In the age of information explosion, we watch videos, transfer files, and play cloud games every day, all relying on a “light-speed highway”—the optical communication network. The cornerstone of this road is the “high-speed optical chips” and “optical devices.” They act as “opto-electronic translators,” converting electrical signals into optical signals, allowing data to travel across the globe at nearly the speed of light. Today, let us unveil the mystery of these “black technologies!”
1. Optical Chips: The “Brain” and “Heart” of Optical CommunicationOptical chips are the core of optical devices, equivalent to the “brain” and “heart” of the optical communication system. Their task is to convert electrical signals to optical signals and manage the transmission paths of optical signals. Optical chips are divided into two categories: – Active Optical Chips: Such as laser chips and detector chips, responsible for “power generation” (electrical to optical) and “light reception” (optical to electrical). For example, the video data on your phone is transmitted to servers thousands of miles away via light pulses emitted by laser chips. – Passive Optical Chips: Such as optical splitter chips, which act like “traffic police” directing the flow of optical signals without requiring additional power, relying solely on their physical structure to complete their tasks. Materials and Processes: Optical chips often use **III-V compound semiconductors** (such as indium phosphide, gallium arsenide) or **silicon-based materials**. For instance, the silicon optical chip developed by the Shanghai Institute of Technology uses silicon waveguides to transmit optical signals, combined with micro-ring modulators and germanium detectors, achieving high-speed, low-power communication. Leading international companies have already achieved mass production of high-speed chips exceeding 25Gbps, and domestic chips are catching up, with the domestic market size reaching 13.762 billion yuan in 2023, growing at an annual rate of over 13%. 
2. Optical Devices: From “Optical Modules” to “All-Optical Switching”Optical devices are the “extended combinations” of optical chips, with common types including: – Optical Modules: Integrating optical chips, circuits, and optical components, they function like “optical signal delivery boxes.” For example, the 400G optical modules commonly used in data centers can transmit 50 HD movies per second, with a market share expected to exceed 30% by 2025. – Optical Amplifiers: They “charge” long-distance optical signals to prevent them from losing strength mid-transmission. – Optical Switches (OCS): Used by Google data centers to replace traditional electrical switches, eliminating the “optical-electrical-optical” conversion step, reducing power consumption by 70%, and latency to the nanosecond level. Performance Breakthroughs: Speed and energy efficiency are key. 800G optical modules have entered commercial use, and 1.6T modules are under development; while **CPO (Co-Packaged Optics) technology** integrates chips with optical engines in a compact package, reducing power consumption by 50% compared to traditional modules, potentially becoming standard in supercomputing centers. 3. Application Scenarios: From Data Centers to the Stars1. Data Centers: Under the leaf spine network architecture, a single data center requires tens of thousands of optical modules. For instance, training ChatGPT-6 requires 100,000 GPUs, with optical module bandwidth needing to reach several tens of Pbit levels, equivalent to transmitting the data of an entire library per second. 2. 5G and IoT: The optical carrying network between base stations relies on high-speed optical chips to support low-latency applications such as autonomous driving and remote surgery. 3. Space Optical Communication: Satellites transmit data using lasers, achieving speeds a thousand times faster than microwaves, potentially becoming the core of the “interstellar internet” in the future. 4. Future Trends: Faster, Smaller, Smarter– Ultra-High Speed: 800G optical modules are already in place, with 1.6T modules on the horizon, and single-wavelength speeds approaching 1.2Tbps. – Opto-Electronic Integration: Silicon photonics technology integrates optical devices with electronic chips, reducing size by 90% and lowering power consumption. For example, domestic silicon optical chips have achieved a 90nm process, matching international standards in performance. – AI Empowerment: Using AI to optimize optical network scheduling, such as Google dynamically adjusting data center traffic with optical path switching, reducing fault recovery time to milliseconds. Conclusion: The Revolution of Light Never StopsFrom “fiber to the home” to “light connecting everything,” optical chips and devices are driving a silent revolution. They may be hidden in the corners of data centers or lurking in the circuit boards of satellites, but it is these “invisible heroes” that keep our digital lives running smoothly. In the future, with the advent of quantum communication and 6G technology, the “speed and passion” of optical communication will continue to upgrade—after all, the limits of light have yet to be reached!(Data support: Zhongyan Network, Huajing Industry Research Institute, China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, etc.)