LAUSR

This paper presents a complete design for an optical Internet router based on the component steps required for Internet protocol (IP) packet forwarding. Implementations of hop count decrement and header matching are integrated with a simulation-based approach to variable-length packet traffic merging that avoids recirculation, demonstrating an approach for an all-optical data plane. A method for IPv4 checksum computation is introduced, and this and previously designed components are extended from binary to higher-density (multiple bits per symbol) encodings. The implications of this design are considered, including the potential for chip-level and system integration, as well as the requirements of basic optical processing components.