The collaboration continues to focus on improving the integration, assembly, and manufacturing workflows necessary to bring highly integrated silicon photonics optical engines to market, with the OLP-PM13306 400G test board being the latest example of this progress.
The OLP-PM13306 is designed to enable testing and evaluation of OpenLight's 400G electro-optical absorption modulator (EAM), integrating a high-speed controller along with the photonic integrated circuit (PIC) on a high-speed TGV-based printed circuit board (PCB), combined with a low-loss fiber coupling unit (FAU). The entire optical subassembly—including the TGV-based PCB design, FAU integration, and assembly—was designed and manufactured by TFC.
As the adoption of silicon photonics accelerates in data centers, artificial intelligence/machine learning (AI/ML), and new optical networking applications, the maturity of the back-end ecosystem becomes increasingly critical to support higher levels of photonic integration and higher data rates per channel.
Since the initial announcement of the alliance at OFC 2025, OpenLight and TFC have expanded the scope of their collaboration to support higher-speed optical engines and new integration requirements. TFC has been involved in optical assembly activities for OpenLight's 100G and 200G per channel PIC transmitters, and is now extending this collaboration to 400G per channel devices. These advancements reflect the joint focus on optimizing integration and assembly processes in parallel with the increasing data rates in silicon photonics.
The collaboration between OpenLight and TFC offers customers an expanded choice within the optical assembly ecosystem, facilitating the supply chain from complete wafers to integrated fiber optical engines. The alliance aims to reduce complexity, improve manufacturing capacity, and accelerate time to market.
“With the continued growth of silicon photonics, success increasingly depends on preparing the back-end ecosystem,” said Dr. Adam Carter, CEO of OpenLight. “Our ongoing collaboration with TFC focuses on enabling practical and scalable integration and assembly processes that customers will need as optical engines become more complex and move closer to production.” “
TFC is proud to support its customers in developing the next generation of silicon photonics, such as the EAM 400G showcased on a TGV substrate,” said Lucy Ou, CEO of TFC. “We continue to invest in key technologies related to advanced optical assembly, optoelectronics, and systems integration solutions, leveraging one of our seven global facilities across three countries. By working closely with OpenLight, we are transforming advanced photonic integration into scalable and manufacturable optical subassemblies that will drive broader industry adoption.”
