Oct. 29, 2025
Ultrashort Pulsed Lasers
Ultrashort-pulsed lasing, especially in femtosecond regime, is widely applied to achieve the precise laser treatment that benefits/results from the low heat-affected zone. In UV range, a femtosecond laser offers even more advantages -- in smaller feature size, smaller absorption length, and processing on a wider range of materials. These qualities give UV femtosecond lasing large market potential in high-end, high-precision applications. However, the technology is not without bottlenecks and challenges. Spectral broadening, laser-induced contamination, and back reflection are essential issues to overcome in order to achieve an optimum performance and result. This article identifies and annotates on these issues and introduces solutions optimized for applications using a UV femtosecond laser with a galvanometer scanner.
Key Technologies: Ultrashort pulsed industrial lasers (particularly UV femtosecond pulsed), laser materials (glass, rubber, ceramic, plastic, gold, silver, and copper) processing, laser micromachining, displays manufacturing, medical device manufacturing, semiconductor manufacturing, UV laser optics, f-theta lenses, silica optics, galvo scanners, motion control, positioning equipment, industrial lasers in research
Optical Gratings
From early applications of fundamental grating theory/the grating equation, to sophisticated, contemporary applications in handheld diagnostics, spectroscopy, and advanced manufacturing, numerous factors characterize the arc of diffraction grating technology. These include advancements to grating production methods and technologies -- leading to durable, rugged designs, and new applications as a result; an expanse of distinct types of gratings, each finding widespread use and application; and the development of specialty-type gratings. This article examines how each of these progress points have contributed to current trends in grating technology, including (broadly) a shift from Vis to UV wavelengths; use in AR/VR technologies; and grating-based spectroscopy, particularly utilizing the MIR. From these trends, new questions emerge. Notably, will gratings, and particularly grating-based spectroscopy, be replaced PIC technologies and metasurfaces?
Key Technologies: "Optical (diffraction) gratings: Reflection gratings, phase/amplitude gratings, volume/surface relief gratings, bulk-type gratings, blazed gratings, holographic diffraction gratings, Grating-based spectroscopy: MIR spectroscopy, Raman, LIBS, NIR. Gratings in semicon manufacturing: plasma monitoring, molecular concentration analysis, thin films. Gratings for AR/VR technologies. Novel Gratings: Blazed gratings, Damman gratings. Manufacturing gratings/grating fabrication
Metrology in Semiconductor Manufacturing
Demand for faster, more efficient chips for use in industries including electronics, tele-/datacom, and automotive are leading chipmakers to seek ever-smaller feature sizes, and to increase chip density. AI chips are only intensifying this requirement. Yet, as it relates to chip designs and chipmaking, "smaller" does not explicitly mean "better." IC substrates, for example, are advancing along four distinct dimensions: increased height (layer count), larger sizes, greater precision, and improved flatness. What's more, while compact chips and/or larger substrates might lead to efficiency gains, neither compactness nor surface area can come at the expense of functionality. And while compact may be desirable, a design that cannot be scaled cannot be viable. Against this backdrop, as factors like the constraints of silicon, along with the exponential rise in development costs, signal the end of so-called "free" performance improvements from miniaturization alone, the chipmaking industry is now thinking beyond traditional planar scaling and tackling new design challenges. Material innovations, coupled with those in engineering, physics, and manufacturing technologies, are flooding the chipmaker’s toolkit. They may not suffice to overcome the limits of Moore’s Law — but they are leading to impressive and meaningful progress. All the while, There is one fundamental limit on transformative chipmaking that stands tall: If it cannot be measured, it cannot be built. This article examine metrology in the context of semiconductor manufacturing, looking at ways in which measurement protocols are enabling, constraining, and/or influencing current and future chip architectures. As new techniques, systems, and capabilities continue to pop up at seemingly all reaches of the semiconductor value chain, the article assesses if chip manufacturers are dragging the metrology behind them, so to speak, or, perhaps, if test and measurement protocols have been enablers to performance improvements from miniaturization that have ushered us into the present innovation environment.
Key Technologies: Test and measurement/metrology, semiconductor manufacturing, scatterometry, EUV test and measurement, Raman spectrophotometry, EUV lithography, semiconductor packaging, interferometry, materials metrology, 3D optical metrology, surface metrology, defect detection, wavefront measurement, x-ray fluorescence
Optical Design and Assembly
The ongoing push for higher-performing optical applications challenges designers and manufacturers to develop increasingly complex optical assemblies that meet ever-evolving demands. Fortunately, modern optical design tools have also advanced, enabling designers to create intricate systems that remain practical to manufacture. This article explores some of the latest features in the optical design software CODE V, key strategies for tolerancing, and best practices for transforming your designs into scalable, real-world systems. The article looks at the past, too, to showcase the pioneering innovations that industry and research have contributed and which now fill the optical designer's toolkit.
