The National Information Optoelectronics Innovation Center (NOEIC) recently made a major move, successfully developing an ultra-wideband photonic chip.

Although this chip is extremely small—less than 1 centimeter long and less than 1 millimeter wide—it is a true "performance monster"—with an ultra-high bandwidth of up to 250 GHz, it has directly broken the world record for similar devices. This breakthrough also lays a brand-new foundational hardware foundation for future optical communication and 6G technologies.

| Photonic Chips: The "Translators" of Communication Networks

In fiber optic communication networks, photonic chips act like a responsible "translator" and "postman."

The phones and computers we use daily handle electrical signals, but for long-distance data transmission (such as cross-city transmission), optical signals must be switched to to faster and longer transmission. The core task of photonic chips is to convert electrical signals into optical signals (electric-to-optical), or convert optical signals back into electrical signals (optical-to-electric). Moreover, the greater the chip's bandwidth, the wider the road, allowing for more data to be transported per unit of time.

With this newly developed ultra-wideband photonic chip, the project team successfully bridged the gap between fiber optics and wireless communication, achieving world-class transmission speeds for both.

The official report card is very impressive:

Wired transmission: The single-channel fiber rate has surpassed 512Gbps. What does this mean? In just one second, you can download more than a dozen HD movies!

Wireless transmission: The terahertz wireless transmission single-channel rate also reaches 400Gbps, enough to simultaneously provide 86 users with smooth, lag-free 8K ultra-high-definition video.

| Saying goodbye to "dual lanes," building ultra-wide expressways for AI and 6G

For a long time, fiber optic communication and wireless communication have been like two unrelated parallel lines, independently designed and difficult to connect seamlessly, which has become a major bottleneck in data transmission. With the explosive growth of AI data center computing power and the rapid development of 6G technology, various scenarios urgently need faster signal transmission and lower latency, making the speed shortcomings of traditional networks increasingly apparent.

It is understood that traditional modulators (such as silicon photonics, indium phosphide, etc.) have bandwidths of only 30-100GHz. It's like a narrow "two-lane highway," unable to handle the "massive traffic" brought by AI and 6G. Moreover, they not only consume high power and high voltage, but are also prone to signal distortion, completely unable to meet the requirements of modern intelligent computing centers for low power consumption and ultra-high-speed transmission.

To break this deadlock, in February this year, the National Information Optoelectronics Innovation Center, together with several research institutions, made a major move: it was the first to develop an ultra-wideband optoelectronic integrated chip. This chip achieves over 250GHz electrical-optical-electrical conversion capability, fundamentally breaking through the limitations of traditional architectures.

This also means that humanity has, for the first time, bridged the gap between wired and wireless communication systems at the 'physical layer.'

The National Center for Information Optoelectronics Innovation stated that this major achievement was published in the top international journal Nature in February this year. Subsequently, the research team seized the momentum and continued to advance application development and engineering transformation, recently successfully developing a 170GHz intensity modulator, further validating the feasibility of this technology.

| Empowering 1.6T optical modules

A representative from the National Information Optoelectronics Innovation Center stated that this ultra-wideband photonic chip has many more powerful application scenarios in the future.

For example, using it in a data center will speed up data transmission and greatly reduce latency. At the same time, thanks to revolutionary breakthroughs in thin-film lithium niobate materials and advanced integration technology, this chip is also expected to be widely used in ultra-high-speed optical modules above 1.6T.

In addition, it will become the foundational foundation of "space-ground integration" communications, and may even extend into the field of satellite communication in space, supporting the research, development, and upgrading of our domestic satellite communication equipment.

Kingtech Perspective | The optical communication industry chain is entering an accelerated period of "domestic substitution."

Currently, the domestic localization rate of high-end optical chips above 25G is only about 4%, and the supply-demand gap will continue until 2027. This breakthrough in the 250GHz chip marks China's dominance in the core optical components sector, greatly accelerating the process of domestic substitution.

Core optical chips and optical module leader

Pay attention to leading companies deeply involved in national innovation center R&D or those with mass production capabilities in thin-film lithium niobate modulators (such as Guangxun Technology, Guangku Technology, etc.). At the same time, industry leaders who have already secured 1.6T optical module orders (such as Zhongji Xuchuang and Xinysheng) will also directly benefit from the simultaneous rise in volume and price brought by technological iteration.

Upstream suppliers of materials and equipment

With the surge in demand for photonic chips, upstream segments such as optical-grade wafers (such as Tiantong Co., Ltd.) and optoelectronic measurement equipment will also see huge market growth.