(February 29, 2016) VTT
Technical Research Centre of Finland and Aalto University, together with a
group of contributing local companies, are starting a new Tekes-funded project
on optical switching and transmission technologies to improve the scalability
and energy-efficiency of data centres and 5G networks where the volumes of data
transfer grow exponentially.
The way we use and share information and entertainment
content are changing from local media hardware into distributed content with on-line
and mobile access. In entertainment, DVDs and CDs have already been replaced by
streaming and on-demand movie services. Data storage and bookkeeping are moving
into cloud with on-line mobile access and internet of things will soon connect
everyday devices into the local or global network.
Already before the onset of this transition, the volume of
data transfer was increasing exponentially and the capacity of the data centres
was doubled every 18 months. In 2014 the data centres in EU alone consumed about
120 TWh of energy, roughly equivalent to the full capacity of fourteen 1 GW
nuclear reactors.
With the current data centre networking technologies,
addressing the exponential increase in data volume would lead to an enormous
magnification of the cost.
The new Tekes-funded project, Optical Information Processing
for Energy-Efficient Data Centres (OPEC), focuses on the development of novel
optical components and technologies on VTT's proprietary silicon photonics
platform, as well as new silicon wafer production and precision assembly
concepts. This is done in close collaboration with Nokia, Rockley Photonics and
other Finnish technology companies aiming to meet the industrial demands of
data centres and 5G networks.
Future challenges are approached by developing graphene and
other layered 2D material based active photonic components in collaboration
between VTT and Aalto University to achieve performance beyond the theoretical
limit of the traditional materials. The project also explores the feasibility
of integrated photonics in analog signal transfer and manipulation, such as
radio-over-fiber and microwave beam steering in mobile link stations.
The project is supported financially and technologically by
Nokia, Rockley Photonics, Okmetic, nLight, Ginolis and Picosun. It is part of
Tekes' 5th Gear programme that launched several new projects early 2016 in
connection with Business from Digitalization call.