Ligen accelerates silicon photonics push, targeting 1.6T this year and 3.2T next year

Taiwanese LED and optoelectronics maker Ligen is accelerating its move into silicon photonics as data-center transmission standards advance from 800G toward 1.6T and 3.2T.

Li Hsiao-wen, the company’s vice president of research and development, said Ligen plans to complete development of a 1.6T optical transceiver module this year and a 3.2T product next year. The company is also developing ELSFP, or externally lasered small form-factor pluggable, modules for use in co-packaged optics and near-packaged optics systems.

Ligen has spent the past decade focused mainly on system-in-package technology. It is now extending that expertise into silicon photonics and high-speed optical communications, seeking a place in the rapidly developing optical transceiver market.

The company is also upgrading its laser-module capabilities. Li said the output power of a single laser module currently reaches 20 dBm, with a target of 26 dBm next year.

Ligen’s optical-engine technology covers electronic control, optical paths and thermal management for laser optics. Thermistors and monitor photodiodes track laser operation, while active alignment improves coupling efficiency among lenses, collimating lenses, isolators and fiber interfaces. In the 1.6T architecture, coupling between the fiber array unit and the input and output interfaces of the photonic integrated circuit represents one of the key manufacturing processes.

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The company will complete development of a 1.6T optical transceiver module this year and a 3.2T product next year.