Optical Switching

18Software for Optical Network Modelling

Devlina Adhikari

Information and Communication Technology, School of Technology, Pandit Deendayal Energy University (PDEU), Raisan, Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India

18.1 Optical Networks

In optical networks, information is transmitted in the form of light from a source node to a destination node. Various advantages like enormous bandwidth, high‐speed transmission, long‐distance communication, etc. lead to optical networks being the most reliable and widely used for communication. Optical networks may be wired or wireless. In wired optical networks, light travels through optical fiber cables. Optical fiber‐based communication is used for terrestrial and subsea networks. Wireless optical networks are known as free‐space optical networks, in which the optical signal is transmitted in a vacuum. Free‐space optical networks may also be implemented to establish connections between satellites and for short‐distance communication purposes in terrestrial networks.

Commonly used optical networks are categorized based on three different areas:

• Local Area Network (LAN): LAN is intended for users in a small area like an organization.
• Metropolitan Area Network (MAN): MAN interconnects users in different cities.
• Wide Area Network (WAN): WAN is used to provide long‐distance communication like the connection between countries.

18.1.1 First Generation of Optical Networks

The first generation of optical networks includes synchronous optical networking (SONET) ...