Prospects for point-to-point technology to deliver 1...

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10 years ago …

Prospects for point-to-point technology to deliver 1 Gigabit/s to the home

Gerlas van den Hoven, Maurice de Laat, Richard Duijn, Elroy Pluk

Genexis B.V. Netherlands

www.genexis.eu

Point‐to‐point

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Point-to-point networks

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Wavelength allocation

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Key features of PTP networks

•  Each user has a dedicated connection:   No contention issues   Symmetrical bandwidth   High port count in central office

•  Pure Ethernet   Full set of Ethernet functionality: VLANs, QoS   Enables multiple services from multiple service providers

(unbundling!)

•  No power budget issues   Use of low-cost optics even at higher bandwidths

•  Passive network   But at the expense of high fiber count

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Why does Europe choose PTP?

•  Future-proof network   Point-to-point fiber infrastructure is technology independent   Geographic distances are smaller than in other regions: fiber-

cost is less of an issue   Ethernet is the most open and accepted standard in

communications

•  Unbundling   European commission is active promoter of point-to-point

architectures   Many operators have unbundling strategies

•  Scalable & upgradeable per user   If end-user wants more, simply upgrade his/her connection   No need to enter the home every time

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Why a full Gigabit for each user?

Faced with limited resources, the applications are restricted to only the bare necessities

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Why a full Gigabit for each user?

Given an abundance, the applications are limitless

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Why a full Gigabit for each user?

•  Last mile becomes fully open… … no longer being the bottleneck in the network

•  Any type of service becomes possible

•  No upgrading required for a long time

•  Lowest operational cost

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1 Gbit/s to the home

What are the ways in which 1 Gbit/s to the home may be realized?

1.  Brute force approach: provide each home with a dedicated 1 Gbit/s link

2.  Integration: integrate multiple channels into a single module

3.  WDM-PON: provide the Gbit/s capacity as dedicated wavelengths

4.  Hybrid networks: Combine the best of PTP and PON in a hybrid network

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Brute force

Dedicated 1 Gbit/s link to each home:

1490

1310

13

10

1490

Ethernet/IP

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High density Gigabit/s ports

Courtesy of

•  480 Gigabit/s ports in rack; 24 ports per line card •  Includes RF overlay •  Comparison: GPON has two OLTs per line card serving

maximum 128 but typically 50 users

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Integration approach

•  Combine multiple Gigabit/s ports into a single optical module •  Example: active optical cable •  Applied to FTTH this approach enable 10x increase in density

and a 3x decrease in power consumption

Finisar Luxtera

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Why photonic integration for FTTH?

FTTH facts

•  FTTH requires the lowest of costs in telecommunication

•  FTTH volumes are in the millions

•  Space and power consumption are key issues in FTTH

•  Performance must be “good enough”

How photonic integration will help

•  For simple functions, photonic integration can beat the alternatives

•  Photonic chips can be fabricated in a high-volume, wafer-scale manner

•  Photonic chips are more power-efficient than electronic ones, and can be much smaller

•  Integration is always a performance trade-off, but “good enough” is more than sufficient for Gigabit/s point-to-point networks!

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WDM PON

WDM-PON is a best of both worlds: •  Point-to-point network architecture provides dedicated a

secure bandwidth •  PON fiber topology

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WDM-PON challenges

The best of both worlds doesn’t come for free! •  Space and power consumption are a big issue at the OLT side •  Colourless transceiver is a requirement at ONT

Multi-wavelength transmitter by Intel

Colourless transceiver by CIP

WDM-PON ecosystem initiative will speed–up developments

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Hybrid networks?

Passive Optical Networks •  Shared medium: need high

speed transmitters and receivers just to receive moderate bandwidth

•  Hard to upgrade per user •  Some dynamic bandwidth

allocation

Switched Ethernet •  Point-to-point architecture:

dedicated transmitters and receivers provide high bandwidth

•  Easier to upgrade •  But: no dynamic bandwidth

allocation

Today we are wasting bandwidth!

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Providing “effective” bandwidth

PON

λ – Router

FlexPON

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FlexPON network

•  Central office combines downstream and continuous wave signals •  Wavelength router in remote node drops wavelength pairs •  Optical network unit independent of wavelength

–  Remote modulation using colourless transceiver

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FlexPON wavelength router

•  Low cost planar lightwave circuit (SiON) chip

•  Requires electrical power for wavelength switching

•  Simple driving circuit, low power consumption and high reliability

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Experimental results

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1 Gigabit/s to the home?

Point-to-point networks can deliver 1 Gigabit/s to the home in a variety of ways:

1.  Current technology can already provide cost-effective solutions at competitive density and power consumption

2.  Integration of transceiver technology can enable a breakthrough in 1 Gigabit/s deployment

3.  WDM-PON combines best-of-both worlds; number of technology steps still required

4.  Hybrid networks provide highly effective bandwidth and offers bandwidth upgrade strategies as conventional PONs hit the bandwidth limit

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But do we need 1 Gigabit/s?

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