Integrated optical switch assembly, optical routing control method, control unit, and medium

Abstract

The application discloses an optical routing control method, which comprises the following steps: determining the characteristics of a first transverse electric mode signal and the characteristics of a second transverse electric mode signal of input light according to the optical characteristics of the input light, wherein the input light can be processed into multiple transverse electric mode signals by a polarization beam splitter rotator of an integrated optical switch, the integrated optical switch comprises an extended optical switch network module, the extended optical switch network module comprises a plurality of optical switching units arranged in multiple rows and multiple columns, and the integrated optical switch further comprises a plurality of polarization beam splitter rotators and a plurality of polarization combiners; determining the optical propagation paths of the transverse electric mode signals according to the characteristics of the multiple transverse electric mode signals, wherein the set loss condition is met between the multiple optical propagation paths; and generating a routing control signal for the integrated optical switch according to the multiple optical propagation paths. The application further provides a control unit, a computer readable medium and an integrated optical switch assembly.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of optical devices, and more specifically, to an optical routing control method, a control unit, a computer-readable medium, and an integrated optical switch assembly. Background Technology

[0002] Integrated optical switches are important components in optical interconnect applications, playing roles such as optical domain optimization and routing in optical networks. A typical integrated optical switch comprises multiple optical switching units, arranged in an array.

[0003] However, integrated optical switches suffer from light loss during use. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This invention aims to address, to a certain extent, one of the technical problems in related technologies. To this end, this invention provides an optical routing control method, a control unit, a computer-readable medium, and an integrated optical switch assembly.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, as a first aspect of the present invention, an integrated optical switch is disclosed. The integrated optical switch includes an extended optical switch network module, which includes multiple optical switching units arranged in multiple rows and columns. The integrated optical switch further includes multiple polarization beam splitters and multiple polarization combiners. Each polarization beam splitter corresponds one-to-one with a plurality of optical switching units located in the input column of the extended optical switch network module. The input end of each polarization beam splitter is used to receive input light. Multiple transverse electrical mode signal output ends of each polarization beam splitter are optically communicatively connected to multiple input ends of corresponding optical switching units. Each polarization combiner corresponds one-to-one with a plurality of optical switching units located in the output column of the extended optical switch network module. Multiple input ends of each polarization combiner are optically communicatively connected to multiple output ends of corresponding optical switching units. The polarization combiner is used to combine multiple received transverse electrical mode signals and output them through its output end.

[0006] Optionally, the output end of the polarization beam splitter includes a first transverse electrical mode signal output end and a second transverse electrical mode signal output end, and the input end of the optical switching unit includes a functional input end and a redundant input end. The first transverse electrical mode signal output end is optically connected to the functional input end of the corresponding optical switching unit, and the second transverse electrical mode signal output end is optically connected to the redundant output end of the corresponding optical switching unit. The input terminals of the polarization combiner include a first transverse electrical mode signal input terminal and a second transverse electrical mode signal input terminal. The output terminals of the optical switching unit include a functional output terminal and a redundant output terminal. The first transverse electrical mode signal input terminal is optically connected to the functional output terminal of the corresponding optical switching unit, and the second transverse electrical mode signal input terminal is optically connected to the redundant output terminal of the corresponding optical switching unit.

[0007] Optionally, the extended optical switch network module further includes multiple compensation structures, which can be optically connected to the optical switching unit to form an optical propagation path with the optical switching unit.

[0008] Optionally, each of the compensation structures is independently selected from any one of the following structures: Length-compensated waveguides, loss-compensated structures, phase-adjusting structures, and virtual waveguide cross-compensation structures.

[0009] Optionally, the plurality of compensation structures include a plurality of virtual waveguide cross-compensation structures, wherein the virtual waveguide cross-compensation structures are disposed between two adjacent optical switching units.

[0010] Optionally, the plurality of compensation structures include at least one phase adjustment unit, and the output end of at least one optical switching unit on the output side of the extended optical switch network module is correspondingly provided with a phase adjustment unit so as to realize optical communication connection between the output end of the optical switching unit and the input end of the corresponding polarization combiner through the phase adjustment unit.

[0011] Optionally, the integrated optical switch further includes at least one optical amplifier, the output terminal of at least one of the polarization multiplexers is provided with the optical amplifier, and / or, the optical amplifier is provided between the input terminal of at least one of the polarization multiplexers and the output terminal of the corresponding optical switching unit.

[0012] As a second aspect of the present invention, an optical routing control method is provided, wherein the optical routing control method includes: The characteristics of the first transverse electrical mode signal and the characteristics of the second transverse electrical mode signal of the input light are determined based on the optical characteristics of the input light, wherein the input light can be processed into multiple transverse electrical mode signals by the polarization beam splitter of the integrated optical switch, and the integrated optical switch is the integrated optical switch described in the first aspect of the present invention. The optical propagation path of each transverse electric mode signal is determined based on the characteristics of the multiple transverse electric mode signals, wherein the multiple optical propagation paths satisfy a set loss condition. A routing control signal for the integrated optical switch is generated based on the multiple optical propagation paths.

