Aeluma and Thorlabs Unveil Breakthrough with Large-Diameter Wafer Manufacturing Platform for Quantum Computing and Communication
Aeluma (NASDAQ:ALMU) and Thorlabs have achieved a significant breakthrough in silicon photonics by successfully demonstrating wafer-scale integration of aluminum gallium arsenide onto CMOS silicon photonics standard 200mm diameter wafers. The collaboration, supported by the Office of Secretary of Defense, enables the production of complex quantum photonic circuits at scale.
The technology combines compound semiconductors with mainstream silicon manufacturing, allowing for cost-effective solutions across markets including mobile, AI, defense, automotive, and quantum computing. The integration of quantum dot sources and nonlinear electro-optic materials provides enhanced functionality for quantum computing and communication applications, offering improved efficiency compared to traditional materials like silicon nitride or lithium niobate.
Aeluma (NASDAQ:ALMU) e Thorlabs hanno raggiunto un'importante innovazione nella fotonica al silicio dimostrando con successo l'integrazione su scala wafer di arsenide di gallio e alluminio su wafer standard da 200 mm di diametro per fotonica CMOS al silicio. La collaborazione, supportata dall'Ufficio del Segretario della Difesa, permette la produzione su larga scala di circuiti fotonici quantistici complessi.
Questa tecnologia unisce semiconduttori composti con la produzione di massa del silicio, offrendo soluzioni economicamente vantaggiose per mercati quali mobile, intelligenza artificiale, difesa, automotive e calcolo quantistico. L'integrazione di sorgenti a punti quantici e materiali elettro-ottici non lineari garantisce funzionalità avanzate per applicazioni di calcolo e comunicazione quantistica, con efficienza superiore rispetto a materiali tradizionali come il nitruro di silicio o il niobato di litio.
Aeluma (NASDAQ:ALMU) y Thorlabs han logrado un avance significativo en fotónica de silicio al demostrar con éxito la integración a escala de oblea de arseniuro de galio y aluminio en obleas estándar de fotónica CMOS de silicio de 200 mm de diámetro. La colaboración, apoyada por la Oficina del Secretario de Defensa, permite la producción a gran escala de circuitos fotónicos cuánticos complejos.
La tecnología combina semiconductores compuestos con la fabricación masiva de silicio, ofreciendo soluciones rentables para mercados como móvil, IA, defensa, automoción y computación cuántica. La integración de fuentes de puntos cuánticos y materiales electro-ópticos no lineales proporciona funcionalidades mejoradas para aplicaciones de computación y comunicación cuántica, con mayor eficiencia en comparación con materiales tradicionales como el nitruro de silicio o el niobato de litio.
Aeluma (NASDAQ:ALMU)와 Thorlabs는 실리콘 포토닉스 분야에서 중요한 돌파구를 마련하여, CMOS 실리콘 포토닉스 표준 200mm 직경 웨이퍼 위에 알루미늄 갈륨 비소(AlGaAs)를 웨이퍼 규모로 성공적으로 통합하는 데 성공했습니다. 국방부 장관실의 지원을 받은 이번 협력은 복잡한 양자 광회로의 대규모 생산을 가능하게 합니다.
이 기술은 복합 반도체와 주류 실리콘 제조를 결합하여 모바일, 인공지능, 국방, 자동차, 양자 컴퓨팅 등 다양한 시장에 비용 효율적인 솔루션을 제공합니다. 양자점 광원과 비선형 전기광학 재료의 통합은 전통적인 실리콘 나이트라이드나 리튬 나이오베이트 소재보다 향상된 효율성을 제공하며, 양자 컴퓨팅 및 통신 응용 분야에서 향상된 기능을 제공합니다.
Aeluma (NASDAQ:ALMU) et Thorlabs ont réalisé une avancée majeure en photonique sur silicium en démontrant avec succès l'intégration à l'échelle du wafer d'arséniure de gallium aluminium sur des wafers standards de 200 mm de diamètre en photonique CMOS sur silicium. Cette collaboration, soutenue par le Bureau du Secrétaire à la Défense, permet la production à grande échelle de circuits photoniques quantiques complexes.
