OpenLight showcases III–V SiPh for AI at OFC 2026
OpenLight will present new production-ready photonic integrated circuit technologies at OFC 2026, targeting high-speed, energy-efficient optical interconnects for AI, cloud, and hyperscale data centre networks.
OpenLight is set to highlight a series of advances in heterogeneous III–V silicon photonics at the Optical Fiber Communication Conference and Exhibition 2026 in Los Angeles, with a strong focus on scalable, high-speed optical interconnects for AI and cloud infrastructure.
At booth #2449, the company will showcase integrated photonic technologies that combine lasers, modulators, and amplifiers on a single platform, underlining the growing maturity of its production-ready photonic integration approach.
A key demonstration is OpenLight’s 400G per lane electro-absorption modulator, designed to support 3.2T optical transceivers and beyond.
Building on work first presented at OFC 2025, the latest version introduces improved manufacturability and integration, alongside differential drive capability and enhanced bandwidth performance.
The device is co-packaged with a driver from MACOM and delivers an optical modulation amplitude of 3 dBm with an extinction ratio exceeding 3.5 dB.
The company will also present a fully integrated 1.6T DR8 transceiver PIC on an evaluation board, combining its DFB-based photonic chip with a 3 nm digital signal processor from Marvell.
The platform integrates lasers, modulators, amplifiers, and photodetectors, and demonstrates improved energy efficiency, with power consumption reduced to around 2.0 W.
Notably, the system features full flip-chip co-packaging of the DSP and photonic components, eliminating the need for external laser alignment.
This reflects a broader industry move toward tightly integrated optical engines for next-generation AI clusters and hyperscale data centres.
Alongside its own technology, OpenLight will highlight collaborations across the photonics ecosystem. Oriole Networkswill demonstrate an optical circuit switching approach aimed at reducing latency in AI workloads, while GDS Factory and Spark Photonics will showcase design and layout capabilities using OpenLight’s process design kit.
Together, the demonstrations point to a shift from research-driven photonics toward scalable, manufacturable solutions.
With integrated lasers, advanced modulation, and co-packaged architectures, OpenLight is positioning its platform to meet the growing bandwidth and efficiency demands of AI and cloud infrastructure.
