Intel to announce "lightspeed" chip

[exit2dos]

http://www.tgdaily.com/2006/09/18/intel_laser_chip/

For PC users, the advance would mean an Internet connection nearly 1,000 times faster than broadband is today. Such an advance would mean a movie could be downloaded in minutes rather than hours, and several content streams -- like Internet-delivered TV -- could be watched simultaneously.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nf/20060918/tc_nf/46306

 

[gOJDO]

There are laser chips by NEC allready:

The communications chip NEC has developed is called a Vertical-Cavity Surface Emitting Laser, or VCSEL, which converts electric current to laser pulses, as the Newscientest.com article states. The VCSEL diode is made from "a blend of gallium arsenide and indium gallium arsenide rather than the usual aluminum gallium arsenide to be able to transfer pulses more rapidly through optic fiber". The outcome is the ability to transfer data over fiber optics at about 25Gbits/sec.

http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=1370

But we'll have to wait before we can have such technology in general purpose chips.

 

[Grimmy]

Is that what it looks like?

hmmm.. Do we get a light show when its under load? . o O (J/K!!)

 

[exit2dos]

Maybe we can sync our chips to Pink Floyd. 8)

 

[exit2dos]

There are laser chips by NEC allready:
The communications chip NEC has developed is called a Vertical-Cavity Surface Emitting Laser, or VCSEL, which converts electric current to laser pulses, as the Newscientest.com article states. The VCSEL diode is made from "a blend of gallium arsenide and indium gallium arsenide rather than the usual aluminum gallium arsenide to be able to transfer pulses more rapidly through optic fiber". The outcome is the ability to transfer data over fiber optics at about 25Gbits/sec.

http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=1370

But we'll have to wait before we can have such technology in general purpose chips.

Nice link, Thanks.

 

[shinigamiX]

Gaaah, you beat me to it.

 

[exit2dos]

Dooohhhh


Anyways, here's a link to Intel's paper on it:
http://www.intel.com/research/platform/sp/hybridlaser.htm

The laser is compact so it allows many lasers to be integrated on a single chip. The first demonstration hybrid silicon laser is only ~800 microns long. Future generations will be significantly smaller.

With this highly integrated silicon photonic transceiver, it is possible to imagine a future world in which most computing devices are endowed with high–bandwidth optical connectivity. Be they servers, desktops, or smaller client devices, all devices will have access to substantially greater bandwidth at a lower cost.

 

[spanishfleee]

I thing is a very good concept but i dont thing it will be here for a very long time and intel will porbs chnge there minds or somehting stupid like that and give up.

 

[exit2dos]

I thing is a very good concept but i dont thing it will be here for a very long time and intel will porbs chnge there minds or somehting stupid like that and give up.

I doubt they'll give up on this, as chipmakers have been looking into fiber optics for some time now - the latencies of alloys alone is reason enough to make the move.

This tech will probably start at the super-computer level and work its way down. So, you are right in this, it will probably take a very long time for us to see anything at the desktop level.

 

[Grimmy]

Kinda wonder if those chips could look like the core's in that movie "IRobot".

You know.. Vikki or Sunny. :lol:

"My logic is undeniable."

Gah.. wouldn't the ram chips need that type of speed as well?

heh.. and GPU?

You think they might end up with... 50-100k rpm hds?

 

[joset]

Gah.. wouldn't the ram chips need that type of speed as well?

heh.. and GPU?

You think they might end up with... 50-100k rpm hds?

Ever heard of holographic storage?


Cheers!

 

[exit2dos]

Gah.. wouldn't the ram chips need that type of speed as well?

heh.. and GPU?

I could see fiberoptic RAM becoming an actuality. If they develop this process fully, then the GPU could be made the same way (If it isn't part of the CPU by then.)

]You think they might end up with... 50-100k rpm hds?

Years ago, they were talking about holographic storage. Where you could have a cube, made up of transparent (to the eye) layers which would be read in 3d by a laser. I wonder if anyone's still working on this. :?

Kinda wonder if those chips could look like the core's in that movie "IRobot".

You know.. Vikki or Sunny. :lol:

"My logic is undeniable."

I was kinda hoping it would look more like the girl in Weird Science. 8)

 

[exit2dos]

Gah.. wouldn't the ram chips need that type of speed as well?

heh.. and GPU?

You think they might end up with... 50-100k rpm hds?

Ever heard of holographic storage?


Cheers!


