Silicon Photonic Interconnects for Large-Scale Computer Systems

Abstract

Optical interconnects play an integral role in large-scale digital computing, switching, and routing systems. The authors describe a path toward future many-chip modules based on silicon photonic interposers that stitch together tens of chips in a dense and efficient communication infrastructure. They review the guiding design principles for this "macrochip" and describe its canonical energy, loss, and area budgets.