Electronic and photonic systems form the basis of modern communication technology and sensor technology. New components and technologies enable faster and better communication as well as more precise sensor readings. At the same time, the costs, size, and energy consumption of the systems are reduced. KIT researchers are working on electronic and photonic technologies and components, with a focus on the co-integration of electronics and photonics on a single chip or in the same package. Furthermore, intensive research is being conducted on methods for realizing modern, complex electronic and photonic systems and their applications.


Foto: IPQ
The research activities focus on:

Technologies & Components

  • Highly integrated circuits for modern communication and sensor systems

  • Electronic and photonic components for ultra-fast signal processing

  • Integration and heterointegration of electronics and photonics (packaging)

  • Printed and hybrid electronics: nano-enabled printed devices, Si/PE hybrid circuits and systems, flexible sensors, printed packages for RF, THz, and photonics

  • Energy efficiency of electro-optical interfaces and broadband systems

  • Multi- and many-core processor architectures, system-on-chip (SoC), network-on-chip (NoC), and reconfigurable systems

Methodology

  • Design and modeling of novel electronic components and technologies (process design kits for thin-film technologies, physical layout, SPICE, data-driven models, and machine learning models)

  • Hardware-software co-design, hardware synthesis methods, and multi-domain modeling and simulation techniques for processor and system architectures

  • Electronic Design automation for advanced nanotechnology and emerging technologies (e.g., spintronics, memristors, printed electronics)

  • Design for testing, reliability design, and hardware/software system design, including metrics for safety-critical applications in electronics and optics

  • Modeling, analysis, and reduction of technology-based reliability problems in nanotechnologies (e.g., electromigration, transistor aging, radiation-induced soft errors)

Systems and applications

  • Dynamically reconfigurable, adaptive, and safety-critical systems

  • Hardware/software systems for high-throughput and real-time processing

  • Photonic and electronic data transmission systems

  • Ultra-wideband photonic-electronic signal processing

  • Optical and electronic measurement systems and sensors (e.g., lidar, radar, particle detectors)