Design-centric education and workforce development: utilizing an open-source academic PDK for photonic integrated circuit design courses

AIM Photonics, a Department of Defense (DoD) Manufacturing Innovation Institute, has developed a series of education and workforce development offerings built around photonic integrated circuit (PIC) design to support the U.S. integrated photonics development and manufacturing base. Leveraging asynchronous and hybrid design-centric online courses, AIM Photonics has trained approximately 900 engineers, researchers, and students in PIC design and tape out. Central to the success of these programs is a non-proprietary, academic process design kit (PDK) to enable students’ full access to PIC component design and layout. The AIM Photonics academic PDK comprises both passive and active PIC components in addition to a range of waveguide materials and geometries. It is compatible with both commercial and open-source layout tools (KLayout, & Synopsys) and commercial simulation tools (Ansys Lumerical & Synopsys) and enables learners to prepare designs suitable for direct submission to AIM Photonics’ multi-project wafer (MPW) program. This methodology has enabled substantive PIC design workforce development across industry, DoD and national laboratories, and a wide range of leading U.S. research universities. These program offerings, including the structure and configuration of the academic PDK, online training methodology, and outcomes assessment, will be presented as a case study to provide a holistic industry/government/academia model for support of a U.S.-based PIC design workforce development capability