Ultra-High-Capacity Optical Communications and Networking: Nano-Photonic Integration of Ultra-fast WDM Optical Communications Systems

本提案是应NSF 01-65关于“超大容量光通信和网络”的征集而提交的。分组比特率超过160Gbps的超高速光分组通信是超大容量光网络发展的关键下一步。超高比特率分组通信是一种难以电子实现的制度。光子技术有望实现这些高带宽系统，但光子技术的集成严重限制了实现可与电子学相媲美的高密度电路的能力。需要新的技术来使光子学经历20世纪60年代和70年代电子学所经历的同等程度的集成。该计划将解决超大容量光通信系统和具有更小、可集成元件的网络的构建块的纳米光子集成。研究目标是研究将光学缩放扩展到超过160Gbps的比特率和数百到数千个波长的纳米技术。拟议的项目还将解决纳米光子器件的物理和材料以及非线性动力学和控制如何相互耦合并与系统要求相结合的问题。这种跨学科的方法贯穿于该项目的研究和教育/培训方面。必须了解这些技术的设计、性能、加工、制造和集成，必须培训领导和支持这一新技术基础的新一代科学家和工程师。这一提议将来自多个领域的研究人员聚集在超高速WDM光通信系统的纳米光子集成的共同目标下。新的关键问题将通过将光网络和通信与纳米光子器件和材料以及非线性动力学和控制相结合的研究来解决。教育目标包括整合学生教育，包括材料生长、器件制造、控制理论和系统。学生将承担共同的、基于团队的责任来指导本科生-让这些学生对一个真实的、令人兴奋的和技术关键的问题有一个真正独特的视角。我们预计，这一充满活力的多学科研究计划将吸引来自代表性不足群体的不同研究生，这些大规模的光子集成研究将有助于培养未来五到十年需要的新一代科学家和工程师，以支持未来的超大容量光通信网络。这类研究的潜在影响可能与20世纪50年代末至70年代初发生在电子行业的影响一样根本性。

This proposal was submitted in response to the solicitation NSF 01-65 on "Ultra-High Capacity Optical Communications and Networking." Ultra-fast optical packet communications, with packet bit rates exceeding 160 Gbps, is a key next step in the evolution of ultra-high capacity optical networks. Ultra high bit rate packet communications is a regime difficult to implement electronically. Photonic technologies hold promise to realize these high bandwidth systems, but integration of photonic technologies severely limits the ability to realize high density circuits comparable to that of electronics. New technologies are required to bring photonics through the same level of integration that electronics experienced in the 1960s and 70s.This program will address nano-photonic integration of the building blocks for ultra-high capacity optical communications systems and networks with smaller, integrable components. The research objectives are to investigate nano-technologies that extend optical scaling to bit rates in excess of 160 Gbps and hundreds to thousands of wavelengths. The proposed project will also address how the physics and materials of nano-photonic devices and the nonlinear dynamics and control are coupled to each other and to the systems requirements. This interdisciplinary approach is carried across the research and educational/training aspects of this program. The design, performance, processing, fabrication and integration of these technologies must be understood and a new generation of scientists and engineers to lead and support this new technology base must be trained. This proposal brings together researchers from multiple fields under the common goal of nano-photonic integration for ultra-high speed WDM optical communications systems. New critical problems will be solved by integrating research in optical networks and communications with nano-photonic devices and materials and nonlinear dynamics and controls.The educational objectives involve integrating student education that incorporates material growth, device fabrication, control theory and systems. Students will take joint, team-based responsibility for mentoring undergraduate students - giving those students a truly unique perspective on a real, exciting and technologically critical problem. We expect that this dynamic, multidisciplinary research program will attract a diverse set of graduate students from underrepresented groups, and these large scale photonic integration investigations will help train a new generation of scientists and engineers that will be needed over the next five to ten years to support future ultra-high capacity optical communications networks. The potential impact of this type of research can be as fundamental as that which occurred in the electronics industry in the late 1950s through the early 1970s.