[0013] Optionally, the loss difference within the set range includes at least one of the following: The insertion loss difference of each optical propagation path is within a set loss difference range, the group delay difference of multiple optical switching units on each optical propagation path is within a first set tolerance range, and the crosstalk level difference between each optical propagation path is within a second set tolerance range.

[0014] Optionally, the number of optical switching units traversed by each of the optical propagation paths is the same.

[0015] As a third aspect of the present invention, a control unit is provided, the control unit comprising: One or more processors; The memory stores an executable program that, when invoked by one or more processors, enables the implementation of the optical routing control method described in the second aspect of the present invention.

[0016] As a fourth aspect of the present invention, a computer-readable medium is provided, characterized in that it stores one or more computer programs that, when invoked, enable the optical routing control method described in the second aspect of the present invention.

[0017] As a fifth aspect of the present invention, an integrated optical switch assembly is provided, the integrated optical switch assembly including a control unit and an integrated optical switch, wherein the control unit is the control unit described in the third aspect of the present invention, and the integrated optical switch is the integrated optical switch provided in the first aspect of the present invention.

[0018] In this embodiment of the invention, the control unit performs routing control on the multiple TE signals based on the optical properties of the input light (i.e., determines the optical propagation path of each TE signal). Specifically, after the input light is split into multiple TE signals by a polarization beam splitter, it can be routed between multiple optical switching units according to the optical propagation path determined by the control unit until it reaches the optical switching unit on the output side, where it is combined by the polarization combiner corresponding to that output-side optical switching unit. Therefore, the integrated optical switch provided in this embodiment of the invention can transmit input light in any polarization state, reducing or even eliminating polarization-dependent losses. Furthermore, when using the integrated optical switch for optical signal transmission routing, polarization-dependent crosstalk is also reduced or even eliminated, improving the quality of the output signal.

[0019] These features and advantages of the present invention will be disclosed in detail in the following specific embodiments and accompanying drawings. The preferred embodiments or means of the present invention will be shown in detail in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, but are not intended to limit the technical solutions of the present invention. In addition, each of these features, elements and components appearing in the following text and drawings is a plurality of, and different symbols or numbers are used for convenience of representation, but all represent parts with the same or similar construction or function. Attached Figure Description

[0020] The present invention will be further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of the integrated optical switch provided in this application. Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the extended optical switch network module provided in an embodiment of this application; Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the integrated optical switch provided in this application routing one input light source; Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the integrated optical switch provided in this application for routing multiple input optical signals; Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of one possible implementation of an optical switching unit; Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of an integrated optical switch, including a virtual waveguide cross-compensation structure, routing a single input light source. Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of an integrated optical switch including a phase adjustment unit compensation structure; Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of another embodiment of the integrated optical switch provided in this application. Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of another embodiment of the integrated optical switch provided in this application. Figure 10 This is a schematic diagram of the control unit module provided in the embodiments of this application; Figure 11 This is a schematic diagram of the modules of the computer-readable medium provided in the embodiments of this application; Figure 12 This is a schematic diagram of the integrated optical switch assembly provided in an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 13 This is a flowchart of one implementation of the optical routing control method provided in the embodiments of this application.

[0021] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures 101: Processor; 102: Memory 103: I / O Interface 104: Bus 100: Extended optical switch network module; 110: Optical switching unit 111: Input coupling region; 112: Phase modulation region 113: Output coupling region; 120: Compensation structure 200: Polarization beam splitter / rotator; 300: Polarization combiner / combiner 400: Optical Amplifier Detailed Implementation Embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein the same or similar reference numerals denote the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar functions throughout. The embodiments described are intended to explain the present invention and should not be construed as limiting the invention.

[0022] The terms "an embodiment," "example," or "example" used in this specification refer to a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment itself that may be included in at least one embodiment disclosed in this application. The phrase "in an embodiment" appearing in various places throughout the specification does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment.

[0023] Research has revealed that one reason for optical loss in integrated optical switches during use is that, in optical interconnect scenarios, the input signal light from the optical fiber may be in an arbitrary polarization state and may continuously change over time. In integrated photonic platforms such as silicon photonics, devices such as waveguides, directional couplers, multimode interferometers, Mach-Zehnder interferometers (MZIs), phase shifters, and waveguide crossings typically exhibit significant polarization-dependent characteristics. Therefore, if the input optical signal directly enters the integrated optical switch through an edge coupler, polarization-dependent loss is easily generated.

[0024] In view of this, as a first aspect of the present invention, an integrated optical switch is provided, such as... Figure 1 and Figure 2 The integrated optical switch shown includes an extended optical switch network module 100, which includes multiple optical switching units 110 arranged in multiple rows and columns. The integrated optical switch also includes multiple polarization splitter-rotators (PSRs) 200 and multiple polarization beam combiners (PBCs) 300. Each PSR 200 corresponds one-to-one with one of the multiple optical switching units 110 located in the input column of the extended optical switch network module 100. The input end of the PSR 200 is used to receive input light, and the multiple transverse electrical mode signal output ends of the PSR 200 are optically connected to the multiple input ends of the corresponding optical switching units 110. Multiple polarization combiners 300 correspond one-to-one with multiple optical switching units 110 located in the output column of the extended optical switch network module 100. Multiple input terminals of the polarization combiner 300 are optically connected to multiple output terminals of the corresponding optical switching unit 110. The polarization combiner 300 is used to combine multiple received transverse electric wave (TE) mode signals and output them through the output terminal of the polarization combiner 300.

