Intel's new laser could light way to future (Silicon laser)

[0rganism]

This could prove to be a very interesting development for the telecommunications and IT industries, as well as computer design.

Intels new laser could light way to future
The silicon laser could allow high-bandwidth, light-based communication within and between computers
Thursday, February 17, 2005
MATTHEW FORDAHL

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Developing a new use for the material that's already the foundation of the computer chip industry, Intel researchers have built a continuously shining silicon laser that could drive down the cost of optical networking.

Such a laser could make high-bandwidth, light-based communication feasible for not only the connections between computers but also the links between components inside PCs. It also could slash the cost of lasers used in defense, medicine and other industries.

Just a few years ago, few experts thought silicon could be used to build a laser, said Mario Paniccia, director of Intel's photonics lab. It tends to absorb light energy, dissipating it as heat rather than amplifying it like lasers built with more exotic materials.

"This is a fundamental breakthrough," said Paniccia, a co-author of the Intel study, published in the journal Nature today. "It's one of those things that's a game changer. You're doing something in silicon that couldn't be done before."

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