Fabless Design of Photonic Integrated Circuits within the AIM Photonics Foundry (PIC-1)

Learn about the new paradigm of fabless photonic chip design from course instructor Prof. Stefan Preble of the Rochester Institute of Technology.

Take a deep-dive into fabless photonics design using industry-leading Electronic Photonic Design Automation (EPDA) software to model, simulate, layout, and error-check a photonic integrated circuit for high-tech applications.

COURSE TYPE: Online instructor-led on a course schedule
DATES: April 4 - June 16, 2025
DURATION: 10 weeks total (8 weeks online instruction + 2 weeks to complete design)
COURSE COMMITMENT: ~10–20 hours a week
PREREQUISITES: A background in silicon photonics (equivalent to the Fundamentals of Integrated Photonics), fiber optics, or III-V semiconductors is recommended, but not required. Proficiency in linear algebra and calculus will enhance understanding of design concepts.

Course Description and Objectives

This course is structured around the design of a basic transceiver (fiber-coupler+modulator+detector). It begins with an overview of fabless PIC design and a review of passive silicon photonic devices (waveguides, bends, splitters/combiners and interferometers). Participants are then guided through the step-by-step process of designing a transceiver chip with two primary active devices (electro-optic modulator and photodetector). The course culminates in the tape-out of an electro-optically active PIC chip suitable for fabrication through AIM Photonics’ Multi-Project Wafer (MPW) services.

Participants will acquire a mastery of Electronic Photonic Design Automation (EPDA) using Ansys Lumerical photonics simulation and design software and open source KLayout layout software in combination with AIM Photonics’ Academic Process Design Kit (PDK) to learn how to interpret design guides, leverage hierarchical design, and ensure that the design can be manufactured through design rule checking (DRC).* You’ll learn how to model photonic devices and create compact models for them; how to simulate, layout, and DRC-check a PIC; and create modular building blocks and address performance trade-offs in fabless circuit design.

After completion of the course, select submitted PIC tape-outs may be eligible for submission to an AIM Photonics Multi-Project-Wafer (MPW) run.

*If a participant currently has access to Synopsys Optocompiler they will be able to access the Synopsys materials

Registration

Registration for the April 4 - June 16, 2025 course is now closed.

The cost to register for this course is $349 for AIM Photonics Full Members and U.S. Department of Defense employees and $499 for non-members. The registration fee includes access to industry-standard software (Ansys Lumerical) and Academic PDK library components to create an integrated photonics circuit design project. Financial aid or other discounts are not offered for this course. Once eligibility is confirmed, registrants will be contacted for course payment, which must be made by April 11, 2025.

To comply with federal export control regulations and as an obligation of a U.S. Department of Defense Manufacturing Innovation Institute, all participants in AIM Photonics’ courses are subject to restricted party screening (RPS) or similar review to confirm eligibility. The U.S. government maintains the restricted party lists.


Course Instructors

Prof. Stefan Preble, Rochester Institute of Technology

Stefan Preble is a Professor in the Kate Gleason College of Engineering at the Rochester Institute of Technology. His research is focused on integrated photonic chips aimed at realizing high performance computing, communication and sensing systems that leverage the high speed, bandwidth and sensitivity of light. Stefan’s work has been recognized with a DARPA Young Faculty Award and an AFOSR Young Investigator Award; his publications have appeared in Nature Photonics, Optics Express, Applied Physics Letters, and Physical Review Letters.

Prof. Jaime Cardenas, University of Rochester

Jaime Cardenas is an Assistant Professor in The Institute of Optics at the University of Rochester. His research is focused on photonics packaging, 2D materials integrated photonics, nonlinear photonics, and on-chip quantum photonics. Jaime’s publications have appeared in Nature Photonics, Optica, Optics Express, and Physical Review Letters.

Frequently Asked Questions

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