PhoeniX Software B.V. of Enschede, The Netherlands - a vendor of photonic design automation (PDA) software used to synthesize integrated photonic circuits - has become a member of the consortium AIM Photonics (American Institute for Manufacturing Photonics).
PhoeniX is reckoned to be unique in the photonics industry as it enables photonic designers to work in a high-level technology-agnostic view and then synthesize the layout of their photonic integrated circuits (PICs) to different target fabrication processes. This capability is strategic to the AIM initiative as it enables photonic designers to quickly prototype their designs by targeting any one of AIM's photonic fabrication processes for layout and assembly in an AIM multi-project wafer (MPW) run.
"AIM Photonics is building a membership that includes some of the country's most innovative technology companies that each provide critical elements to the success of the institute," says Robert Duffy, chairman of the AIM Photonics leadership council. "Together, we are creating a world of new opportunities through this Rochester-based initiative," he adds.
"PhoeniX Software brings over 20 years of commercial photonic design automation experience, with extensive work in the creation and use of photonic process design kits (PDKs). We are excited to leverage their help in building the PDKs necessary to enable photonic designers to bring designs into our facilities," says Michael Liehr, CEO of AIM and executive VP of Innovation and Technology for SUNY Polytechnic Institute. "PhoeniX and other PDA companies are key to scaling photonic design into commercial applications and we look forward to working with PhoeniX Software to help us work on next-generation electronic-photonic design automation platforms (EPDA)."
PhoeniX pioneered the use of generic photonic building blocks and photonic synthesis with several European photonic foundries throughout the early 2000s. The firm also played a leadership role in designing interfaces with other PDA companies to create front-to-back photonic design flows and, more recently, to work with leading electronic design automation (EDA) companies such as Mentor Graphics, Cadence Design Systems and Synopsys to create EPDA co-design environments.
"We have many customers in the United States who have been wanting a US-based fabrication site for their PICs," says PhoeniX's CEO Twan Korthorst. "PDKs and high-level photonic libraries will soon be available from AIM for the PhoeniX Software platform."
