Introduction to Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing Technology

Author: Katapodoros
Publisher:
Publication Date: 2001-09-01
Features: Thousands of years ago, people tried to answer a question: Does light always travel in a straight line? Does it also do so within a medium? Can it advance along the curved shape of the medium? Using a bucket with holes at the bottom, people learned about the latter—how simple it is! Sunlight passing through morning dewdrops forms a rainbow, which made people realize that sunlight is made up of many colors—how simple an observation it is! By reflecting sunlight with a polished bronze shield to change its direction and project it to a selected position called the focal point, and also by realizing that the gathered light has the energy to heat or burn objects, glass optical lenses were born. This book is a specialized monograph on dense wavelength-division multiplexing (DWDM). The book is divided into five parts, each further divided into several chapters. Part 1 discusses physical optics, including interference, diffraction, and refraction, which are essential preliminary knowledge for understanding Mach-Zehnder or Fabry-Perot interferometers. Part 2 explains the basic principles of optical glass fibers as transmission media and the characteristics of light transmission through them. It also covers many optical devices, such as filters, multiplexers and demultiplexers, switches, polarizers, light sources, and optical receivers. Part 3 discusses various encoding techniques used in digital and optical transmission. Part 4 provides a general and simple overview of wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM) and dense wavelength-division multiplexing (DWDM), as well as discussing DWDM system design issues, network topology, and fault avoidance. Finally, Part 5 discusses the current research status in the DWDM field. Each chapter includes exercises, and answers are provided at the end of the book. Relevant references are listed after each part. The main readership of this book includes researchers, engineering technicians, and faculty and students in related fields of optical fiber communication.