3D MEMS switch: a tool to reduce costs

3D MEMS switch: a tool to reduce costs. Although not everyone thinks it is a mature technology, it is a new high-speed internet and data network deployed in the early stage, we have begun to use it to implement intelligent and dynamic optical network layers.

In recent years, the industry has made great progress in the development of all-optical switches, especially the emergence of 3D switching Structures Based on MEMS technology, which has become a major technology that exceeds the 2D crossbar solution. 3D MEMS technology has two types of applications for common optical communication: Single-host Optical Fiber switching and core network wavelength switching. The former already has some small-scale applications in the laboratory and automated testing, but the latter is expected to achieve a higher value: to provide a centralized and intelligent optical network hub.

In fact, several companies have demonstrated the excellent optical performance achieved by using optical fibers, and the optical loss is very low. Although not everyone thinks this is a mature technology, the new high-speed internet and data network deployed in the early stage has begun to use it for intelligent and dynamic optical network layers.

In addition, although photoelectric switches often conflict with all-optical switches, these two technologies actually form a complementary relationship. All-optical switches work at the core of the network, the Optical Circuit switches and routers are on the edge of the network. 3D MEMS switches provide infinite switching capabilities, but no other optical switching technology is available.

As ASIC drivers are integrated into one chip, as well as variable attenuation, power monitoring, and wavelength division multiplexing, the performance of the 3D MEMS switch will continue to improve and the cost will continue to decrease. Like Tunable lasers, MEMS-based optical switches are also a key part of the development of next-generation network communication infrastructure, which brings us closer to achieving transparent and configurable optical networks.

Since the successful deployment of optical amplifiers and wavelength division multiplexing technology for point-to-point transmission in the 1990s S, optical switching has represented a natural evolution to all-optical networks. The main factor driving this technology is the need to maintain continuous improvement, increase capacity and reduce information transmission costs. The Intelligent Optical switching system also creates conditions for providing high-capacity and dynamic services such as pay-as-you-go bandwidth allocation.

The concept of a 3D MEMS switch is simple. A ray of light transmitted from an input optical fiber is constantly reflected between two mirrors and transmitted to the output optical fiber. Each mirror can rotate around its two axes so that any input optical fiber is connected to any output optical fiber.

The two optical fibers are calibrated with a lens array to control the width of the beam transmitted in free space and minimize the loss of the beam. For example, the insertion loss of the DiamondWave 256 × 256 Optical Switch of Calient Networks is generally about 1.5 dB, and the maximum is dB.

The basic technology of 3D MEMS exchange is complex. It requires many key technologies, not only in MEMS Manufacturing and optical design, but also in encapsulation, electrical and optical interconnection, assembly and testing. In addition, in order to achieve low losses and high reliability, it is necessary to optimize the MEMS Manufacturing and encapsulation in the optical design.

3D MEMS switches provide excellent performance in terms of operation reliability. In the accelerated aging test, it does not have any faults after more than 2 billion switching cycles are routinely executed. In addition, it has also been tested in the office environment and carried out an impact experiment of up to GB, and proved that it has not had any adverse effects on it afterwards.

3D MEMS switches have created many promising applications, but their initial deployment is not as broad as expected a few years ago. The reason is that due to the impact of the recent technological bubble, the market has reserved the procurement plan for high-capacity optical switches. In addition, the slow deployment of the 3D MEMS switch is also caused by the impact of all-optical switches on other parts of the network. Therefore, it must be transformed to achieve smooth integration.