A REVIEW OF PASSIVE OPTICAL NETWORK MEDIA ACCESS-CONTROL PROTOCOLS AND THEIR APPLICATION TO ADVANCED PASSIVE OPTICAL NETWORKS

There is a consensus among telecommunication companies that fibre prov ides a more future-proof solution in terms of service capability, resp onding to new service demand, network reliability and reduced costs. A new generation of advanced PONs (Passive Optical Networks) is envisag ed which could carry ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode) and use optical amplification to increase the length of the PON, the data rate and the number of ONUs (Optical Network Units) it serves. These characteristi cs result in special requirements on the MAC (Media Access Control) pr otocol, which will be described. Current PON protocols are reviewed an d their application to advanced PONs is considered. The general charac teristics of a MAC protocol suited to advanced PONs is demand assignme nt with a fixed frame period.