SCIENCE

EMCORE Corporation has announced that EMCORE Connects Cables were utilized to connect Tianhe-1A, the world's most powerful super computer.

According to the most recent list, by TOP500.org, an independent super-computing online resource, the Tianhe-1A system took the top spot as the world fastest super computer. The accomplishment was made possible by EMCORE Connects Cables, which are high-speed interconnect active optical cables (AOCs) used in place of traditional copper cables. EMCORE's Connects Cables enable system architects to design larger and even more powerful super computers. The Tianhe-1A system uses several thousand of these optical cables.

EMCORE's Quad Data Rate (QDR) Connects Cables are a 40Gb/s cable product with Quad Small Form factor Pluggable (QSFP) electrical connectors. The smaller diameter and lower heat dissipation of the QDR cables enabled the Tianhe-1A to more efficiently manage overall power consumption and cooling resources, which are critical factors in high-performance computing system design.

Chris Wiggins, Director of Marketing for EMCORE's Digital Fiber Products, said, "EMCORE pioneered the use of optical cables in high performance computing (HPC) seven years ago. Since then, EMCORE has been providing interconnect products enabling several of the world's fastest super computers. Additionally, EMCORE's QDR Connects Cables have experienced strong growth since we introduced the product earlier this year. Our customers cite EMCORE's quality, reliability, on-time delivery and competitive pricing as reasons for choosing us over our competitors in the high-performance computing and datacenter interconnect marketplaces."