PCE-based fast path control in multi-domain photonic networks

Abstract We discuss issues for controlling an optical path in large-scale photonic networks, and introduce an inter-domain path control system based on Path Computation Elements (PCEs). In the system, maximum flow information enables the load balancing of traffic, and Path Key scheme preserve the confidentiality of internal topology information among carrier networks. Based on the experimental results, we show the path setup in the introduced system is significantly faster than the manual path setup among domains in current carriers' networks. For the additional reduction of the path setup time, we propose the domain-wise paralleled signaling method. We also show that decreasing the number of nodes per domain makes path setup faster in the introduced system with deployment of the proposed signaling method.