Optically connected parallel machine: Design, performance and application

A free-space optical 64 x 64 fibre-to-fibre crossbar switch with spatial li ght modulators as the crosspoint elements is described. The design and perf ormance of the optical and electrical components is discussed, including le nses, diffraction gratings, polarising beam splitters, fibre mountings, bas eplate construction, ferroelectric liquid-crystal spatial light modulators with their VLS1 drive circuits and transceivers. A control system is propos ed and a number of applications including avionics and computing are descri bed. A demonstration model has been built and its performance is reported.