IBM researchers build supercomputer-on-a-chip
Supercomputers may soon be as small as a laptop.
IBM is researching a chip which uses pulses of light to replace
electricity making the data transfer between processor cores on a chip
up to one-hundred times faster. 
The technology, called silicon nanophotonics, replaces some of the wires on a chip with pulses of light on tiny optical fibers for quicker and more power-efficient data transfers between cores on a chip, said Will Green, research scientist at IBM.
The technology, which can transfers data up to a distance of a few centimeters, is about 100 times faster than wires and consumes one-tenth as much power, Green said. The lower power requirement should reduce operational costs for supercomputers, he said.
The improved data bandwidth and power efficiency of silicon nanophotonics will bring massive computing power to desks.
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