Vector Photonics accelerates the commercialization of PCSEL laser technology

Recently, Vector Photonics, a well-known surface coupled laser technology supplier in the UK, announced that the company has received £ 3 million in financing (including £ 1.667 million in equity investment and £ 1.27 million in additional research funding, equivalent to approximately RMB 27.63 million) to help commercialize its surface coupled laser technology.

(Image source: Vector Photonics)
Vector Photonics is a spectral instrument product manufacturer derived from the University of Glasgow in the UK in 2020, mainly producing III-V semiconductor lasers based on PCSEL technology.

The innovative highlight of the company's photonic crystal surface emitting laser (PCSEL) is a semiconductor laser using a two-dimensional grating structure that can linearly and orthogonally scatter light. The feedback is in the plane, while the light emission is emitted from the top surface of the laser.

By using photonic crystal grating structure to achieve stable orthogonal surface emission, the laser is easy to package and integrate into PCBs and electronic components. Compared with similar edge emitting lasers (EEL) or vertical cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSEL), this has advantages in data rate, wavelength, and power performance.

This startup company, derived from the University of Glasgow, stated that its PCSEL (Photonic Crystal Surface Emitting Laser) has comprehensively improved the manufacturing and performance of semiconductor lasers. Compared with existing laser technologies, it has significant advantages in rapidly developing technology application markets such as data communication, additive manufacturing (including metal and plastic printing), LiDAR, and optical sensing.

"These funds provide a solid financial foundation for the further development and commercialization of the company's unique and revolutionary surface emitting laser technology," said Neil Martin, CEO of Vector Photonics.

This equity investment comes from four companies, all of which have previously invested in Vector Photonics, including the Foresight WAE Technology (FWT) fund, the UK Innovation and Science Seed Fund (UKI2S), Equity Gap, and Scottish companies.

The research funding includes two development projects. The first project, Frontiers, is a £ 670000 revenue generating development project aimed at free space optics, funded by the Small Business Research Program (SBRI).

The second project "Graphics" is a £ 600000 collaborative project funded by the UK Innovation UK, collaborating with the University of Glasgow to develop gallium nitride (GaN) material processing technology. This may result in a 70% reduction in energy consumption for blue and green lasers, which are superior to similar LEDs.

Source: OFweek