[0025] In this embodiment of the invention, the polarization beam splitter rotator 200 is capable of separating the input light into multiple spatially separated polarization components and converting the multiple polarization components into a TE mode that can be transmitted in the extended optical switch network module 100. The extended optical switch network module 100 includes multiple optical switching units, and each optical switching unit has multiple input terminals and multiple output terminals.

[0026] It should be noted that the integrated optical switch is controlled by the control unit provided in the third aspect of the present invention. In the embodiments of the present invention, the control unit performs routing control on the multiple TE signals according to the optical performance of the input light (i.e., determines the optical propagation path of each TE signal). Specifically, after the input light is split into multiple TE signals by the polarization beam splitter rotator 200, it can be routed and propagated between multiple optical switching units 110 according to the optical propagation path determined by the control unit until it reaches the optical switching unit 110 on the output side, where it is combined by the polarization combiner 300 corresponding to the optical switching unit 110 on the output side. Thus, the integrated optical switch provided in the embodiments of the present invention can transmit input light in any polarization state, reducing or even eliminating polarization-related losses. In addition, when using the integrated optical switch for optical signal transmission routing, polarization-related crosstalk is also reduced or even eliminated, improving the quality of the output signal.

[0027] Since the optical switching unit 110 has multiple input terminals and multiple output terminals, the optical propagation paths in the extended optical switch network module 100 are also relatively numerous. For example, when the extended optical switch network module 100 includes multiple optical switching units 110, and the multiple optical switching units 110 have a total of N input terminals and N output terminals, and the multiple optical switching units also have a total of N redundant input terminals and N redundant output terminals, the extended optical switch network module is expanded into a 2N×2N network without increasing the number of optical switching units, and more optical propagation paths are implemented within a limited chip size.

[0028] As an optional implementation, the output terminal of the polarization beam splitter rotator 200 includes a first transverse electrical mode signal output terminal and a second transverse electrical mode signal output terminal, and the input terminal of the optical switching unit 110 includes a functional input terminal and a redundant input terminal. The first transverse electrical mode signal output terminal is optically connected to the functional input terminal of the corresponding optical switching unit 110, and the second transverse electrical mode signal output terminal is optically connected to the redundant output terminal of the corresponding optical switching unit 110.

[0029] Accordingly, the input terminals of the polarization combiner 300 include a first transverse electrical mode signal input terminal and a second transverse electrical mode signal input terminal, and the output terminals of the optical switching unit 110 include a functional output terminal and a redundant output terminal. The first transverse electrical mode signal input terminal is optically connected to the functional output terminal of the corresponding optical switching unit 110, and the second transverse electrical mode signal input terminal is optically connected to the redundant output terminal of the corresponding optical switching unit 110.

[0030] Specifically, the polarization combiner 300 is used to rotate one of the TE signals into a polarization component orthogonal to the other TE signal, and then combine the two polarization components for output.

[0031] In the above embodiments, the redundant input and output terminals of the optical switching unit 110 are fully utilized, enabling more optical propagation paths to be implemented within a limited chip size without modifying the optical switching unit 110. The optical switching unit 110 in this embodiment has two input terminals and two output terminals; therefore, it can also be referred to as a 2×2 optical switching unit.

[0032] In this embodiment of the invention, the specific structure of the optical switching unit 110 is not specifically limited. As an optional implementation, such as... Figure 5 As shown, the optical switching unit 110 may include an input coupling region 111, an output coupling region 113, and at least one phase modulation region 112.

[0033] Specifically, each TE signal is split into two phase modulation regions 112 after passing through the input coupling region 111 for phase adjustment, and finally recombined in the output coupling region 113.

[0034] In this embodiment of the invention, at least one of the input coupling region 111 and the output coupling region 113 is an adjustable coupler. Furthermore, the adjustable coupler is selected from any one of thermally tunable directional couplers, electro-optically tunable directional couplers, carrier-tunable directional couplers, and MEMS-tunable directional couplers.

[0035] In this embodiment of the invention, the number of phase modulation regions 112 in the optical switching unit is not specifically limited. For example, Figure 5 The image shows an MZI switching unit, which includes two phase modulation regions 112.

[0036] As an alternative implementation, a bendable directional coupler or other ultra-low crosstalk MZI structure can be selected, so that leakage light in both the bar state (off state) and cross state (on state) can be suppressed by coordinating the coupling ratio and phase difference.

[0037] In this embodiment of the invention, the two TE signals are routed separately. The paths corresponding to different TE signals may differ in path length, number of waveguide crossings, or insertion loss. To avoid optical signal distortion caused by these differences, the extended optical switch network module 100 may optionally include multiple compensation structures 120. These compensation structures 120 can be optically connected to the optical switching unit 110 to form an optical propagation path with the optical switching unit 110.

