Keynote Presentations by Dr. Shin Dong-jae from imec and Professor Choi Woo-young from Yonsei University

8 Fields in Focus from PIC to Advanced Packaging

Photonic Integrated Circuits and advanced packaging technologies that will lead the era of artificial intelligence and ultra-high-speed data communication come together in one place.

The Korean Optical Society will hold the '2nd Optical Science and Optical Semiconductor Workshop 2026 (OSW 2026)' on September 17-18 on the 4th floor of the Suwon Convention Center. This year's workshop theme is 'Photonic Integrated Circuits and Advanced Packaging (PIC and Advanced Packaging)'.

Photonic Integrated Circuits, or PIC, is a technology that integrates multiple optical functions necessary for light generation, modulation, transmission, and detection on a single chip.

As the performance of AI data centers and ultra-high-speed communication systems rapidly improves, the importance of optical semiconductor technology capable of transmitting large amounts of data with low power consumption is also growing.

This workshop is organized as a venue for professional academic exchange where researchers and industry experts in optics, semiconductors, and packaging can share the latest technologies and discuss collaboration possibilities.

The keynote presentations will feature Dr. Shin Dong-jae from imec, a world-renowned semiconductor research institute, and Professor Choi Woo-young from Yonsei University.

Dr. Shin Dong-jae will present on 'Designing the Future PIC-EIC Co-Design: Lessons and Challenges from the Field'. He will introduce experiences and technical challenges gained from the process of co-designing PIC (Photonic Integrated Circuit) and EIC (Electronic Integrated Circuit) from a unified systems perspective.

PIC and EIC co-design represents a departure from the conventional approach of developing optical devices and electronic circuits separately and then combining them. Instead, it involves a methodology that considers the performance and connection structures of both circuits from the initial design phase. This is becoming an increasingly important field for high-speed signal processing, reduced power consumption, and improved system integration levels.

Professor Choi Woo-young from Yonsei University will present 'Si Photonic ultra-dense WDM receivers for scale-up interconnects'.

This presentation addresses technology for expanding data processing capabilities in intra-system connections by utilizing wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM) technology, which transmits data on light of multiple wavelengths, and silicon photonic receivers.

These keynote presentations are expected to demonstrate that optical semiconductor technology is advancing beyond the performance improvement of individual optical devices to co-design with electronic circuits, ultra-dense optical interconnection, and securing system scalability.

Main academic presentations will be divided into PIC field and advanced packaging field sessions.

In the PIC field, 'Photonic Integrated Platforms and Process Technology' will first be discussed. Research on foundational platforms and manufacturing processes for implementing photonic integrated devices will be the main focus. In the 'High-Speed and High-Performance Optical Functional Devices' field, core device technologies for fast data transmission and efficient optical signal processing will be introduced.

'EIC-PIC Interconnection and Signal and Power Integrity' was also proposed as a major topic. This field addresses signal loss and power supply issues that can occur when connecting electronic and photonic integrated circuits. Additionally, through presentations on 'Next-Generation Applications and Future Core Technologies', the development direction of photonic integration technology, which will extend to optical communications and AI systems, will be examined.

In the advanced packaging field, a 'National Promotion Trends' session will be arranged to review technology development and industrial promotion status by country. 'Processes and Equipment' for practical implementation of semiconductor packaging, 'Materials' that form the foundation for high-performance packages, and 'Design and Verification' that determine product reliability and completeness are also included in the main presentation areas.

For optical semiconductors to be applied in actual systems, excellent optical devices alone are not sufficient. Packaging processes that precisely position and interconnect optical and electronic devices, structures that stably deliver signals and power, and design and verification technologies considering thermal and material characteristics must be supported together. The background for this workshop combining PIC and advanced packaging under one theme lies in this technical interconnectedness.

The paper submission period runs from July 28 to August 24. Advance registration is open from July 28 to September 7. The venue is the 4th floor of the Suwon Convention Center, located at 140 Gwanggyo Jungang-ro, Yeongtong-gu, Suwon.