The design and manufacture of components and systems underpin European and indeed worldwide photonics activity. Optical material and photonic components serve as the basis for systems building different levels of complexity. In most cases, they perform a key function and dictate the performance of these systems.
New products and processes will generate economic activity for the European photonics industry into the 21st century. However, progress will rely on Europe’s ability to develop new and better materials, components and systems. In general, it seems certain that the drive for integration and functionality will be even more stressed, being largely commensurate with the quest for added value of the EU industries (and others). Furthermore, the progress in quantum optics and novel materials in a wide sense will lead to breakthroughs, most likely in unexpected areas. In order to match the development in electronics, it is important to develop circuits with element dimensions, much smaller than the vacuum wavelength. This is indeed the goal of the very rapidly developing (and somewhat fashionable) field of nanophotonics.
Several examples of future and emerging technologies underline the enormous potential of this field:
New products and processes will generate economic activity for the European photonics industry into the 21st century. However, progress will rely on Europe’s ability to develop new and better materials, components and systems. In general, it seems certain that the drive for integration and functionality will be even more stressed, being largely commensurate with the quest for added value of the EU industries (and others). Furthermore, the progress in quantum optics and novel materials in a wide sense will lead to breakthroughs, most likely in unexpected areas. In order to match the development in electronics, it is important to develop circuits with element dimensions, much smaller than the vacuum wavelength. This is indeed the goal of the very rapidly developing (and somewhat fashionable) field of nanophotonics.
Several examples of future and emerging technologies underline the enormous potential of this field:
Novel or emerging materials:
They consist of low dimensional or nano-scale semiconductors (II-VI, III-V, silicon, germanium...), organic materials, self organized materials, artificial or metamaterials such as sub wavelength-structured materials, in particular photonic crystals and negative index materials. An example of an emerging technology might be semiconductor nanoparticles made by colloidal methods. It is largely the materials that shape the future of photonics, as proved by the optical fibre and the semiconductor heterostructures (Nobel Prize 2000) and they provide endless possibilities.
Novel phenomena:
These are largely supplied by quantum phenomena: Coherent light matter interactions, teleportation and entanglement, with properties difficult to understand. Quantum optics might seem esoteric, but one application has already generated start-ups, namely cryptography, and an EU project, Descartes, has been awarded. The area of coherent light matter interactions; electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) offers virtually endless possibilities, if the wave function coherence properties can be mastered adequately, preferably at room temperature. As an example, the only reasonable electronics analogue to RAM memory in photonics can be implemented in EIT, albeit with significantly lower levels of integration. Applications in quantum computing and communications are obvious. Other possible applications are wavelength conversion, atomic clocks and certainly those which are not even conceivable for the moment. The final commercial application, if any, is as usual hosted in successful and visionary research.Novel devices:
There are virtually endless possibilities here, fuelled by the materials and phenomena described above. The devices will of course be studied in relation to the different applications and the wide scope of photonics applications makes the variety of photonics device technology more ubiquitous than that of micro electronics. New mass-markets such as those in lighting and in life sciences, e.g. for simple and rapid diagnosis are certain to emerge, in addition to that of telecoms. In the short to medium term, the further development and refinement using existing technology will be seen. One aspect will include 3D integrated optical devices (3D-Integrated Optics) and stacked micro optics. One important – possibly extremely important - area is integrated photonics based on the tools of CMOS industry (“Silicon photonics”). Furthermore, nanooptical (metal and dielectric) devices will open the optical near-field technology for the super high density memory of data and for super resolution measurement technology. In an even longer term, there is a true plethora of potential devices; the most extreme example may be the quantum computer, based on photons. Given the now widely accepted understanding that further scaling of digital electronic circuits in density and speed is running into very basic and fundamental problems, this optical route is likely to gain momentum in the following decades. The ability to generate very high optical powers in an energetically efficient manner and to deliver them with low loss and high precision is expected to lead to a large deployment of optical techniques in the processing industry. New system designs, competitive production technologies as well as new materials are important in this development.
The challenge in the short-, medium-, and long-term is to put a coordinating framework in place which will make the European activity in this technology area competitive with those in the US and Asia. A key objective in the future is to align national and European research activities more closely to achieve strategic research goals. The aim should be to facilitate a vibrant and profitable European photonics industry to further develop its ability to commercialise advances in photonic related technologies. In the medium and longer term, the objective must be to place renewed emphasis on materials research as well as the design and manufacturing of key components and systems to form the critical link between science endeavour and commercial success.
Market opportunities:
Market opportunities are enormous. The market for optoelectronic components grew 17% from US $23B to US $ 27B in 2004. In particular, laser diodes revenues accounted for US $3.1B revenues in 2004 and are projected to reach US $3.5B in 2005. (OIDA) In maturity, photonics lags electronics by some three decades. A similar development and impact of photonics as we have seen in electronics is to be expected, enabling excellent research and business opportunities.
over 2000 companies and 700 research labs involved in Photonics in Europe
