Directions in Telecommunications
An Initial View of the Gilhousen
Telecommunications Program
Richard S. Wolff, Ph. D.
rwolff@ece.montana.edu
406 994 7172
March 24, 2003
3/17/03
Outline
• Initiatives in research
• Educational initiatives
• And some other stuff
3/17/03
Research initiatives
• Wireless systems – what might work in
Montana
• Moving optical technology from the bench
top to systems applications
• Systems issues for transparent optical
networks
• Optical networks for demanding
applications – beyond Internet2
3/17/03
Wireless systems – what might work in
Montana
• Can we cost-effectively cross the digital
divide?
–
–
–
–
Use the demographics of Montana
Mix of high and low-bandwidth services
Select emerging wireless technologies
Use high-level, technology-based model to
explore the cost/benefits of alternative
wireless technologies
3/17/03
SWAT: Strategic Wireless Analysis Tool
Service & Technology Opportunity
Deployment and Coverage Plan
Market
Technology
Services
Baltimore BTA
0
Low Tier Coverage Areas
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
High Rise Business
High Rise Residence
Urban Mix
Urban Shoulder
Suburban
Rural
3.5
7
Miles
Spectrum
$$$ ?
SU
SU
CO
Copper
FDI
Copper
M
D
F
Copper
Copper or
Fiber
RN
SU
To PCS
Provider
Economic Results
Wireless and Wired Architecture
3/17/03
Rapid evaluation of the impacts of
alternatives on economics
Service & Network Designs
Business Economic Results
Demand, Traffic, & Rate Plans
Detailed Technology Options
Detailed Analysis Reports
3/17/03
A novel low-cost fixed access system:
candidate for cost/benefit analysis
3/17/03
Convergence?
Use of WiFi for fixed Internet access
3/17/03
Status
• SWAT software license acquired and installed
• Graduate student (Mingliu Zhang) gathering data,
developing models
• Applied for “Wireless Montana” study funding
• “Wireless Montana” workshop – Sept. 2003
• Apply methodology to telematics: working with
WTI to define CANAMEX Coalition “Smart
Traveler Corridor” project
3/17/03
Moving optical technology from the
bench top to systems applications
• Spectrum Lab is rich with interesting
optical materials research
• Focus has been primarily on device-level
(tunable lasers, narrow line widths, optical
processing, etc.)
Launch exploratory work on telecom
system applications of spatial-spectral
holography
3/17/03
Spatial-Spectral Holographic
Processing
COMPLEX LASER PROGRAMMING SEQUENCE
 1 ( )
 21
 2 ( )
time
1,000,000 Band Optical Equalizer
Absorption
N( N
f )( f )
Spectral Holographic Grating
fL
f
f
Source: http://www.spectrum.montana.edu/
3/17/03
Spatial-Spectral Holographic
Processing – some possible uses
Buffer Memory and Arbitrary Waveform Generation
Correlative Processing and Pulse Shaping
True-Time-Delay
Source: http://www.spectrum.montana.edu/
3/17/03
Spatial-Spectral Holographic
Processing – telecom system ideas
• Proposal for EPSCoR graduate student support to
explore system-level applications of SSH:
– dispersion and polarization mode dispersion
(PMD) compensation
– multi-mode fiber demultiplexing
– all-optical reconfigurable routing
• Goal: enable ultra-high capacity all-optical
networking using the additional capacity of
modal multiplexing in multimode fibers
3/17/03
Systems issues for transparent optical
networks
• Problem: switching at optical signals and
then combining multiple wavelengths onto
a single fiber introduces transients and
power level shifts
End-to-end performance will be affected
by cascades of switches and amplifiers
3/17/03
ATDNet: An Experimental Transparent
Optical Network
LTS
DARPA
NASA
West
Ring
East
Ring
DISA
MEMS OXC
LiNbO3 WSXC
DIA
LiNbO3 OADM
NRL
OEO OADM
EDFA
WDM fiber
Client l
3/17/03
Optical Burst Transmission Experiment
Amplitude (mW)
ATDNet, LTS-NRL-LTS
15% Duty Cycle
170 sec period
26 sec burst
50
60
70
Amplitude (mW)
40
80
90
100
70% Duty Cycle
170 sec period
120 sec burst
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Time (sec)
Runser et. al, LEOS, 2002
3/17/03
Proposal submitted to DARPA/NSF
PTAP
•Acquire Calient prototype MEMS
switch, Corning EDFA via PTAP
•Conduct system level studies of
effects
Of transients on end-to-end
performance
•Explore active control to mitigate
transient effects
•Develop engineering guidelines for
Transparent optical network design
•Explore mesh network routing and
control mechanisms
3/17/03
Status
• Proposal for graduate student support submitted
to EPSCoR
• Proposal for MEMS switch and EDFA submitted
to PTAP
• Surplus optical test equipment acquired from
Telcordia
• Graduate student (Saritha Acher) beginning to
work with equipment
• Exploring additional NSF program opportunities
for optical technology applications
3/17/03
Optical networks for demanding
applications – beyond Internet2
• Several applications at MSU that demand hiigh
bandwidth connectivity, low latency, remote
computation, realtime visualization:
– CCB: Neuroscience application requiring distributed
processing, remote real-time visualization and realtime access to multiple, distributed data sets
– Solar Physics: Satellite operations, Virtual Solar
Observatory
– Ag Science: Multi-state program involving remote
sensing data, visualization
– Maybe others?
