COCONUT Consortium Begins WDM-PON Project

ATHENS - OPTRONICS Technologies SA announced the kick-off of the European Union-funded research project COCONUT, which will develop a new generation of fiber-to-the-home technology. OPTRONICS is a member of the academic-industrial consortium developing COCONUT, which started work in November 2012 and is expected to continue for three years. The level of funding provided by the EC is approximately €2.7 million ($3.6 million).

COCONUT, the project name, means COst-effective COhereNt Ultra-dense-WDM-PON for lambda-to-the-user access networks. (A lambda is a wavelength or color of light; the project's goal is to allow each end user a full, undivided wavelength. In today's passive optical networks, each wavelength is divided into multiple timeslots, one per user.)

The access network envisioned by COCONUT is based on todays' WDM (wavelength-division multiplexing) PON architecture - which is just beginning to be commercialized - with the addition of a new, cost-effective coherent detection scheme. Project members say this will allow the industry to develop and implement inexpensive, effective coherent terminals suitable for mass deployment. Though conceptually complex, these terminals must be priced at levels typical of low-cost consumer electronics.

In addition, COCONUT plans to develop technology for an ultra-dense WDM PON that retains a high total capacity and long reach but provides transmission at a line rate equal to the user bandwidth at each wavelength.