EPFL - PIC concept and nanofabrication
EPFL has developed advanced photonic integrated circuits (PICs) that enable high-performance lasers with ultra-low noise and fast frequency control. These lasers are ideal for industrial applications such as precise optical measurements, distance ranging, infrastructure monitoring, and quantum computing. Unlike traditional systems, our new PIC-based lasers offer a highly defined laser “color,” determined by the frequency of light and the laser linewidth. The more precisely this color is defined, the more accurate the sensing in photonic systems becomes. Additionally, we can adjust the laser color precisely and quickly, a feature known as high-frequency tuning agility, making these lasers highly versatile and powerful.
Our new PICs use silicon nitride, a material that enhances laser stability and reduces noise. By integrating micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) onto the PICs, we achieve faster and more precise frequency tuning, which is essential for many advanced applications. This unique design addresses the challenges seen in other integrated lasers, which often struggle to achieve both low noise and tuning agility simultaneously. We’ve optimized the current PIC technology and assembled the first samples. Moving forward, we aim to enhance the photonic layout for better performance and refine the nanofabrication process to improve the energy efficiency of our lasers.
ficonTEC - Industrial manufacturing machine
One of the main challenges for photonic products is the assembly and packaging which is responsible for up to 80% of the overall product costs and hence often decides about a commercial success – or failure of a photonic product.
Therefore, one of the main objectives of the FORTE project is the development of a low-cost, robust and scalable photonic multi-chip assembly for combining light-emitting (lasers) and light-modulating (SiN photonic integrated circuits, PICs) components.
Based on the technical specifications from Deeplight and EPFL, ficonTEC developed, designed and built a tailored assembly machine for the FORTE demonstrators. An initial assembly process was developed specifically for the components from Deeplight allowing for an automated assembly of the different photonic building blocks used in the project. After successfully passing the factory acceptance, the machine was installed at partner Deeplight and will be used during the project for a constant improvement of the initial process, paving the way for a reliable and cost-efficient assembly of the final demonstrators.
Aragón Photonics - Fiber sensing
The main objective of Aragon Photonics in this project is to develop a platform to test the FORTE lasers fabricated by our partners and prove their application in the Distributed Fiber Optic Sensing (DFOS) technology, considering two main fields: Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS) and Distributed Temperature Sensing (DTS). DAS technology relies on how vibrations from desired detectable events interact with the light which travels through optical fiber. Our interrogator device can detect the change of the reflected light due to these perturbations and through signal characterization, evaluate and characterize the source of the vibration. DTS technology works similarly to DAS technology but using temperature instead of vibrations to affect the light and produce a perturbation that can be sensed. These technologies have several fields of application like power monitoring, highway monitoring, natural disasters detection, third party intrusion and railway monitoring among others. With the development of cheaper and better lasers for our interrogators, we would be able to reduce criticality in our supply chain, improve the performance of our DFOS devices and transfer to the market an enhanced product. Furthermore, lasers tested in this new platform will follow the Standards for the sensing environment, allowing rapid integration into the market.
Thales R&T - Light Detection and Ranging
The laser technology developed through the FORTE project has the potential to be a game changer in numerous applications, including sensing with Frequency Modulated Continuous Wave (FMCW) LiDAR, distributed acoustic sensing, high-speed communication networks, and quantum technologies. FMCW LiDAR measures distances by emitting a continuous laser beam with a frequency that varies over time, providing higher precision than other LiDAR methods together with high reliability even in low-light, bright sunlight, rain, or snow. These innovative lasers will significantly enhance FMCW LiDAR systems through their ultra-narrow linewidth and exceptional phase noise performance, delivering superior distance and velocity measurements crucial for both autonomous vehicles and aerial mapping, in a compact cm3 form factor. Moreover, these lasers are ideal for Radio-Over-Fiber networks, by phase-locking two lasers on a radiofrequency carrier with minimal phase noise degradation. This feature is essential for maintaining signal integrity over long distances, ensuring high-quality, high-speed data transmission. The high actuation bandwidth of the integrated lasers, provided by a pure phase section, enables precise locking without parasitic coupling in the gain section and rapid response times for local oscillator frequency hops. Leveraging its expertise as a system architect and integrator, Thales is testing FORTE lasers and will integrate them to demonstrate functional proof-of-concept FMCW LiDAR and millimeter-wave generation, further enhancing the performance of such systems.
Deeplight - Laser level engineering and market dissemination
Our PIC-based lasers will enable technological advancements in various fields, providing a compact, integrated solution for applications that demand precision, reliability, and high performance. This innovation promises to push the limits in metrology, quantum computing, and sensing.
Deeplight is responsible for the development of the industrial photonic packaging process of the laser prototypes in coordination with ficonTEC. One big challenge of dealing with photonic integrated circuits (PIC) is to interface them with macroscopic systems. The inputs and outputs of PIC usually require alignment within a hundred of nanometers. To reach this goal, Deeplight will benefit from the experience of ficonTEC in industrial manufacturing.
Deeplight is the commercial backend of the consortium, ensuring dissemination, exploitation of FORTE results and probing market traction. This project will contribute to a sustainable photonic ecosystem of suppliers and integrators in Europe, reinforcing the EU independence in integrated photonics targeting high added value applications such as fiber sensing, FMCW LiDAR, microwave signal generation.