JePPIX sees a multi-billion Euro market in Integrated Photonics by 2020
The Joint European Platform for InP Photonic Integration of Components and Circuits' (JePPIX) latest roadmap predicts a 1 Billion Euro market for Photonic Integrated Circuit (PICs) enabled products in 2020.
So far, most PIC applications have been in the field of telecoms and datacoms, but they are becoming broader, says JePPIX. Examples are fibre sensor readout units, gas sensors, medical diagnostics, metrology, THz and antenna systems.
The business case for many companies targeting PICs in novel or improved products is also strong one, it says. It also sees a rapidly growing market for PIC designers.
JePPIX assists organisations around the globe to get access to advanced fabrication facilities for PICS. It aims at low-cost development of application specific PICs using generic foundry model, and rapid prototyping via industrial Multi-Project Wafer runs. Its closely collaborates with Europe's key players in the field of photonic integration, including manufacturing and packaging partners, photonic CAD software partners, R&D labs and photonic ICs design houses.
For foundries manufacturing generic PICs there will be an increasingly attractive business case as the market volume of PICs grows, JePPIX predicts. However, in the start-up phase, which may last a few years, foundry operation will ideally be combined with other chip based products and services.
In the coming years JePPIX foresees a further increase in the performance and the maturity of the four JePPIX foundry platforms (provided by Oclaro, Fraunhofer HHI, SMART Photonics and LioniX), to a level where the technology will be extremely competitive with application-specific processes.
The development of process capabilities and performance will be accompanied by the development of sophisticated, fab-calibrated, process design Kits which will provide the users with models and tools for accurate and efficient design of Photonic ICs. Standardised packages are also being developed within the JePPIX community. Access to a high performance package available at a reasonable cost is equally important for rapid prototyping and product development.
Through the application of the generic foundry model the entry costs for development of a PIC prototype are dramatically reduced, down to a level that is affordable for many SMEs and universities. It is shown that for developing prototypes, and also for low to medium volume manufacturing, InP PICs may be more cost effective than silicon photonics PICs, contrary to the widespread belief that InP technology is inherently much more expensive.
The first generic PIC based products will become commercially available this year (2015). Based on the rapid development of industry participation in MPW runs, JePPIX expects that the PIC enabled market will develop into a billion euro market before 2020.
The anticipated growth of the market will demand a rapidly growing number of PIC designs and hence designers. A more than tenfold increase of the present design capacity will be required within the next few years. Training and educational activities must, therefore, have high priority.
Very significant investments in photonic foundries have been announced recently in the US. For Europe to retain its competitive edge, continued public and private investment is important. Funding should focus on raising awareness of the opportunities that Photonic ICs offer for novel or improved products for a wide range of applications, increasing training and education capacity and creating proper conditions for enabling PIC foundries to provide the required manufacturing services.
