Graphene Flagship’s 2D Pilot Line Develops Graphene PICs on 200mm Wafers, Demonstrating Scalability for Industrial Photonics Adoption

September 13, 2026

Graphene Flagship EU

Overview

The Graphene Flagship’s 2D Pilot Line (2D-PL) has successfully fabricated graphene photonic integrated circuits (PICs) on 200mm wafers, advancing graphene-based photonics towards industrial adoption. These PICs contain approximately 48,500 optical and electrical test structures, demonstrating the crucial scalability of 2D material technology from laboratory to large-scale manufacturing. This achievement holds significant potential to transform the future of optical communications, sensing, and other high-speed, low-power devices.

In Depth

Key Findings

The Graphene Flagship’s 2D Pilot Line (2D-PL) project has achieved significant progress towards the industrial application of graphene-based photonics technology, successfully manufacturing graphene photonic integrated circuits (PICs) on 200mm wafers. These PICs integrate approximately 48,500 optical and electrical test structures, unequivocally demonstrating the capability to scale up two-dimensional material technology from laboratory-level research to large-scale commercial production.

Technical / Clinical Details

Graphene photonic integrated circuits (PICs) are devices that integrate the functions of generating, modulating, detecting, and routing optical signals onto a single chip, with graphene at their core. Graphene is an ideal material for ultra-fast modulation of optical signals and broadband communications due to its high electron mobility, broad absorption spectrum, and tunability of its electro-optical effect. The 2D-PL project’s success in manufacturing PICs on 200mm wafers, a standard size in the existing semiconductor industry, ensures compatibility with current infrastructure and clearly outlines the path to mass production. The integration of 48,500 test structures suggests high manufacturing yield and design flexibility, enhancing the feasibility of complex optical circuits.

Background & Context

Optical communication technology is essential for processing the explosively growing data traffic driven by the proliferation of data centers, 5G/6G networks, and IoT devices. However, current optoelectronic devices face limitations in terms of power consumption, speed, and integration density. Graphene-based photonics is gaining attention as a next-generation technology with the potential to overcome these challenges, enabling faster, lower-power, and higher-density optical devices. Large-scale EU research initiatives like the Graphene Flagship aim to bridge the gap between fundamental research and industrial application, thereby strengthening Europe’s technological competitiveness.

Strategic Significance & Outlook

The successful development of graphene PICs on 200mm wafers by the 2D Pilot Line holds the potential to revolutionize diverse fields, including optical communications, sensors, medical diagnostics, and even quantum computing. Researchers will now focus on designing more sophisticated PICs, further optimizing manufacturing processes, and integrating these into practical systems. Once this scalability is established, graphene-based optoelectronic devices are expected to become foundational components of future digital infrastructure, accelerating the further development of the information society. Investors and industry stakeholders are showing significant interest in the advancements in this field.

Source: https://graphene-flagship.eu/events/2d-pl-ecoc-2026/

Get our weekly technology intelligence — free

Receive an infographic that lets you judge at a glance whether each field’s analysis report is worth reading.

Subscribe Free — Weekly Tech Intelligence

By subscribing, you’ll receive Troy-Technical’s weekly technology intelligence newsletter.