Hideki Nishizawa

Hideki Nishizawa, Kazuya Anazawa, Tetsuro Inui et al.

This paper presents a data center exchange (Data Center Xchange, DCX) architecture for all-photonics networks-as-a-service in distributed data center infrastructures, enabling the creation of a virtual large-scale data center by directly interconnecting distributed data centers in metropolitan areas. Key requirements for such an architecture are identified: support for low-latency operations, scalability, reliability, and flexibility within a single network architecture; the ability to add new operator-driven automation functionalities based on an open networking approach; and the ability to control and manage remotely deployed transponders connected via access links with unknown physical parameters. We propose a set of technologies that enable digital twin operations for optical networks, including a cloud-native architecture for coherent transceivers, remote transponder control, fast end-to-end optical path provisioning, transceiver-based physical-parameter estimation incorporating digital longitudinal monitoring, and optical line system calibration, demonstrating their feasibility through field validations.

Hideki Nishizawa, Toru Mano, Kazuya Anazawa et al.

With the widespread adoption of AI, machine-to-machine communications are rapidly increasing, reshaping the requirements for optical networks. Recent advances in Gaussian noise modeling for digital coherent transmission have raised expectations for digital-twin-based operation. However, unlike digital twins in wireless communication, which are already well established, significant barriers remain for commercialization in optical networks. This paper discusses the evolving requirements of optical networks in the AI era and proposes a practical Optical Network Digital Twin architecture enabling dynamic and Quality of Transmission aware operation beyond conventional management. Representative use cases, including operator-driven optimization, user-operator collaboration, and multi-operator interconnection, are presented, along with the architectural framework and key challenges toward practical deployment.