Optical Communications: 'A View into the Future'

In spite of some setbacks, the last 10 years have seen phenomenal advances and growth in optical systems/networks. From a commercial viewpoint, deployed transmissions systems have per fiber capacities roughly 100 times those 10 years ago with substantial reduction in per unit bandwidth cost. As importantly, wavelength routed networks, hardly more than a dream in most people's minds in 1998, are being deployed aggressively in metro areas, especially in the U.S.; national wavelength routed networks have existed for several years. Fiber-to-the-home is becoming a reality. Indeed, high-capacity, cost effective optical communication systems, by enabling the worldwide internet, have fundamentally changed people's lives. What will the next 10 years bring? Predicting the future, especially in technology, is a problematic but useful exercise. We explore the future from two perspectives: 1) the technological advances that might be expected to drive ever higher performance network and 2) given the likely network evolution, the expanded role that optics could play in the future. We explore those opportunities based upon 1) continued bandwidth demand growth driven by ubiquitous two-way video and converged wireline/wireless networks 2) optics playing an increasing role at higher levels in the network 3) optics moving ever closer to the end customer, including into the enterprise and home and 4) leveraging optical technology into non-communications applications. The future looks bright!