Patent ID: 7231107
Filing Date: 2007-06-12
Classification: G02B,H04J,H04Q

Abstract:
1. A method of optimizing a Wavelength Selective Switch (“WSS”) fabric, comprising: providing a plurality of optical splitters, each optical splitter receiving a corresponding input optical signal from a corresponding external source and splitting the received signal into a plurality of split signals; providing a plurality of reconfigurable blocking filters (RBF) grouped in groups of RBFs, each group possessing a plurality of optical inputs, receiving a split signal from the optical splitters, and optical outputs outputting the filtered versions of the split signals; providing a plurality of optical combiners, wherein each combiner receives the plurality of the filtered versions of the split signals from the plurality of optical outputs from each group of the RBFs, combines the received plurality of the filtered versions of the split signals and outputs the combined signal to external optical components; and optimizing the WSS flexibility by adjusting transmission profiles of the RBFs in accordance with control signals received from external controllers; where transmission profile of at least one RBF is adjusted to be seamless, with no gaps in channel wavelength spacing between adjacent channels, small attenuation, and with small group delay ripple to support optical signals with multiple channel spacings and multiple transmission rates.