An advancement that might change the internet into something scintillating suddenly happened to Google. In the X lab of the company, the researchers invented a chip that would make high-speed internet access possible using beams of light, thus making obsolete cables a thing of the past for future generations.
The project is known as Taara, and it unveiled a chip that the team believes will bend the laws of feasibility regarding high-speed, light-based internet. A silicon photonic chip is how the novel Taara innovation can steer, track, and correct light beams used for data transmission through the air- no wires, no fuss, just free space!
It is staked for size, as it is smaller than a fingernail, which is a great improvement from previous versions that were as voluminous as traffic lights. Taara uses the same principles that underpin fiber optics, which also send data using light. The difference is in the cost and infrastructure.
Fiber optics require expensive underground cables, while Taara just sends the data directly through an invisible light beam. Also, the sheer speed with which Taara transfers data will make most cable guys foam at the mouth-for here, the speed can reach up to 20 Gbps, and the range can go up to 12 miles.
Google is not the first to experiment with this concept of light for delivering data since the idea of ‘Li-Fi’ has been known for more than ten years and has been actively buzzing lately. IEEE has made an official recognition of this technology this 2023 while drawing standards associated with it.
Just for the information of the readers, Taara is commercially operational in 12 countries; this project is not entirely pitched into the conceptual void, said Wired Magazine. It has even graced Coachella by showcasing its feat in making the phone network all the better within the event.
