Energy limitations in data transmission and switching

The expanding volume of data on the global Internet is causing continuous growth in energy consumption, both in the network and in the attached data centres. Data centre operators have been fighting rising energy consumption for some time. And more recently, in response to rising electrical power bills, network operators are also beginning to think seriously about how they can improve the energy efficiency of their networks. Fortunately, there have been continuous improvements in the energy efficiency of commercial communications and switching equipment. But there is no end in sight to the growth of the so-called data tsunami, and improvements in equipment energy efficiency are barely keeping up with what is needed to constrain growth of the total energy consumption of the global network.