Abstract

With the increasing deployment of optical fibers in transmission systems and the demand for high-bandwidth services, such as video and high definition TV, broadband switching is desirable in telecommunications. We describe a variety of optoelectronic and optical broadband switching architectures. These include crossbar, power-divided, optical coupled, and holographic switching architectures. Optoelectronic switching employs a hybrid optical/electronic principle to perform the switching function. Optical switching does not require optical to electrical conversion. Performances of these switching architectures are evaluated based on throughput, reconfiguration rate, switch size, and switching speed. The advantages and disadvantages of these switching architectures as applied to onboard satellite and terrestrial broadband switching are identified.

© 1987 Optical Society of America