[0038] By selectively connecting the compensation structure 120 to the optical propagation path, the propagation path lengths of the two TE signals can be made approximately the same, the number of waveguide crossings they pass through can be approximately the same, and the difference in insertion loss can be approximately the same.

[0039] As an optional implementation, each of the plurality of compensation structures 120 is independently selected from any one of the following structures: Length-compensated waveguides, loss-compensated structures, phase-adjusting structures, and virtual waveguide cross-compensation structures.

[0040] As an optional implementation method, such as Figure 6 As shown, the multiple compensation structures 120 include multiple virtual waveguide cross compensation structures, which are arranged between two adjacent optical switching units.

[0041] As another alternative implementation method, such as Figure 7 As shown, the multiple compensation structures 120 include at least one phase adjustment unit. The output end of at least one optical switching unit 110 on the output side of the extended optical switch network module 100 is correspondingly provided with a phase adjustment unit so as to realize the optical communication connection between the output end of the optical switching unit and the input end of the corresponding polarization combiner through the phase adjustment unit.

[0042] In this embodiment of the invention, the compensation structure 120, which is configured as a phase adjustment unit, can also balance the phase of the optical signal entering the polarization combiner 300, ensuring that the polarization state of the output light is consistent with the polarization state of the input light.

[0043] In the embodiment shown in the figure, each output terminal of each optical switching unit 110 is provided with a compensation structure 120 in the form of a phase adjustment unit.

[0044] During use, the extended optical switch network module 100, polarization beam splitter rotator 200, polarization combiner 300, optical switching unit 110, waveguide transmission, and waveguide crossings may all introduce insertion loss. To avoid this potential insertion loss, optionally, such as Figure 8 and Figure 9 As shown, the integrated optical switch also includes at least one optical amplifier 400.

[0045] As an optional implementation method, such as Figure 8 As shown, at least one polarization multiplexer 300 has an optical amplifier 400 at its output terminal. Alternatively, each polarization multiplexer 300 may have an optical amplifier 400 at its output terminal. For an extended optical switch network module 100 formed by N×N optical switching units, N optical amplifiers 400 are provided; alternatively, the N optical amplifiers 400 can be considered to form a 1×N optical amplifier array.

[0046] Of course, the embodiments of the present invention are not limited thereto, such as Figure 9 As shown, an optical amplifier 400 can also be provided between the input of at least one polarization combiner 300 and the output of the corresponding optical switching unit 110. Providing an optical amplifier 400 on the output side of the extended optical switch network module 100 can compensate for system losses and improve the output power budget.

[0047] In this embodiment of the invention, no specific limitation is made on the model of the optical amplifier 400. The optical signal entering the optical amplifier 400 may have any polarization state, so a polarization-insensitive optical amplifier or a low polarization-dependent gain optical amplifier can be selected to reduce the polarization-dependent gain and polarization-dependent loss during the amplification process.

[0048] In this embodiment of the invention, multiple optical amplifiers 400 are formed as an array, and the multiple optical amplifiers can be formed on the same chip as the extended optical switch network module 100. For example, multiple optical amplifiers 400 and the extended optical switch network module 100 can be integrated on the same chip through heterogeneous integration.

[0049] In this embodiment of the invention, the optical amplifier 400 may be a semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA).

[0050] As a second aspect of the present invention, an optical routing control method is provided, wherein, as Figure 13 As shown, the optical routing control method includes: In step S210, the characteristics of the first transverse electrical mode signal and the characteristics of the second transverse electrical mode signal of the input light are determined according to the optical characteristics of the input light, wherein the input light can be processed into multiple transverse electrical mode signals by the polarization beam splitter of the integrated optical switch, and the integrated optical switch is the integrated optical switch provided in the first aspect of the present invention. In step S220, the optical propagation path of each transverse electrical mode signal is determined according to the characteristics of the multiple transverse electrical mode signals, wherein the multiple optical propagation paths satisfy a set loss condition. In step S230, a routing control signal for the integrated optical switch is generated based on the multiple optical propagation paths.

[0051] As described above, the integrated optical switch provided in this embodiment of the invention can transmit input light with arbitrary polarization. Furthermore, by analyzing the polarization characteristics of the input light, multiple optical propagation paths that meet predetermined loss conditions can be identified, thereby reducing polarization loss during optical switching. Moreover, since the multiple optical propagation paths meet the predetermined loss conditions, polarization-related crosstalk generated during the propagation of multiple TE signals is also reduced or even eliminated, improving the quality of the output signal. It should be noted that the routing control signal includes control signals for each optical switching unit traversed by the optical propagation path.

[0052] In this embodiment of the invention, the polarization beam splitter rotator 200 can split the input light into a first transverse electrical mode signal and a second transverse electrical mode signal. Accordingly, in step S220, a first optical propagation path of the first transverse electrical mode signal and a second optical propagation path of the second transverse electrical mode signal in the integrated optical switch can be determined based on the characteristics of the first transverse electrical mode signal and the second transverse electrical mode signal. Furthermore, in step S230, a routing control signal for the integrated optical switch is generated based on the first and second optical propagation paths.

