ECOC 2023 industry reflections

Gazettabyte is asking industry figures for their thoughts after attending the recent ECOC show in Glasgow. In particular, what developments and trends they noted, what they learned and what, if anything, surprised them. Here are the first responses from BT, Huawei, and Teramount. 

Andrew Lord, Senior Manager, Optical Networks and Quantum Research at BT

I was hugely privileged to be the Technical Co-Chair of ECOC in Glasgow, Scotland and have been working on the event for over a year. The overriding impression was that the industry is fully functioning again, post-covid, with a bumper crop of submitted papers and a full exhibition. Chairing the conference left little time to indulge in content. I will need to do my regular ECOC using the playback option. But specific themes struck me as interesting.

There were solid sessions and papers around free space optics, including satellite. The activities here are more intense than we would typically see at ECOC. This reflects a growing interest and the specific expertise within the Scottish research community. Similarly, more quantum-related papers demonstrated how quantum is integrating into the mainstream optical industry.

Click to read more ...

Optical networking's future

Shown is Professor Polina Bayvel in her lab at University College London. Bayvel gave the opening plenary talk at ECOC.

Should the industry do more to support universities undertaking optical networking research? Professor Polina Bayvel thinks so and addressed the issue in her plenary talk at the ECOC conference and exhibition held in Glasgow, Scotland, earlier this month.

Click to read more ...

Neil McRae: What’s next for the telecom industry

In a talk at the FutureNet World conference, held in London on May 3-4, Neil McRae explains why he is upbeat about the telecoms industry's prospects

Neil McRae at Futurenet World, London earlier this month.

Neil McRae is tasked with giving the final talk of the two-day FutureNet World conference.

"Yeah, I'm on the graveyard shift," he quips.

McRae, the former chief network architect at BT, is now chief network strategist at Juniper Network. 

The talk’s title is "What's Next", McRae's take on the telecom industry and how it can grow.

Click to read more ...

Deutsche Telekom explains its IP-over-DWDM thinking

Telecom operators are always seeking better ways to run their networks. In particular, operators regularly scrutinise how best to couple the IP layer with their optical networking infrastructure.

The advent of 400-gigabit coherent modules that plug directly into an IP router is one development that has caught their eye.

Placing dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) interfaces directly onto an IP router allows the removal of a separate transponder box and its interfacing.

IP-over-DWDM is not a new concept. However, until now, operators have had to add a coherent line card, taking up valuable router chassis space.

Werner Weiershausen

Now, with the advent of compact 400-gigabit coherent pluggables developed for the hyperscalers to link their data centres, telecom operators have realised that such pluggables also serve their needs.

BT will start rolling out IP-over-DWDM in its network this year, while Deutsche Telekom has analysed the merits of IP-over-DWDM.

"The adoption of IP-over-DWDM is the subject of our techno-economical studies," says Werner Weiershausen, senior architect for the transport network at Deutsche Telekom.

Click to read more ...

BT's IP-over-DWDM move

• BT will roll out next year IP-over-DWDM using pluggable coherent optics in its network
• At ECOC 2022, BT detailed network trials that involved the use of ZR+ and XR optics coherent pluggable modules

Telecom operators have been reassessing IP-over-DWDM with the advent of 400-gigabit coherent optics that plug directly into IP routers.

According to BT, using pluggables for IP-over-DWDM means a separate transponder box and associated 'grey' (short-reach) optics are no longer needed.

Until now, the transponder has linked the IP router to the dense wavelength-division multiplexing (DWDM) optical line system.

"Here is an opportunity to eliminate unnecessary equipment by putting coloured optics straight onto the router," says Professor Andrew Lord, BT's head of optical networking.

Removing equipment saves power and floor space too.

Click to read more ...

ECOC '22 Reflections - Part 3

Gazettabyte is asking industry and academic figures for their thoughts after attending ECOC 2022, held in Basel, Switzerland. In particular, what developments and trends they noted, what they learned, and what, if anything, surprised them. 

In Part 3, BT's Professor Andrew Lord, Scintil Photonics' Sylvie Menezo, Intel's Scott Schube, and Quintessent's Alan Liu share their thoughts.

Click to read more ...

BT’s first quantum key distribution network

The trial of a commercial quantum-secured metro network has started in London.

Professor Andrew Lord

The BT network enables customers to send data securely between sites by first sending encryption keys over optical fibre using a technique known as quantum key distribution (QKD).

The attraction of QKD is that any attempt to eavesdrop and intercept the keys being sent is discernable at the receiver.

The network uses QKD equipment and key management software from Toshiba while the trial also involves EY, the professional services company.

EY is using BT’s network to connect two of its London sites and will showcase the merits of QKD to its customers.

Click to read more ...