Largest, fastest array of microscopic 'traffic cops' for optical communications

The photonic switch is built with more than 50,000 microscopic "light switches" etched into a silicon wafer. Each light switch (small raised squares) directs one of 240 tiny beams of light to either make a right turn when the switch is on, or to pass straight through when the switch is off. Engineers at the University of California, Berkeley have built a new photonic switch that can control the direction of light passing through optical fibers faster and more efficiently than ever. This optical "traffic cop" could one day revolutionize how information travels through data centers and high-performance supercomputers that are used for artificial intelligence and other data-intensive applications. The photonic switch is built with more than 50,000 microscopic "light switches," each of which directs one of 240 tiny beams of light to either make a right turn when the switch is on, or to pass straight through when the switch is off.