NTT-led team targets a tenfold gain in optical chiplet manufacturing
Illustrative image: Laura Ockel on Unsplash
NTT Innovative Devices is leading a four-company project to develop optical chiplet manufacturing, with a target of more than ten times the productivity of current research-stage processes.
Selected under Japan’s NEDO programme for advanced semiconductor manufacturing, the work brings together Japan Semiconductor, Furukawa Electric and Shinko Electric Industries. NTT will act as an adviser. The companies plan to establish and evaluate a pilot production line for future commercial manufacturing.
Their responsibilities follow the component through production. Japan Semiconductor will develop silicon photonics processes for heterogeneous material integration; Furukawa will work on compound-semiconductor optical devices. NTT Innovative Devices will cover manufacturing, test and packaging, while Shinko’s contribution includes packaging processes and inspection during production.
An optical chiplet combines photonic and electronic integrated circuits in a compact package, using light to carry data between processing devices. Manufacturing therefore has to reconcile several kinds of device and interconnection, rather than simply repeat a successful transistor process on a larger wafer.
The pilot line is intended to test that manufacturing chain as a connected operation. A high-performing optical device still has to survive assembly, couple light effectively and pass inspection at a rate consistent with commercial output. Improvements in one step can be lost if another remains slow or produces inconsistent results.
The stated productivity increase is measured against research-stage processing. It is a development target, with the pilot line intended to establish how fabrication, assembly and test can be made repeatable at scale.
