The devices, developed using the same techniques utilised by silicon chip manufacturers, were made and tested by Professor Roberto Morandotti at the INRS's Energy, Materials and Telecommunications Center in Varennes, Quebec, with international collaboration from American and Australian scientists.
It is able to transmit large amounts of data at "ultra-fast speeds" using optical fibres and uses a single low-power laser source to generate different wavelengths.
In addition to this, its optical component costs are low as a result of the similarities with current chip-manufacturing methods.
The item is made from a special type of glass which boasts "exceptional optical properties" and can be fitted on to microchips already being used in the industry.
Engineers from Penn State University recently claimed that optical communications could provide more secure and faster transmission for wireless applications.
