First investment round for PHIX Photonics
€1 million investment led by Oost NL will accelerate scaling up of Netherlands-based PIC production
Netherlands-based start-up PHIX Photonics Assembly, which established a PIC assembly and packaging production line in April 2017, has received a first round investment of €1 million led by Oost NL, a regional development company. The funding is part of a €2 million total package expected to be completed over the next six months.
Oost NL invests money on behalf of the Netherlands Ministry of Economic Affairs and the provinces of Overijssel and Gelderland.
Albert Hasper, director of PHIX said: "With the creation of PHIX Photonic Assembly in April 2017, we secured access to test, assembly and packaging modules for large volumes. With this first round of investment, led by Oost NL, we can accelerate the scaling up of our assembly and packaging processes for Photonic Integrated Circuits and put us at the forefront of PIC assembly in the world".
He added: "We are glad that we have strong support from the province of Overijssel, Innovatiefonds Twente, Saxion Hogeschool, the University of Twente, and the world-class photonics companies such as LioniX International, which established a unique position and reputation in a suite of application markets for photonic integrated circuits".
PHIX will work in close cooperation with the Fraunhofer Project Centrd on packaging standards for high volume manufacturing of integrated photonics modules and with PhoeniX Software on developing the appropriate photonic design kits, dedicated to assembly and packaging, to secure volume scalability and fast time-to-market of novel sensors in datacom, telecom and medical applications.
Hans van den Vlekkert, CEO of LioniX International, initiator and orchestrator of the establishment of PHIX, emphasises the need for the presence of a strong, regional eco-system, where education, design, manufacturing and volume production are at hand, literally, just a stone's throw away.
He said: "We have seen accelerated growth of integrated photonics market over the past year, especially for the demand of devices that are based on our low-loss TriPleX platform. We have delivered manyprototypes to international customers and anticipate that volume demand for the PIC-modules is starting, which requires an efficient organisation, such as PHIX, where the infrastructure and production flow are tailored to achieve cost-effective assembly and packaging of PIC modules."
