NLM Photonics develops cutting-edge electro-optic (EO) modulation technology for transforming computing and communications. Building on silicon photonics and other photonic integrated circuit (PIC) platforms, our technology enables higher bandwidth and lower power consumption with minimal process disruption.
Based on 25+ years of research from the University of Washington (UW), our technology combines engineered organic materials, specialized processes, and chip design to enable low-voltage, low-power, high-bandwidth electro-optic modulation for applications ranging from datacom to quantum information science to sensing — and beyond. NLM’s technology helps meet demanding performance requirements while staying within power constraints, whether those of a massive AI data center or a tiny satellite.
Professor Larry Dalton (University of Southern California) and grad student Cheng Zhang develop the first second-generation organic electro-optic (OEO) material to exceed lithium niobate’s 30 pm/V Pockels response. The first device work is published in Science in 2001.
Drs. Lewis Johnson, Delwin Elder, Scott Hammond, and Stephanie Benight work together in the Dalton/Professor Bruce Robinson research group at UW on aspects of what became monolithic and binary organic glasses, multi-scale modeling, and silicon-organic hybrid (SOH) device collaborations.
3rd generation OEO technology blooms and is implemented in hybrid devices. First practical demonstrations of ultrafast (~100 GHz) hybrid organic modulators using SOH and plasmonic-organic hybrid (POH) technology. The demonstration materials are developed by Dr. Delwin Elder and built on work by Dr. Stephanie Benight, Dr. Phil Sullivan, and others.
Dr. Huajun Xu, Dr. Delwin Elder, and UW co-workers develop the thermally stable HLD binary chromophore thermoset organic glass material, which combines the record performance of JRD1 with best-in-class thermal stability. HLD demonstrates a third-generation material that can achieve all key performance metrics (stability, Pockels response, optical loss, and processability).
NLM Photonics is founded as Nonlinear Materials Corporation by Dr. Lewis Johnson, Gerard Zytnicki, Paul Nye, Dr. Delwin Elder, and Prof. Bruce Robinson (advisory).
The UW/NLM team sets records in both molecular-level performanceand Pockels response with 600 pm/V. NLM raises a pre-seed round from angel investors and begins commercial material production.
Building the bridge between electronics and photonics
NLM’s hybrid organic EO technology efficiently bridges electronics and photonics, integrating into silicon photonics and other platforms to provide an order of magnitude improvement in modulation efficiency. Our materials and devices are scientifically-backed through rigorous R&D, with over 50 peer-reviewed publications.
NLM’s technology reduces power consumption for data centers, quantum computing, mmWave communications, machine learning, AI, and other emerging technologies. We are constantly expanding our capabilities in-house and with our partners throughout the semiconductor, computing, and telecommunication industries to drive the future of photonic integration.
