Danvers, MA – August 23, 2023: SemiNex Corporation, a leading manufacturer of high-powered semiconductor laser diode-based devices and optical amplifiers, is pleased to announce its partnership with RPMC Lasers, the largest laser distributor in North America. RPMC Lasers will serve as the exclusive distributor for SemiNex’s next-generation high-powered laser diode modules in the automotive, industrial sensing, and medical markets, catering to technology-leading OEMs.

RPMC Lasers is renowned for its comprehensive range of laser diodes, offering an extensive selection of wavelengths and packaging options. This collaboration allows RPMC to extend its portfolio to include high-powered indium phosphide (InP) laser diode modules, recognized for their exceptional thermal and electrical efficiency. These features make them an ideal choice for demanding applications, such as automotive LiDAR systems.

With this strategic partnership, SemiNex aims to leverage RPMC Laser’s extensive experience, in-depth applications knowledge, and dedicated customer service team to provide exceptional support for its rapidly expanding customer base.

“It was really important for SemiNex that our North American partner be appropriately scaled, well-established, and have the technical proficiency to support our technologies across all of our diverse market verticals” said SemiNex Corporation’s President, Ronald Moore. “Additionally, we believe that RPMC aligns with our vision of developing strong customer relationships, maintaining our high levels of customer satisfaction, and delivering tremendous value by effectively addressing our customers’ most challenging technical obstacles – ultimately helping them win market share.”

SemiNex was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in the US.

Contact:

Dr. Daniel Chu

VP of Business Development and Product Management
+1 978-326-7702
dchu@seminex.com

SemiNex Corporation’s High Powered SOAs and SOA arrays recognized as best by the 2023 Laser Focus Innovator’s Awards

Danvers, MA – August 1, 2023: SemiNex Corporation, a leading manufacturer of high-powered semiconductor laser diode-based devices and optical amplifiers, is pleased to announce today that its semiconductor optical amplifiers and SOA arrays have been recognized among the best by the 2023 Laser Focus World Innovators Awards.

An esteemed and experienced panel of judges from the optics and photonics community recognized SemiNex Corporation as this year’s award recipient. “On behalf of the Laser Focus World Innovators Awards, I would like to congratulate SemiNex Corporation on its Bronze level award,” said Laser Focus World Group Publisher Peter Fretty. Bronze level recognizes an innovation that resulted in improvement over previous methods employed, approaches taken, or products/systems used. “This competitive program allows Laser Focus World to celebrate and recognize the most innovative products impacting the photonics community this year.”

“We are thrilled that Laser Focus World Innovators recognizes the benefit from our best-in-class amplification capabilities which can be custom designed to meet unique applications and requirements. Our SOAs offer the utmost versatility in terms of gain, bandwidth, and spectral range” said SemiNex Corporation’s President, Ronald Moore. “Our optical amplification technologies can be seamlessly integrated into existing optical systems while advancing our customers’ projects to a much higher performance – which could be game-changing.”

About SemiNex Corporation

SemiNex Corporation designs and manufactures proprietary high power semiconductor infrared laser diode-based assemblies and optical amplifiers for automotive LiDAR, military, medical, and industrial applications. SemiNex’s products are based on advanced quantum physics and employ high-quality indium phosphide and gallium antimonide materials, supporting wavelengths between 1250 nm to 2400 nm with best-in-class optical output power in addition to superior thermal and electrical efficiencies. SemiNex Corporation also customizes its epitaxial designs and device packaging to meet its customers’ individual requirements.

Learn More: LFW 2023 Innovator’s Award – SemiNex SOA and SOA Array

SemiNex was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in the US. 

Contact:

Dr. Daniel Chu

VP of Business Development and Product Management
+1 978-326-7702
dchu@seminex.com

Come visit SemiNex booth #8.1E332 at Laser World of Photonics in Shanghai, China from July 11th to July 13th, 2023. We are excited to introduce our high-gain and high-saturation output power Semiconductor Optical Amplifiers (SOAs). Our SOAs allow for long-range FMCW LiDAR with coherent detection. Custom designs for individual amplifiers or arrays as well as packaged devices can now be made to meet your integrated systems requirements.

