News

Wireless to be changed by photonics

Microwave Photonics is the magic word for the next technology wave in wireless. The company of that name, incubated by BT Brightstar, has been spun off, and expects to start shipping products in the next few months.

What microwave photonics actually involves is simple enough: the use of laser to generate power. You shine a laser on an indium phosphide semiconductor, and you get a pulse of electricity; you feed electricity into the semiconductor, and it modulates laser light.

Why is this clever?

It's a way of generating radio signals from a small antenna, without having any electricity feed. It means you can put an antenna on the end of a 12 km fibre, and it will broadcast at any frequency upto 40 GHz. No electric cable needed. It means you can place a (very cheap) antenna for WiFi, for GSM, or even for gigabit Ethernet standards, not yet approved, anywhere - even in hazardous areas - and then switch it to a different frequency when needed.

For the WLAN business, its most obvious application is in setting up 802.11b access points, and switching them to work as 802.11a access points on another date.

Microwave Photonics, the developer of a new wireless access system based on this technology, has announced that it plans to spin out of BT and begin operating as an independent company, as part of the newly launched technology venturing partnership, NVP Brightstar.

NVP Brightstar has been created by BT Brightstar, the corporate incubator created by BT's research and technology business, BTexact Technologies; Coller Capital, the UK-based global private equity investment manager; and New Venture Partners, the US-based venture capital firm.

"Microwave Photonics entered BT Brightstar's corporate technology incubator in May 2002 and under the leadership of Maurizio Vecchione has been advancing its business plans, OEM and supplier partnerships, and product development.

"The support of the new NVP Brightstar partnership illustrates investors' confidence in Microwave Photonics' business, value proposition, technology and management team," said Vecchione, CEO of the startup. "This is a significant milestone, and positions the new company well to begin execution of its business plan, launch its first generation products and begin commercial exploitation of its technology portfolio."

Microwave Photonics is expected to be incorporated in spring 2003, and will be based in southern California, with operations in the UK. The company is expected to deliver products into the OEM marketplace for both enterprise wireless and cellular mobile infrastructure markets.