Virtual Environment for Integrated Photonics Assembly Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
The high production cost and low throughput of application-specific integrated optics chips, which are typically designed and fabricated using a CMOS process, result in inefficiencies and increased costs passed to customers or end-users.
Innovation Solution
A system for generating a virtual environment that enables the implementation of integrated photonics assemblies by deploying virtual photonic integrated subcircuits, allowing for the coupling of multiple subcircuits to form a virtual integrated photonics assembly, and simulating performance characteristics to represent real-world physical assemblies.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If application-specific integrated optics chips are designed and fabricated using a CMOS process, then manufacturing precision is maintained, but production cost increases and throughput decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a virtual copy of the photonic integrated circuit fabrication process. A virtual environment models the physical fabrication process, allowing multiple virtual iterations and simulations without incurring actual manufacturing costs. This virtual prototyping and testing capability enables rapid design exploration and optimization, significantly increasing throughput while reducing the need for expensive physical trial runs and reducing material waste.
2Productivity
If application-specific integrated optics chips are designed and fabricated using a CMOS process, then manufacturing precision is maintained, but production throughput decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements preliminary virtual fabrication and testing before actual manufacturing. The virtual environment allows complete simulation of the fabrication process, design verification, and performance testing to be performed in advance. This preliminary action identifies and corrects design errors virtually, ensuring that when physical fabrication occurs, it can be executed with high precision based on validated designs, thereby maintaining manufacturing precision while increasing throughput through reduced rework.
3Adaptability or versatility
If virtual photonic integrated subcircuits are coupled to form a virtual integrated photonics assembly, then design flexibility and customization are improved, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the photonic integrated circuit into modular virtual subcircuits that can be independently designed, simulated, and coupled. Each subcircuit represents a functional module that can be independently optimized and tested in the virtual environment. This segmentation enables flexible reconfiguration and customization of the overall assembly by simply recombining different modular subcircuits, thereby improving design flexibility while managing system complexity through modular organization and standardized interfaces.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods for generating a virtual environment for implementing an integrated photonics assembly are presented. An example system can include one or more processors and a memory coupled with the processors, where the processor executes a plurality of modules stored in the memory. The plurality of modules can include a user interface module for deploying one or more virtual photonic integrated subcircuits within the virtual environment, in which the virtual environment is configured to enable coupling of at least two virtual photonic integrated subcircuits. The coupling of the virtual photonic integrated subcircuits can form a virtual integrated photonics assembly. The modules can include a library module comprising a plurality of virtual photonic integrated subcircuits. One or more virtual photonic integrated subcircuits can include a performance characteristic. The performance characteristic can represent a real-world performance characteristic of a pre-fabricated physical photonic integrated subcircuit corresponding to the virtual photonic integrated subcircuit.