News

22 September 2010

 

GigOptix set to receive $5m in government funding

GigOptix Inc of Bothell, WA, USA (headquartered in Palo Alto, CA), which designs modulator and laser drivers and transimpedance amplifier (TIA) ICs based on III-V materials as well as polymer electro-optic modulators for fiber-optic communications systems, says it has secured $5m of federal support for its On-Chip Integrated Photonic Polymer Transceiver program.

U.S. Senator Patty Murray, a senior member of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, helped secure the funds as part of the fiscal year 2011 Department of Defense Appropriations bill (which is awaiting approval by the United States Senate and subject to final legislation being passed by Congress and signed by the President).  

GigOptix says that the funding will be used to qualify its Thin Film Polymer on Silicon (TFPS) modulators to the stringent temperature stability required by military standards. Additionally, the firm will begin designing and testing the second iteration of the integrated driver with the polymer optical modulator on a standard BiCMOS wafer and completing the integration of the receiver side on separate chips, all for next generation 400Gbps optical communication systems.

Dr Raluca Dinu, VP and GM of GigOptix Bothell said, "GigOptix is the industry leader of high performance electro-optic polymer solutions, both for active and passive applications as stand-alone hybrid products as well as monolithic integrated layers onto Integrated Circuits (ICs). Because of the support of Senator Murray, we are able to push forward with critical research on ultra broadband, low power communications systems that help the military maintain its superiority. The U.S. Air Force and the United States Government are looking for solutions to the growing problems of speed, size, integration, weight and power of current technologies."  

Dr Avi Katz, CEO and chairman of the Board of GigOptix, added, "With this meaningful funding, GigOptix will enhance its work force in our development center in Bothell, thus enabling new job opportunities for highly educated and skillful American scientists, engineers and developers. Continuous funding support by the U.S. Government has been a key contributor to GigOptix' efforts to build a successful high-tech endeavor over the last 3 years.”

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