Optical performance monitoring in transparent and configurable DWDM networks

Performance monitoring in optical networks will be a challenging task in the future. Fast provisioning and restoration of transparent paths in DWDM networks will require reliable and cost efficient methods for performance monitoring in the optical domain without interrupting the client connections. Performance monitoring in transparent and configurable optical networks is discussed. A compact optical performance monitor for transparent dense wavelength division multiplex (DWDM) networks is demonstrated. This device can be used to assess the signal quality in terms of the Q-factor independently of data format and line rate and without additional costly equipment. The device is tested in a transparent and configurable all-optical DWDM network of the field trial `KomNet' under real world conditions. The device and the results of field trials are described in detail.