This Special Issue contains a collection of outstanding papers covering several recent advances in optical networks for 5G communications and beyond. Papers are organized into four categories: network resource planning; optical access networks; optical fronthaul solutions; and autonomous and data-driven network management. In this introduction, a brief overview of the field is given, followed by a summary of the seventeen papers of this Special Issue, and a discussion of future directions in the field.

中文翻译：

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客座社论 5G 及其他通信领域光网络的最新进展


本特刊收录了一系列优秀论文，涵盖 5G 通信及其他领域光网络的最新进展。论文分为四类：网络资源规划；光接入网络；光前传解决方案；以及自主和数据驱动的网络管理。在本引言中，简要概述了该领域，随后总结了本期特刊的十七篇论文，并讨论了该领域的未来方向。