3/17/03
The opportunity: respond to NSF
Experimental Infrastructure Network
(EIN) Program
• EIN goals: Explore next generation networks to
meet e-science application needs not met by
today’s networks
• NSF looking for application-driven innovation in
networks and software
• Encouraging multi-campus, regional
collaborations;
• Use of pre-market emerging technologies;
industry participation
3/17/03
EIN Proposal
• CS, ECE lead the effort, develop common software and
network infrastructure to support multiple applications
• Partnerships:
– Remote sites with application-specific data, computational
capabilities, models
– Become client of advanced grid computing: OptiPuter project
(UCSD)
– Join National Light Rail: high speed fiber backbone
– Industrial partners:
• Calient Systems: MEMS-based optical switch
• Telcordia Technologies: transparent optical network management
software
3/17/03
NLR Footprint and Layer 1 (15808s)
Topology
SEA
POR
SAC
BOS
NYC
CHI
OGD
DEN
SVL
CLE
FRE
PIT
WDC
KAN
LAX
RAL
NAS
STR
PHO
SDG
WAL
OLG
ATL
DAL
15808 Terminal, Regen or OADM site (OpAmp sites not shown)
Fiber route
3/17/03
Status
• CCB, Physics, Ag Science applications identified
• Collaboration with University of Utah and other
sites being discussed
• Discussions with network providers for access to
dark fiber and/or dedicated wavelengths
underway
• Defining software and network requirements
• ITC support obtained
• Proposal due May 8
3/17/03
Educational initiatives
• ECE focus on telecommunications – some
curriculum adjustments
• Gilhousen Telecommunications
Colloquium series
• Gilhousen undergraduate student
scholarships
• Graduate student recruitment
3/17/03
ECE focus on telecommunications –
some curriculum adjustments
• Continue ECE 400 level telecom courses annually (EE
445, EE 446, EE 447) with some adjustments to EE 447
• Offer EE 543 (telecom switching and transmission) each
fall
• Add a graduate level course, “advanced topics in telecom
systems”, offer annually and allow repeated enrollment
• Encourage EE/telecom majors to take CS 440,”computer
networks”
• Add a CS or EE course in advanced network architectures
and protocols
3/17/03
Gilhousen Telecommunications
Colloquium series
• Broad range of topics, loosely related to
telecommunications issues
• Bring in external speakers, supplement
with talks by faculty and grad students
• Mondays, 2:10 PM 101 Roberts Hall
Computer Scientists are WELCOME!!
3/17/03
Gilhousen Telecommunications
Colloquium series – Spring 2003
• March 17: Trends in Wireless Systems, Rich Wolff
• March 24: Atmospheric Optical Propagation for
Communications and Remote Sensing, Joseph Shaw, ECE
• March 31: No Colloquium, Infocom
• April 7: Broadband Access: Powerline Carrier and DSL,
Dave Waring, Telcordia
• April 14: Volunteer Needed!!!
• April 21: The Evolving Optical Internet, Nim Cheung,
IEEE Distinguished Speaker
• April 28: The Science of Audio in 2003, James Johnston,
Microsoft
3/17/03
Gilhousen undergraduate student
scholarships
•
•
•
•
•
Open to ECE majors
Ten students, $3500 per year
Renewable based on performance
Three graduating seniors
Obligation to participate in seminars and
other activities
Good recruiting tool!
3/17/03
Graduate student recruitment
• The word is out (at least to international students)
the MSU is focusing on telecom
• Looking for students with system-level interests
• Would like to recruit some MSU undergraduates
• Synergies with CS recruiting should be explored
– clone the relationship with Physics in optical
technologies!
3/17/03
And some other stuff
• Wireless LAN for the College of Engineering
– Working with CS, BTC, Physics and ITC to make this
happen!
• Areas for more interdisciplinary work
– Apply ad hoc networking principles to telematics
applications: CS/ECE/WTI
– Explore new approaches to free-space optical
communications: ECE/Physics/Spectrum Lab
– Routing in all-optical networks: ECE/CS
– Software defined radios, migrating applications to
mobile hosts: CS/ECE
– ?????????????????????
3/17/03