Key Technologies: Optical design and assembly, optics design for manufacture, imaging system design, optical glass, optical design software, optical metrology equipment, interferometry, CGH, optics supply chain, wavefront testing, aspheres and freeform design
Integrated Photonics Material Platforms: Thin-Film Lithium Niobate
Lithium niobate has been a central photonics material and technology for decades, widely deployed as a bulk material for electro-optic modulators in long-haul telecommunications. Its reliability has been demonstrated over millions of device hours in field operations, including early data center deployments. The emergence of thin-film lithium niobate (TFLN) brings this proven material into the domain of integrated photonics, enabling tightly confined waveguides with low loss and direct access to the Pockels effect. This article reviews the historical context of lithium niobate, outlines the properties of TFLN, and compares it to other photonic platforms, including silicon photonics, indium phosphide, silicon nitride, barium titanate, and electro-optic polymers. The discussion considers not only performance but also manufacturability and ecosystem maturity, as power efficiency and thermal management are emerging as critical bottlenecks in some established platforms. Meanwhile, the scalability and robustness of the TFLN supply chain remain key factors that will determine its long-term role. Applications where TFLN is showing promise, ranging from ultra-high-speed transceivers and passive optical networks to quantum information processing and aerospace photonics, are presented as examples of how material and ecosystem readiness together will shape the future of integrated photonics.
Key Technologies: Thin-Film Lithium Niobate integrated photonics, PICs, integrated photonics devices, integrated photonics materials platforms, light modulators, materials science, materials supply chain, materials foundries, optical communications, optical networking, space communications, beam scanning, laser communications, satellite comms., optical computing.
AI in Laser-Based Manufacturing
Dynamic trends in the utilization of AI/ML in laser-based manufacturing are spotlighted, with examinations of already-implemented solutions, as well as logistical and technological bottlenecks that must be overcome in order to achieve a synchronization between smart systems and functional manufacturing machinery. The article looks at the pairing of AI with established manufacturing processes; how AI can serve as a catalyst to new industrial processes; and how efficiency gains are establishing a new era for parts manufacturing, surfacing, processing, and other essential functions under the umbrella of laser-based manufacturing.
Key Technologies: Industrial lasers, lasers and AI, laser manufacturing, laser materials processing, laser surfacing, AI/ML, laser process monitoring, beam correction
Integrated Optics
Artificial intelligence is transforming data center architecture, driving unprecedented demands for compute, networking, power, and cooling. Trillion-parameter models and real-time inference are shifting infrastructure from CPU-centric designs to GPU-driven “AI factories” optimized for density and scale. To overcome copper interconnect limits, the industry is advancing optical solutions such as LPO, NPO, CPO, and CPC, alongside emerging protocols like UCIe and Ultra Ethernet. Simultaneously, power delivery is evolving with high-voltage DC and solid-state transformers, while liquid cooling and energy reuse address thermal and sustainability challenges. With future AI data centers poised to hinge on performance, reliability, and environmental efficiency, this article overviews, compares, and contrasts integrated optic architectures and schemes, placing each in the context of power delivery, adaptability, and a probability for increased adoption as AI data centers evolve and expand.
Key Technologies: Optical networking, data centers, data management, optical interconnectivity, pluggable optics, optical transceivers, linear pluggable optics (LPO), co-packaged optics (CPO), near-packaged optics (NPO), copper-packaged optics (CPC), linear receive optics (LRO), transmitter retimed optics (TRO), high-performance optical compute, optical circuit switching, optical switches, integrated waveguides, hyperscaling, UCIe, Ultra Ethernet, data center cooling.
AI and Optical Biomedical Imaging
Contributing editor Michael Eisenstein peels back the layers on the nuanced dynamic of how the use of AI in medical imaging is both enabling clinicians to access unprecedented amounts of data, as well as requiring a new set of solutions to optimize it and enable clinicians to act actionably on the data. The article will explore the incorporation of AI elements to optical microscopy setups. It will look at distinct applications and offer commentary from instrument designers, system integrators and end users, and clinicians. Guided by inquiries into the types (modalities and applications) of microscopy poised to most-benefit from AI and deep learning; the difference between traditional image analysis and AI-based image analysis in microscopy; and the future of AI and deep learning in medical imaging, the article delivers perspectives from a broad swatch of biomedical analyses and settings -- from those at the point-of-care to the lab.
