“The PIXEurope project will position Catalonia as a European leader in photonic chips”

What does the PIXEurope project consist of?

— It is a European pilot line that aims to develop an infrastructure for photonic chips that serves both companies and institutions working with photonics in order to accelerate their developments and demonstrate their products; that is to say, that they are capable of producing processes and designs that can be scaled. The next step is production, which the factories will take care of.

Can you give an example?

— Let’s imagine a Catalan company in the field of communications that has patents on a technology that contains photonic chips. The company, however, does not have the necessary infrastructure to develop products based on these patents, because it is very expensive. What PIXEurope will allow through the pilot line is to be able to demonstrate that the design they have patented can actually be manufactured. And once that step has been reached, once the design has been tested, they can go to a manufacturer to produce the product for them in large volumes. In the end it will close the gap that typically exists between the laboratory and manufacturing.

Who will it serve?

— From small entities, such as now spin-offs from public institutions, to private initiatives such as start-ups or large companies that want to validate their design ideas to reach a prototype. Having one opens the door for them to increase and enhance the financing for the production line. It is also aimed at equipment manufacturers, because in the pilot line they will be able to demonstrate that their equipment can be used to manufacture chips.

Where will it be located?

— Unlike microelectronics, which works on silicon chips or variants, the photonic integrated circuit pilot line depends on many different materials and processes. This means that it is a distributed infrastructure with centers specialized in specific materials and processes spread over 11 European countries. All will be connected and managed by the ICFO. Users will come to us with a demand, such as making a chip, packaging it, or designing it, and the ICFO will be responsible for assigning the work to the various specialized centers that can contribute to the development of the service. All partners, coordinated by the ICFO, will develop the photonic chip technologies and processes that will be part of the services.

What will it mean for the ICFO to coordinate this project?

— With the project, the ICFO and its ecosystem will promote the transfer of scientific ideas to the market so that they have an industrial impact. In this sense, the pilot line is like an arrow that allows you to jump from scientific discoveries to technological inventions.

And for Catalonia?

— PIXEurope will offer a unique ecosystem for Catalan companies to develop and accelerate their products. And, in addition, it will position Catalonia as a European leader in this sector.

Why is Europe driving photonic chip design and manufacturing?

— One of the reasons is to guarantee European technological sovereignty. Photonic chips can be used in telecommunications. They are also an essential technology to increase the computational capacity of artificial intelligence data centers. They are key to creating new devices to monitor health, and also play a critical role in critical areas such as defense and security of a state, as well as quantum technologies.

What stage is the project in?

— We are now in a negotiation phase. The project is expected to start in the spring of 2025. Then, first will come a development phase that will last about three years, during which the installation of the first equipment and development of the technologies will take place. A period will follow to involve companies in the project, which we call “engagement with industries”. We hope that in five years this pilot line will be operating at full capacity and will continue to operate for another decade. An investment of around 400 million is planned for this pilot line: half comes from the Chips Ju initiative; the other half mostly from Spain and also from the other countries participating in the project: Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Italy, Ireland, Poland, Portugal, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. In the State, in addition, as partners there are the Institute of Microelectronics of Barcelona (IMB-CNM, CSIC), the Polytechnic University of Valencia, the University of Vigo and the Universidad Carlos III of Madrid.