Coordinating Associate Editor
Jun Zheng, University of Ottawa

Guest Editor
Jason P. Jue, The University of Texas at Dallas

The rapid advances in dense wavelength-division multiplexing (DWDM) technology have enabled the provisioning of hundreds of wavelengths on a single fiber, which has brought about a large increase in the size of optical cross-connects (OXCs) as well as in the cost and control complexity of such OXCs. Waveband switching (WBS) is a concept recently introduced to reduce the cost and control complexity of OXCs. The basic idea of WBS is to group a set of wavelengths together into a waveband and transmit and switch the waveband optically using a single port. In a WBS network, a waveband is transmitted and switched as a single entity whenever possible and is demultiplexed into individual wavelengths only if necessary. A multigranular OXC (MG-OXC) is employed not only to switch traffic at multiple levels or granularities such as fiber, waveband, and wavelength, but also to add and drop traffic at multiple granularities. Traffic can also be transported from one level to another via multiplexers within the MG-OXC. By using WBS, the number of ports of an OXC can be significantly reduced, leading to reduced size, cost, and control complexity of the OXC. Because of its practical importance, WBS has attracted much attention from both industry and academia in recent years. To realize the vision of a WBS network, it is critical to solve various related problems, such as switch architecture and algorithm design. Owing to the differences in network design objectives, however, traditional techniques developed for wavelength-routed networks (WRNs) cannot be directly applied to WBS networks. This has motivated a large amount of research activities in recent years that seeks effective solutions to WBS related problems. The aim of this feature issue is to present a collection of high-quality research papers that reflect the state-of-the-art research progresses and results in this focus area.

Scope of Submission

The aim of this feature issue is to present a collection of high-quality research papers that focus on wavelength switching, routing, and grooming. We are soliciting original contributions that were previously unpublished and are currently not under consideration by any other journal. As applicable to this theme, topics of interests include but are not limited to:

• Waveband switching
• Waveband routing
• Waveband assignment
• Waveband grooming
• Waveband conversion
• Switch/OXC architecture
• Multi-granular switch/OXC
• Waveband and wavelength multiplexing
• Hierarchical cross-connect WDM networks
• Waveband control and management
• Waveband protection and restoration
• Performance modeling and analysis
• Experimental field trials

Manuscript Submission

To submit to this special issue, follow the normal procedure for submission to JON, indicating ``WBS' in the ``Comments' field of the online submission form. For all other questions relating to this feature issue, please send an e-mail to jon@osa.org, subject line ``WBS.'

Additional information can be found on the JON website:
http://www.osa-jon.org/submission/.

Submission Deadline: 15 May 2006