ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the optical networks and the shortcomings of technology. An optical network is a typically a data communication network that is made with fiber optics technology. An optical network is not essentially all-optical; the transmission is surely optical, but the switching can be optical, electrical, or hybrid. In the late 1980s, varieties of optical networks, namely, enterprise serial connection, fiber distributed data interface, token-ring, ethernet, and synchronous optical network/synchronous digital hierarchy were developed as a replacement of copper cable to achieve a higher communication bandwidth. A typical optical transmission system has three basic components, namely, transmitter, transmission medium, and receiver. The transmitter is used to convert data into a sequence of on/off light pulses. The architecture of optical networks are being mainly classified into two categories, namely, broadcast-and-select optical networks and wavelength-routed optical networks. Mostly broadcast-and-select optical networks are being used in high-speed local area networks and metropolitan area networks.
