The FASTERA evaluation kit is a THz receiver designed for next-generation 6G technology covering indoor and short-range environments. The FASTERA kit is intended to answer the increasing data-rate demand of current consumer and industrial markets. The THz evaluation kit goes beyond the capabilities of current 5G technology, enabling the exploitation of the THz frequency range for data communication applications. The FASTERA kit is based on a patented antenna-coupled graphene-enabled detector able to operate at room temperature, with high sensitivity (~80 pW/Hz1/2), fast response (>100 GHz), and broadband (from 100 GHz up to 5 THz) tuneable spectral range defined by the antenna itself. The FASTERA evaluation kit will be defined in collaboration with Ericsson and will be tested in a 6G communications testbed.

PUNCH offers a solution for time-deterministic and time-sensitive networks by developing a new optical switching paradigm which (I) breaks the trade-off between flexibility (ultra-dynamic reconfigurability) and determinism (guaranteed latency and jitter) by offering an all-to-all reconfigurable interconnect; (II) reduces congestion by activating bandwidth steering so that additional capacity can be allocated between hot nodes in the network; (III) provides unparalleled dynamics and bandwidth efficiency by further enabling multiplexing in the time domain with fast reconfigurable capability. A 2×2×8Lambda wavelength selective switching element will be scaled to a fully non-blocking 8x8x8Lambda and 16x16x8Lambda reconfigurable optical switch fabric. The development of a micro-transfer-printing process for semiconductor optical amplifiers enables loss-less optical switching on a silicon photonics platform. Custom configuration electronic ICs to actuate, control, and power-monitor a scaled switch fabric will be densely integrated with the photonic ICs into a heterogeneous fanout wafer-level package, processed on a 200mm reconstructed wafer platform. In addition, the optical interfacing to the photonic ICs will be accomplished using an optical redistribution layer, providing an optical fanout on high-density organic substrates, and allowing for a scalable optical fiber packaging solution. The novel integration and packaging processes will be applied for manufacturing 1.6 Tbit/s optical transceivers providing the interface between optical switches and electronic resources (compute, memory, and storage). The optical switch and transceiver prototypes will be demonstrated in a 5G RAN Transport Network, for TSN Fronthaul applications and for memory disaggregation in data centers.

By developing 100Gbaud Germanium-Silicon (GeSi) Quantum-Confined Stark-Effect (QCSE) modulators and highly sensitive 100Gbaud avalanche photodetectors (APD), SIPHO-G will bring breakthrough optical modulation and photodetection capability to the world of Silicon Photonics. The newly developed compact, waveguide-coupled modulator and detector building blocks will be monolithically integrated in a high-yield cutting-edge 300mm Silicon Photonics platform, propelling the bandwidth density, power efficiency, sensitivity and complexity of silicon photonic integrated circuits to the next level. Supported by an elaborate simulation and design enablement framework, SIPHO-G will demonstrate an extensive set of application-driven prototypes across the O-band and C-band. By bringing together the entire Silicon Photonics value chain, SIPHO-G will accelerate the development of next-generation co-packaged optics, long-haul optical communications, as well as emerging PIC applications such as optical neuromorphic computing, with performance levels of 4x-20x beyond current state of the art.