Strategies for realizing optical CDMA for dense, high-speed, long span, optical network applications

Since the mid 1990s, the role of optical CDMA has expanded from local area networks to longer span, telecommunication-type networks. In order to play a significant role in these longer span, denser, higher data rate networks, optical CDMA code set must (1) have at least as many codes as dense wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) (i.e., more than eight codes); (2) operate at high data rates (i.e., greater than 2.5 Gb/s); and (3) propagate with high fidelity over the installed or installable fiber links. Most approaches to optical CDMA require narrow pulses, which are more susceptible to fiber impairments and may have lower spectral efficiency than conventional WDM modulation schemes such as non-return-to-zero (NRZ), so they do not meet these new requirements. Therefore, we have formulated a strategy which simultaneously increases the number of good codes (resulting in higher density) and reduces their code length (i.e., decreasing the number of time slots required thus enabling higher data rates for a given chip time): the strategy of matrix codes. In this paper, we describe the design of a set of eight matrix codes for operation at 2.5 Gb/s and evaluate their propagation over an existing 214 km network link by means of computer simulation. The results indicate that the codes propagate well if dispersion management is used. The paper also discusses a strategy for managing the multiaccess interference (MAI) in a bursty traffic environment.