The Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI) has succeeded in localizing 31 types of core optical communication components for 5G mobile communication networks with nine local small and medium-sized enterprises, which is expected to be of great help in securing competitiveness in the materials, parts, and equipment industries for 5G mobile communication in the future.

ETRI announced that it has developed 31 types of components together with nine small and medium-sized optical communication component companies, including OISolution Co., Ltd., and succeeded in commercializing 21 types of products.

Through this, sales of approximately 5.7 billion won have been achieved to date, and 87 jobs have been created.

With the future expansion of 5G services domestically and internationally, we expect to achieve sales of approximately 100 billion won by 2025.

The technologies successfully developed this time range from components with high dependence on foreign technology, such as 25Gbps-class high-speed light sources and photodetectors based on compound semiconductor processes, to finished products such as optical transceivers.

It is a component specialized for fronthaul products that primarily exchange data between 5G antennas and optical repeater equipment.

Compared to existing 10Gbps-class 4G LTE products, it has secured differentiated performance compared to existing products, such as high-speed data transmission speeds of 25Gbps per channel and the ability to operate at high temperatures of 55℃ for low power consumption.

Based on this, we plan to expand our customer base to include domestic and international telecommunications companies and equipment manufacturers.

Thanks to the efforts of companies such as LDIS and OISolution, 25Gbps-class optical devices, which previously had a high dependence on foreign sources, are expected to soon see not only domestic self-sufficiency but also entry into the Chinese market.

In particular, the utilization of the facility and equipment infrastructure of ETRI’s Optical Packaging Technology Support Center (OPAC) and the technical support from the research team played a key role in this achievement.

The research team explained that based on the source technology for core optical communication components held by the institute, they were able to reduce the R&D investment burden on small and medium-sized enterprises while increasing the success rate of optical communication component development and commercialization.

Through technology development, the research team and the company achieved a high commercialization success rate of 68% and generated 5.7 billion won in revenue by developing a total of 31 types of optical communication components and commercializing 21 types by last year, starting with the successful commercialization of 7 types in 2019.

In addition, there are 77 cases of commercialization support tailored to corporate needs, utilizing all of ETRI’s leading research resources.

Lee Gil-haeng, Head of the Honam Regional Research Center at ETRI, stated, “To strengthen the competitiveness of optical communication component companies, there is an urgent need for close-knit technical support services that can provide practical assistance from R&D to technology commercialization.” "We will continue to advance support areas and infrastructure to secure the competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises," he stated.

Jo Ho-seong, CEO of LDIS, also stated, “The development and commercialization of 5G optical communication components, including this 25Gbps-class optical device, is proof that we have overcome dependence on Japan and strengthened the competitiveness of Korea’s materials, parts, and equipment industry. ETRI’s comprehensive and close technical support service was of great help in the success of commercialization.”

Utilizing the research and development achievements and infrastructure to date, the research team plans to continue providing technical support for about 10 products currently under development, including the 21 products that have been successfully commercialized.

To this end, we plan to make efforts to support small and medium-sized enterprises by enhancing the shared equipment and infrastructure of the ETRI Optical Packaging Technology Support Center (OPAC) and identifying related business opportunities.

Choi Dae-gyu, Head of the Intelligent Infrastructure Division at the National Information Society Agency (NIA), stated, “We plan to further strengthen activities connecting demand-side companies, such as telecommunications and equipment manufacturers, with supply-side companies to pioneer sales channels and expand market scope for excellent domestic products, and thereby strive to expand the customer base of domestic small and medium-sized component manufacturers.”

This achievement is the result of the 'Commercialization Project for Optical Communication Components for Intelligent Information Networks' pursued by ETRI and optical communication component companies since 2019 with support from the Ministry of Science and ICT and the National Information Society Agency (NIA).