Photonic Systems Graduate Series

Thurs, March 17   12 noon        RLE Haus   36-428

Consolidate? Integrate? Go East? Or Get Out? Mapping the Drivers of Optoelectronic Production Costs

Erica Fuchs

The past four years have seen the optoelectronics industry transform from one dominated by the speed and performance of innovation to one where efficiency and cost play a determinant role in a company's future.  The monolithic integration of components holds promise to increase network functionality and reduce packaging expense.  Integration also drives down yield due to manufacturing complexity and the compounding of failures across devices. Consensus is lacking on the economically preferred extent of integration. Previous studies on the cost-feasibility of integration have used high-level
estimation methods.  This study focuses on accurate-to-industry detail, basing a process-based cost model of device manufacture on data collected from twenty firms across the optoelectronics supply chain located in the U.S., the U.K.,
and developing East Asia. The model presented allows for definition of process organization, including testing, as well as processing conditions, operational characteristics, and level of automation at each step.  Monolithic integration is compared to other options facing the optoelectronics industry, such as
industry consolidation and re-location of manufacturing plants to low-wage environments, for reducing costs.