Project aims at European terahertz InP-on-Si foundry, ecosystem
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A three-year European research project led by wafer maker Soitec SA has started working on InP-on-silicon for circuits for 6G telecommunications, sensing and photonics.
Indium phosphide circuits inherently operate at frequencies approaching or exceeding 1THz, offering superior speeds and increased energy-efficiency compared to silicon technologies.
The project – which includes 27-member organizations and commercial companies – is called Move2thz and officially started on June 1 2024. The project’s aims are to create a global standard for the production of indium phosphide on silicon wafers and to create a competitive facility for the mass production of InP circuits in Europe.
Participants in the Move2THz project by country. Source: Soitec
The creation of the standard will allow the use of 300mm-diameter silicon wafers to carry InP circuits for sensors, photonics and 6G circuits, the project asserts. This will allow the use of bulk InP wafers to be curtailed and minimizing the use of InP and reducing the technology’s ecological footprint.
The project has a budget of €40.67 million (about US$45 million), with the European Union contributing €11.96 million (about US$13.2 million). Top-up funding is also being provided by the governments of France, Switzerland, Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands and Belgium. The scheme is intended to create a technology platform and related ecosystem covering the entire value chain.
Potential applications range from photonics for data centers and AI to radio frequency front-ends and integrated antennas for 6G mobile communication, sub-terahertz radar sensing and beyond.
Soitec’s Smartcut technology, used for silicon-on-insulator wafers, is a starting point for the production of InP-on-Si wafers.
Related links and articles:
www.soitec.com
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