Ooooh, snuck that one in while I was pontificating.....

 

[joset]

Ooooh, snuck that one in while I was pontificating.....

it happens...

Amazing technology, "old" theory & dificult to implement. Anyway, it's my conviction it will be another major leap, sooner or later.


Cheers!

 

[Grimmy]

You think they might end up with... 50-100k rpm hds?

Ever heard of holographic storage?


Cheers!

Nope... I'm a simple guy. Only thing I do remember way back... was Holographic DVD, not even sure if thats out yet, but is it?

 

[exit2dos]

Amazing technology, "old" theory & dificult to implement. Anyway, it's my conviction it will be another major leap, sooner or later.


Cheers!

I hope it doesn't come too soon. My brain is getting full. I'm still trying to mentally process this:

It has also been reported
that high-K/polySi transistor exhibits severely degraded
channel mobility due to the coupling of low energy surface
optical (SO) phonon modes arising from the polarization of
the high-K to the inversion channel charge carriers [ref. 13],
and that metal gate may be more effective in screening the
high-K SO phonons from coupling to the channel under
inversion conditions [ref. 13-14]. On the other hand, the use
of high-K/metal-gate requires a p-type metal and a n-type
metal with the right work functions for high-performance
CMOS logic applications on bulk Si [ref. 15].

from a link Jack gave the other day, when I saw this "lightspeed" chip info. Now I'm reading the white paper on it. I don't think I could possibly pass up info on holographic storage - so smoke may begin pouring out my ears.

I wish I could purge old info out of my head. I can remember word-for-word the theme from The Facts of Life, but I can't even remember the point I was going to make with this post. :?

 

[tmac]

I'm so confused... I finally convince myself to get a conroe, or maybe
a kentsfield. And then this comes along.

Does anybody know what it will cost?
Does anybody know when it will be out?

Only kidding.

 

[JonathanDeane]

I think optical computers will pave the way for quantum state computers. What comes after that I dont know... but at that time im pretty sure Doom 3 will run ok lol

 

[JonathanDeane]

I thought the telcoms where already using fiber optic switches ? I know they are not chips but dont they process signals ? It seems to me they just need to miniturize those ?

Edit: Holy brain farts I forgot I posted already lol

 

[caamsa]

Im just waiting for that vurtual reality chip. Then we can use it to create a hollodeck like in Star Trek the Next Generation. I would go in that sucker an never come out!

 

[Sagekilla]

Exactly.. fiber optic switches.... They use it to transfer data through fiber optics, much better bandwidth then through copper and much lower latency.

Uhm, I think. Someone verify me on this

 

[rbarone69]

OHHHH YA... Gettin som on the holodeck :twisted:

schwing!

Something about coupling with light creates a slippery floor.

I'm such a geek....

 

[spud]

http://www.tgdaily.com/2006/09/18/intel_laser_chip/


For PC users, the advance would mean an Internet connection nearly 1,000 times faster than broadband is today. Such an advance would mean a movie could be downloaded in minutes rather than hours, and several content streams -- like Internet-delivered TV -- could be watched simultaneously.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nf/20060918/tc_nf/46306

Word.

 

[exit2dos]

This is quite abit different than what Intel announced. Optical materials with the III-V's are child's play, silicon on the other hand is quite unique. Considering the processing challenges of III-V, integrating an optical interconnect technology into silicon, where standard processing is well characterized, would represent a hugely promising step forward for interconnect speed. It would make Hypertransport look like Humptytransvestite.

:lol:
Humptytransvestite? Is that a new cross-platform development?

 

[joset]

Ever heard of holographic storage?

Nope... I'm a simple guy. Only thing I do remember way back... was Holographic DVD, not even sure if thats out yet, but is it?

No, as far as I know, it isn't out yet; again, AFAIK, there's nothing holographic-made, comercially available.

But, the physical/mechanical (Damn! And one'd think that mechanical parts would be out of the issue...) basics are pretty straightforward:

http://www.inphase-technologies.com/technology/tour/index.html

(slide show)

Intel (among others), is addressing silicon-based lasers (as JumpingJack mentioned), using the Raman effect, which looks very promising for Comms & interconnects, although silicon is nowhere near the best "light emitter", due to its chemical properties:

http://www.intel.com/research/platform/sp/

Holographic storage is another matter, although the basics are the same.

Well, simple guys are just like complex guys: It only matters what you do with the adjective.


Cheers!