30Gbps chip for wireless transmissions

Wi-Fi connectivity in the future will be an exciting time for all of us – it seems that Japanese electronic parts manufacturer Rohm announced that they have managed to come up with a chip which is capable of hitting a wireless data transmission speed of 1.5 gigabits per second under experimental conditions, which is the highest level ever. Heck, this is still some ways off a possible 30Gbps down the road, but there is a chance of that happening as well. The semiconductor device relies on terahertz waves in order to transmit data, and it comes with a micro antenna that measures 2cm in length and 1cm in height – that is the module size itself.

Rohm did develop the technology while working with a research team at Osaka University, and they are targeting several hundred yen when it comes to the cost of the new chip. Just for comparison’s sake, the terahertz-based wireless chips at the moment will cost “several million yen”, and currently it measures around 20cm square and will hit a maximum top speed of a “mere” 0.1Gbps. Expect mass production of this chip to begin in three to four years’ time.