This article provides a comprehensive overview of CPO optical modules, exploring their technology, benefits, challenges, and the pivotal role they play in future data centers and AI infrastructure. Today, data centers use a separate approach for optics and electronics, in which optical modules are connected to switches and routers through high-speed electrical interfaces. As data demands grow, these systems face limitations such as bandwidth constraints, latency issues, and space limitations. Enter Co-Packaged Optics (CPO), a transformative architecture where the optical engine moves inside the switch ASIC package. CPO is widely regarded as a promising. These pressures are driving renewed momentum behind co-packaged optics (CPO). 9B by 2029, fueled largely by AI data centers.
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