(clicky)new teeny optical beamsplitter promises a new era of photonic computing
"The beamsplitter, claimed to be the smallest ever created at just 2.4 by 2.4 microns (about one-fiftieth the diameter of a human hair), is designed to divide incoming light waves in two, thereby creating two separate channels of separately polarized information. Combined with other photonics components that replace their electronic equivalents, such as transistors, diodes, and other semiconductor devices, the beamsplitter adds to the growing catalog of devices being created for future photonic computing.
Not only is the new device theoretically capable of helping to exchange data at blistering speeds, but its silicon-based design means that it would also be cheaper and easier to make than similar devices because it could use existing silicon chip fabrication techniques. In addition, because photonic circuitry does not require the movement of electrons through wires, devices containing such technology would use a lesser amount of power and generate less heat, making them considerably more efficient."
19 May 2015, 8:14 pm
