Modular architectures of optical multi-stage switching networks

Future switching and interconnection fabrics inside switching equipment, high-performance computers and datacenters will require more throughput and more energy efficiency. Optical technology provides many opportunities of improvement of both features compared to electronic counterparts. This work defines a procedure to design the architecture of optical multistage switching networks. Modularity of the implementation is the primary concern, allowing for the construction of a genericsize fabric by the simple cascading of multiple stage-modules. In this paper we show in details the application of the approach to a family of banyan networks. The designed architecture can be exploited for various implementation technologies, as, for instance, integrated optics with micro-ring resonators, free-space optics with 2-D MEMS, networks on chip.