Zero-cost upgrade to a multi-fiber network with partial lane-change capabilities

Growing capacity requirements are leading to the deployment of multiple fibers in each optical network link. Even though deploying state-of-the-art multi-fiber network architectures with stacked and independent fiber layers simplifies network design and control, spectrum can be used more efficiently if the optical-network nodes allow fiber layers to be interconnected, i.e., if the so-called lane change is enabled. Unfortunately, lane change in high-degree optical nodes requires wavelength selective switches (WSSs) with a high number of ports, which is prohibitively costly or even unfeasible with current WSS technology. Instead, lane change in low-degree optical nodes can be enabled at no extra cost, using WSS ports that are otherwise left empty. In this study, we describe our proposal for a multi-fiber network with partial lane-change capabilities and perform a simulative study to identify the advantages of this architecture, as well as discuss the emerging resource allocation challenges associated with it. We demonstrate that, by enabling lane change in degree-2 nodes, we can increase network throughput by 3% and restore 5%–8% more traffic in the case of single- and double-link failures at no additional equipment cost.