Public Funding for Light Trace Photonics Ltd

Photonic integrated circuits (PICs) are microchips capable of guiding, manipulating, and detecting light. PICs will enable key technologies critical for progress in this century, ranging from high-precision gas sensors for atmospheric monitoring to miniaturised lab-on-chip devices that will help alleviate NHS pressures. Just as the CPU in your computer requires high-quality, reliable components to process information, the PIC revolution requires high-quality, reliable components as building blocks for these technologies. The UK's PIC market is rapidly growing and is expected to reach $2.9 billion by 2026\. However, the UK is currently underinvesting in PIC components. This underinvestment forces companies to bear the costs of developing their components themselves. A costly process that is threatening to derail growth. In this project, Light Trace Photonics will assess the feasibility of an innovative service we call Integrated Photonics as a Service (IPaaS) which will significantly de-risk and accelerate the time-to-market for technologies that rely on PICs. IPaaS will handle all fundamental component-level development (e.g. filters, power-splitters, fibre-couplers), leaving the customer free to focus their time and money on developing more complex and impactful PIC systems that will enable game-changing technological applications such as city-wide networked air-quality monitoring and next-generation computation. As part of this feasibility project, we will build relationships with semiconductor PIC fabrication facilities in the UK. The project includes work packages on market research, technical feasibility, user experience, and pricing strategy to ensure that our offering is well-informed and delivers the absolute best value for money to the UK semiconductor PIC supply chain, and the UK economy.

no public description

no public description

Photonics is set to become the UKs third most productive manufacturing sector by 2035 with many innovations enabled by photonic integrated circuits (PICs). The development of PICs, whilst necessary, requires many energy intensive cycles which negatively affect the environment. These development cycles are needed because once fabricated the layout of the device cannot be improved without additional fabrication. At Light Trace Photonics, we are developing the next generation of optics components that go beyond the limited scope of current fibre-based componentry and which enable reconfigurability without additional fabrication. Our component modules provide high-performance, tunable, optics componentry that can be used to cut the number of energy intensive development cycles required to bring photonic products to market. Crucially, our core technology is long lasting and therefore can be leased to multiple users over its lifetime, helping to contribute to the circular economy. Our innovation, if brought to market, will help reduce the footprint of photonics innovation - crucial for helping the UK tackle many of its other key strategic challenges such as the ageing society and future mobility.