Intel's silicon laser modulator breaks 40Gbps speed barrier

Intel announced today that it has fabricated the first silicon laser modulator to encode optical data at 40Gbps, making it 40 times faster than some of the most sophisticated data networks. The company has been working on silicon-based modulators -- key elements in using lasers as a means of fiber optic data transfer -- for years, creating a 1Gbps version in 2004, and then a 10Gbps iteration in 2006. Intel currently spends thousands producing the modulators now, but it hopes to drive down costs in the near future, allowing for integrated silicon photonic circuits to be built featuring upwards of 25 individual 40Gbps modules, enabling transmissions of terabits of data in seconds. So what does all this scientific doublespeak mean for the hard working computer users of the world? Well let's just say that "stuff" is going to be getting "fast" sooner than you think.

[Via WSJ]

[Sneakz @ Jul 25th 2007 7:56PM]

I had a dream once where I was transferring data to my iPod using USB 5.0. With a 1 Terabit per second speed connection, my 80GB iPod was full in less than a second.

[Dave @ Jul 25th 2007 8:09PM]

By the time USB 5.0 is out, an 80GB iPod will probably seem extremely lame.

[Sneakz @ Jul 25th 2007 8:24PM]

Like I said, it was all a dream...

[KF6EII @ Jul 25th 2007 9:36PM]

It's comming, sooner than you think

[Mike @ Jul 25th 2007 9:36PM]

If all you've got when USB 5.0 comes out is an 80gb iPod, well, it sounds like more of a nightmare. Like that sordid nightmare I had about driving a used yugo...

[Chuckles McGee @ Jul 25th 2007 8:18PM]

Well let's just say that "stuff" is going to be getting "fast" sooner than you think.

And by "stuff" we all know they mean porn.

[byaah @ Jul 25th 2007 10:17PM]

Duh. Thats what the internet is for.

[zim2411 @ Jul 25th 2007 8:53PM]

Anyone else notice the striking resemblance to the Wii Sensor Bar?

[jdmbo1 @ Jul 27th 2007 9:25AM]

By resemblance, do you mean it looks like a stick? Cause I have a dog toy that looks similar, and some chopsticks too, go figure.

[paul34 @ Jul 25th 2007 8:30PM]

And we'll never see it - monopoly ATT will just decide that "copper is good enough," even 50 years from now.

[Dean @ Jul 25th 2007 9:10PM]

Seems kind of odd to compare a once fabricated part to a "sophisticated network." Explaining it like that seems like marketing speak. Have there been other parts that have been fabricated faster that haven't made it into production yet either?

[Pedro @ Jul 25th 2007 8:49PM]

"40Gbps, making it 40 times faster than some of the most sophisticated data networks"

Am I missing something here? 40Gbps/40=1Gbps. My home network is 1Gbps. Is it one of the most sophisticated networks? And it's all copper.

[Trent @ Jul 26th 2007 10:53AM]

40 Gbps / 8 (bits per byte) = 5 GBps (Gigabytes per second). Your home network is 1 Gbps = 0.125 GBps (Gigabytes per second).

[devon @ Jul 25th 2007 8:51PM]

"… encode optical data at 40Gbps, making it 40 times faster than some of the most sophisticated data networks."

If by "most sophisticated data networks" you refer to any up-to-date home LAN, then yes. Today, however, even some mid-level server arrays sport 10Gbps fiber connections, and I don't doubt that the "most sophisticated" of the server farms and research facilities have in-house technology superior to that.

[ADMINVOID @ Jul 25th 2007 9:11PM]

the day all households have 40gbps, is the day when everything else will look extremely cheap, and possibly LAME

[tnkgrl @ Jul 26th 2007 12:35AM]

Frickin' laser beams :)

[fearless_fx @ Jul 26th 2007 12:47AM]

everytime i see one of these stories the first thoughts in my head are 'porn' and 'faster'.

[ArtyG @ Jul 28th 2007 1:26AM]

But...I thought that Ti made a module supporting 160Gbit/s...