This paper presents a novel Grid network scenario based on an optical infrastructure using optical burst switching. The functional blocks required are identified as Core Router the Grid User Network Interface and the Grid Resource Network Interface. The details of the associated challenges in terms of functionality and technology are discussed and solutions are proposed.

The function of a router is to switch arriving packets to their correct output destination. A router is built to achieve a specified capacity (the sum of the rates of its interfaces), and users expect a router to consistently achieve this capacity. However, no commercial high-speed router can guarantee today that it will achieve its full capacity for all arrival traffic patterns. This is becaus...

In this paper, we demonstrate single-channel operation of the first InP monolithic tunable optical router (MOTOR) chip designed to function as the packet forwarding engine of an all-optical router. The device has eight-input and eight-output ports and is capable of 40-Gb/s operation per port with bit-error rates below 1E-9. MOTOR integrates eight wavelength-tunable differential Mach–Zehnder sem...

Telecommunication networks are experiencing a dramatic increase in demand for capacity, much of it related to the exponential takeup of the Internet and associated services. To support this demand economically, transport networks are evolving to provide a reconfigurable optical layer which, with optical cross-connects, will realize a high-bandwidth flexible core. As well as providing large capa...

The recent advances in generalized multiprotocol label switching/multiprotocol label switching (GMPLS/MPLS) and extensive study and understanding of packet-over-optical network architecture have made it possible to manage the resources of the packet network and underlying optical transport network in an interoperable manner. This opens up the possibility for coordinated actions across the two n...

We present a sub-millisecond dynamic optical path set up scheme for the multi-mode switching router. In particular, we have implemented the proposed integrated multi-mode scheduler in FPGA hardware in an optical switching testbed, and have demonstrated application triggered real-time sub-millisecond optical path setup. Another key contribution is that the proposed approach brings out the practi...