Block diagram of the dual-signaling wireless communication system designed by Floquet. At the transmitter side, the system generates both a modulated THz range signal and a reference THz signal with a frequency matching that of the carrier signal. Meanwhile, the receiver is equipped with two 2DSQWs to detect both the modulated signal and the reference signal. Credit: Kosala Herath, Ampalavanapillai Nirmalathas, Sarath D. Gunapala, and Malin Premaratne
As computer technology has advanced, we have moved from using large, single-chip processors to systems made up of smaller, specialized chips called “chiplets.” These chips work together to increase processing power and efficiency.
This transition is crucial because we have reached the physical limits of how many transistors can fit on a single chip. As transistors shrink, problems such as overheating and power inefficiency become more serious.1) Using multiple chiplets in a system can increase computing power without facing these physical constraints.
The challenge of communication between chiplets
Traditionally, communication within a chip is handled by a system called a Network-on-Chip (NoC), which acts as a data highway. This method becomes inefficient as systems become more complex, especially with multiple chips. Data must travel greater distances over more grid points, which slows down communication and increases power consumption.
When we extend this approach to multiple chips, we create what is called a network-in-package (NiP). However, the same problems (delays, power inefficiency, and limited scalability) persist, because wired connections dominate data transfer.
To solve these problems, researchers are exploring wireless communication at the chip level. Instead of relying on wires, chips could communicate wirelessly using tiny antennas.
Terahertz (THz) frequencies, electromagnetic waves somewhere between infrared and microwaves, offer high-speed data transfer, making them ideal for this application. However, THz signals are very susceptible to noise, which disrupts communication and makes it more difficult to decode the transmitted data.
Floquet Engineering: Improving signal detection
Our research addresses this problem with Floquet engineering, a technique derived from quantum physics that makes it possible to control the behavior of electrons in a material when it is exposed to high-frequency signals.2,3,4) This technique makes the system more responsive at certain frequencies, improving the detection and decoding of THz wireless signals, even in noisy conditions.
We applied this method to a two-dimensional semiconductor quantum well (2DSQW) – a very thin layer of semiconductor material that restricts the motion of electrons in two dimensions. This configuration improves the system’s ability to detect THz signals, even when noise interference is high. Our research is published in the journal IEEE Journal on Selected Areas of Communications.
Dual-signaling architecture for more precise communication
To further improve noise management, we developed a dual-signaling architecture, in which two receivers work together to monitor signals. This configuration allows the system to adjust a key parameter, called the reference voltage, based on detected noise levels. This real-time adjustment significantly improves the accuracy of signal decoding.
Our simulations showed that this dual-signaling system reduces error rates compared to traditional single-receiver systems, ensuring reliable communication in noisy environments, a key requirement for chip-scale wireless communication.
By overcoming the challenges of noise and signal degradation, our dual-signaling technique marks a key advancement in the development of high-speed, noise-resistant wireless communications for electronic chips. This innovation brings us closer to creating more efficient, scalable and adaptable computing systems for tomorrow’s technologies.
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More information:
Kosala Herath et al, A dual-signaling architecture for improving noise resilience in chip-scale wireless communication based on Floquet engineering, IEEE Journal on Selected Areas of Communications (2024). DOI: 10.1109/JSAC.2024.3399206
1 Malin Premaratne and Govind P. Agrawal, Theoretical Foundations of Nanoscale Quantum Devices, Cambridge University Press (2021). DOI: 10.1017/9781108634472
2 Kosala Herath et al., A generalized model for the charge transport properties of dressed quantum Hall systems, Physical Review B (2022). DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevB.105.035430
3 Kosala Herath et al., Floquet engineering of dressed surface plasmon polariton modes in plasmonic waveguides, Physical Review B (2022). DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevB.106.235422
4 Kosala Herath et al., A Floquet Engineering Approach to Optimize Schottky Junction-Based Surface Plasmonic Waveguides, Scientific Reports (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-37801-x
Biographies:
Kosala Herath received his Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) in Electronics and Telecommunications from the University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka in 2018. He is currently pursuing his PhD in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Monash University, Australia. From 2018 to 2020, he worked at WSO2 Inc. His research interests include nanoplasmonics, nonequilibrium quantum many-body systems, chip-scale wireless communication systems, and quantum computing.
Ampalavanapillai Nirmalathas received his PhD in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from the University of Melbourne. He is currently Acting Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology, Head of the Wireless Innovation Lab (WILAB) and Professor of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at the University of Melbourne. His current research interests include microwave photonics, optical-wireless network integration, broadband networks, photonic reservoir and edge computing, and scalability of telecommunications and Internet services. Since 2021, he has been the Chair of the Future Technologies Working Group of the IEEE Photonics Society. From 2020 to 2021, he was the Co-Chair of the Optics Working Group of the IEEE Future Networks Initiative. He is also the Deputy Co-Chair of the National Committee on Information and Communication Sciences of the Australian Academy of Science.
Sarath D. Gunapala received his Ph.D. in physics from the University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA, in 1986. Since then, he has studied the infrared properties of III-V compound semiconductor heterostructures and the development of quantum well infrared photodetectors for infrared imaging at AT&T Bell Laboratories. In 1992, he joined NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA, where he is currently Director of the Center for Infrared Photodetectors. He is also a Senior Research Scientist and Senior Technical Staff Member at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. He has authored over 300 publications, including several book chapters on infrared imaging focal plane arrays, and holds 26 patents.
Malin Premaratne completed several degrees at the University of Melbourne, including a Bachelor of Mathematics, a Bachelor of Electrical and Electronic Engineering (with First Class Honours) and a PhD in 1995, 1995 and 1998 respectively. He has led the High Performance Computing Applications for Complex Systems Simulations research program at the Advanced Computing and Simulation Laboratory at Monash University, Clayton since 2004. He is currently Vice-Chair of the Academic Council of Monash University and a Full Professor. In addition to his work at Monash University, Professor Premaratne is also a visiting scholar at several prestigious institutions including the Jet-Propulsion Laboratory at Caltech, the University of Melbourne, the Australian National University, the University of California, Los Angeles, the University of Rochester in New York and the University of Oxford. He has published over 250 journal articles and two books and has served as Associate Editor of several leading academic journals including IEEE Photonics Technology Letters, IEEE Journal of Photonics And Advances in optics and photonicsProfessor Premaratne’s contributions to the field of optics and photonics have been recognized by numerous fellowships, including Fellow of the Optical Society of America (FOSA), Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers USA (FSPIE), Institute of Physics UK (FInstP), Institution of Engineering and Technology UK (FIET) and Institute of Engineers Australia (FIEAust).
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