[0053] As an optional implementation, the loss difference within the set range includes at least one of the following: The insertion loss difference of each optical propagation path is within a set loss difference range, the group delay difference of multiple optical switching units on each optical propagation path is within a first set tolerance range, and the crosstalk level difference between each optical propagation path is within a second set tolerance range.

[0054] In this embodiment of the application, no special limitation is made to the "first set tolerance range", as long as it is small enough. For example, the first set tolerance range can be from 0ms to 150ms.

[0055] In the embodiments of this application, the second tolerance range is not limited as described above, as long as it is small enough. For example, the second set tolerance range can be 0-50dB.

[0056] exist Figure 3 In the illustrated embodiment, the extended optical switch network module 100 includes 4×4 optical switching units 110, and the polarization beam splitter rotator 200 splits the input light into a first transverse electrical mode signal and a second transverse electrical mode signal. Figure 3As can be seen, the first optical propagation path passes through 4 optical switching units, and the second optical propagation path also passes through 4 optical switching units. Furthermore, the insertion loss of the first optical propagation path is similar to that of the second optical propagation path, the group delay of the first optical propagation path is similar to that of the second optical propagation path, and the crosstalk level of the first optical propagation path is similar to that of the second optical propagation path.

[0057] Optionally, the number of optical switching units traversed by each of the optical propagation paths is the same.

[0058] As described above, the extended optical switch network module 100 may further include multiple compensation structures 120. If at least one of the following exists among the determined multiple optical propagation paths: path length difference, waveguide crossover number difference, and insertion loss difference, a compensation structure 120 may be introduced in the optical propagation path with shorter path length, fewer waveguide crossovers, or lower insertion loss. Accordingly, step S220 may specifically include: Determine multiple initial paths, wherein the number of optical switching units traversed by each initial path is the same; Determine the optical loss of multiple initial paths; Determine the compensation structure for the initial path with relatively low optical loss; Multiple optical propagation paths are formed based on the initial paths and the determined compensation structure, so that the optical loss of all multiple optical propagation paths is within a set range.

[0059] The optical routing control method provided in this embodiment of the invention not only takes into account the connection relationship between optical switching units, but also further considers path equalization (or path loss equalization).

[0060] The following is combined with Figure 6 An exemplary description of the specific implementation method described above is provided.

[0061] Two initial paths are determined based on the characteristics of the input light. The first initial path passes through the four optical switching units in the first row, and the second initial path passes through the optical switching units in the first row and first column, the second row and third column, the third row and third column, and the fourth row and first column. The optical loss of the second initial path is determined to be greater than that of the first initial path. A compensation structure is then determined for the first initial path so that the first initial path and the determined compensation structure form the first optical propagation path. The second initial path is then used as the second optical propagation path. The loss difference between the first and second optical propagation paths is within a set range.

[0062] from Figure 6It is evident that the second initial path traverses significantly more waveguide crossings than the first initial path. In other words, the loss (including insertion loss and crosstalk) of the second initial path is significantly higher than that of the first initial path. A length-compensating waveguide can be introduced into the first initial path to compensate for the difference in loss and crosstalk caused by the difference in the number of waveguide crossings, ensuring that the losses of the two final optical propagation paths are approximately the same, i.e., the difference in loss between the two optical propagation paths is within a set range.

[0063] It should be pointed out that, although in Figure 6 In the embodiment shown, the length compensation waveguide is specifically a serpentine length compensation waveguide, but the present invention is not limited to this. As long as the length compensation waveguide can compensate for the loss caused by the difference in the number of waveguide crossings, it is acceptable.

[0064] As mentioned above, in addition to using a length-compensating waveguide as the compensation structure, some embodiments of the present invention may also use a phase adjustment unit as the compensation structure.

[0065] Although Figure 3 ,and Figure 6 Only one input light path is shown in the extended optical switch network module 100 under the control of the optical routing control method, but the present invention is not limited thereto. Figure 4 As shown, each polarization beam splitter rotator 200 can split and rotate the corresponding input light into two beams, and transmit them to the polarization combiner 300 in the extended optical switch network module 100 according to the paired light propagation paths. Different colored lines represent different input lights.

[0066] The following is based on Figure 3 ,as well as Figure 4 Taking the 4×4 extended optical switch network module as an example, the principles of port mapping and pairwise routing addressing will be further explained. For ease of description, the four external input ports are labeled I1, I2, I3 and I4, and the four external output ports are labeled O1, O2, O3 and O4.

[0067] In this embodiment, the extended optical switch network module 100 originally has 4 functional input ports and 4 functional output ports, and also has 4 redundant input ports and 4 redundant output ports. This embodiment does not increase the number of optical switching units 110, but rather utilizes these redundant ports (i.e., redundant input ports and redundant output ports). Therefore, from the internal perspective of the extended optical switch network module 100, it has 8 internal input ports (i.e., 4 functional input ports and 4 redundant input ports) and 8 internal output ports (i.e., 4 functional output ports and 4 redundant output ports); from the external perspective, it still has 4 external input ports and 4 external output ports.

