November 2001 Meeting

Parallel Optical Interconnects using CMOS-on-Sapphire and Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers (VCSELs): See-Through Circuitry and its Application to
Datacom functions
Dr. Charlie Kuznia, Peregrine Semiconductor
http://www.peregrine-semi.com/

Abstract: As link data rates increase, optical links replace electrical links at shorter link distances. This trend began fifteen years ago with long-haul telecom fiber links and continues today with the Gigabit Ethernet datacom standard specifying fiber for all links greater than 100 meters and no copper solution proposed for 10 Gigabit Ethernet. With all major US computer manufacturers supporting standards that include very short reach parallel fiber interconnects, the first steps have been made towards adopting optical links within computing architectures. There are physical reasons driving this trend that manifest themselves in the cost of implementing the link for a given distance/data-rate product. This talk discusses a new technology, the flip-chip bonding of VCSELs devices onto CMOS-on-sapphire circuitry. The application of this technology to existing parallel optical interconnects and future free space optical interconnects will be covered. The main emphasis is optical interconnect distances used in today's router systems (<300m) and future uses for very short distances within computer systems (<1m).

Speaker: Charlie Kuznia is a manager of photonics development at Peregrine Semiconductor located in San Diego. Peregrine Semiconductor operates a silicon-on-sapphire fab in Sydney Australia and has business in wireless, satellite and photonics. Before Peregrine, Charlie was a professor at the University of Southern California specializing in optoelectronic systems for free space optical interconnects. He received a BSEE from the University of Minnesota and PhD from University of Southern California in 1994.