Optical cross distributor

An optical cross -connect (OCC or OXC) is a device that contains optical switches that are used in optical telecommunications networks and work as non-blocking multiplex systems between any SDH or OTN interfaces. An optical cross-connect is a network node that consists of an optical switch, a wavelength switch and a wavelength converter. An OXC can ordinarily multiplex in space; H. switch every incoming fiber optic cable to any outgoing fiber optic cable without the optical signal having to be converted into an electrical signal for the switching process.

If it can also multiplex in terms of frequency, it works with several wavelengths (so-called "lambdas") using the WDM method and is able to convert the useful signal arriving at a certain lambda into an electrical signal at another lambda without converting it into an electrical signal send. So far, however, optical frequency division multiplexing is not yet marketable, and efforts are therefore being made to design optical transport networks in such a way that they only require a few of these frequency conversions. Achievable bit rates are 40 Gigabit / s. MPLS systems often use OXC components.

See also: Arrayed Waveguide Grating