Photonics

Atomica helps bring innovative optical and photonic components to life.

Our 20+ years of experience spans all manner of materials, structures, and applications, including optical communications, 3D sensing and LiDAR, augmented/virtual reality (AR/VR), thermal imaging, illumination, and other types of optical sensing.

Our customers in the photonics industry get a head start commercializing products by leveraging Atomica’s standard processes and platforms. Our people and processes can help you save money, establish a competitive advantage, and shorten time to market.

Applications

Optical Communications

As datacenters and telecom networks upgrade to 400 Gb and faster data rates, smaller and more precise micro-optical systems have become ever more critical. Atomica has broad and deep expertise in optical MEMS and wafer-level optical integration that enables higher levels of performance and integration. Below are some examples of our standard processes, platforms, and capabilities designed to advance photonic systems.

Platforms and capabilities

We offer standard platforms and process modules on 6” and 8” wafers to help our clients quickly and cost-effectively move from design to volume production.

  • Silicon optical benches (SiOBs)
  • Through-silicon vias (TSVs)
  • V-grooves
  • MEMS mirrors
  • Fiber management blocks
  • CMOS post-processing
  • Laser submounts
  • Gold Tin (AuSn)
  • Wafer-level packaging
  • Grayscale lithography (3D)
  • Photonic circuits and waveguides

Learn more

Why Atomica?

  1. Largest US MEMS Foundry

    Atomica serves its customers from a 13-acre, 130,000 ft2 manufacturing campus (including a 30,000 ft2 class 100 cleanroom) in Santa Barbara, California. We operate over 400 sophisticated 150mm and 200mm tools and are ISO 9001 and ITAR certified. This makes us the largest independent MEMS fab in the United States, well-positioned to support the growing demand for domestic production of critical sensors, photonics, and biochips.

  2. Unique collaborative methodology to ensure program success

    At Atomica, we are resolved to help our customers bring their innovations to life using our proven phase-gate process to successfully navigate the challenges of design, development, prototype, scale-up, and high-volume production. Our multi-disciplinary team of scientists and manufacturing engineers tackles the hardest process development and integration challenges with an eye toward manufacturability (DFM). Our methodology entails rigorous project management to optimize resources, mitigate risks, and deliver predictable results.

  3. Extraordinary engineering expertise

    Atomica has over 20 years of experience commercializing technologies that change the future. Our extensive experience spans the full spectrum of MEMS, including photonics, sensors, microfluidic biochips, and other micro components. We have over 20 Phds on-site and we’ve worked on hundreds of programs to date. You could say we’ve seen it all. This experience combined with our volume production facility help ensure customers get to market fast with the highest chance of commercial success.

  4. Exceptional flexibility in materials and project types

    Atomica has a versatile and flexible engagement model. We are able to engage using our standard processes or provide bespoke, custom process development. We will consider programs of many sizes, as long as they hold promise to have an impact on the world once they reach production. Atomica also is able to handle a very broad range of materials providing access to an extensive set of processes and materials unavailable in CMOS fabs, including noble metals, polymers, and virtually any substrate (e.g., silicon, SOI, glass, fused silica, quartz, borosilicate, piezos, and III-V).