On December 9, IBM unveiled a breakthrough in co-packaging that might scale back GPU downtime and speed up AI coaching.
IBM’s working prototype considerably will increase the variety of optical fibers that connect with the sting of a silicon photonic chip by changing conventional glass with a polymer optical waveguide. This progressive strategy might pave the way in which for sooner, extra environment friendly knowledge switch and allow knowledge facilities to deal with bigger workloads.
The thought of co-packaged optics has been round for a very long time, however IBM’s course of allows what the corporate calls the world’s first stress-tested prototype.
IBM spokespeople didn’t immediately reply to questions on availability or timing. Instead, they emphasised their intention to develop a roadmap and expressed their openness to sharing design materials with foundries sooner or later.
“Eventually, chip corporations should require it, after which chip corporations will construct it into the design of their chips, and foundries will be capable to produce it,” Makesh Khare, normal supervisor of IBM semiconductors, mentioned in a briefing. “But it has no particular necessities relating to the foundry side. It could have a design side that we will present to chip corporations.”
What distinguishes a polymer optical waveguide?
Optics co-packaged with polymer optical waveguides are an alternative choice to copper connections and are sometimes used to attach GPU accelerators in knowledge facilities. These sit on the sting of a chip and let many bundles of high-density optical fibers match right into a tiny house, with half a micron or much less between the fiber and the connector. IBM mentioned this ends in a noticeable enhance in bandwidth between chips in comparison with electrical connections.
The measurement, a pitch of fifty microns, additionally differentiates the prototype. The 250 micron pitch is a typical measurement. Getting smaller interprets to extra bandwidth.
The polymer optical waveguide is stackable as much as 4 layers for as much as 128 channels. On the “seashore entrance” the place the connector meets the chip, it has 51 fibers per millimeter.
“The most vital factor is just not solely that we achieved this nice enchancment in density for communications on the module, however we additionally demonstrated that that is suitable with stress exams that optical hyperlinks have failed prior to now,” John Knickerbocker, distinguished engineer of IBM Research, mentioned in a press launch.
“This co-packaged optical innovation is basically bringing the ability of fiber optics to the chip itself,” Khare added.
IBM’s polymer optical waveguide can compete with new connectivity processes such because the Ranovus Odin digital and photonic built-in circuit or linear information pluggable optics. In this space, researchers are additionally experimenting with glass ribbons or vertically graduated interconnects.
Knickerbocker mentioned within the briefing, “It’s exhausting to say who’s within the lead” between polymer optical waveguides and linear-drive pluggable optics.
IBM produced co-packaged optics with polymer optical waveguides at its Bromont check facility in Quebec.
SEE: Data facilities will want extra energy for AI coaching as hyperscalers provide extra superior fashions.
The proposed market: knowledge facilities used to coach synthetic intelligence
IBM proposes that the brand new connector may gain advantage the booming discipline of generative synthetic intelligence:
- Reduction in consumption (as much as 5 occasions) for medium-range electrical interconnections, even over lengthy distances (tons of of metres).
- Reduced the time wanted to coach a big language mannequin, from three months to a few weeks.
- Greater power effectivity.
“With this breakthrough, tomorrow’s chips will talk very like the way in which fiber optic cables carry knowledge out and in of knowledge facilities, ushering in a brand new period of sooner, extra sustainable communications that may deal with AI workloads of the long run,” SVP and Director of Lo says Dario Gil in a press launch.
