We demonstrate an integrated device for optical payload envelope detection and optical label recovery for optical packet switching. The device is designed to handle asynchronous serially labeled packets with variable length 40 Gbps payloads preceded by 10 Gbps labels. The device outputs two signals: 1. a payload envelope signal corresponding to the temporal location and duration of the optical payload and 2. an electrical label recovered from the optical label. The payload envelope signal has rise and fall times of 3 ns with 150 ps RMS jitter and is used to perform error free label erasure and rewriting. Error free label recovery is also demonstrated. (c) 2006 Optical Society of America.

A photonic integrated circuit that performs 40-Gb/s payload-envelope detection (PED) and MGM label detection for asynchronous variable-length optical-packet switching is demonstrated. The circuit consists of an InP photonic integrated device combined with electronic GaAs and InP devices on a carrier. Asynchronous variable-length optical packets with 40-Gb/s returnto-zero (RZ) payloads and 10-Gb/s non-RZ (NRZ) labels are processed by the circuit. The circuit outputs a PED electrical signal that represents the temporal location of the payload and a 10-Gb/s electrical signal representing the optical label. The optical label is detected error free. The PED signal has a rise/fall time of 3-ns and 150-ps jitter. The PED signal was also used to erase and rewrite the optical labels error free.