La technologie combine des semi-conducteurs composés avec la fabrication de masse sur silicium, offrant des solutions économiques pour des marchés tels que le mobile, l'IA, la défense, l'automobile et l'informatique quantique. L'intégration de sources à points quantiques et de matériaux électro-optiques non linéaires apporte des fonctionnalités améliorées pour les applications en calcul et communication quantiques, avec une efficacité supérieure aux matériaux traditionnels comme le nitrure de silicium ou le niobate de lithium.
Aeluma (NASDAQ:ALMU) und Thorlabs haben einen bedeutenden Durchbruch in der Siliziumphotonik erzielt, indem sie erfolgreich die Wafer-Integration von Aluminiumgalliumarsenid auf standardmäßigen 200 mm Durchmesser CMOS-Siliziumphotonik-Wafern demonstrierten. Die Zusammenarbeit, unterstützt vom Büro des Verteidigungsministers, ermöglicht die großtechnische Herstellung komplexer quantenphotonischer Schaltkreise.
Die Technologie kombiniert Verbindungshalbleiter mit der Mainstream-Siliziumfertigung und bietet kosteneffiziente Lösungen für Märkte wie Mobilfunk, KI, Verteidigung, Automobilindustrie und Quantencomputing. Die Integration von Quantenpunkten und nichtlinearen elektro-optischen Materialien bietet erweiterte Funktionen für Anwendungen in Quantencomputing und -kommunikation und verbessert die Effizienz im Vergleich zu traditionellen Materialien wie Siliziumnitrid oder Lithiumniobat.
- Successfully demonstrated wafer-scale integration technology that enables mass production of quantum photonic circuits
- Technology offers improved efficiency over traditional materials for quantum applications
- Platform is compatible with mainstream semiconductor manufacturing facilities
- Solution addresses multiple high-growth markets including mobile, AI, defense, automotive, and quantum computing
- None.
Insights
Aeluma and Thorlabs achieve integration of aluminum gallium arsenide onto 200mm silicon wafers—a critical breakthrough for scalable quantum photonic circuits.
Aeluma (NASDAQ:ALMU) and Thorlabs have achieved a significant technical milestone in the semiconductor industry by successfully demonstrating the integration of aluminum gallium arsenide (AlGaAs) onto standard 200mm CMOS silicon photonics wafers. This represents a critical breakthrough for quantum computing and communication technologies.
The technical achievement solves a fundamental scaling challenge in quantum photonics. AlGaAs is a nonlinear optical material that enables two essential quantum computing functions: entangled photon pair generation and modulation. What makes this development particularly valuable is that AlGaAs offers superior efficiency compared to competing materials like silicon nitride or lithium niobate for quantum photonic circuits.
The core innovation lies in Aeluma's ability to merge compound semiconductors (which offer superior performance) with silicon manufacturing platforms (which offer economies of scale). This heterogeneous integration approach allows quantum technology to potentially move beyond research laboratories and into commercial production.
From a manufacturing perspective, this achievement is remarkable because it utilizes methods compatible with mainstream semiconductor fabrication facilities. The demonstration complements Aeluma's existing work with quantum dot materials in 300mm silicon photonics, which targets optical interconnects for AI infrastructure and advanced sensing applications.
This advancement directly addresses the quantum industry's persistent challenge of scaling beyond small experimental systems. By enabling wafer-scale integration, Aeluma and Thorlabs have potentially created a path toward cost-effective, mass-manufacturable quantum photonic circuits that could accelerate practical applications of quantum computing technology.
Successful Demonstration Shows Promise for High-Performance and Mass-Manufacturable Quantum Photonic Circuits on Silicon
GOLETA, CA / ACCESS Newswire / May 29, 2025 / Aeluma, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALMU), a semiconductor company specializing in high-performance, scalable technologies, together with Thorlabs, a vertically integrated photonics products manufacturer, today announced a major advancement in silicon photonics that could accelerate adoption of quantum computing and communication at commercial scale.
