The consolidation of the silicon photonics ecosystem has gained a lot of momentum in recent years. This is attributed to various initiatives in Europe and elsewhere as well. Despite these efforts, there are still outstanding issues that need to be resolved to further empower fabless end-users through a supply chain that is predictable, low risk, on-time, and provides low-cost services. This paper discusses topics such as design IP, diversity in platforms, access for prototyping (in particular MPW), skilled personnel, and routes for manufacturing in silicon photonics. These issues are of key importance for the development of a high-performance silicon photonics ecosystem. Furthermore, the paper describes how ePIXfab – the European Silicon Photonics Alliance – is playing its role to develop a silicon photonics ecosystem in Europe that can meet end-users expectations consistently.
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