Canadian team sets up PIC packaging center

Pasqal, the venture-backed quantum computing startup making waves in France, is to help create a specialized “center of competency” focused on assembling and packaging of key integrated photonic components used in quantum and advanced sensing technologies in Canada.

Established through its Canadian subsidiary Aeponyx, the center will be located at the MiQro Innovation Collaborative Center (C2MI) in Bromont, Quebec, which was first established in 2009 through a public-private investment supported by the Canadian government.

This latest initiative will see Aeponyx collaborate with healthcare startup HOP Technologies, and lidar technology developer Phantom Photonics, with the aim of strengthening Canada's domestic capabilities in advanced photonics and quantum technologies.

Scalable production

According to the partners, the idea is to bridge the gap between research, prototyping, and low-volume manufacturing in a field that is critical to enabling scalable quantum systems.

It will focus on advanced packaging processes tailored for PIC-based quantum technologies, with the objective of standardizing and making novel packaging capabilities available to the broader ecosystem.

That promises to solve a key challenge that must be overcome before PIC-based quantum products can be scaled to any meaningful volume, and ultimately lower the cost of the emerging technology.

Central to the project is the installation at C2MI of state-of-the-art packaging equipment specifically designed for PIC-based quantum computing applications, made possible through Aeponyx's long-standing partnership with Germany’s Aixemtec, which specializes in high-precision assembly solutions for optical systems.

Aeponyx Philippe Babin said: “Building on more than a decade of strong collaboration with C2MI on silicon nitride PICs, this initiative directly supports Pasqal's roadmap by enabling a reliable, domestic supply chain for advanced photonic packaging in Canada.

“Creating this Center of Competency is an important step in strengthening the capabilities that will firmly position Canada as a global leader in the next generation of quantum and sensing technologies.”

Tobias Müller, the chief commercial officer at Aixemtec, added: “With Aeponyx, we validated our active-alignment technology on quantum photonics prototypes, and we believe the collaboration has created a strong foundation for scalable production.”

Domestic supply chain

The other members of the consortium will provide complementary expertise, with HOP Technologies using photonic integration for applications in physiological monitoring and wearable biotechnology applications.

University of Waterloo spin-out Phantom Photonics is working on next-generation lidar including ultra-long range operation, and optical sensors for demanding environments including autonomous systems and defense.

Backed by $4 million in combined federal and provincial support, including $3 million from Next Generation Manufacturing Canada (NGen) through its Advanced Manufacturing Technology Program, the total project budget is $7.9 million and marks the first phase of a broader effort to develop a domestic supply chain for advanced PIC packaging.

“The first phase of the project will establish low-volume manufacturing capabilities and is intended to support thousands of devices,” says the team. “The second phase aims to scale production to 500,000-plus modules per year.”

Marie-Josée Turgeon, the CEO of C2MI, added: “C2MI has built a strong and recognized leadership in advanced packaging through years of close collaboration with the industry.

“With this Center of Competency, we are now activating that expertise at scale, partnering with new players and unlocking new applications to fast-track the development and commercialization of next-generation photonic and quantum technologies.”