China’s CHIPX Photonic Chip Production Line Set to Accelerate AI, 6G, and Quantum Computing Development: SCMP
China’s CHIPX Photonic Chip Production Line Set to Accelerate AI, 6G, and Quantum Computing Development: SCMP
As per the South China Moring Post (June 12th 2025), China has launched its first pilot production line for photonic chips using 6-inch thin-film lithium niobate (TFLN) wafers, a milestone expected to advance its efforts in AI, 6G, and quantum computing, according to a report by the South China Morning Post.
On June 5, the Chip Hub for Integrated Photonics Xplore (CHIPX) at Shanghai Jiao Tong University announced the production of the 6-inch (15.2cm) TFLN photonic wafers, which use light (photons) instead of electricity for transmitting and processing data. This marks a critical step in China’s push to scale high-performance photonic computing technologies.
Unlike traditional semiconductors, photonic chips rely on optical signals, offering significantly higher speed, bandwidth, and energy efficiency. TFLN in particular is recognized for its ultrafast electro-optic performance, but its brittleness has historically made mass production difficult. The new line overcomes this barrier, achieving stable high-speed optical links.
While the US and Europe have already established momentum in this space—SMART Photonics in the Netherlands upgraded to processing 4-inch InP wafers last year, and US-based PsiQuantum adapted a 300mm silicon photonics line earlier this year—China’s late entry is marked by notable technical progress, according to experts quoted by SCMP.
Professor Jin Xianmin, Director of CHIPX, said, “Establishing this stable production line is the result of nearly 15 years of effort.” The breakthrough was made possible through a multi-year initiative by his team, designed to bring China’s photonic chip industry to a globally competitive level.
With its TFLN wafer line now active, China is aiming for an aggressive push into sectors such as cloud computing, AI model training and inference, and supercomputing—domains where high-speed, low-power photonic processing is seen as essential.
This development reflects China’s ambitions in next-generation computing and positions the country as a leader in domestic photonic innovation.
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Featured image Source South China Morning Post
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