This approach makes it possible to significantly reduce the final cost of the FIS for the customer, since the costs of expensive production are evenly distributed among all participants.
MOSCOW, May 27. /tass/. Skoltech (VEB GroupRussia) launches Russia's first contract production of photonic chips using silicon-on-insulator technology. This was announced by the rector of Skoltech, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences Yulia Gorbunova at the opening ceremony of the conference "Microelectronic Systems - 2026" (MES).
Skoltech (VEB GroupThe Russian Federation) announced the start of accepting applications for the first contract launch in the Russian Federation for the manufacture of photonic integrated circuits (FIS) on the silicon on insulator (CNI) platform. The launch will take place in a multi-project format (MPW - Multi-Project Wafer), a production method where circuits developed by different customers are simultaneously produced on a plate within a single cycle," the report says.
According to the company, this approach makes it possible to significantly reduce the final cost of FIS for the customer, since the costs of expensive production are evenly distributed among all participants. As part of the service, Russian and foreign customers will receive prototypes and small batches of their silicon photonic chips manufactured using industrial CMOS compatible technology.
"Due to the advantages of the CNI platform, such as miniaturization and the ability to create functional elements, including optical radiation modulators, these chips will eventually find their application in high-speed optical communication systems, optical computing, artificial intelligence systems, sensors and other rapidly developing industries. As part of the first launch, customers will have access to a basic set of standard FIS elements included in the PDK design library (Process Design Kit), verified and ready for use in projects," the message says.
The closed cycle of optoelectronics creation
The work is carried out with the support of the Russian Science Foundation within the framework of a grant for the implementation of applied scientific research in priority areas of scientific and technological development of the Russian Federation, the direction "Microelectronics". Skoltech's service is accompanied by full customer support: the provision of technical documentation on the process, reference designs, testing recommendations and consultations on adapting projects to technology, as well as services for optoelectronic assembly of FIS crystals into final product layouts.
"This will allow FIS developers - from research laboratories and fabless companies to R&D centers of optoelectronic product manufacturers - to move faster from a concept to a working chip on a domestic CSI platform without the need to create and deploy their own production lines," the report says.
The estimated time frame for the first batch of FIS crystals is the first quarter of 2027. Alexey Denisov, Vice President for Research Infrastructure at Skoltech, noted that in 2023-2024, a unique rapid prototyping center for devices based on FIS was launched on the basis of the Skoltech Research Infrastructure Center. In fact, this is the first center in Russia designed, created and equipped for the tasks of integrated photonics.
"We have managed to ensure a closed cycle of creating optoelectronic devices: from design and crystal production to optoelectronic assembly and testing. A key feature of the Skoltech service launched on the silicon on insulator platform is that it uses industrial CMOS-compatible technology as the basis, rather than a research technological process, which ensures compatibility with industry requirements for reproducibility, reliability and output volume. As demand for the corresponding products increases, domestic microelectronic factories will be able to implement photonic technology at their sites with minimal costs," said Alexey Denisov.
About the technology
Silicon-on-insulator (CNI) technology is today a fundamental platform for silicon photonics.
The key advantage lies in compatibility with the existing infrastructure, that is, photonic chips based on CNI can be produced in the same factories as traditional semiconductors, notes Vitaly Mordovets, PhD in Economics, Associate Professor, Head of the Department of St. Petersburg University of Management Technologies and Economics.
"The key challenges for scaling are the high cost of silicon wafers and poor heat dissipation. Industrial scaling in key segments (data centers, telecom) is really on the horizon for 5-7 years, entering the wide consumer market will take 8-12 years," he stressed.
Assessing the export potential of domestic developments, the expert noted that it is quite feasible in friendly markets - in Asia, the Middle East and the CIS countries. "The government explicitly sets the task of "entering the top ten world leaders in the production of photonics" and entering export. This is ambitious, but achievable as a long-term goal, provided that a complete technological chain is formed, including through the systematic support of development institutions such as VEB.The Russian Federation," Mordovian explained.
Skoltech is a non-governmental international university (part of the VEB Group.Russian Federation), which trains a new generation of leaders in the field of technology, science and business. Functioning as a technology factory, the institute has been conducting cutting-edge research on priority areas of the scientific and technological agenda for 15 years, as well as contributing to the introduction of technology and the development of entrepreneurship. The Institute has centers in the fields of artificial intelligence, life sciences and agricultural technologies, modern engineering and advanced materials, energy efficiency and energy transition, telecommunications and photonics, advanced research.