Aeluma's large-diameter wafer platform combines the performance of compound semiconductors with the scale of mainstream silicon manufacturing, enabling cost-effective solutions across high-growth markets including mobile, AI, defense and aerospace, automotive, and quantum computing.
Silicon photonics is a promising technology for quantum computing and communication. Aeluma's ability to incorporate quantum dot sources and highly nonlinear electro-optic materials unlocks new high-performance functionality for this platform.
Collaborating with Thorlabs, and with support from the Office of Secretary of Defense, Aeluma successfully demonstrated wafer-scale integration of aluminum gallium arsenide, a nonlinear optical material, onto CMOS silicon photonics standard 200mm diameter wafers, providing a path for scaling complex quantum photonic circuits.
The nonlinear optical material enables entangled photon pair generation and modulation, key building blocks for quantum photonic systems. Compared with other materials like silicon nitride or lithium niobate, aluminum gallium arsenide offers significantly improved efficiency for next-generation quantum photonic circuits.
"Scalable photonic integration is essential to move quantum technologies out of the lab and into real-world systems," said Matthew Dummer, Ph.D., Director of Technology at Aeluma. "By merging the performance of compound semiconductors with the scalability of silicon photonics, we are pushing the boundaries of what's possible in quantum and AI."
This combination of advanced materials and CMOS silicon substrates, using manufacturing methods compatible with mainstream fabs, marks a step toward volume production, which could move quantum technologies out of research labs and into mass-market products.
"This successful collaboration was enabled by the large-area epitaxial growth capabilities of Aeluma and the direct wafer bonding expertise at Thorlabs," added Garrett Cole, Ph.D., Manager of Thorlabs Crystalline Solutions. "The heterogeneous integration of compound semiconductor materials on silicon is broadly applicable and now shows significant promise for quantum photonics."
The breakthrough demonstration complements Aeluma's work with quantum dot materials in 300mm silicon photonics, aimed at optical interconnects for AI infrastructure and advanced sensing. It directly addresses a longstanding challenge in scaling quantum photonic systems and could provide a meaningful step forward for quantum system integrators pursuing scalable, production-ready solutions.
About Aeluma
Aeluma (www.aeluma.com) develops photonics and optoelectronics for sensing, computing, and communication applications. Aeluma has pioneered a technique to manufacture semiconductor chips using high-performance compound semiconductor materials on large-diameter substrates that are commonly used for mass-market microelectronics. The technology has the potential to enhance performance and scale manufacturing, both of which are critical for emerging applications. Aeluma is developing a streamlined business model from its headquarters in Santa Barbara, California that has a state-of-the-art manufacturing cleanroom. Its transformative semiconductor chip technology may impact a variety of markets including mobile, defense and aerospace, AI, automotive, AR/VR, quantum, and communication. Aeluma differentiates itself with unique semiconductor manufacturing capability, proprietary technology, the ability to perform rapid prototyping, and a broad set of product offerings.
About Thorlabs
Thorlabs, a vertically integrated photonics products manufacturer, was founded in 1989 to serve the laser and electro-optics research market. As that market has spawned a multitude of technical innovations, Thorlabs has extended its core competencies in an effort to play an ever-increasing role to serve the Photonics Industry at the research end, as well as the industrial, life science, medical, and defense segments. The organization's highly integrated and diverse manufacturing assets include semiconductor fabrication of Fabry-Perot, DFB, and VCSEL lasers; fiber towers for drawing both silica and fluoride glass optical fibers; MBE/MOCVD epitaxial wafer growth reactors; extensive glass and metal fabrication facilities; advanced thin film deposition capabilities; and optomechanical and optoelectronic shops. Thorlabs is headquartered in Newton, New Jersey, and Thorlabs Crystalline Solutions is based in Santa Barbara, California.
Aeluma Forward-Looking Statements
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Aeluma Contact:
Aeluma, Inc.
(805) 351-2707
info@aeluma.com
Aeluma Investor Contact:
Bishop IR
Mike Bishop
(415) 894-9633
ir@aeluma.com
SOURCE: Aeluma, Inc.
View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire
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