Micro-transfer printing can enable heterogenous integration of diverse material systems in silicon photonics
PISCATAWAY, N.J., July 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Silicon photonics has emerged as a promising technology for addressing bandwidth and latency bottlenecks of conventional electrical interconnects and therefore are being explored for future artificial intelligence infrastructure. However, heterogenous integration of multiple material systems remains a challenge. Now, researchers show how micro-transfer printing can enable highly versatile heterogenous integration to expand the functionality of silicon photonics, paving the way for advanced photonic systems.
The rapid growth of artificial intelligence and related computing infrastructure has exposed the limited bandwidth of conventional electrical interconnects in integrated circuits as a major bottleneck to system performance. Silicon photonics, which transmits data using photons instead of electrons, has emerged as a promising approach for overcoming bandwidth and latency limitations. The platform is now widely used for photonic integrated circuits (PICs), particularly in telecom and datacom applications.
A major strength of silicon photonics lies in its compatibility with standard complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) technology, enabling scalable PIC fabrication using existing semiconductor infrastructure. However, this also introduces a fundamental limitation. CMOS fabrication infrastructure is highly specialized and optimized and therefore cannot integrate non-standard materials. Conventional group-IV semiconductor materials cannot satisfy all requirements of advanced photonic systems, particularly for functions such as on-chip light generation. Materials such as III–V semiconductors and lithium niobate (LiNbO₃) can provide these capabilities, highlighting the need for heterogeneous integration approaches to expand the functionality of silicon photonics.
A new study published in Journal of Lightwave Technology on April 30, 2026, highlights micro-transfer printing (MTP) as a promising approach for realizing heterogenous integration in silicon photonics. "Among the various approaches being pursued for enabling wafer-scale heterogeneous integration, MTP is an emerging highly versatile technique that combines benefits of die-level assembly with wafer-scale processing," explains Ir. Ye Chen from Ghent University – imec, Belgium.
The study highlights the limitations of existing heterogeneous integration techniques before describing how MTP can address several of these challenges. The MTP process begins with fabrication of thin-film devices, called coupons, on a dense source wafer, followed by selective etching of a sacrificial release layer. An elastomeric stamp is then used to pick up and print multiple devices onto a target wafer. Finally, adhesive or direct bonding secures the devices in place, enabling seamless co-integration of diverse material systems onto large-area silicon photonics platforms.
