LARNET, A LOCAL ACCESS ROUTER NETWORK

A novel local access network, LARNet, is proposed and demonstrated. A multifrequency laser, whose wavelength comb is matched to that of a passive waveguide router in the remote node, is used as a downstream signal source. A 1.3-mum commercially available LED provides the upstream signal. LARNet solves a major problem of WDM networks, the spectral alignment between the optical wavelengths of different channels. Furthermore, the expensive components are shared among all subscribers. Our measurements indicate that aggregate rates of 2 Gbps downstream and 155 Mbps upstream are feasible.