Japanese writer and publicist based in Eindhoven, The Netherlands
The indium phosphide (InP) based photonic chips manufactured by SMART Photonics are cutting-edge technology that goes beyond semiconductors. (Photo: SMART Photonics)
Smartphones, computers, home appliances, automobiles - semiconductor chips are currently used everywhere, and their performance continues to improve. However, to support next-generation applications such as 6G era data communication, telemedicine, and autonomous driving, there are limitations to improving the performance of current semiconductor chips. The use of 'photonic integrated Circuits (PICs)' is considered essential.
PICs are chips that use photons instead of electrons, enabling faster data transmission, lower power consumption, and improved reliability compared to conventional electronic circuits.
The Netherlands and the EU are currently strategically positioning the cultivation of the photonic chip industry, with a particular focus on developing foundries specializing in PIC manufacturing. A key player in this field is 'SMART Photonics,' based in the Brabant region of the Netherlands.
Smart Photonics manufactures PICs based on a material called indium phosphide (InP).
While PICs can also be made using materials like silicon or silicon nitride, each with unique properties, indium phosphide is the only material in the world that can create both "active optical components" such as lasers and amplifiers, as well as "passive optical components" like optical switches.
In other words, by using InP, all optical functions can be integrated into a single chip.
Performance comparison of PICs using indium phosphide (InP), silicon (Si), and silicon nitride (SiN): InP can integrate active and passive components and excels in terms of speed, while Si and SiN already have a more established industrial base and can produce large wafer. (Picture: SMART Photonics)
Thomas van der Zijden, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at SMART Photonics, explains:
"One of the main reasons the semiconductor industry achieved such remarkable growth is that all kinds of electronic functions could be integrated into a single chip. We are trying to do the same thing with PICs."
With silicon-based PICs, components like lasers and amplifiers need to be purchased separately and connected. However, with InP, everything can be integrated into a single chip, resulting in less light loss, improved performance, and lower costs.
InP-based photonic chips are already being manufactured and used on a large scale in the data and communications industry by major U.S. optical communications companies such as Coherent, Infinera, and Lumentum. These large companies currently handle the entire process from chip design to manufacturing, packaging, and application.
SMART Photonics, on the other hand, is a foundry that focuses solely on manufacturing of PICs. The company was founded in 2012, based on over 20 years of research by Dutch electronics manufacturer Philips and Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e).
An employee working in the cleanroom of SMART Photonics (Photo: SMART Photonics)
Van der Zijden explains: "We manufacture PICs designed by our customers on a contract basis, and we put all our resources into extending our technology platform and improving the manufacturing processes. Developing the manufacturing process for PICs requires huge investments, but by outsourcing manufacturing to us, our customers can focus their resources on their critical business processes such as product design. Since we focus purely on manufacturing, we never compete with our customers' products."
In the semiconductor industry, large companies like Philips used to handle everything from chip design to the manufacturing and selling the final product, but now they outsource manufacturing to foundries like TSMC (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company). TSMC holds an overwhelming market share as the "world's semiconductor factory" and it has significant influence on the global economy.
"We are trying to do the same thing with PICs. We want to become the TSMC for the PIC industry," says van der Zijden.
Currently, Smart Photonics' customers are primarily in the data and communications industries, but the company also cooperates with firms in the industrial and medical sensor fields. It is also working on LiDAR (a technology that uses laser light to measure the distance to objects and the surrounding environment with high precision), which is used in autonomous driving technology, so companies in the automotive industry are also important business partners.
What makes SMART Photonics unique is not only that they act as an open foundry and manufacture InP-based PICs but also their design support. When customers outsource manufacturing, they can easily design their PICs using the company's proprietary "Process Design Kit (PDK)."
The PDK includes various optical basic functions (Building Blocks) created on the company’s technology platform, allowing customers to design whatever they wish using it. This means that customers do not need to have detailed knowledge of the complex manufacturing process of InP-based PICs.
"It’s a bit like building with LEGO blocks. We make the LEGO blocks, and the customers use the different building blocks to build for example houses or airplanes. We can also advise them on which blocks are best for building a house etc.," says van der Zijden.
Wafer processing in SMART Photonics cleanroom (Photo: SMART Photonics)
The PDK reflects the company's knowledge and wafer manufacturing methods based on years of research and manufacturing, distinguishing it from competitors. As a result, designs created on this platform cannot be used in other foundries. This strengthens the close cooperation between the customers and the foundry.
"Typically, it takes 2 years to develop a product from scratch. After the design, there are several iterations of test manufacturing and design improvements, and it is very important that both the customer and us work closely together and share the success as long-term partners. This is also the path that the semiconductor industry has taken," explains van der Zijden.
The company's production capacity is currently about 5,000 4” wafers per year. While this is still a small production scale compared to semiconductor chip foundries, it is one of the largest foundries in the InP-based PIC industry. They are currently in discussions with investors and business partners to open new production facilities, aiming for operation in 2027.
According to van der Zijden, the current challenges are to increase the speed and yield (the ratio of good products) of PIC production. Manufacturing complex PICs requires 300 to 400 process steps, and currently, it takes six months to produce a PIC. However, by the end of 2025 they aim to reduce this timeframe to 3 to 4 months, comparable to semiconductor manufacturing. As for yield, it currently stands at 85%, which is high for the PIC industry, but they are also targeting over 95%, similar to semiconductor standards.
Thomas van der Zijden, VP of Sales and Marketing, SMART Photonics (photo: SMART Photonics)
"We are in a very complex, knowledge-intensive industry. We are also a developing company. So, we would like to work together with our customers to jointly define what we need and make a roadmap to the future and proceed step by step. We would like to start long-term development projects through exchanges with Japanese customers who have a lot of knowledge about PICs and InP," says van der Zijden.
PICs are seen as a key technology that supports next-generation applications, and InP-based PICs, which can integrate all photonic functions on a single chip, have great potential. Just like we witnessed in the semiconductor industry over the last 4 decades, we may be at a historic turning point where a new industry will emerge, supporting a wide variety of applications still unknown to the world.
Contact: SMART Photonics