High Speed Systems Engineering

The High Speed Systems Engineering (HSSE) lab at Iowa State University takes on a number of different projects in a wide variety of fields related to engineering. Some of the exciting projects address the issue of all-optical switching using magnetic materials. With the increasing need for fast, wide-bandwidth systems, it is advantageous to turn to optical solutions. However, in optical networks information eventually must be converted to electrical form for machine-to-machine (M2M) communication to be realized. This creates a bandwidth bottleneck in the system and limits capability. Thus, it is of interest in the research community to develop systems in which M2M communication can be realized while maintaining all-optical transfer media. Some of the most recent work on this topic includes novel studies on magnetic field generation (MFG) for magneto-optic (MO) interferometric switches, new MO interferometer configurations, and new MO materials for use in all-optical switching and routing. The HSSE lab is performing experimental research to determine specifically how to increase the speed and efficiency of the MFG circuitry, how to increase the signal-to-noise ratio, stability, and compactness of the MO interferometers, and what magnetic materials are best suited for all-optical switching or routing solutions.

Project participants: John Pritchard, Mani Mina