Detector-on-Demand Architecture for Flexible Homodyne Transmission in Optical Networks

The dynamicity and heterogeneity in traffic demands necessitates an adaptation of optical transceivers to the actual network needs. While software-defined mechanisms can contribute to this challenge, hardware-oriented schemes have been hardly addressed to date. Towards this direction, we propose a multi-purpose transceiver architecture that is able to adapt its physical-layer function with respect to coherent homodyne detection and signal transmission thanks to its segmented layout that features dual-function opto-electronic elements. By synthesizing various transceiver configurations, we will experimentally show the flexible use of polarization and spectrum through switching between half- and full-duplex modes in polarization-independent or polarization-multiplexed signal transmission at up to 91 Gb/s/sub-λ data rates, while optionally supporting the ultra-dense packing of data channels and simultaneous mixed signal transmission on a single wavelength.