[0068] Port mapping can be understood as: pre-assigning a pair of internal ports to each external port. Wherein, external input port I... i The i-th functional input port and the i-th redundant input port together form an internal input port pair; the external output port O j The j-th functional output port and the j-th redundant output port together form an internal output port pair. For example, external input port I2 corresponds to the second functional input and the second redundant input, and external output port O4 corresponds to the fourth functional output and the fourth redundant output.

[0069] The aforementioned internal ports can also be uniformly numbered. Following the order of "one functional port, one redundant port," external input ports I1, I2, I3, and I4 are mapped to internal input port pairs (II1, II2), (II3, II4), (II5, II6), and (II7, II8), respectively; external output ports O1, O2, O3, and O4 are mapped to internal output port pairs (OI1, OI2), (OI3, OI4), (OI5, OI6), and (OI7, OI8), respectively. Generally, when the external port number is i, the address of its internal port pair can be represented as (2i-1, 2i). This numbering is for illustrative purposes only; other numbering methods can be used in actual implementation, as long as the control unit can determine the correspondence between the external ports and the internal port pairs. Furthermore, internal input ports numbered oddly represent functional inputs, and internal input ports numbered evenly represent redundant inputs; internal output ports numbered oddly represent functional outputs, and internal output ports numbered evenly represent redundant outputs. Of course, the invention is not limited to this. For example, internal input ports numbered evenly represent functional inputs, and internal input ports numbered oddly represent redundant inputs; internal output ports numbered evenly represent functional outputs, and internal output ports numbered oddly represent redundant outputs. The internal ports can be numbered according to actual needs, which will not be elaborated here.

[0070] When input light enters from external input port I2, the polarization beam splitter rotator 200 corresponding to external input port I2 splits the input light into two spatially separate polarization components, and converts both into transverse electrical mode signals suitable for transmission in the extended optical switch network module 100. The first transverse electrical mode signal enters internal input port II3, and the second transverse electrical mode signal enters internal input port II4. Thus, one external input light beam is mapped into two internal transverse electrical mode signals, but both signals always carry the same port pair identifier, that is, both belong to external input port I2.

[0071] Suppose this exchange request connects external input port I2 to external output port O4. The control unit first converts this request into an internal pair addressing request based on the port mapping relationship. That is, it simultaneously establishes a first route from "internal input port II3 to internal output port OI7" and a second route from "internal input port II4 to internal output port OI8". In other words, the control unit does not process isolated internal port addresses, but rather source port pairs (II3, II4) and destination port pairs (OI7, OI8).

[0072] Paired routing can be understood as "two components finding a path together, occupying resources together, and taking effect together." The control unit can pre-store the topology of the extended optical switch network module 100, such as the connection relationship between each internal port and each optical switching unit 110, the connection relationship between adjacent optical switching units 110, and the ports that each optical switching unit 110 can connect to when it is in a cut-through or cross-connect state. Starting from the source port pair and the destination port pair, the control unit searches for two candidate paths that can be established simultaneously, and determines the optical switching units 110 traversed by the two paths and the cut-through or cross-connect state that each optical switching unit 110 needs to adopt.

[0073] When selecting paired paths, the control unit first ensures that both the first and second transverse electrical mode signals reach the internal output port pair corresponding to the external output port O4, and do not reach two different external output ports respectively. Subsequently, the control unit can further compare the number of optical switching units traversed by the two candidate paths, waveguide length, number of waveguide crossings, insertion loss, propagation delay, and crosstalk level, prioritizing a pair of paths with the same or similar parameters. For example, two paths that both traverse the same number of optical switching units 110 can be prioritized; if differences still exist between the two paths, compensation can be performed by connecting the compensation structure 120 as described above.

[0074] After determining the paired paths, the control unit assigns the same routing identifier to the path pair and simultaneously locks the optical switching unit 110 and waveguide resources required for both paths to prevent other connection requests from occupying the same resources. Then, the control unit generates routing control signals based on the two paths and uniformly distributes them to the corresponding optical switching unit 110 and compensation structure 120. The connection from internal input port I2 to external output port O4 only becomes effective when both paths can be established; if one path is blocked or does not meet the set loss conditions, the entire path pair is reselected, or another feasible path is selected for one of the paths, but the source port pair and destination port pair remain unchanged.

[0075] After the two transverse electrical mode signals propagate along the first and second routes respectively, they reach internal output ports 7 and 8, and then enter the polarization combiner 300 corresponding to the external output port O4. The polarization combiner 300 rotates one of the transverse electrical mode signals into a polarization component orthogonal to the other transverse electrical mode signal, then combines the two polarization components and outputs them from the external output port O4. This completes the entire process of “external input port I2 → internal input port pair (II3, II4) → paired routes → internal output port pair (II7, II8) → external output port O4”.

[0076] When multiple connection requests exist, they can be handled in the same way. For example, after a paired route from external input port I2 to external output port O4 has been established, if a connection from external input port I1 to external output port O3 still needs to be established, the control unit maps external input port I1 to an internal input port pair (II1, II2) and external output port O3 to an internal output port pair (OI5, OI6). Then, it searches for another paired path from the internal input port pair (II1, II2) to the internal output port pair (OI5, OI6), avoiding the resources already occupied by the connection from external input port I2 to external output port O4. Thus, while maintaining the paired transmission of the two polarization components of each input light, and within the limits of the topology and available resources of the extended optical switch network module 100, conflict-free connections between the four external input ports and the four external output ports can be achieved.

