Open-Access Silicon Photonics: Current Status and Emerging Initiatives

Silicon photonics is widely acknowledged as a game-changing technology driven by the needs of datacom and telecom. Silicon photonics builds on highly capital-intensive manufacturing infrastructure, and mature open-access silicon photonics platforms are translating the technology from research fabs to industrial manufacturing levels. To meet the current market demands for silicon photonics manufacturing, a variety of open-access platforms is offered by CMOS pilot lines, R&D institutes, and commercial foundries. This paper presents an overview of existing and upcoming commercial and noncommercial open-access silicon photonics technology platforms. We also discuss the diversity in these open-access platforms and their key differentiators.