Israeli processor computes at speed of light
An Israeli start-up has developed a processor that uses optics instead of silicon, enabling it to compute at the speed of light, the company said.
“Optical processing is a strategic competitive advantage for nations and companies,” said Avner Halperin, vice president for business development at Lenslet.
The processor performs 8 trillion operations per second, equivalent to a super-computer and 1,000 times faster than standard processors, with 256 lasers performing computations at light speed.
The company’s prototype is fairly large and bulky but when Lenslet begins to supply the processor in a few months it will be shrunk to 15 x 15 cm with a height of 1.7 cm, roughly the size of a Palm Pilot.
“In five years we plan to shrink it to a single chip,” project manager Asaf Schlezinger said.
Tully said one issue is whether this technology can be produced in volume the way silicon chips are made. Sariel is negotiating joint projects with companies and/or government agencies in the United States, Europe and Japan to produce the processor for specific applications. It already has projects signed with Israel’s Defence Ministry. —Reuters
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