New optical couplers could simplify photonic chip integration while enabling faster, more energy-efficient data transmission.
Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have developed a series of advances, which could bring electronic-photonic chips a step closer towards transferring more than one petabit per second while consuming very little power. Developed by MIT’s FUTUR-IC program, the technology aims to simplify the integration of electronic chips, which process information by using electricity, with photonic chips, which transfer information using light. According to the researchers, the technologies could be manufactured using existing semiconductor production equipment, making them more practical for large-scale adoption.
The research aims to address a longstanding challenge in integrating photonic chips with electronic processors. Though optical communication uses much less power than electrical interconnects and is ideally suitable for applications such as artificial intelligence processing, cloud computing, and supercomputing data centers, integrating photonic chips with electronic processors has always been difficult.
Recent innovations include an evanescent coupler and a graded index (GRIN) coupler, both of which are optical couplers, in addition to a third coupler previously developed by researchers led by Professor Juejun Hu. Together, the three optical couplers act as optical equivalents of solder bumps, allowing for easy transmission of light from one photonic component to another. The GRIN coupler offers broader wavelength compatibility, allowing it to operate across a wider range of optical signals. The scientists point out that future electronic-photonic systems would use several types of couplers together.
According to FUTUR-IC director Anu Agarwal, the goal of the programme is to boost the speed of data transfer not only to the current levels of hundreds of terabits per second but to one petabit per second. This could be achieved by using electronics primarily for computation and photonics for communication. FUTUR-IC has launched Earthster, a tool for measuring the environmental impact of semiconductor manufacturing. In addition, the programme provides educational opportunities, such as webinars, boot camps and educational material on semiconductor resource efficiency.
