Multi-band and multi-service open optical networks: Applications and perspectives

Worldwide, most of the countries are fast moving towards the deployment of pervasive optical network infrastructures based on fiber optics transmission. First, to support core data-networks, then progressively towards metro and access networks to support 5G, as well as cloud services, data-center interconnects and content delivery networks. Network operators are progressively requiring the implementation of the openness paradigm to better exploit the infrastructures down to the optical transport, and to develop and control the deployed services. We address the physics of propagation of optical signals over a transparent optical infrastructure and show how the optical transmission can be abstracted. We comment on the control and management of multiband optical network arguing on the capability for operators to implement network slicing for different services. We address the use of optical infrastructures for non-data services - e.g., Time and frequency distribution or sensing signals - either on dedicated fibers, or on dedicated bands or spectral portions, in general.