At WOP China, we will be announcing the availability of our most recent high power DFB and SOA butterfly fiber packages. The new high-power DFB laser diodes are offered in both C-band and O-band and can deliver the highest optical power and overall performance. Combined with our high-power SOA, they can achieve a superior detection range for LiDAR or transmission distance for optical communication and data center applications. Custom requests are now open for DFB multi-channel and multi-wavelength arrays.

Our patented Triple Junction laser diode and array, which can provide hundreds of kilowatts of lasing power for civilian LiDAR applications, will also be on display. The Triple Junction outperforms their 905nm counterparts in the signal-to-noise ratio, detection capability and range all at eye-safe wavelengths, 1350nm and 1550nm . Our compact and cost effective laser diode solution is the best alternative solution to bulky and high-cost fiber lasers for automotive LiDAR.

Contact dchu@seminex.com or +1-978-326-7702 to inquire about product offerings, custom designs and future projects with SemiNex, and to schedule a meeting with us at WOP China. Available WOP China meeting times begin on July 11 and end on July 13. Find more on our website seminex.com.

SemiNex will be attending Laser World of Photonics in Munich 2023 from  June 27 to 30. You can meet with SemiNex staff at Booth #A2.503. We are excited to share with you our Semiconductor Optical Amplifiers (SOAs) with high gain and high saturation output power, which can enable long-range FMCW LiDAR with coherent detection. SemiNex can now work with you on custom designs of individual amplifiers or arrays as well as packaged units to meet the requirements in your integrated systems.

This year we are excited to unveil our latest high power DFB and SOA butterfly fiber packages. The new high power DFB laser diodes are offered in both C-band and O-band and can deliver the highest optical power and overall performance. Together with our high power SOA, they can achieve a superior detection range for LiDAR or transmission distance for optical communication and data center applications. DFB multichannel and multiwavelength arrays are available per custom request. Be sure to stop by our booth for more information.

At the show we will also showcase our patented Triple Junction laser diode and array that can provide hundreds to kilowatts of lasing power for advanced rangefinders, ToF and Flash LiDAR. The eye-safe 1350nm and 1550nm Triple Junction can easily outperform its 905nm counterpart in the signal-to-noise ratio, detection capability and range. Our small form-factor and low cost laser diode solution is the best alternative solution to a bulky and high-cost fiber laser for autonomous vehicles

To have an in-person discussion at the show regarding the SemiNex product offerings, you can schedule a meeting by contacting Daniel Chu at dchu@seminex.com or +1-978-326-7702. Details on the SOA and Triple Junction laser diodes are available at seminex.com/lidar/.

SemiNex appoints Sinclair Vass to represent its next generation high powered laser diode technologies 

May 23, 2023: SemiNex Corporation (Danvers, MA), a manufacturer of high-powered semiconductor laser diode-based devices and optical amplifiers, is pleased to announce the appointment of Sinclair Vass as the new Vice President of Global Sales. Mr. Vass brings over 30 years of expertise and as well as a strong track record of driving growth and securing large design wins across multiple industries.

Prior to joining SemiNex, Mr. Vass was the Founder of Vass Photonics Consulting, a San Jose-based consultancy providing services to photonics technology companies. He has also held several executive leadership roles within the industry, including Chief Commercial Officer at Velodyne Lidar Inc, Corporate SVP and President of Laser Optics Business Unit at Focuslight Technologies Inc, and Vice President of Worldwide Product Management, Sales, Marketing, & Customer Service at Viavi Solutions.

In his new role, Mr. Vass will be responsible for developing global sales and distribution channels for SemiNex Corporation’s extensive portfolio and will work closely with the executive team to drive growth strategies to grab market share in new applications with a keen focus on industrial and automotive LiDAR, medical aesthetics, and data communications.

