Effect Photonics gains $38 million Series D funding…

21 Mar 2024

…and imec and Spanish partners are to develop 300mm process line in Málaga.

Effect Photonics, a developer of integrated optical solutions, this week announced it has secured $38 million Series D funding, led by Innovation Industries Strategic Partners Fund, backed by Dutch pension funds PMT and PME, along with co-investor Invest-NL Deep Tech Fund and participation from other existing investors.

This investment is expected to further accelerate the development and commercialization of Effect’s solutions and support ramping production to meet growing customer demands. The company combines its optical system-on-chip and packaging technology to make modules for industry-standard and customised form factors. All of Effect’s optical components are tunable.

Roberto Marcoccia, CEO of Effect, commented, “We extend our thanks to Innovation Industries Strategic Partners Fund and our existing investors. Investor excitement marks the culmination of a dynamic year of advancements across our business, reinforcing the market momentum we’ve established in the rapidly growing coherent transceiver market.”

Vincent Kamphorst, Investment Director Innovation Industries Strategic Partners Fund, said, “We believe that Effect possesses not only the technology, but also the team, capital, and backing to expedite the advancement and market penetration of integrated photonic solutions.”

imec and Spanish partners to develop 300mm process line in Málaga

Nanotechnologies and photonics research hub imec, the Spanish government, and regional government of Andalusia, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) outlining their intent to establish a specialized chip technology pilot line in Málaga, Andalusia.

The new facility is intended to complement imec’s existing 300mm advanced CMOS process line in Leuven, Belgium, with new 300mm processes developments and the introduction of new materials that are difficult to combine using standard CMOS processes. The imec announcement stated, “The facility will meet the industry’s need for R&D, prototyping and pave the road to the manufacturing of promising, new technologies.”

The facility aims to leverage the advantages of 300mm semiconductor process technology to drive new applications in health care, life sciences, photonics, augmented and virtual reality, precision sensing. It will complement existing expertise and infrastructure in Leuven with non-standard processes that are currently incompatible with semiconductor manufacturing processes; the two sites are meant to be closely linked.

imec’s statement added, “negotiations will now start with an eye to finding a strong public-private cooperation model, between imec, the Spanish government and the government of Andalusia. The governments already agree to support the construction of the new facility including the advanced equipment.”