Data travels over the Internet in the
form of light, but computers need to
convert it to electrical signals to
perform calculations. At Hewlett Packard
Labs, we're developing optical processors
that use light instead of electrons,
which will be faster and more efficient for
some complex problems. We started by
building an optical logic gate that
takes two inputs and converts them into
a single output. A microscopic component
called a micro ring resonator determines
whether this output should be passed
along to the next gate.
This simple device mimics a basic
function of today's electronic computers
and is a building block for optical
computing.
We can also make optical components work
in ways electronic systems can't.
We've designed a network of optical
chips that can almost instantly solve
problems traditional computers struggle
with, like optimizing flight schedules.
These systems that compute with light
will allow us to quickly and efficiently
answer questions that are beyond the
scope of today's computers.
