Introduction Of The WDM System

In

fiber-optic

communications,

multiplexing (WDM)

is

wavelength-division
a

technology

which multiplexes a number of optical carrier signals

into

single optical

wavelengths

fiber by

of laser light.

using
This

different
technique

enables bidirectional communications over one strand

of fiber, as well as multiplication of capacity. A WDM
system (Figure 1) uses a multiplexer at the transmitter
to join the signals together, and a demultiplexer at the
receiver to split them apart. With the right type of
fiber it is possible to have a device that does both
simultaneously, and can function as an optical adddrop multiplexer. The concept was first published in
1978, and by 1980 WDM systems were being realized
in the laboratory. As a system concept, the ways of
WDM includes coarse wavelength-division multiplexing
(CWDM) and dense wavelength-division multiplexing
(DWDM).

Figure 1: The WDM system

The CWDM System
In simple terms, CWDM equipment performs two
functions: segregating the light to ensure only the
desired

combination

of

wavelengths

are

used,

multiplexing and demultiplexing the signal across a

single fiber link.
Typically CWDM solutions provide 8 wavelengths
capability, separated by 20nm, from 1470nm to
1610nm, enabling the transport of 8 client interfaces
over the same fiber, as is shown in Figure 2. Whats
more, CWDM has the capability to transport up to 16
channels (wavelengths) in the spectrum grid from

1270nm to 1610nm with a 20nm channel spacing.

Each channel can operate at either 2.5, 4 or 10Gbit/s.
CWDM can not be amplified as most of the channels
are outside the operating window of the erbium doped
fiber amplifier (EDFA) used in Dense Wavelength
Division Multiplexing (DWDM) systems. This results in
a shorter overall system reach of approximately 100
kilometers. However, due to the broader channel
spacing in CWDM, cheaper un-cooled lasers are used,
giving a cost advantage over DWDM systems.

Figure
2:The
CWDM
system
CWDM proves to be the initial entry point for many
organizations due to its lower cost. Each CWDM
wavelength typically supports up to 2.5Gbps and can
be expanded to 10Gbps support. This transfer rate is
sufficient

to

support

GbE,

Fast

Ethernet

or

1/2/4/8/10GFC, STM-1/STM-4/STM-16/OC3/OC12/OC48,
as well as other protocols.

CWDM is the technology of choice for cost efficiently

transporting large amounts of data traffic in telecoms
or

enterprise

networks.

Optical

networking

and

especially the use of CWDM technology has proven to

be the most cost efficient way of addressing this
requirement.
In CWDM applications, a fiber pair (separate transmit
and receive) is typically used to serve multiple users
by assigning a specific wavelength to each subscriber.
The process begins at the head end (HE) or hub, or
central office (CO), where individual signals at discrete
wavelengths are multiplexed, or combined, onto one
fiber for downstream transmission. The multiplexing
function is accomplished by means of a passive CWDM
multiplexer (Mux) module employing a sequence of
wavelength-specific filters. The filters are connected in
series to combine the various specific wavelengths
onto a single fiber for transmission to the field. In the
outside plant a CWDM demultiplexer (Demux) module,
essentially a mirror of the Mux, is employed to pull off
each specific wavelength from the feeder fiber for
distribution to individual FTTX applications.

CWDM is suitable for use in metropolitan applications,

also being used in cable television networks, where
different wavelengths are used for the downstream
and

upstream

signals.

In

these

systems,

the

wavelengths used are often widely separated, for

example, the downstream signal might be at 1310 nm
while the upstream signal is at 1550nm. CWDM can
also be used in conjunction with a fiber switch and
network interface device to combine multiple fiber
lines from the switch over one fiber. CWDM is
optimized for a cost conscience budgets in mind, with
low-cost, small-powered laser transmitters enabling
deployments to closely match guaranteed revenue
streams.
The DWDM System
DWDM

stands

for

Dense

Wavelength

Division

Multiplexing. Here dense means the wavelength

channels are very narrow and close to each other.
DWDM uses the same transmission window but with
denser channel spacing. Channel plans vary, but a
typical system would use 40 channels at 100 GHz
spacing or 80 channels with 50 GHz spacing.

DWDM works by combining and transmitting multiple

signals simultaneously at different wavelengths on the
same fiber, as is shown in Figure 3. In effect, one fiber
is transformed into multiple virtual fibers. So, if you
were to multiplex eight OC -48 signals into one fiber,
you would increase the carrying capacity of that fiber
from 2.5 Gb/s to 20 Gb/s. Currently, because of
DWDM, single fibers have been able to transmit data
at speeds up to 400Gb/s.

Figure 3: The DWDM system

A basic DWDM system contains five main components:
a DWDM terminal multiplexer, an intermediate line
repeater, an optical add-drop multiplexer (OADM), a
DWDM terminal

demultiplexer

and

an

Optical

Supervisory

Channel

(OSC).

multiplexer

contains

transponder

for

each

data

multiplexer

and

an

optical

DWDM

terminal

wavelength-converting
signal,

an

amplifier

optical
(EDFA).

An intermediate line repeater is placed approximately

every 80100 km to compensate for the loss of optical
power as the signal travels along the fiber. An optical
add-drop multiplexer is a remote amplification site
that amplifies the multi-wavelength signal that may
have traversed up to 140 km or more before reaching
the remote site. A DWDM terminal demultiplexer
consisting of an optical demultiplexer and one or more
wavelength-converting transponders separates the
multi-wavelength optical signal back into individual
data signals and outputs them on separate fibers for
client-layer systems (such as SONET/SDH). An Optical
Supervisory Channel (OSC) is a data channel which
uses an additional wavelength usually outside the
EDFA

amplification

band

(at

1,510nm,

1,620nm,

1,310nm or another proprietary wavelength).

DWDM is designed for long-haul transmission where
wavelengths are packed tightly together and do not

suffer the effects of dispersion and attenuation. When

boosted by erbium doped fiber amplifiers (EDFAs)a
sort

of

performance

communicationsthese

enhancer
systems

for
can

high-speed
work

over

thousands of kilometers. DWDM is widely used for the

1550nm band so as to leverage the capabilities of
EDFA. EDFAs are commonly used for the 1525nm ~
1565nm (C band) and 1570nm ~ 1610nm (L Band).
A key advantage to DWDM is that its protocol and bit
rate

independence.

DWDM-based

networks

can

transmit data in IP, ATM, SONET/SDH, and Ethernet,

and handle bit rates between 100Mb/s and 2.5Gb/s.
Therefore, DWDM-based networks can carry different
types of traffic at different speeds over an optical
channel.

From

QOS

standpoint,

DWDM-based

networks create a lower cost way to quickly respond to

customers bandwidth demands and protocol changes.
Conclusion
WDM, as a multiplexing technology in optical field, can
form a optic-layer network called all-optic network,
which will be the most advanced level of optical
communications. It will be the future trend of optical

communications to build a optical network layer based

on WDM and OXC to eliminate the bottleneck of
photoelectric conversion with a pure all-optic network.
As the first and most important step of all-optic
network communications, the application and practice
of WDM is very advantageous to developing the alloptic

network

and

pushing

forward

optical

communications!
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