There is a growing demand for developing wireless solutions that help reduce the clutter of wires adorning personal computers, televisions and home entertainment setups.
One of the key technologies where researchers see substantial potential is 60 GHz communications.
However, developing chips that can transmit signals at such high frequencies is a non-trivial task. This is particularly the case since contemporary chips suffer from timing jitters and synchronisation issues beyond their current operating frequency of 3 GHz. Moreover, conversion of pulsing laser light into radio frequency (RF) signals is difficult at such frequencies, and contemporary solutions to this challenge are typically too bulky to be practical.
In an attempt to address these challenges, researchers from Purdue University have developed a novel solution that performs the pulsing laser-to-RF conversion using a miniaturised chip-sized solution. The compact device would be capable of enabling wireless communications of data traditionally realised through wired mediums, including high definition television broadcasts and secure computer connections. The radical innovation was pioneered by a team headed by Minghao Qi, assistant professor, and Andrew Weiner, distinguished professor of electrical and computer engineering, and associated with the university’s Birck Nanotechnology Centre. The research findings are described in detail in the journal Nature Photonics.
The novel solution developed by the researchers comprises several innovative features. Primarily, the solution uses a chip-based spectral shaper to modify the frequency domain characteristics of the signal to reduce electromagnetic interference caused by stray reflection from walls and proximal objects. This is achieved through a series of miniature silicon microring resonators, each about 10 micro-metres in diameter, which act as frequency filters or, in other words, spectral shapers.
Furthermore, the laser pulses are processed using an innovative ‘optical arbitrary waveform technology’ developed in-house, and last for about 100 femtoseconds. Essentially this spectral shaper is programmable, and can be instructed to work with only certain frequencies. This is achieved through the microring filter, which is tuneable by heating the rings, enabling it to filter different frequency bands.
Consequently, the novel architecture is not just able to handle higher operating frequencies, but is also compact enough for commercial applications. The researchers envision using a single base station at a home or office location, and allowing the terminal devices to be completely wireless. Such a technology is likely to find great utility for television sets, projectors, monitors and printers. Besides these, another likely application segment is wireless transmission within cars and other automobiles.
However, the technology as developed by the researchers today is still capable of only one-way traffic. The transmitting base station architecture is still too bulky to be incorporated for two-way communications. Nevertheless, the researchers do not discount the possibility of overcoming this challenge, which would enable more applications such as having wireless hard disks. The researchers have filed for a patent through the university, and expect the technology to be ready for commercialisation within a time period of five years.
For more information contact Patrick Cairns, Frost & Sullivan, +27 (0)18 464 2402, patrick.cairns@frost.com, www.frost.com
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