One of the key points in the article (that has been missed so far) is that the research for this is being done on the National Lambda Rail. One key technology that hasn't been mentioned yet is DWDM (Dense Wave Division Multiplexing). This runs 30-40 different wavelengths over a single fiber. Each wavelength (lambda) can currently carry 10 Gb/s of data, 40 Gb/s in some cases, and 100 Gb/s is on its way. That means that a single fiber can carry up to 4 Tb/sec of data in the real near future (right now in some labs).
The next important technology is ROADMs (Reconfigurable Optical Add/Drop Multiplexers). These devices allow individual lambdas to be inserted, extracted, or tapped from a fiber.
Next is GMPLS (Generalized Multiprotocol Label Switching). This a switching framework that ties together the ROADMs and optical switches to allow a single lambda to be routed through an optical mesh network. Actually it sets up a per use circuit through the mesh for any particular lambda.
Also, anything that can be converted to an optical wavelength can be routed over this kind of network, not just ethernet. Fibre Channel, SONET, high defition video and ethernet can all be routed over this kind of network at the same time.
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One of the key points in the article (that has been missed so far) is that the research for this is being done on the National Lambda Rail. One key technology that hasn't been mentioned yet is DWDM (Dense Wave Division Multiplexing). This runs 30-40 different wavelengths over a single fiber. Each wavelength (lambda) can currently carry 10 Gb/s of data, 40 Gb/s in some cases, and 100 Gb/s is on its way. That means that a single fiber can carry up to 4 Tb/sec of data in the real near future (right now in some labs). The next important technology is ROADMs (Reconfigurable Optical Add/Drop Multiplexers). These devices allow individual lambdas to be inserted, extracted, or tapped from a fiber. Next is GMPLS (Generalized Multiprotocol Label Switching). This a switching framework that ties together the ROADMs and optical switches to allow a single lambda to be routed through an optical mesh network. Actually it sets up a per use circuit through the mesh for any particular lambda. Also, anything that can be converted to an optical wavelength can be routed over this kind of network, not just ethernet. Fibre Channel, SONET, high defition video and ethernet can all be routed over this kind of network at the same time.