NEW DANISH-CALIFORNIAN KNOWLEDGE COLLABORATION ON THE FUTURE OF THE INTERNET

- We have two groups, whose combined knowledge creates a unique opportunity to develop the high speed networks of the future, says director and founder of Stanford University's Photonics & Networking Research Laboratory, Prof. Leonid Kazovsky, considered one of the world's leading photonics researchers.

- At Stanford, we are working to optimize data networks, while our Danish colleagues can give us the high speed and contribute with knowledge of how we connect the data transfer between fiber and wireless technologies, explains Leonid Kazovsky.

- The Internet is one of our key infrastructures. Without this we are cut off from many opportunities of communication and knowledge sharing. Therefore, it is enormously gratifying when Danish researchers helps to ensure that we can get even faster Internet connections in the future. It is my ambition that all Danish people will have access to high-speed connections everywhere in the country, says Minister of Science, Helge Sander.

In October 2009 researchers at DTU Photonics broke the world record for how much information can be sent via light pulses from a single laser, as they managed to send 5.1 terabit per second of data through optical fiber. This result has attracted attention not just in the U.S. research community but also in the IT industry.

- The world record was an important milestone and it was surprising that it was done by a university and not by a large IT company. It says a lot about the Danish capabilities demonstrated at the workshop, which has managed to assemble the best research within the field today, says Ashok Krishnamoorthy, who is Distinguished Engineer at Sun Microsystems.

Professor at DTU Photonics, Idelfonso Tafur Monroy, is looking forward to working with colleagues at Stanford and is pleased with the great interest from industry.

- We feel a bit like pioneers. It is the first time that we have been profiled so directly in an international context, he says.

- One of the things that our cooperation will focus on is how we avoid bottlenecks between datacenters and end users. From data centers, we can deliver high bandwidth, but the challenge lies both in connecting the large metro networks while also getting larger amounts of data into wireless networks in people's homes and offices. We are working on giving the end user the same high-speed connectivity whether you are connected to a fiber or a wireless connection. Our vision is to offer all services at all times in all places, explains Professor DTU Idelfonso Tafur Monroy.

Professor Shawn Searles is a microchip architect with AMD Systems. He emphasizes the uniqueness of DTU researchers' ability to modulate the wireless and optical fiber transmission.

- This is the first time this method has been demonstrated successfully. The technology could solve the problems of asymmetric data transmission, reducing the big difference between download and upload times, Shawn Searles predicts.

America's largest Internet and telecommunications provider, AT&T emphasizes the energy saving feature as high-speed communications in optical fibers promises.

- Optical fiber transfer in our server boxes would mean that we are able to transfer more data with fewer cables and avoid the major cooling problems we currently have in data centers, explains one of the leaders of AT&T Labs Network Systems Engineering and Access Technologies Department, Kent McCammon.

The Danish-Californian workshop was also a new way to showcase Danish companies within the area. One of them is Alight a company that is developing a new, fast and energy efficient communication laser. The latest results of product development were presented by technical director Dan Birkedal.

- The workshop was for us a fruitful complement to our marketing efforts in the U.S. and a different way of discussing future needs with leading representatives from the IT industry and research community, says Dirk Jessen, director of Alight.

Lars Beer Nielsen, Research Attache at Innovation Center Denmark in Silicon Valley, one of the organizers of the workshop, welcomes the strong attendance at the two-day workshop.

- Our job is to raise the profile of Danish research excellence. The workshop has clearly shown that Danish photonics research is fully in line with the American elite in the field, he says.

Contact Info:
Leonid Kazovsky, a professor at Stanford Photonics & Networking Research Laboratory:
Tel: 1 650 725 3818, email: kazovsky@ee.stanford.edu

Idelfonso Tafur Monroy, Professor at DTU Photonics:
Tel: 45 25 37 82, email: idtm@fotonik.dtu.dk

Lars Beer Nielsen Research Attaché, Innovation Center Denmark, Silicon Valley:
Tel: 1 650 353 8879, email: lbn@innovationcenterdenmark.com.

Facts
Photonics:
High-speed connections in optical fiber transmit data in bit rates by using laser light. DTU's world record of serial data transmission was 5.1 terabit per second, which is approximately one million times faster than traditional broadband. This correspond to downloading 80 full DVD movies without compression in just a second. Wireless and fiber optic connections can be integrated by routing signals to and from the masts through a fiber network. This would both increase the wireless speed and create a considerable saving.

Workshop Photonic Technologies for Access and interconnects
Took place 28th-29th January 2010 at Stanford University with participants from USA, Denmark, Hong Kong and Germany. The workshop was organized by the Innovation Center Denmark in Silicon Valley, in cooperation with Stanford University, DTU Photonics, Center for telecommunications infrastructure at Aalborg University and the Ministry of Science.

Read more about the workshop here:
http://www.wireless.fotonik.dtu.dk/