CORVALLIS, Ore., May 25, 2023 — According to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), a data center can consume up to 50× more energy per square foot of floor space than a typical office building. Data centers account for roughly 2% of all electricity use in the U.S., according to the DOE.
As a result, interconnects characterized by high energy-efficiency systems are needed to reduce power consumption.
In response, researchers at Oregon State University (OSU) and Baylor University have developed a silicon photonics method that reduces the amount of energy consumed by photonic chips used in data centers and supercomputers. Specifically, the energy-efficient method compensates for temperature variations that degrade the chips.
The researchers targeted silicon micro-ring resonators (Si-MRRs) in the work; according to the researchers, Si-MRRs play essential roles in on-chip wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) systems. This is due to their ultracompact size and low energy consumption. However, the resonant wavelength of Si-MRRs is very sensitive to temperature fluctuations and fabrication process variation. “Typically, each Si-MRR in the WDM system requires precise wavelength control by free carrier injection using PIN diodes or thermal heaters that consume high power,” the researchers said.
As a result, significant energy has been required to keep the performance of these chips high and their temperature stable.
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