26 February 2026
Photon Bridge’s Modular Approach Aims to Simplify and Scale Photonic Chip Manufacturing
Photon Bridge aims to simplify manufacturing, reduce costs, and scale photonic integrated chip production with a modular, de-integrated platform that separates active and passive components.
26 February 2026
Article
Article courtesy of PhotonDelta
With a modular, de-integrated platform that separates active and passive components, Dutch startup Photon Bridge aims to simplify manufacturing, reduce costs, and scale photonic integrated chip production for emerging AI and telecom applications.
Startup Photon Bridge is quietly laying the groundwork for a manufacturing revolution in integrated photonics. Led by CEO Paul Marchal, the Eindhoven-based firm is challenging the industry’s prevailing integration dogma to unlock manufacturability and scalability in next-gen photonic integrated chips (PICs).
Recognising complexity challenges and yield limitations in conventional photonics integration, Photon Bridge’s technology originates from the scientific work of co-founder and CTO Rui Santos at TU Eindhoven. “Rui saw that squeezing all functionality into a monolithic stack isn’t always optimal in terms of performance or manufacturability,” says Paul Marchal.
Photon Bridge’s approach is to separate active and passive photonic components. Active elements like lasers and amplifiers are realised in III-V materials [...]