Source URL: https://www.theregister.com/2025/02/21/st_micro_pluggables/
Source: The Register
Title: ST Micro skips in, arm in arm with AWS, bearing a chip for 1.6 Tbps pluggable optics
Feedly Summary: It’s Friday. Quit the doomscrolling. Distract yourself with IT infra news
Developed in collaboration with Amazon Web Services, ST Micro detailed a new photonic integrated circuit (PIC) on Thursday that it says will support pluggable optics capable of shuttling bits around the datacenter at up to 1.6 Tbps.…
AI Summary and Description: Yes
**Summary:**
The text discusses a new photonic integrated circuit (PIC) developed by ST Micro in collaboration with Amazon Web Services, designed to enhance data transmission speeds within data centers, particularly for AI applications. The innovative chip aims to deliver significant bandwidth improvements and thermal efficiency, providing a critical solution for the escalating demands of AI processing.
**Detailed Description:**
The newly detailed photonic integrated circuit (PIC) aims to support advanced data transfer capabilities in data centers, especially crucial for AI clusters that require extensive interconnectivity among GPUs. The development underlines key technological advancements and implications for data center infrastructure.
– **High-Speed Data Transmission**:
– The PIC is capable of achieving data transfer speeds of up to 1.6 Tbps through pluggable optics.
– Each lane of the chip can handle 200 Gbps, doubling the capacity of existing optical solutions.
– **Production Plans**:
– Production of the PIC chips is set to ramp up later this year in Crolles, France using ST Micro’s advanced BiCMOS technology.
– **Thermal Management**:
– The chips are designed to operate cooler than conventional models, addressing issues related to heat that can cause degradation and failure.
– Special waveguides and fiber couplers are incorporated to reduce losses and improve power efficiency.
– **Future Potential**:
– ST Micro is planning designs that could achieve even higher speeds of up to 400 Gbps per lane, potentially enabling optics capabilities of 3.2 Tbps in the future.
– **Current Limitations**:
– Despite the high potential speeds, there are challenges regarding the existing infrastructure, with current network equipment, like 200G serializer-deserializers (SerDes), still being new and not widely available.
– The implementation and optimization of upcoming networking equipment will be necessary to fully utilize the promised bandwidth.
– **Market Considerations**:
– Although high-speed optics have been proposed, operational deployment will depend on compatible networking equipment that can accommodate such speeds. Currently, the market is beginning to see initial offerings like Nvidia’s Connect-X8 card.
This advancement highlights crucial implications for cloud computing and infrastructure security, where faster data transfers require robust security measures to protect against potential vulnerabilities that arise from increased connectivity and data traffic. Security professionals in these domains should focus on how such advancements can be integrated while ensuring compliance and robust security protocols are maintained.