OPTOELECTRONICS
Canadian Start-up Ranovus Inc. is at the forefront of optical i/o for AI/ ML workloads in data centers
C
o-packaged optics (“CPO”) technology is quickly emerging as a game-changer in the data center industry, and for good reason. As data center operators continue to face increasing demand for higher bandwidth, consumption, CPO offers the potential to address all these challenges.
In a nutshell, CPO involves placing optical components such as lasers, modulators, and detectors directly onto the same silicon substrate as the microprocessor or memory chips, thereby creating a tightly integrated optical and electronic system. CPO is essentially the integration of optical components and electronics in a single and cost-effective solution for data centers. In this article, we will explore why CPO is important, recent milestones in the industry, the role of optical interconnect technology, and how this technology is critical to the adoption of CPO.
it’s important to understand the underlying optical interconnect technology. In the context of CPO, the optical interconnect the various components within a data center. These cables transmit data using light instead of electrical signals, allowing for much higher data rates and longer distances than copper wires. However, traditional limitations. For one, they require expensive external optics that convert electrical signals to optical signals and back again, adding Additionally, these external optics consume a lot of power, which is a major concern for data
centers that are already struggling to keep their energy bills under control.
This is where CPO comes in. By integrating the optical components directly onto the same silicon substrate as the microprocessor or memory chips, CPO eliminates the need for expensive external optics and greatly reduces power consumption. This not only makes CPO more cost-effective, but it also allows for that can accommodate the ever-increasing demand for data processing and storage. One company that has been at the forefront of optical interconnect and CPO technology is Ranovus, a Canadian startup based in Ottawa, Ontario and Nurnberg, Germany. In February 2021, Ranovus announced the successful demonstration of its 800Gbps optical engine called Odin®, which can deliver high-speed, low power consumption interconnects for data centers. And at OFC 2023, the company demonstrated the industry’s lowest power consumption at 5pJ/bit for an 800Gbps Ethernet interoperable link using Odin® and third party 800G pluggable modules to scale AMD’s adaptive System on Chip (SoC). One of the key advantages of this new technology is its ability to achieve very high data transfer rates using low power consumption. The technology behind Ranovus’ monolithic silicon photonics optical interconnects is based on a proprietary designs and technologies covering silicon photonics integrated circuits, high-speed electronics, on-chip lasers, and advanced packaging technologies. Their approach involves fabricating optical waveguides, modulators, detectors, and other optical components together with high-speed electronics (like drivers, photodetectors, and
Revolutionizing Data Centers with Co-Packaged Optics and Silicon Photonics Interconnects
receivers circuits) on a single monolithic silicon chip. The resulting chip is then packaged with other electronic components, such as microprocessors and memory chips, on a single substrate to form a complete CPO solution.
This high-density integration also enables lower power consumption, as the optical components are closer to the electronics, reducing the power required for signal conversion and transmission. Another advantage of Ranovus’ technology is the use of a single manufacturing process for both the optical and electronic components. This reduces the cost and complexity of manufacturing, enabling higher production volumes and lower prices. It also ensures high reliability and consistency, as the entire interconnect is manufactured using the same process and equipment. Ranovus’ monolithic silicon photonics optical interconnects is being adopted by several major data center operators.
In conclusion, co-packaged optics (CPO) offer a promising solution for meeting the increasing demand for high-speed data transmission in data centers and other high-performance computing applications. Monolithic silicon photonics technology, with its ability to integrate multiple optical components on a single chip, provides including reduced power consumption, improved signal integrity, and lower costs. As the demand for high-speed optical interconnects continues to grow, monolithic silicon photonics technology is poised to play a critical role in enabling the next generation of data center and high-performance computing applications.
22 APRIL 2023 | ELECTRONICS TODAY
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