Development of a manufacturable process for the fabrication of waveguides in insulating materials (Faraday Rotator)

PROJECT COST:

1 509 644 $

PRIMA CONTRIBUTION:

650 750 $

PROJECT DETAILS:

Through a collaborative research project with the Centre for Optics and Photonics at Université Laval (COPL), AEPONYX Inc. has developed an innovative technology poised to transform the integration of isolators into high-performance photonic circuits. While market interest is already well established, the deployment of the technology remains constrained by the manufacturing process, which is still at an experimental stage.

The goal of the project is to develop a scalable manufacturing process and the necessary hardware infrastructure to support the volume production required by commercial markets, particularly data center operators, transceiver manufacturers, and key stakeholders in the LIDAR sector. The development strategy is anchored in the fan-out wafer-level packaging (FOWLP) slice reconstruction technology pioneered at C2MI, notably by Professor Serge Ecoffey of Université de Sherbrooke.

This technology allows for the aggregation of numerous discrete devices onto a single wafer, making it possible to carry out microfabrication and integration steps using the automated tools of a semiconductor foundry. Individually or collectively, these target markets represent substantial volume potential for a fully ‘made-in-Québec’ solution—an innovative answer to a core challenge faced by industry players worldwide, regardless of their size.

Establishing a high-volume manufacturing process would strategically position Québec’s photonics industry as a key player in the global integrated photonics ecosystem, opening the door to potential customers across the Americas, Europe, and Asia.

As part of this project, ten highly qualified personnel (HQPs) will be trained across various academic levels: one postdoctoral fellow, two doctoral candidates, two master’s students, and five undergraduate students. Their training will focus on fields that are in high demand in Québec, including microsystems, advanced packaging, optics, and photonics.