5 ms·
> Because the laser pulse is so fast, the water can switch states in a matter of picoseconds, which are trillionths of a second. This translates to potential co
by throwawaylinux 4y ago
> Because the laser pulse is so fast, the water can switch states in a matter of picoseconds, which are trillionths of a second. This translates to potential computer speeds in the terahertz (THz) range – that’s 1,000 GHz, which is far faster than any existing semiconductor can switch.
Picoseconds means under 1000GHz. 1ps would be 1000GHz.
Transistors can switch in picoseconds. The fastest basic bulk silicon ones hundreds of GHz as far as I know. More exotic ones I'm sure could be made a lot faster.
So exactly how much faster is this water based switching device than a transistor? Hopefully the author was not under the impression that transistor switching speed was on the order of CPU clock frequency.
- adrian_b 4y agoAccording to the article, they have demonstrated the generation of a signal with the frequency of 3 THz, and the switching time is under 200 fs (exponential edge with a time constant of 70 fs).
- f1shy 4y agoYes... and how is the laser driven? Of course, fast transistors... There are transistors circuits that go into THz.
- adrian_b 4y agoThat is completely false. The shortest laser pulses are much shorter than any pulses that can be generated with electronic devices, and they are generated by various optical means. There are no transistor circuits that go into THz, but only into hundreds of GHz, and at those high frequencies they are not pulse circuits, but amplifiers or oscillators. A review of potential future transistors that will go into low THz: https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/19/11/2454 https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/19/11/2454
- f1shy 4y agoR u sure? https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/8240463 https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/8240463 For that matter, the laser controlled by other means will not be switched at total discretion, but at a fixed rate. Not different than an oscillator.