Standardized Process Could Revolutionize Photonic Integration

A revolution is coming in photonic integration technology, facilitated by the introduction of generic foundry processes: highly standardized photonic integration processes that enable realization of a broad range of application-specific photonic integrated circuits (ASPICs) from a small set of basic building blocks. This will lead to a dramatic reduction of the development costs of photonic integrated circuits (PICs), which will bring them within reach for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), universities and research institutes. The revolution will be similar to the one that took place for ASICs (application-specific integrated circuits) in microelectronics more than three decades ago. Indium phosphide (InP) – the material of choice for lasers and amplifiers in the telecommunications wavelengths – and silicon photonics are the two major technologies for the development of complex high-performance PICs. InP photonics platforms offer full monolithic integration of active and passive devices in a generic integration process. Europe is clearly leading in the deployment of this technology, with three foundries offering InP-based photonic foundry service on a commercial basis. Generic foundry processes and the infrastructure to make them accessible at low cost for a broad range of companies (design tools, component libraries) are being developed, and first versions are now available for beta-type access by external customers. Development is ongoing to realize generic packaging technology and generic test facilities. Generic foundry process