{"id":5416,"date":"2026-04-21T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nlmphotonics.com\/?p=5416"},"modified":"2026-04-20T13:10:30","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T20:10:30","slug":"nlm-and-spark-photonics-partner-to-advance-organic-hybrid-solutions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nlmphotonics.com\/fr\/2026\/04\/21\/nlm-and-spark-photonics-partner-to-advance-organic-hybrid-solutions\/","title":{"rendered":"NLM Photonics\u00a0and\u00a0Spark Photonics\u00a0Partner\u00a0to Advance\u00a0Organic Hybrid Solutions"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Partnership\u00a0pushes forward\u00a0results on Tower Semiconductor\u2019s PH18M and AIM Photonics\u2019\u00a0300 mm\u00a0silicon photonics platforms\u00a0<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n
\n
\"Photo:
L-R: Dr. Lewis Johnson, NLM CTO; Kevin McComber, Spark Photonics CEO; and Dr. Scott Hammond, NLM Senior Director, Process Technology at Tower Semiconductor’s conference last fall.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

SEATTLE \u2014 April 21, 2026 \u2014<\/strong> NLM Photonics<\/a>, a leader in silicon organic hybrid (SOH) photonic solutions, today announced an ongoing design partnership with Spark Photonics<\/a>, a photonics design firm, to accelerate the development and integration of NLM\u2019s high-performance SOH solutions across multiple silicon photonic foundry platforms. This collaboration has already advanced projects on Tower Semiconductor’s<\/a> PH18M platform and AIM Photonics’ 300 mm silicon photonics platform, with additional efforts underway. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

NLM Photonics recently completed processing of SOH modulators as part of a multi-project wafer (MPW) run on Tower Semiconductor’s PH18M silicon photonics platform<\/a>. Spark Photonics provided design services for the modulators and chip layout. NLM developed and executed the oxide open etch required for the deposition of its patented Selerion™-HTX organic electro-optic (OEO) material. The results demonstrate the compatibility of Tower’s PH18 process with NLM’s SOH technology and lay the foundation for the Process Development Kit (PDK) planned for later this year.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSilicon photonics\u00a0(SiPho)\u00a0foundries are aggressively scaling capacity, with players like Tower Semiconductor planning to triple\u00a0SiPho\u00a0output by mid-2026. Integration of advanced modulator technologies, including silicon\u00a0organic hybrid approaches such as NLM Photonics, provide a roadmap for continuing innovation at silicon photonics foundries,\u201d said Vladimir Kozlov, Founder and CEO,\u00a0LightCounting.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spark Photonics also contributed to NLM’s work on AIM Photonics’<\/a> 300 mm silicon photonics platform, part of a U.S. Air Force AFWERX STTR Phase II contract<\/a>. Spark Photonics developed the layout for a full custom wafer run incorporating NLM modulator designs. Building on prior MPW work, this run is intended to validate designs for a PDK offering on AIM\u2019s process. This will significantly broaden access to the technology for U.S. Government and commercial customers in high-speed datacom, RF photonics, sensing, and other demanding applications. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Spark Photonics brings deep photonic integrated circuit (PIC) design expertise and a solid understanding of the unique process requirements of SOH technology,” said Brad Booth, CEO, NLM Photonics. “Their contributions have been essential to our progress on both the Tower and AIM platforms. We look forward to deepening this collaboration as we develop the SOH recipe for high-volume manufacturing and widespread commercial adoption.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are dedicated to lowering the barrier to entry for PIC technologies,\u201d said Kevin McComber, CEO, Spark Photonics. \u201cBy integrating NLM\u2019s high-performance modulation with\u00a0Spark Photonics\u2019\u00a0design\u00a0expertise,\u00a0this work is\u00a0establishing\u00a0the\u00a0pathways\u00a0necessary for customers to move from prototypes to production on industry-standard foundry processes.\u00a0Spark Photonics is\u00a0excited to continue building solutions that\u00a0advance\u00a0the\u00a0state of the art\u00a0of integrated photonics.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About NLM Photonics<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

NLM Photonics is architecting the future of photonic communications. Enabled by NLM\u2019s Selerion™ family of organic electro-optic material and leveraging standard silicon photonic manufacturing, NLM has created a blueprint for building energy-efficient, high-bandwidth photonic interconnects for data centers, AI infrastructure, and quantum networking. For more information, visit nlmphotonics.com<\/a> or follow us on LinkedIn at nlm-photonics<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

About Spark Photonics Design<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spark Photonics Design (Spark Photonics) is a leading provider of PIC solutions, offering component, circuit, tile, and full-reticle design, layout, and PDK services across all material platforms. The company also sells and supports PIC design software from Luceda Photonics and provides PIC Kits designed for education, training, and measurement validation. For more information, visit sparkphotonics.com<\/a> or follow Spark on LinkedIn at spark-photonics<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Media Contact<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Theo McGillivray\u00a0
Communication Director\u00a0\u00a0
press-relations@nlmphotonics.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Partnership\u00a0pushes forward\u00a0results on Tower Semiconductor\u2019s PH18M and AIM Photonics\u2019\u00a0300 mm\u00a0silicon photonics platforms\u00a0 SEATTLE \u2014 April 21, 2026 \u2014 NLM Photonics, a leader in silicon organic hybrid (SOH) photonic solutions, today announced an ongoing design partnership with Spark Photonics, a photonics design firm, to accelerate the development and integration of NLM\u2019s high-performance SOH solutions across multiple silicon photonic foundry platforms. This collaboration has already advanced projects […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5417,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5416","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-press"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t