“This architecture means Australia could develop its own sovereign chip manufacturing without exclusively relying on international foundries for the value-add process.”
Researchers at the University of Sydney Nano Institute have introduced a compact silicon semiconductor chip that seamlessly integrates electronics with photonic components. The innovation promises to significantly expand radio-frequency (RF) bandwidth and the ability to accurately control information flowing within the chip.
The chip, built using cutting-edge silicon photonics technology, boasts integration capabilities for diverse systems on semiconductors less than 5 millimeters wide. Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research) Professor Ben Eggleton described the process as akin to assembling Lego building blocks, where new materials are integrated through advanced packaging of electronic ‘chiplets’, in a statement.
Lego-style components in chips aren’t new, however. In 2022, researchers at MIT designed a Lego-like reconfigurable AI chip that consisted of alternating layers of sensing and processing elements allowing the chip’s layers to communicate optically.
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