Researchers Sumita Mishra, et al. observe that there has been a wave of research on optical interconnect technology, which essentially
focuses on integrating optical systems with electrical systems to create
high-speed data links.To get more news about
BT PCB, you can visit pcbmake official website.
In this article, we will discuss the place of light in PCB design and assess one new branch of optical interconnections that promises higher
bandwidth and low-noise signal connections.
Light, which is already replacing traditional copper wires in telecommunications, is one very
tangible candidate for replacing electrical connections for several
factors, according to a chapter on optical communication systems from
the University of Colorado Boulder. This is especially relevant given
the high demands of 5G networking. But before we explain these factors,
there is one myth that needs to be clarified regarding light.
Some believe that light is better than electrical current because light is faster than electricity and therefore can transport information
from one place to another faster. This, in some cases, is factually
incorrect because light travels slower in fibreoptic cables than
electricity travels through copper wires.The advantage of using light in
data connections is that light has a higher bandwidth, allowing more
data bits to be carried per second—a result of the higher
signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) that light has when compared to electrical
signals.
One contributing factor to the higher SNR is that fiberoptic cables themselves are virtually immune to their environment whereas classic
electric cables can pick up external electric and magnetic fields (i.e.
EMI). Other factors include the ability to send multiple frequencies of
light (red, blue, and green) down the same optic cable without them
interfering with each other, effectively increasing the overall
bandwidth. Light can also travel longer down a cable than electricity
before requiring a signal boost, therefore removing sources of potential
noise injection.
But there are multiple technologies that have used optical layers on a PCB to transmit data around the board between components. This they
achieve through specialized 90° grooves that can create optical vias to
reflect the light up to the component layer. Researchers from the
Malaysia-Japan International Institute of Technology (MJIIT) proposed a
90° light-path conversion device, which depicts this concept below.
But while inter-optical connections on a single PCB are possible, it will only provide local bandwidth increases on a board. What we really
need is the ability to connect individual PCBs to an optical backplane
where large computer systems can transmit data across many hundreds of
boards. Such a system would reduce the complexity of interconnecting
boards without the need for many fibreoptic cables. This also allows for
direct optical communication between ICs.
