Free Space Optical Network Workshop

自由空间光（FSO）网络由于能够“通过空气”传输非常高的数据速率而越来越受到人们的关注。它们正被应用于越来越多的不同应用领域，例如，卫星交联和到地面和机载平台的下行链路、飞机之间的通信、城域短程应用、电信/无线前端和回程以及数据中心网络，所有这些都在努力跟上现在每个企业都有的数据洪流的步伐。该项目将组织并举办一个研讨会，目的是确定与FSO相关的关键研究挑战、开放问题和主要机会领域。研讨会的成果将有助于指导CISE和ENG社区未来的研究调查。自由空间光（FSO）通信网络非常重要，因为它们可以“通过空气”传输非常高的比特率。除了传统的应用领域（例如，卫星交叉链路和下行链路到地球和机载平台，飞机之间的通信），各种各样的新应用领域正在出现（例如，城域短途应用，电信/无线前传和回程，以及数据中心网络）。这些系统一直在利用传统的电信技术，以更小的尺寸提供可编程、高比特率、频谱效率的传输。除此之外，还有新技术的出现（例如硅纳米光子学、相控阵、长波源）、信号处理的进步以及与网络层的相互作用，这些都有可能使FSO能力实现重大的“飞跃”。因此，该项目将举办的研讨会非常及时；它将汇集一个涵盖广泛应用领域和新技术的社区，以确定FSO系统的主要挑战和机遇。研讨会的成果将用于指导CISE和ENG社区未来的研究调查。所讨论的无线光通信应用领域的多样性（例如，室内与室外，远距离与短距离）也表明了在不同的研究小组之间进行技术交叉受精的相当大的机会。

Free Space Optical (FSO) networks are increasingly of interest because of their ability to deliver very high data rates 'through the air'. They are being applied to an expanding set of diverse application areas, e.g., satellite crosslinks and downlinks to earth and airborne platforms, communication among aircraft, metro short haul applications, telecom/wireless front and back haul, and datacenter networks, all of which are struggling to keep pace with the deluge of data that is now part of every enterprise. This project will organize and run a workshop with the goals of identifying the key research challenges, open problems and major opportunity areas associated with FSO. The output of the workshop will help guide the future research investigations of the CISE and ENG communities.Free space optical (FSO) communication networks are important because of the very high bit rates they can potentially deliver 'through the air'. In addition to traditional application areas (e.g., satellite crosslinks and downlinks to earth and airborne platforms, communication among aircraft), a diverse set of new applications areas is emerging (e.g., metro short haul applications, telecom/wireless front and back haul, and datacenter networks). These systems have been leveraging traditional telecom technologies, which are delivering programmable, high-bit rate, spectrally efficient transmission in ever-smaller form factors. Beyond this, there is the emergence of new technologies (e.g. silicon nanophotonics, phased arrays, long-wavelength sources), advances in signal processing and interaction with the networking layer which may have the potential to enable a significant "leap" in FSO capabilities. The workshop this project will run is therefore very timely; it will bring together a community covering both a wide array of application areas and new technologies to identify the major challenges and opportunities for FSO systems. The workshop output will be used to guide future research investigations within CISE and ENG communities. The variety of FSO application areas to be discussed (e.g., indoor vs. outdoor, long vs. short range) also suggests considerable opportunity for technical cross-fertilization among diverse research groups.