Agilent Rolls Out 2 Gb/s Fibre Channel Controllers

PALO ALTO, Calif., June 1 -- Agilent Technologies Inc. said that it has begun production of the HPFC-5200: the industry's only highly integrated, single-chip 2-Gb/s Fibre Channel controller. Prototypes of the device have been available to communications and technology developers since November.
Agilent says that its unique device features proven Tachyon hardware state machine architecture -- providing high levels of performance without external static random access memory. To better execute Fibre Channel protocol and small-computer-interface command operations; the device's architecture uses hardware automation, which expedites the input/output operations.
The controller integrated circuits will be used in enterprise storage applications such as: the Internet and Intranet access, digitized video and online transactional processing.Researchers Unveil Optical MicrochipTORONTO, Canada June 1 -- According to researchers at the University of Toronto, Fiber optic technology has reached a new level. Scientists say that they have produced a silicon-based material that can trap light, controlling it the same way microchips control electrons. The optical microchip could potentially be much faster and more efficient than electronic chips. This is what everyone has been waiting for in order to go all-optical, said Geoffrey Ozin, a U of T materials chemist who developed the material with Sajeev John, a theoretical physicist. Ozin and a student of his, Emmanuel Chomski, hold the intellectual property rights to the development.