Home »
Technology News
Intel demos 50-Gbit/s silicon optics
July 28, 2010 | R. Colin Johnson | 222903008
Silicon photonics will replace copper connections in
everything from supercomputers to servers to PCs, according to Intel
Corp. researchers who demonstrated 50-Gb/s optical transmitter and
receiver chips that it plans to scale up to terabit-per-second speeds
prior to commercialization.
"This milestone marks the beginning of silicon photonics in the high-volume marketplace, in applications from [high-performance computing] all the way down to the client" PC, said Mario Paniccia, director of Intel's Photonics Technology Lab. "We call it a concept vehicle, but we've done the key things that would need to be addressed to commercialize it," added Paniccia. "We see a clear development path from 50 Gbits per second today to a terabit in the future."
Optical connections can operate over longer distances than copper wires, according to Intel, and could eventually replace not only the copper connections between systems, but those between boards in the same system and eventually between cores on the same board. The chip maker already has a 10-Gbit/s Light Peak chip that uses conventional optical technologies. Intel's Photonics Technology Lab is leveraging its silicon manufacturing expertise to build photonic components. Paniccia estimated that the first commercial applications of silicon photonics will begin appearing in as little as five years in data centers and supercomputer facilities.
Intel's concept vehicle is based on technologies developed since 2004. The modulators required to encode optical information using signal waveguides and photodiodes were cast in silicon on custom chips designed by Intel. The transmitter chip uses Intel's hybrid silicon laser technology that bonds a small indium phosphide die to on-chip silicon waveguides. It is then patterned into a connected optical laser, four of which were placed on the transmitter chip.
"We combined our silicon manufacturing techniques with our hybrid laser, and demonstrated an integrated transmitter using four lasers each operating at a different wavelengths and four silicon modulators each operating at 12.5 Gbits per second, then combined them together into an aggregate 50 Gbits per second into the optical fiber," said Paniccia.
The optical fiber output on the receiver chip was filtered into separate colors, then diverted by waveguides into four separate photodiodes, each of which recovered one of the four separate 12.5-Gbit per second channels.
Next, Intel plans to add more lasers per chip, increase the number of channels and focus on optimization, power reduction and improved efficiency. It then hopes to commercialize the optical connection technology.
Optical connections can operate over longer distances than copper wires, according to Intel, and could eventually replace not only the copper connections between systems, but those between boards in the same system and eventually between cores on the same board. The chip maker already has a 10-Gbit/s Light Peak chip that uses conventional optical technologies. Intel's Photonics Technology Lab is leveraging its silicon manufacturing expertise to build photonic components. Paniccia estimated that the first commercial applications of silicon photonics will begin appearing in as little as five years in data centers and supercomputer facilities.
Intel's concept vehicle is based on technologies developed since 2004. The modulators required to encode optical information using signal waveguides and photodiodes were cast in silicon on custom chips designed by Intel. The transmitter chip uses Intel's hybrid silicon laser technology that bonds a small indium phosphide die to on-chip silicon waveguides. It is then patterned into a connected optical laser, four of which were placed on the transmitter chip.
"We combined our silicon manufacturing techniques with our hybrid laser, and demonstrated an integrated transmitter using four lasers each operating at a different wavelengths and four silicon modulators each operating at 12.5 Gbits per second, then combined them together into an aggregate 50 Gbits per second into the optical fiber," said Paniccia.
The optical fiber output on the receiver chip was filtered into separate colors, then diverted by waveguides into four separate photodiodes, each of which recovered one of the four separate 12.5-Gbit per second channels.
Next, Intel plans to add more lasers per chip, increase the number of channels and focus on optimization, power reduction and improved efficiency. It then hopes to commercialize the optical connection technology.
Please login to post your comment - click here
Related News
- Intel upgrades parallel programming suite
- Analyst cuts forecast for AMD
- Intel to purchase Infineon's Wireless Solutions Business in USD 1.4 billion cash transaction
- Intel and Nokia hope to get EU funding for 3D research
- McAfee buy moves Intel toward IBM model
- Intel secures the acquisition of McAfee for approximately USD 7.68 billion
- Intel tips 'Soda Creek' line of SSDs
- Super luminescent diode delivers 35mW at a peak wavelength of 830nm
- Intel seen as likely buyer for Infineon group
- Intel escapes fine, agrees to restrictions in FTC deal
MOST POPULAR NEWS
- Intel seen as likely buyer for Infineon group
- Fuel cell breakthrough aims at commercialization
- Intel to purchase Infineon's Wireless Solutions Business in USD 1.4 billion cash transaction
- AMD unveils two new x86 cores
- Marvell and Harman bring advanced Wi-Fi to the automotive industry
- Apple iPad upgrade likely to get STMicro gyro
- A4 chip drives AppleTV, iPod Touch
- 'Rocking' robot mimics human/ape climbers
- Decision time looms for hard drive makers
- Toshiba spins 2.5 Tbit hard disk
Interview
Technical papers
READER OFFER
The Spartan-6 FPGA embedded kit offered by Xilinx in this month's reader offer is based on the company's Spartan-6 LX45T FPGA. It contains an extensible development board and the key tools and IP needed for embedded development.
The reference designs and software/hardware tutorials provided with this kit will give a jump-start to your development. The package worth 735 Euros includes a ROHS compliant SP605 base board including the XC6SLX45T-FGG484 -3 FPGA, the ISE Design Suite device-locked for the Spartan-6 LX45T FPGA and numerous other tools.
READER OFFER
This month, Xilinx is giving away one such kit, worth 735 Euros, for EETimes Europe's readers to win.
Poll
All material on this site Copyright © 2009 - 2010 European Business Press SA. All rights reserved.
This site contains articles under license from EETimes Group , a division of United Business Media LLC.
This site contains articles under license from EETimes Group , a division of United Business Media LLC.
