Optical Wireless Data Center Networks

Bandwidth and computation-intensive Big Data applications in disciplines like social media, bio- and nano-informatics, Internet-of-Things (IoT), and real-time analytics, are pushing existing access and core (backbone) networks as well as Data Center Networks (DCNs) to their limits. Next generation DCNs must support continuously increasing network traffic while satisfying minimum performance requirements of latency, reliability, flexibility and scalability. Therefore, a larger number of cables (i.e., copper-cables and fiber optics) may be required in conventional wired DCNs. In addition to limiting the possible topologies, large number of cables may result into design and development problems related to wire ducting and maintenance, heat dissipation, and power consumption. To address the cabling complexity in wired DCNs, we propose OWCells, a class of optical wireless cellular data center network architectures in which fixed line of sight (LOS) optical wireless communication (OWC) links are used to connect the racks arranged in regular polygonal topologies. We present the OWCell DCN architecture, develop its theoretical underpinnings, and investigate routing protocols and OWC transceiver design. To realize a fully wireless DCN, servers in racks must also be connected using OWC links. There is, however, a difficulty of connecting multiple adjacent network components, such as servers in a rack, using point-to-point LOS links. To overcome this problem, we propose and validate the feasibility of an FSO-Bus to connect multiple adjacent network components using NLOS point-to-point OWC links. Finally, to complete the design of the OWC transceiver, we develop a new class of strictly and rearrangeably non-blocking multicast optical switches in which multicast is performed efficiently at the physical optical (lower) layer rather than upper layers (e.g., application layer). Advisors: Jitender S. Deogun and Dennis R. Alexande