Will Photonic Computing Save the Datacenter?
Earlier this week I was reading an article in the Technology Review describing the first complete photonic communication system developed by chip manufacturer Intel's photonics lab. This development will lead to some tectonic changes in enterprise computing.
Instead of using copper or other electrical conductors to transmit electrical signals to the processors, Intel developed technology that can encode and decode optical signals natively on the processor, which means there is no more performance hit converting optical signals into electrical impulses or vice versa.
The immediate benefit is a serious performance boost. According to the article, the four-laser system the Intel lab staff demonstrated has the capability to carry data at a rate of 50 gigabytes per second compared to the 10 gigabytes per second achievable over copper wiring. This performance is also scalable depending on how many lasers with varying wavelengths are used to transmit data. The article's author reports that a system could handle up to 1,000 gigabytes per second.
The second benefit, which I think is a little more exciting, is the fact that the computer is no longer tethered to the physics associated with copper wiring. The system memory could be housed separately from the processor, maybe a foot away, according to Intel officials. By doing this, not only will it reduce datacenter cooling costs, but it is likely to be the last step in completely deconstructing the concept of the beige box server that we know and love.
For the past several years, the industry has gone from individual rack-mountable servers to blade servers housed in a common chassis. Now with this ability to separate memory from the processor, the datacenter becomes the chassis. Instead of having individual servers, the industry will see processing fabrics interfacing with memory fabrics and connecting with storage fabrics.
Of course, this is quite a ways down the road, since the enabling technology is still in its nascent stages. However, it will be interesting to watch how fast the financial services industry will embrace the new technology once it is available. Considering the stark performance difference between the current and new technologies, I'm not sure if the typical adoption curve will apply.
Only users who have a paid subscription or are part of a corporate subscription are able to print or copy content.
To access these options, along with all other subscription benefits, please contact info@waterstechnology.com or view our subscription options here: http://subscriptions.waterstechnology.com/subscribe
You are currently unable to print this content. Please contact info@waterstechnology.com to find out more.
You are currently unable to copy this content. Please contact info@waterstechnology.com to find out more.
Copyright Infopro Digital Limited. All rights reserved.
As outlined in our terms and conditions, https://www.infopro-digital.com/terms-and-conditions/subscriptions/ (point 2.4), printing is limited to a single copy.
If you would like to purchase additional rights please email info@waterstechnology.com
Copyright Infopro Digital Limited. All rights reserved.
You may share this content using our article tools. As outlined in our terms and conditions, https://www.infopro-digital.com/terms-and-conditions/subscriptions/ (clause 2.4), an Authorised User may only make one copy of the materials for their own personal use. You must also comply with the restrictions in clause 2.5.
If you would like to purchase additional rights please email info@waterstechnology.com
More on Trading Tech
This Week: ISI buys EPFR; Bloomberg, Warsaw Exchange, Fenergo and more
A summary of the latest financial technology news
US Supreme Court clips SEC’s wings with recent rulings
The Supreme Court made a host of decisions at the start of July that spell trouble for regulators—including the SEC.
TMX’s indexing pivot bears first fruit
The acquisition of index provider VettaFi has boosted revenues in the exchange’s analytics division, but further growth could mean taking on the heavyweight data providers like S&P, FTSE Russell, and MSCI.
Kimsey debuts ‘Who bought what’ dataset to help vendors target sales
Kimsey Consulting’s latest report breaks down reported industry spend by client type, product type, and geography to help suppliers and investors pinpoint future sources of demand.
Waters Wrap: After CrowdStrike crisis, will anyone learn?
Several bank and hedge fund sources tell Anthony that while there’s plenty to be learned from the CrowdStrike bug, some will more than likely forget those lessons in a few weeks’ time.
This Week: FCA, Plato/Turquoise, Franklin Templeton, and more
A summary of the latest financial technology news.
CME: CFTC OKs clearing move to Google Cloud
The CFTC has given the Chicago-based exchange approval to run its clearing and settlement infrastructure on the Google Cloud Platform, while the exchange and vendor have extended their partnership to last until at least 2037.
JP Morgan touts DLT, tokens for collateral management
Distributed-ledger technology could make moving non-cash collateral more efficient, said managing director Toks Oyebode during an Isda conference on Thursday.