Originally published November 5 2003
Optical processing may be the future of computing
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
We've seen headlines about optical computing for several years, and it seems that it will be many more years before this technology has any mainstream application, but make no mistake about one thing: optical computing holds tremendous promise. Here's why:
CPUs are all about moving data from one place to another while performing simple logic at data intersections (such as not, and, or, nor, nand, and so on). You can accomplish this by moving electrons, as we do in popular CPUs, or you can do the same thing with photons (light).
So, essentially, we're moving information and performing simple logic on information. Light has characteristics that allow this to take place very rapidly, without many of the limitations of traditional electron-based CPUs.
For one thing, light travels at, well, the speed of light. That's pretty fast: 186,000 miles per second, give or take. And yet it does this without creating all the heat we presently associate with CPUs powered by electricity.
In fact, heat has become a critical limiting factor in the ongoing effort to shrink circuits in modern CPUs. Clock them any faster, or shrink them any more, and you'll be frying the circuits themselves. You can only pump so much electricity through a silicon wafer before it starts to melt. But you can move as many photons as you want, without the heat worry.
Still, optical processing is in its infancy. It's cool science, and it's real science unlike a lot of nanotechnology hype, but it's nowhere near being ready for widespread application.
"Optical processing is a strategic competitive advantage for nations
and companies," said Avner Halperin, vice president for business
development at Lenslet.
An optical processor is a digital signal processor (DSP) with an
optical accelerator attached to it that enables it to perform functions
at very high speeds.
Tully said one issue is whether this technology can be produced in
volume the way silicon chips are made.
"Because semiconductor manufacturing technology is well developed, you
can produce millions at quite low cost," said Tully, who is not familiar
with Enlight.
Tully said semiconductor companies are working on technology that
would use optical channels inside a chip to allow very high-speed
communication from one part of a chip to another.
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