SDL joins optical communication project

Four companies, including diodelaser manufacturer SDL (San Jose, CA), have joined forces in a threeyear project to develo¥highspeed optical components for workstationcluster applications, advanced computer systems, telecommunications switching, and transport systems for future military and commercial systems. The consortium, known as POLO (parallel optical link organization), received a $9 million research grant from the Advanced Research Projects Agency and has put u¥$9 million in matching funds to develo¥the components, which will have 10 to 20 channels, each operating at a 1Gbit/s data rate.