The Swiss Photonics Integration Center was established to support and promote the development of the country's photoelectricity industry

At the beginning of January 2023, Switzerland established the "Swiss Photonics Integration Center" (Swiss PIC), which has received financial support from the Swiss Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs, Education and Research and the Association of Advanced Manufacturing Technology Transfer Centers, which will provide support for the development of Swiss photonics industry.

(Image source: Paul Scherrer Institute)

At present, many industries facing the future need the support of photonic integrated circuits (PICs), such as optical communication, sensor technology, the development of quantum computers, automatic driving, artificial intelligence and augmented reality or virtual reality. It is a complex task to embed the integrated photon system into the closed components that interface with the optical fiber. This so-called "photon packaging" is a prerequisite for industry to use this technology in commerce, and is also one of the driving forces of Swiss PIC in the future.

"Swiss PIC" will provide proprietary technology transfer from academic partners to serve the photonics industry. The center will mainly focus on micro-optics hybrid photonic systems, photonic integrated circuits (PICs) and quantum photonics, and will mainly provide services for start-ups and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Its services will cover a range of areas, from consulting to design, to building a customized and comprehensive photonic packaging infrastructure, allowing customers to start small-scale production.

The "Swiss Photonics Integration Center" will provide the corresponding resource platform for those companies that need to manufacture optical components but have no opportunity to test optical components on larger equipment, and provide the photonics industry with support in key aspects such as photon packaging, assembly, testing and approval of photon systems.

It is reported that the technology transformation center is moving into Innovare Park, close to Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) and Swiss Synchrotron Light Source (SLS). "Swiss Photonics Integration Center" will become the second technology transfer center located in Innovare Park after ANAXAM, which focuses on material analysis. Today, Swiss PIC is one of the six national sites of the Swiss Innovation Park. The rising industrial clusters will promote the effective communication between science and industry, provide the impetus for rapid innovation of marketable products, and optimize the company's added value chain.

The funds received by Swiss PIC Technology Transformation Center will mainly come from three aspects: on the one hand, the Board of Directors of Zurich Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) provides funds and will establish the Association of Advanced Manufacturing Technology Transfer Centers (AM-TTC) in Switzerland as one of its strategic planning measures for 2021-2024. On the other hand, according to Article 15 of the Federal Act on the Promotion of Research and Innovation, the Swiss PIC is also receiving funding from the Swiss Federal Government. In addition, the "Swiss Photonics Integration Center" will also receive in-kind contributions (non-cash contributions) from industrial and research partners.

The founding partners of the "Swiss Photonics Integration Center" include the non-profit company Swiss Photonics, which is responsible for project application, Paul Scherer Institute and the Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences, as well as Ligentec and Polariton Technologies, which are specialized in integrated optics.

Source: OFweek