Intel buys tunable technology from Sparkolor
Sparkolor s PHI technology allows various materials such as silica, InP and polymers to be combined onto a single silicon chip. Such hybrid integration is said to allow optimized performance and to benefit from the high yield and low cost of silicon-based fabrication techniques.
"Sparkolor s PHI technology dramatically improves the economics of manufacturing optical components and subsystems," said Max Straube of Optical Capital Group (OCG), a Sparkolor investor. "PHI is particularly well-suited to the next generation of dynamic optical components."
In November 2001, Sparkolor demonstrated a tunable laser operating at 25 GHz channel spacing across 26 channels. The device was described as a Hybrid Distributed Bragg Reflector (HDBR) laser, in which the various parts of the device were built from different materials, allowing each part to be optimized separately without requiring performance tradeoffs.
In addition to Optical Capital Group, Sparkolor s investors included New Enterprise Associates and Storm Ventures. The company received $13.25 million in Series A round of funding in December 2000.
Sparkolor s employees and assets are being transferred from Sparkolor s current facility in Santa Clara, CA to Intel s Photonic Technology Operation in San Jose, CA.
