Global demand for data is growing faster than conventional wireless infrastructure can sustainably support. The radio frequency (RF) spectrum is congested, energy consumption must be reduced, and RF signals cannot meet the security demands of next-generation applications. Optical wireless communication offers a compelling alternative. The technology is proven in laboratory settings and early products. Yet bringing it to market at scale remains a significant innovation challenge.
Multidisciplinary development
TNO at Holst Centre combines expertise in optics, electronics, photonics and communication systems to develop optical wireless communication solutions that not only work in the lab, but also in the real world. We co-create photonic integrated circuits (PICs) to further increase communication performance and reduce size and energy consumption.
We work as part of the Photonics Integration Technology Center (PITC) and use Process Design Kits (PDKs) to accelerate PIC development in our ecosystem. In each project, we address design, packaging and integration challenges. In our role as orchestrators, we help to select the right partners from our vast network of foundries and industry leaders to facilitate the refinement of PDKs and support development and fabrication. We turn system-level requirements into manufacturable solutions. Our objective is always technology that is reproducible, scalable and deployable at volume. This closes the gap between what is technologically possible and what industry can actually use.
Applications with advantage
Our work spans a range of use cases where integrated photonics deliver clear advantages. In secure indoor environments, light's inability to penetrate walls makes optical wireless inherently more secure and spectrally efficient than RF, with autonomous robots and drones among the immediate beneficiaries. At the other end of the scale, integrated photonics enable robust terabit-per-second communication links while reducing the size, weight and power demands on platforms. Across all applications, our measure of success is often the same: more bits per second, per watt, in an environment where channels are dynamic, and devices are far from static.
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