The architecture of HORNET: A packet-over-WDM multiple-access optical metropolitan area ring network
Abstract To cost-effectively address the phenomenal demand for bandwidth in the metropolitan area, the Optical Communications Research Laboratory at Stanford University and Sprint Advanced Technology Laboratories have developed a novel architecture for a large-scale metropolitan area network (MAN). The network, which is called HORNET, is a packet-over-WDM multiple-access network featuring the use of fast-tunable transmitters and a novel “CSMA/CA” media access protocol to improve network efficiency well beyond that of today’s solution. This paper presents the design and implementation of the network architecture and gives an analytical discussion of its advantages.