https://www.sciencealert.com/images/2017-09/stylised-chip-design.jpg
Source: sciencealert.com

Scientist have successfully stored light based information as sound on a computer chip.  This is a huge step forward in designing the next generation of computers.  No doubt that the ultimate step is the quantum computer but the quantum computer needs to be run in a heavily shielded environment as well as a near absolute zero temperatures.  This makes it unattainable for the less wealth.  The light computer will not compete with the speed of the computing power as the quantum computer but it will be faster than the computers we use now.  They estimate at least 20 times faster.

Computers using photons instead of electrons will use less energy as well as they will run much cooler.  The reason is that electrons need to be pushed through wires or metal traces to work.  As the electrons flow, they create heat due to the resistance in the wires or traces.  A power supply is needed to provide the power to push the electrons through the circuit.

In a light or photon computer, wires will be replaced with fiber optics.  The resistance is much lower probably almost non existent and the heat generated will be negligible.  As far as a power source, a light source will replace the power supply and will need less electricity to operate.  I think they will use something light LEDs to supply the light.

At present, what will be used as components in the light computer is pure speculation.  They have been working on the light computer for at least a decade and the light computer is still not available.  This is why this new discovery is a huge step forward.

The photons are capable of switching on and off at a speed to great for the microchip we have presently to read.  So the speed must be slowed.  The scientist devised this chip to change the light data stream into a sound wave.  Sound travels at about 741 MPH, light is much faster travelling at 186,000 MPS.  If you want to make the terms equivalent you just need to 186,000 by 3,600 and that would convert it into miles per hour instead of miles per second.  I will leave the math up to you.

It is necessary for the microchip to read the change of the light because that is the stream of data.  When the light is on, it is equivalent to a '1' and when it is off it is a '0'.  It it can't read it accurately, the data will be compromised.

How it works:  the light data stream enters the chip along with a write pulse.  The write pulse acts like a clock so the data is able to be sync'ed.  The two combine similar to heterodyning and they form an acoustic wave.  The acoustic wave is maintained in the spiral trace.  To get the data out, a read pulse is transmitted into the spiral trace and it heterodynes with the acoustic waves and generates the data stream.

Source: sciencealert.com

To provide a pictorial will help you further understand the process.  Below is a video showing the procedure.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Io-HXZTepH4
Source: youtube.com

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