[0077] As can be seen from the above embodiments, port mapping solves the problem of "where the two polarization components of the same external input light enter from and where they eventually converge"; pairwise routing solves the problem of "how these two components can find two suitable paths simultaneously in the switching network as a whole". The combination of these two approaches enables the extended optical switch network module 100 to transmit two transverse electrical mode components using existing functional ports and redundant ports, without requiring an additional optical switching network for polarization diversity transmission.

[0078] As a third aspect of the present invention, such as Figure 10 As shown, a control unit is provided, the control unit comprising: One or more processors 101; The memory 102 stores an executable program that, when invoked by one or more processors 101, enables the implementation of the optical routing control method described in the second aspect of the present invention.

[0079] The control unit may also include one or more I / O interfaces 103 connected between the processor 101 and the memory 102, configured to enable information interaction between the processor 101 and the memory 102.

[0080] The processor 101 is a device with data processing capabilities, including but not limited to a central processing unit (CPU); the memory 102 is a device with data storage capabilities, including but not limited to random access memory (RAM, more specifically SDRAM, DDR, etc.), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), and flash memory (FLASH); the I / O interface (read-write interface) is connected between the processor and the memory, enabling information exchange between the processor and the memory, including but not limited to a data bus (Bus).

[0081] In this embodiment of the invention, the control unit can select a pair of paths for two quasi-TE signals corresponding to the same external input port based on the topology model, waveguide length model, waveguide cross loss model, optical switching unit loss model, and crosstalk model of the extended optical switch network module, so that the two signals have similar optical power, propagation delay, and crosstalk level when they reach the target output port pair.

[0082] In some embodiments, the processor 101, memory 102, and I / O interface 103 are interconnected via bus 104, and thus connected to other components of the electronic device.

[0083] As a fourth aspect of the present invention, such as Figure 11 As shown, a computer-readable medium is provided, on which one or more computer programs are stored, which, when invoked, enable the optical routing control method described in the second aspect of the present invention.

[0084] As a fifth aspect of the present invention, an integrated optical switch assembly is provided, such as... Figure 12 As shown, the integrated optical switch assembly includes a control unit and an integrated optical switch, wherein the control unit is the control unit provided in the third aspect of the present invention, and the integrated optical switch is the integrated optical switch provided in the first aspect of the present invention.

[0085] The control unit can be implemented by an FPGA, MCU, DSP, ASIC, computer control board, on-chip control circuit, or a combination thereof.

[0086] As an optional implementation, the integrated optical switch assembly may also include an external coupler.

[0087] The input light sequentially passes through an external coupler, a PSR, the internal input port pair of the extended optical switch network module, the extended optical switch network module, the internal output port pair of the extended optical switch network module, and the PBC. The control unit generates paired routing configurations based on the target's external input / output connection relationships and applies control signals to the 2×2 switching units and related adjustable units in the extended optical switch network, causing the two polarization components to be routed to the internal output port pair corresponding to the target output port, and finally combined by the PBC into a single external output optical signal.

[0088] It should be noted that the “internal input port pair of the extended optical switch network module” mentioned here refers to the input end of a row of optical switching units located on the input side of the extended optical switch network module, and the “internal output port pair of the extended optical switch network module” mentioned here refers to the output end of a row of optical switching units located on the output side of the extended optical switch network module.

[0089] Those skilled in the art will understand that all or part of the processes in the methods of the above embodiments can be implemented by a computer program instructing related hardware. Accordingly, the computer program can be stored in a non-volatile computer-readable storage medium, and when executed, it can implement the methods of any of the above embodiments. Any references to memory, storage, databases, or other media used in the embodiments provided by this invention can include non-volatile and / or volatile memory. Non-volatile memory may include read-only memory (ROM), programmable ROM (PROM), electrically programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), or flash memory. Volatile memory may include random access memory (RAM) or external cache memory. By way of illustration and not limitation, RAM is available in a variety of forms, such as static RAM (SRAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), dual data rate SDRAM (DDRSDRAM), enhanced SDRAM (ESDRAM), synchronous link DRAM (SLDRAM), RAMbus direct RAM (RDRAM), direct memory bus dynamic RAM (DRDRAM), and memory bus dynamic RAM (RDRAM).