“We are thrilled to have Sinclair join our team at SemiNex,” said Dr. Daniel Chu, VP of Business Development and Product Management at SemiNex. “His extensive knowledge and experience in the laser optics industry make him an ideal fit for our company, and we look forward to realizing his contributions in order to achieve our ambitious strategic goals.”

Contact:
Dr. Daniel Chu
VP of Business Development and Product Management
+1 978-326-7702
dchu@seminex.com

Dr. Sidi Aboujja from SemiNex presents two technical talks on our latest SOA array and highly reliable Triple Junction for automotive LiDAR at SPIE DCS 2023. These talks capture the technological advancements and application insights so that LiDAR can achieve long range with low cost and small form factors. The abstracts of these talks are listed below.

Technical Paper: High performance semiconductor optical amplifier and array for FMCW LiDAR in high-speed autonomous vehicles

Abstract

Semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) has drawn much attention due to its critical need in coherent detection scheme such as FMCW (frequency-modulated continuous-wave) in automotive LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging). Coherent detection provides more features than ToF (Time of Flight) such as speed and direction for autonomous vehicles. Instead of a bulky and expensive fiber laser, a coherent laser source with high gain SOA can achieve small form factor with Si PIC (Photonic Integrated Circuit). Here we present a proprietary SOA structure based on AlInGaAs material system with multiple quantum wells on InP substrate. The SOAs with curved and tilted straight waveguides were developed and tested. The saturated output power of such SOA at 1550nm and 1310nm can reach higher than 350mW and 450mW with high wallplug efficiency. The small signal gain exceeds 40dB for both 1310nm and 1550nm. The low anti-reflection (AR) coating can achieve 0.01% reflectivity, and the noise figure and near-field mode fields of various SOA configurations are presented and compared. An array of four SOA waveguides at 127um or 500um pitch can deliver total output power over 2 Watts with proper heat sinking. SOA arrays can also be processed as individually addressable with electrical and optical isolations. Such high-performance SOA array offers the design freedom to LiDAR systems with various scanning strategies such that long range detection can be realized. Gain chip, RSOA (Reflective SOA) based on the curved waveguide for external cavity laser configurations is tested and discussed. Self-alignment features can be built onto the SOA chipset to achieve integration of Si PIC for minimal footprint and low-cost mass production.

Technical Paper: Eye-safe high-reliability triple junction laser diode for long-range rangefinder and LiDAR

Abstract

We have developed a proprietary Triple Junction laser diode at eye-safe 1550nm based on AlInGaAs/InP material systems for LiDAR and laser range finding applications. Three monolithic laser structures with tunnel junction layers are designed to reduce mechanical stress with superior heat dissipation. It achieves 3x output power and 2x wall plug efficiency of a single junction with low operating voltage and high slope efficiency at 1W/A. A 1550nmTriple Junction laser diode allows a LiDAR or laser rangefinder to achieve the longest detection range compared to a single junction or 905nm laser diode. Here we demonstrate the high reliability of Triple Junction high power laser diodes at 1550nm for adoption in various applications. The life test was performed on Triple Junction samples with 95μm aperture and 2.5mm cavity length in a TO9 package. They were driven at average power of 700mW in pulse width of 100 μsec and 10% duty cycle at 60°C. Such stressed electrical and thermal condition is almost 20 times higher than standard operation for automotive LiDAR. We have accumulated over 1000 hours of life test on 17 devices. Based on Arrhenius conditions the estimated MTTF (mean time to failure) is 75k hours at 20°C and 17k hours at 50°C operating temperature, which is respectively 9.3x and 2.5x more than the required 8k hours in automotive applications. We also tested Triple Junction laser diodes up to 100°C and it shows no sign of COD (catastrophic optical damage). Under a high stress CW operating condition at 5W, Triple Junction laser diodes exhibit thermal rollover but return to normal performance under pulsed operation.

