VTT, a Finnish research center, joined PIXEurope, the European pilot line for photonic integrated circuits, to provide the experience in thick silicon-on-insulator (SOI) technology. Supported by the European Chips Act, the PIXEurope initiative will invest €400 million ($469.4 million). As part of the PIXEurope pilot line, VTT will invest in new equipment for processing SOI wafers in VTT’s Micronova cleanroom. BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Qunnect, a quantum networking infrastructure company, secured $10 million in funding in an oversubscribed series A extended financing round led by Airbus Ventures, with additional participation from Cisco Investments and Quantonation. The funding will go toward development of turn-key variants of Qunnect's quantum networking Carina product suite. Qunnect said that it is currently engaging with industry partners to develop turnkey variants of its Carina products to enable demonstrations of next-generation use cases of quantum networks. Minister Evan Solomon (left) and Christian Weedbrook, founder and CEO of Xanadu. Courtesy of Xanadu. TORONTO — Xanadu, a photonic computing company, opened a 10 million CAD ($7.3M) advanced photonic packaging facility in Toronto. The packaging facility will focus on the production of high-performance quantum components essential for building fault-tolerant quantum computers. The facility was supported in part by federal investment from the Canadian Strategic Innovation Fund. BLOOMINGTON, Minn. — SkyWater Technology expects to complete its acquisition of Infineon's 200 mm fab (Fab 25) in Austin, Texas on June 30. Skywater said it has obtained all required regulatory approvals. Skywater plans to operate Fab 25 as a foundry, increasing available capacity in the U.S. for foundational chips on nodes from 130 down to 65 nm. The acquisition is expected to improve SkyWater’s capabilities in semiconductor manufacturing and strengthen its position within North America’s semiconductor network. HDMS Absalon L16 Danish Military Ship. Courtesy of Lumibird. LANNION, France — Lumibird Photonics Sweden AB, a laser technology company, was awarded a contract by Saab to supply 57 of Lumibird’s VIDAR laser rangefinders to the Danish Defence Acquisition and Logistics Organisation. These systems will be integrated into naval fire control systems deployed on Royal Danish Navy frigates. This new order follows a recent contract awarded by Rheinmetall Air Defence for the integration of VIDAR into the Skyranger 30 mobile air defense platform. ENSCHEDE, Netherlands — New Origin, a Dutch photonic chip foundry, plans to build a photonic chip factory in Twente, Netherlands to support production of silicon nitride photonic chips. The choice of location supports collaboration with existing players in the field, and the factory's establishment will benefit from R&D conducted at the NanoLab of the MESA+ Institute of the University of Twente. New Origin’s planned factory expects to produce 25,000 wafers annually. TORONTO — POET Technologies Inc. signed a master agreement, module purchase agreement, and a deed of consignment with manufacturer NationGate Solutions to manufacture optical engine assemblies for POET in Penang, Malaysia. Their collaboration is for assembling and testing optical engines with a custom-designed fiber-attach unit. HOBOKEN, N.J. — Quantum Computing Inc., an integrated photonics and quantum optics technology company, entered into securities purchase agreements with institutional investors for the purchase and sale of 14,035,089 shares of common stock in a private placement at a purchase price of $14.25 per share. The offering is expected to result in gross proceeds of $200 million, before deducting offering expenses. The closing of the offering is expected to occur on June 24 subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions. The company plans to use the proceeds to accelerate commercialization efforts, strategic acquisitions, working capital, and general corporate purposes. MISGAV, Israel — SCD, a defense technology developer and manufacturer, secured contracts valued at $40 million in Asia to supply a diverse range of advanced cooled MWIR and LWIR detectors. The detectors will be integrated into a variety of fighting vehicle applications and remote weapon stations. The contract spans three years and will continue the company’s partnerships with Asian defense OEMs. SILVERWATER, Australia — Bluglass, a semiconductor developer, closed its share purchase plan, after raising $5.3 million. The plan followed a $2.3 million placement to investors, raising a total of $7.6 million. The funds will go towards the production and delivery of the Bluglass’ visible gallium nitride lasers, fulfilling new and existing contracts, as well as supporting additional fab equipment and working capital. Scanfil’s Melbourne plant in Australia. Courtesy of Scanfil. MELBOURNE, Australia — Electronics manufacturer, Scanfil, and scientific equipment supplier, Liquid Instruments, signed a manufacturing outsourcing agreement for Scanfil’s Melbourne plant in Australia. This agreement supports Liquid Instruments’ plans to onshore production of its flagship Moku platform, to strengthen domestic supply chains, and to bring manufacturing closer to its research and development hub.
