1364/JOCN.9.001041

To effectively keep pace with the global IP traffic growth forecasted in the years to come, flex-grid over multi-core fiber (MCF) networks can bring superior spectrum utilization flexibility, as well as bandwidth scalability far beyond the non-linear Shannon's limit. In such a network scenario, however, full node switching re-configurability will require enormous node complexity, pushing the limits of current optical device technologies with prohibitive capital expenditures. Therefore, cost-effective node solutions will most probably be the key enablers of flex-grid/MCF networks, at least in the short- and mid-term future. In this context, this paper proposes a cost-effective reconfigurable optical add/drop multiplexer (ROADM) architecture for flex-grid/MCF networks, called CCC-ROADM, which reduces technological requirements (and associated costs) in exchange for demanding core continuity along the end-to-end communication. To assess the performance of the proposed CCC-ROADM in comparison with a fully flexible ROADM (i.e., a fully non-blocking ROADM, called FNB-ROADM in this work) in large-scale network scenarios, a novel lightweight heuristic to solve the route, modulation, core, and spectrum assignment problem in flex-grid/MCF networks is presented in this work, whose goodness is successfully validated against optimal ILP formulations previously proposed for the same goal. The obtained numerical results in a significant number of representative network topologies with different MCF configurations of 7, 12, and 19 cores show almost identical network performance in terms of maximum network throughput when deploying CCC-ROADMs versus FNB-ROADMs, while decreasing network capital expenditures to a large extent.