Key Technologies: AI and microscopy, AI-aided microscopy image analysis, microscopy image processing, cell and tissue analysis, biophotonics research, optical microscopy instrumentation, microscopy/image acquisition and processing software, AI and image processing
Green Photonics
Photonics is well-established as an enabling technology: Whether delivering an incremental advantage, or a transformational one, photonics holds the key to essential innovations in a vast range of sectors and industries. In many cases, these gains hold one thing in common: a reduction of system power requirements or an increase in energy efficiency. This article makes the case for photonics as the key to an increasingly green and sustainable future. In telecom and datacoms; manufacturing; aerospace; sensing; energy production; and quantum tech, photonics' role is one of prominence, advancing technology on the one hand and optimizing it for sustainability and responsible, efficient process innovations in the future. Photonics is likewise critical to food systems, agriculture, and policing emissions and climate change. From lasers to sensors and materials to optics, photonics enjoys massive potential to spark positive change for a green future.
Key Technologies: Optical fiber, photonics and data management, lasers in advanced manufacturing, laser drilling and cutting, photonics in aerospace, lidar, emissions tracking and monitoring, gas sensing, solar cells and photovoltaics, laser fusion, agriphotonics, LED and solid-state lighting, smart sensors
Positioning, Navigation, and Timing: Sensors and Silicon Photonics
This article highlights how innovations in photonics and sensor fusion are transforming navigation capabilities in unmanned systems, illustrated through results from real-world demonstrations. The increasing prevalence of GPS jamming and spoofing is driving a fundamental need for resilient navigation in unmanned systems. Legacy gyroscopes, based on fiber optics and/or MEMS system designs, face critical drawbacks that mission-critical deployments and applications are apt to exploit. And, while inertial navigation systems (INSs) are essential tools, systems compromise is not an option in high-stakes settings. This article examines the applications that are driving a sharp rise in the focus that is paid to positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) sensing, as well as the essential qualities that high-performance systems must showcase to be rendered effective in the most demanding precision environments. Moreover, using integrated silicon photonics, high-accuracy and unwavering performance can be obtained in an advanced gyroscope. ANELLO Photonics presents a case study that discusses its Maritime Inertial Navigation System (INS), which integrates its Silicon Photonics Optical Gyroscope (SiPhOG) and AI-based sensor fusion engine to enable GPS-denied navigation for unmanned surface and underwater vehicles. The instrument/system's performance provides mission-critical Position, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) capabilities for both surface and subsea platforms operating in contested environments.
Key Technologies: Positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) sensing, quantum sensing, integrated silicon photonics, sensors in military and aerospace, extreme environment sensing
Ultrafast Lasers
The strong demands of the advanced manufacturing, semiconductor, biomedical imaging, and scientific research markets are converging into powerful tailwinds for the ultrafast laser market, which is experiencing strong and sustained growth. System designers deserve major credit, for the consistent innovations that serve to advance performance and usability from component level. This article from EPIC's Antonio Castelo identifies several performance trends (advances in laser generation, better pulse management, precise pulse control, and line-beam patterning) and uses industry examples to shine a light on how each has leveraged component-level innovations to drive a trend and bolster ultrafast industrial laser performance.
Key Technologies: Ultrafast industrial lasers, beam delivery optics and mechanisms (photonic crystal fibers), pulse management and optimization (saturable absorber mirrors), laser damage, beam shaping, molecular beam epitaxy, acousto-optic modulators, electronics and optoelectronics device laser manufacturing, pulse-on-demand, laser microfabrication, semiconductor patterning, thin film structuring, display manufacturing, medical device manufacturing
Executive Spotlight: Optikos, Stephen Fantone
Veteran industry executive and accomplished photonics luminary, Stephen Fantone, reflects on decades of high-level industry leadership and offers expert insights on the skills, traits, qualities, and mindset that rising industry professionals ought to carry with them as they seek fruitful careers in the industry. By blending soft and hard skills, prospective employees can rise above the competition, putting themselves into the best possible position to showcase their knowledge and skills. At the same time, employers must ensure new hires align with company culture, which itself is essential to ensuring all employees are in the best possible position to contribute meaningfully. This column benefits those working at all reaches of the optics industry value chain, spotlighting the most valuable and transferable attributes for employees and employers alike.
Key Technologies: Optics workforce