Cost evaluation of all-optical architectures for backbone networks

All-optical switching is of considerable interest, since it enables the construction of large-capacity networks with protocol- and bit-rate-independent transmission. In this paper, we investigate two all-optical architectures for backbone networks: the wavelength-routed network and the slotted wavelength-routed network. After proposing an optical path accommodation algorithm that minimizes the total fiber length, we evaluate the total network cost and clarify the feasibility of the two architectures.