Methods and apparatus for providing enhanced optical networking service and performance which are particularly advantageous in terms of low cost and use of existing infrastructure, access control techniques, and components. In the exemplary embodiment, current widespread deployment and associated low cost of Ethernet-based systems are leveraged through use of an Ethernet CSMA/CD MAC in the optical domain on a passive optical network (PON) system. Additionally, local networking services are optionally provided to the network units on the PON since each local receiver can receive signals from all other users. An improved symmetric coupler arrangement provides the foregoing functionality at low cost. The improved system architecture also allows for fiber failure protection which is readily implemented at low cost and with minimal modification.

A transmitter can include a laser operable to output an optical signal; a digital signal processor operable to receive user data and provide electrical signals based on the data; and a modulator operable to modulate the optical signal to provide optical subcarriers based on the electrical signals. A first one of the subcarriers carriers carries first TDMA encoded information and second TDMA encoded information, such that the first TDMA encoded information is indicative of a first portion of the data and is carried by the first one of the subcarriers during a first time slot, and the second TDMA encoded information is indicative of a second portion of the data and is carried by the first one of the subcarriers during a second time slot. The first TDMA encoded information is associated with a first node remote from the transmitter and the second TDMA encoded information is associated with a second node remote from the transmitter. A second one of the subcarriers carries third information that is not TDMA encoded, the third information being associated with a third node remote from the transmitter. A receiver and system also are described.

A communications network includes a central communication unit, an optical transport medium, and a plurality of remote radio base stations. The central communication unit generates, within a selected millimeter-wave frequency band, a plurality of adjacent two-tone optical frequency conjugate pairs. Each conjugate pair includes a first optical tone carrying a modulated data signal, and a second optical tone carrying a reference local oscillator signal. The optical transport medium transports the plurality of two-tone conjugate pairs to the plurality of radio base stations, and each base station receives at least one conjugate pair at an optical front end thereof. The optical front end separates the first optical tone from the second optical tone, and converts the first optical tone into a millimeter-wave radio frequency electrical signal. The base station further includes a radio antenna system for wirelessly transmitting the millimeter-wave radio frequency electrical signal to at least one wireless receiving device.

There is described a reconfigurable array for facilitating dynamic combination and distribution of RF signals. The reconfigurable array comprises: (a) a number, N.sub.i, of input devices for generating or supplying RF input signals; (b) a number, N.sub.o, of output devices for analysing or forwarding RF output signals; (c) an optical switch matrix comprising a number, N.sub.p, of ports, wherein each of the ports is an optical input or an optical output, wherein each input device is coupled to a respective port of the optical switch matrix at an optical input, wherein each output device is coupled to a respective port of the optical switch matrix at an optical output, and wherein the optical switch matrix is configurable to enable optical connection of any optical input to any optical output; and (d) a plurality of multi-port devices that each have multiple uncommon ports which couple to a single common port, wherein each port of each multi-port device is coupled to a respective port of the optical switch matrix, and wherein each multi-port device enables either fan-in of optical signals from the uncommon ports to the common port or fan-out of optical signals from the common port to the uncommon ports depending on the configuration of the reconfigurable array. The plurality of multi-port devices include at least one M:1 multi-port device, where M is a predetermined maximum number of RF signals for the reconfigurable array to fan-in or fan-out, where M≤N.sub.i and M≤N.sub.o.

An optical data communication system includes an optical power supply and an electro-optical chip. The optical power supply includes a laser that generates laser light at a single wavelength. A comb generator receives the light at the single wavelength and generates multiple wavelengths of continuous wave light from laser light at the single wavelength. The multiple wavelengths of continuous wave light are provided as light input to the electro-optical chip. The electro-optical chip includes at least one transmit macro that receives the multiple wavelengths of continuous wave light and that modulates one or more of the multiple wavelengths of continuous wave light to generate modulated light signals that convey digital data.

This application provides an optical switching apparatus. Input ports are configured to input a first beam into a dispersion assembly at a first angle of incidence in a first direction, the input ports are further configured to input a second beam into the dispersion assembly at a second angle of incidence in the first direction, and a difference between absolute values of the first angle of incidence and the second angle of incidence is not zero. The difference between the absolute values of the first angle of incidence and the second angle of incidence enables a first region in which spots of the first beam are arranged and a second region in which spots of the second beam are arranged to be separated from each other in the first direction, and enables the first region and the second region to at least partially overlap in a second direction.

Process margin relaxation is provided in relation to a compensated-for process via a first optical device, fabricated to satisfy an operational specification when a compensated-for process is within a first tolerance range; a second optical device, fabricated to satisfy the operational specification when the compensated-for process is within second tolerance range, different than the first tolerance range; a first optical switch connected to an input and configured to output an optical signal received from the input to one of the first optical device and the second optical device; and a second optical switch configured to combine outputs from the first optical device and the second optical device.

An optical beamforming device includes an RF front-end transmitting or receiving RF signals and an optical beamformer forming or compensating for a time delay for each of the plurality of channels based on the RF signals. The optical beamformer includes E/O converters converting the RF signals into optical signals, respectively, a linear modulator generating an optical modulation signal based on an RF input signal, a TTD array outputting an optical combined signal obtained by compensating for a time delay degree of the input optical signals or outputting output optical signals, in each of which a time delay is formed for each channel, by distributing the optical modulation signal, a photo detector generating an RF output signal to an RF back-end based on the optical combined signal, and O/E converters converting the output optical signals into RF signals, respectively.

To provide a light wavelength separation device and a light wavelength separation method that can be flexibly adapted for various channel intervals of a wavelength-division multiplexed (WDM) signal, a light wavelength separation circuit is provided with: an optical coupler which splits a wavelength-multiplexed optical signal in which optical signals of a plurality of channels are multiplexed; a band-pass filter which is arranged for each of output ports of the optical coupler, separates optical signals included in the wavelength-multiplexed optical signal inputted from the output ports of the optical coupler into channels of which the central frequencies are not adjacent to each other, and outputs the separated optical signals from respectively different output ports; and an optical switch which selects one of paths of the optical signals inputted from the output ports of each band-pass filter.

Waveguide shuffle blocks (WSBs) are provided that may incorporate waveguides routed in any pattern to effectuate many-to-many connectivity between optical cables/fibers or other WSBs connected thereto. Such WSBs may be configured in ways that allow the WSBs to be stacked and to achieve effective optical cable/fiber organization. Moreover, such WSBs may include readable tags that can provide information regarding a particular WSB configuration and/or what optical cables/fibers are connected so that network topology can be discovered and monitored. Some WSBs may be configured as wavelength shifting shuffles (WSSs) that allow a particular wavelength(s) of an optical signal(s) to be routed as desired and/or alter a first wavelength associated with a particular optical signal to a second wavelength. In other embodiments WSSs can be configured to allow for wavelength multiplexing/demultiplexing.