SemiNex is more than happy to work with you on the design-in effort or custom design requests to meet the requirements in your integrated LiDAR systems. For inquiries regarding product offerings, custom designs and future projects with SemiNex, as well as scheduling a meeting with us, contact sales@seminex.com or +1-978-326-7703. Details on the Triple Junction laser diodes and SOAs are available at seminex.com/lidar/.

Dr. Sidi Aboujja from SemiNex presented two technical talks on our latest SOA array and highly reliable Triple Junction for automotive LiDARs at SPIE Photonics West 2023 last week. These talks capture the technological advancements and application insights so that LiDAR can achieve long range with low cost and small form factors. The abstracts of these talks are listed below.

Technical Paper: High performance semiconductor optical amplifier and array for FMCW LiDAR in high-speed autonomous vehicles

Abstract

We present an industry-leading semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) platform that exhibits top performance at both 1550nm and 1310nm used in FMCW (frequency-modulated continuous-wave) LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) for autonomous vehicles. The SOA structure is based on a proprietary AlInGaAs material system with multiple quantum wells on InP substrate. The SOAs with curved and tilted straight waveguides were developed and tested. The saturated output power of such SOA at 1550nm and 1310nm can reach higher than 450mW and 600mW. An array of four SOA waveguides at 127um or 500um pitch can deliver total output power over 2 Watts. SOA arrays can also be processed as individually addressable with electrical and optical isolations. Such high performance offers the design freedom to LiDAR systems with various scanning strategies such that long range detection can be realized. The low anti-reflection (AR) coating can achieve 0.01% reflectivity, and the noise figure and near-field mode fields of various SOA configurations are presented and compared. Gain chip based on the curved waveguide for various laser configurations is tested and discussed. The SOA chips and arrays can be integrated into a Silicon Photonic Integrated Circuit (Si PIC) to minimize the total footprint of a LiDAR system and overall cost. They include self-alignment features for the ease of integration and high coupling efficiency on Si PIC.

Technical Paper: High reliability of 1550nm triple junction laser diode for long-range automotive LiDAR

Abstract

We have developed the world-leading Triple Junction laser diode based on AlInGaAs/InP material systems for LiDAR applications. The monolithic laser structure with tunnel junction layers is designed to reduce the stress and improve the heat dissipation. It has 3x the output power and 2x the wall plug efficiency of a single junction laser due to its low operating voltage and high slope efficiency at 1W/A. A single Triple Junction laser diode at eye-safe 1550nm allows a LiDAR to achieve over 200m detection range in all-weather conditions. It can drastically improve and simplify the LiDAR design compared to other laser choices such as 905nm or fiber lasers. For mass adoption by the automotive industry here we demonstrate the high reliability required for Triple Junction high power laser diodes at 1550nm. The life test was performed on 95um aperture Triple Junction with 2.5mm cavity length in a TO9 package. They were driven at an average power of 700mW with the pulse width of 100 micro-seconds and 10% duty cycle at 90°C. Such stressed electrical and temperature condition is almost 20 times higher than standard operation for automotive LiDAR. We have accumulated for more than 1000 hours of life test on 30 devices. Based on Chi squared distribution analysis and Arrhenius equation the estimated MTTF (mean time to failure) is 248k hours at 20°C and 57k hours at 50°C operating temperature, which is respectively 31x and 7x more than the required 8k hours in automotive applications. We also tested Triple Junction laser diodes up to 100°C without performance degradation and without COD (catastrophic optical damage).

SemiNex is more than happy to work with you on the design-in effort or custom design requests to meet the requirements in your integrated LiDAR systems. For inquiries regarding product offerings, custom designs and future projects with SemiNex, as well as scheduling a meeting with us, contact sales@seminex.com or +1-978-326-7703. Details on the Triple Junction laser diodes and SOAs are available at seminex.com/lidar/.