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Philips Photonics has announced the shipment of its billionth VCSEL. The Germany based company is a wholly owned business of Royal Philips of Eindhoven, The Netherlands, that provides vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) technology for datacom, consumer and industrial applications. The latest feat follows two years of significant growth in demand for VCSEL technology, driven by trends such as the introduction of proximity sensing and 3D facial recognition technology in consumer smartphones.
Since its establishment in 2000 as ULM Photonics GmbH and its acquisition by Philips in 2006, the facility in Ulm has grown significantly. The last expansion (to double production capacity) was completed by early 2018. Now, the firm plans to double production capacity again at its Ulm facility within the next 18 months.
Philips Photonics was the leading partner of the €23m, three-year project VIDaP (VCSEL Pilot Line for Illumination, Datacom and Power Applications), which was jointly sponsored by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the European Union, and executed under the umbrella of the European program ECSEL (Electronic Components and Systems for European Leadership). Completed in September 2017, VIDaP has enabled industry to standardize the design, manufacture and testing of VCSEL technology, matching the same standards as other high-volume semiconductor components.
Philips’ role in the project has enabled the business to grow beyond traditional VCSEL applications such as optical data transmission and thermal industrial processes, while also supporting new technology applications such as consumer facial recognition and LiDAR (light detection and ranging) for autonomous vehicles. Philips Photonics reckons that it is uniquely positioned to serve the full spectrum of traditional and emerging VCSEL applications.
The VCSEL market is forecasted to rise from several hundred million dollars currently to $3.5bn in 2023, driven largely by sharp growth in consumer technology applications.
