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.

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.

A node device capable of optimal transfer in accordance with the traffic situation of a network irrespective of the optical signaling system is provided. The node device includes a first wavelength selective switch connected to an input-side optical fiber; a fast selective switch connected to the first wavelength selective switch for cut-through or selective switching to an OCS controller or an OFS/OPS controller; an optical coupler connected to a cut-through output of the fast selective switch, an output of the OCS controller, and an output of the OFS/OPS controller; a second wavelength selective switch connected to an output of the optical coupler; and a node controller that performs wavelength assignment control for the first and second wavelength selective switches, path/label switch control for the fast selective switch, and flow/packet switch control for the OFS/OPS controller.

The present disclosure provides example wavelength selective switch (WSS), wavefront control element, and integrated liquid crystal on silicon (LCoS). One example WSS includes an input port fiber array, a demultiplexing/multiplexing grating group, an output port fiber array, and a beam deflection component group including two beam deflection components and at least one wavefront control element located between the demultiplexing/multiplexing grating group and the beam deflection component group or integrated with the LCoS. At least one beam deflection component is a LCoS. The input port fiber array receives multi-wavelength optical signals. The demultiplexing/multiplexing grating group demultiplexes and outputs the multi-wavelength optical signals. The beam deflection component group deflects the multi-wavelength optical signals to the demultiplexing/multiplexing grating group. The demultiplexing/multiplexing grating group multiplexes the multi-wavelength optical signals to the output port fiber array. The wavefront control element and the LCoS jointly modulate optical signals transmitted through N*M wavelength channels.

An optical switch is proposed, for routing an optical transmission signal according to an optical control signal, including one or more optical control ports; three or more optical transmission ports; a light director; and a thermally driven light mill; where the light mill and the light director are arranged with respect to each other, to the one or more control ports and to the three or more transmission ports such that: illumination of a respective one of the one or more control ports by a control beam carrying the control signal drives the light mill to rotate towards a respective position in which the light director is arranged so as to direct a transmission beam carrying the transmission signal, entering the switch via a respective one of the transmission ports, to exit the switch via a respective other of the transmission ports.

A reconfigurable polarization rotator is formed of an array of very small liquid crystal (LC) cells (e.g., cells of less than 10 μm in width, termed “microcells”), referred to hereinafter as “microcells”. Each LC microcell is addressable by a separate electrical voltage input that independently controls the polarization rotation performed by the associated LC microcell. By defining a set of adjacent microcells to be held at the same voltage level, that group may be used to form a polarization rotator window of a proper size for a first fiber array configuration. When a fiber array of a different configuration (say, an array with twice the pitch) is used, a different-sized group of adjacent LC microcells is held at a common voltage level so as to form a reconfigured “window” of a new dimension.

Various Reservoir Computing systems and a method performed by a Reservoir Computing system are provided. A Reservoir Computing system includes a laser for emitting light. The Reservoir Computing system further includes a mirror for reflecting external feedback light back to the laser. The Reservoir Computing system also includes a modulator for modulating the external feedback light reflected back to the laser. The Reservoir Computing system additionally includes a photo-detector for converting a laser output signal to an electrical signal. The Reservoir Computing system further includes an analog-to-digital converter for sampling the electrical signal. The Reservoir Computing system also includes a controller for applying a learning algorithm to the sampled electrical signal.

An apparatus for providing multicore fiber (OCF) optical switching is disclosed. The apparatus may include an input fiber to receive an optical signal from an optical source. The apparatus may also include an output fiber to receive the optical signal from the input fiber. The apparatus may further include an optical switch element to provide optical switching between the input fiber and the output fiber. In some examples, at least one of the input fiber and the output fiber may be a multicore fiber (MCF), and the optical switching may be performed between at least one core of the input fiber and the output fiber. In some examples, the optical switch element may provide optical switching using a multicore fiber (MCF) optical switching technique, such as a lens offset technique, a rotation-based technique, a tip-tilt technique, or an orientable optical element technique.

A method in an optical Wavelength Selective Switch, WSS, for multidirectional switching of optical signals. The optical WSS comprises a reflective element, a first tributary port and a second tributary port. The optical WSS switches (304) an optical signal between the first tributary port and the second tributary port with the reflective element.

A 3D-MEMS optical switch is disclosed. In an embodiment, the 3D-MEMS optical switch includes a collimator array, a PD array, a wedge prism, a light-splitting triangular prism, a micro-electro-mechanical system MEMS micro-mirror, and a core optical switch controller that is connected to the PD array and the MEMS micro-mirror. In the present invention, the PD array is integrated into a core optical switch, which simplifies an architecture of the optical switch and reduces a volume of the optical switch; the wedge prism and the light-splitting triangular prism are used to perform light splitting, and some optical signals are transmitted to the PD array to detect optical power, so that the core optical switch controller adjusts the MEMS micro-mirror according to the optical power, which is detected by the PD array, of the optical signal, making an insertion loss of the 3D-MEMS optical switch meet a preset attenuation range.