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An optical computer is a computer that uses light instead of electricity (i.e. photons rather than electrons) to manipulate, store and transmit data. Photons have fundamentally different physical properties than electrons, and researchers have attempted to make use of these properties, mostly using the basic principles of photosynthesis, to produce computers with performance and/or capabilities greater than those of electronic computers. Optical computer technology is still in the early stages: functional optical computers have been built in the laboratory, but none have progressed past the prototype stage. Most research projects focus on replacing current computer components with optical equivalents, resulting in an optical digital computer system processing binary data. This approach appears to offer the best short-term prospects for commercial optical computing, since optical components could be integrated into traditional computers to produce an optical/electronic hybrid. Other research projects take a non-traditional approach, attempting to develop entirely new methods of computing that are not physically possible with electronics.
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The mantra of our electronic age has been 'faster, smaller, better' for over two decades now. Today, computer lies at the very core of our society. As we try to squeeze more from a silver of silicon, the cost of chip making has become prohibitively expensive. Chip barriers are now down to three or four atoms apart. So far the ride has been good, but at some point, something has to give.
At that point, incremental approach to silicon technology would not be enough - we will need a new approach. Many new technologies abound, but the most promising among them is the use of light.
An Optical Computer is a hypothetical device that uses visible light or infrared beams, rather than electric current, to perform digital computations.
An electric current flows at only about 10 percent of speed of light. By applying some of the advantages of visible and/or IR networks at the device and component scale, a computer can be developed that can perform operations very much times faster than a conventional electronic computer.
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The mantra of our electronic age has been 'faster, smaller, better' for over two decades now. Today, computer lies at the very core of our society. As we try to squeeze more from a silver of silicon, the cost of chip making has become prohibitively expensive. Chip barriers are now down to three or four atoms apart. So far the ride has been good, but at some point, something has to give.
At that point, incremental approach to silicon technology would not be enough - we will need a new approach. Many new technologies abound, but the most promising among them is the use of light.
An Optical Computer is a hypothetical device that uses visible light or infrared beams, rather than electric current, to perform digital computations.
An electric current flows at only about 10 percent of speed of light. By applying some of the advantages of visible and/or IR networks at the device and component scale, a computer can be developed that can perform operations very much times faster than a conventional electronic computer
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Hi..,
I'm a final year B.Tech student and i have to give a seminar on Optical Computing..Plz help me..
