Swiss firm Ligentec, a specialist in low loss, silicon nitride photonic integrated circuits (PIC), has established a research centre in France, near Paris.
The newly formed company, Ligentec France, will primarily act as an R&D centre to advance Ligentec technology as well as to expand and add new functionalities. The centre’s expertise will cover the whole chain in PIC development, from design, wafer processing to characterisation. The centre is located in a new development area in Corbeil-Essonnes south of Paris, hosting a range of high-tech semiconductor companies.
Ligentec’s co-founder Michalis Zervas, president of the new entity, commented: 'This centre allows us to perform research and development very close to our strategic partner and will increase our efficiency. Furthermore, we benefit from the ideal boundary conditions for innovation given by the European Union, the French Government, the Region and the great talent pool in the metropolitan Paris region.’
Photonic integrated circuits will play a key role in tomorrow’s crucial infrastructure in communication, sensing, transportation, and quantum computing. This local density of semiconductor technology, the great support by the tenant and the flexible options for expansion were key criteria for the location selection.
The newly formed company has already built a core team in Corbeil-Essonnes and plans to expand further in the next months. Antoine Trannoy, managing partner at Jolt Capital, who recently joined Ligentec’s board, added: ‘Ligentec is a fantastic company achieving key breakthroughs in the PIC domain which we love at Jolt Capital. I am therefore delighted to advise Michael (founder and chairman) and Thomas (CEO), to share our network and our know-how with them.’
