Free Space Optical (FSO) communication is a technology that utilizes light waves to transmit data between two points without the use of physical cables or wires. Current computing architectures are limited by the copper limit. Moving data from core-to-core, core-to-memory, or from chip-to-chip requires the data pass through long, very thin, copper lines. Copper’s characteristics limit data rates, generate heat, and consume large amounts of energy.

FSO technology can overcome these limitations and enable next-generation high-speed computing. By integrating optical antennas directly within computer chips, data can move optically between cores or from chip-to-chip with negligible loss. This increases data rates and decreases both heat generation and energy consumption. Further, because the antennas can point light in any direction, the very structure of the computing environment can be morphed in real time, allowing the hardware to reconfigure itself as the application or computing demands change.