At the Centre for Programmable Photonic Integrated Circuits and Systems (CPPICS), IIT Madras, we have successfully developed India first indigenous optical packaging system for Photonic Integrated Circuits (PICs), marking a significant milestone in the nation photonics ecosystem.
Optical packaging is a critical enabler for integrating key photonic components including fiber arrays, photonic integrated circuits (PICs), and photodetectors to ensure reliable optical and electrical performance while facilitating rapid prototype development. To address diverse application requirements and support multiple optical interfacing approaches, our platform incorporates three widely adopted optical coupling techniques:

Each of these coupling methods provides high optical alignment tolerance, enabling robust, repeatable, and low-loss fiber-to-chip interfaces across a wide range of photonic applications.
In addition to optical packaging, our packaging solution incorporates efficient thermal management by mounting the PIC on a Thermo-Electric Cooler (TEC) integrated with a thermistor, enabling precise temperature control and effective heat dissipation to ensure stable device performance.
Specifically, the electrical packaging architecture comprises a custom-designed Printed Circuit Board (PCB) and a programmable power supply to drive and control essential components, including the laser source, PIC, TEC, and thermistor. High-reliability wire bonding is employed to establish secure electrical interconnections between the PIC and the PCB. CPPICS has collaborated with iZMO Microsystems, Bengaluru, leveraging their expertise in electrical packaging to develop a robust and reliable packaging platform.
This indigenous packaging solution represents a major step toward establishing a self-sustaining and photonics ecosystem in India. By enabling rapid prototyping, scalable manufacturing, and reliable system integration, it lays the foundation for the accelerated development and commercialization of next-generation photonic integrated circuits and advanced photonic systems.

Quasi-Planar Coupling (QPC)