Intel's New Light Peak Cable Transfers 10 Gb/S, Puts USB To Shame

Despite the fact that optical cables transmit data far faster
than copper wire, wire is still the primary medium for
communication on computer chips, and between computers and
devices through USB cables. But Intel hopes to change all
that soon with their new Light Peak connection system.

Debuted yesterday at the Intel Developer Forum, Light Peak
uses four inexpensive fiber-optic wires, each of which can
carry ten gigabits* of data per second. The system included
the development of both the wires, which needed to drop in
price to make the system affordable, and the chips, which
encode and decode information in light form on both ends.

Light, by virtue of having no mass, can travel far faster
than matter like electrons, making optical communication much
quicker than the electrical communication that relies on the
transfer of electrons.

Intel wants to start shipping the devices by sometime next
year, but it must first overcome the hurdle of
standardization. Without the companies that design the
software, computers, and peripherals on board, Intel will be
left with a very fast wire it can't actually connect to
anything. In many ways, standardization is even more
difficult than the development of the technology itself. So
even while this technology may mark the beginning of the
final move away from copper wires, we're probably going to be
stuck with USB cords for some time to come.

*The original post incorrectly said gigabytes, not gigabits.