[0090] These are merely specific embodiments of the present invention, but the scope of protection of the present invention is not limited thereto. Those skilled in the art should understand that the present invention includes, but is not limited to, the content described in the accompanying drawings and the specific embodiments above. Any modifications that do not depart from the functional and structural principles of the present invention will be included within the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. An optical routing control method, characterized in that, The optical routing control method includes: The characteristics of the first transverse electrical mode signal and the second transverse electrical mode signal of the input light are determined based on the optical characteristics of the input light. The input light can be processed into multiple transverse electrical mode signals by the polarization beam rotator of the integrated optical switch. The integrated optical switch includes an extended optical switch network module (100), which includes multiple optical switching units (110) arranged in multiple rows and columns. The integrated optical switch also includes multiple polarization beam rotators (200) and multiple polarization combiners (300). Each of the multiple polarization beam rotators (200) corresponds one-to-one with the multiple optical switching units (110) located in the input column of the extended optical switch network module. The input end of the polarization beam splitter (200) is used to receive input light. The multiple transverse electric mode signal output ends of the polarization beam splitter (200) are optically connected to the multiple input ends of the corresponding optical switching unit (110). The multiple polarization combiners (300) correspond one-to-one with the multiple optical switching units (110) located in the output column of the extended optical switch network module (100). The multiple input ends of the polarization combiners (300) are optically connected to the multiple output ends of the corresponding optical switching unit (110). The polarization combiners (300) are used to combine the received multiple transverse electric mode signals and output them through the output end of the polarization combiner (300). The optical propagation path of each transverse electric mode signal is determined based on the characteristics of the multiple transverse electric mode signals, wherein the multiple optical propagation paths satisfy a set loss condition. A routing control signal for the integrated optical switch is generated based on the multiple optical propagation paths.

2. The optical routing control method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The loss difference within the set range includes at least one of the following: The insertion loss difference of each optical propagation path is within a set loss difference range, the group delay difference of multiple optical switching units on each optical propagation path is within a first set tolerance range, and the crosstalk level difference between each optical propagation path is within a second set tolerance range.

3. The optical routing control method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The number of optical switching units traversed by each of the described optical propagation paths is the same.

4. A control unit, characterized in that, The control unit includes: One or more processors; The memory stores an executable program that, when invoked by the one or more processors, enables the implementation of the optical routing control method according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

5. A computer-readable medium, characterized in that, It stores one or more computer programs that, when invoked, can implement the optical routing control method according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

6. An integrated optical switch assembly, the integrated optical switch assembly comprising a control unit and an integrated optical switch, characterized in that, The control unit is the control unit according to claim 4. The integrated optical switch includes an extended optical switch network module (100), which includes multiple optical switching units (110) arranged in multiple rows and columns. The integrated optical switch also includes multiple polarization beam splitters (200) and multiple polarization combiners (300). The multiple polarization beam splitters (200) correspond one-to-one with the multiple optical switching units (110) located in the input column of the extended optical switch network module. The input end of the polarization beam splitter (200) is used to receive input light. Multiple transverse electrical mode signal output terminals of the polarization beam splitter (200) are optically connected to multiple input terminals of the corresponding optical switching unit (110). Multiple polarization combiners (300) correspond one-to-one with multiple optical switching units (110) located in the output column of the extended optical switch network module (100). Multiple input terminals of the polarization combiner (300) are optically connected to multiple output terminals of the corresponding optical switching unit (110). The polarization combiner (300) is used to combine multiple received transverse electrical mode signals and output them through the output terminal of the polarization combiner (300).

7. The integrated optical switch assembly according to claim 6, characterized in that, The output end of the polarization beam splitter (200) includes a first transverse electrical mode signal output end and a second transverse electrical mode signal output end. The input end of the optical switching unit (110) includes a functional input end and a redundant input end. The first transverse electrical mode signal output end is optically connected to the functional input end of the corresponding optical switching unit (110), and the second transverse electrical mode signal output end is optically connected to the redundant input end of the corresponding optical switching unit (110). The input terminals of the polarization combiner (300) include a first transverse electrical mode signal input terminal and a second transverse electrical mode signal input terminal. The output terminals of the optical switching unit (110) include a functional output terminal and a redundant output terminal. The first transverse electrical mode signal input terminal is optically connected to the functional output terminal of the corresponding optical switching unit (110), and the second transverse electrical mode signal input terminal is optically connected to the redundant output terminal of the corresponding optical switching unit (110).

8. The integrated optical switch assembly according to claim 6, characterized in that, The extended optical switch network module (100) also includes multiple compensation structures (120), which are optically connected to the optical switching unit (110) to form an optical propagation path with the optical switching unit (110).

9. The integrated optical switch assembly according to claim 8, characterized in that, Each of the multiple compensation structures (120) is independently selected from any one of the following structures: Length-compensated waveguides, loss-compensated structures, phase-adjusting structures, and virtual waveguide cross-compensation structures.

10. The integrated optical switch assembly according to claim 9, characterized in that, The multiple compensation structures (120) include multiple virtual waveguide cross compensation structures, which are disposed between two adjacent optical switching units.

11. The integrated optical switch assembly according to claim 7, characterized in that, The multiple compensation structures (120) include at least one phase adjustment unit. The output end of at least one optical switching unit on the output side of the extended optical switch network module is provided with a corresponding phase adjustment unit so as to realize the optical communication connection between the output end of the optical switching unit and the input end of the corresponding polarization combiner through the phase adjustment unit.

12. The integrated optical switch assembly according to any one of claims 6 to 11, characterized in that, The integrated optical switch also includes at least one optical amplifier (400). An optical amplifier (400) is provided at the output end of at least one of the polarization multiplexers (300), and / or, an optical amplifier is provided between the input end of at least one of the polarization multiplexers (300) and the output end of the corresponding optical switching unit (110).

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