between the maximum and minimum powers in Table 17.3 is only a factor of 2.
Considering the approximations made in the analysis, some caution is needed.
Perhaps the most important conclusion that can be drawn from these results is that
optical packe t switching with optical buffering and optical switch fabrics does not
appear to provide any dramatic power savings when compared with electronic
packet switching. If there is no significant difference in power dissipation, other
factors such as cost, physical realizability, and footprint will decide. Given the
huge challenges in optical buffering compared with electronic buffering, and the
lack of a clear power consumption advantage in optical packet switching, it would
appear that electronics will remai ...