Optical semiconductor components from Intel – extending the reach of the Internet.

Although Intel has a number of new microprocessor developments to promote, the company’s stand at CeBIT is focused on the need for greater Internet bandwidth. Intel is showing its Internet Exchange Architecture (IXA), an end-to-end family of hardware and software building blocks for network and communications systems. Pride of place goes to seven new optical networking semiconductors that enable telecommunications equipment manufacturers to create new systems which extend the reach of their service provider customers' optical networks, add intelligence to those networks and deliver new services. Systems based on this new optical silicon enable service providers to reach new customers without having to install expensive repeaters that boost the signal of traffic traveling long distances over fiber optic cables. These new components are also capable of receiving and transmitting data over multiple communications protocols such as ATM, Packet over SONET, Packet over Fiber and 10 Gigabit Ethernet. This is important to service providers who must support all those multiple protocols if they are to service their customer bases. Also on display is the world's first single-chip Gigabit Ethernet controller, a device used to help direct the flow of data across networks. Intel claims that Gigabit Ethernet products from other companies require a complex board-level design to accommodate the multiple chips needed to carry out the same functions as its own single-chip solution. The Intel 82544EI Gigabit Ethernet Controller is over 50% smaller than previous generations of controllers. In addition, the new device uses 50% power, generates less heat and can help improve the reliability of systems. Journalists were also treated to a sneak preview of Intel’s latest 2 GHz Pentium 4 processor, while elsewhere at CeBIT notebook PC makers like IBM, Acer and Toshiba are showing new products featuring Intel’s new 1GHz mobile processor.