NIST develops silicon photonics chips that can generate customizable laser wavelengths for quantum, timing, and communications systems

NIST researchers created fingernail-sized integrated photonics chips that can generate many laser colors by stacking specialized materials onto silicon wafers. The approach could shrink today’s bulky and costly laser systems, helping technologies like quantum computers, optical atomic clocks, navigation tools, and biomedical instruments move beyond the lab.

This points to a broader shift from electronic miniaturization to light-based computing and sensing on chip-scale platforms. If scalable, customizable laser sources could reduce cost and complexity across quantum technology, precision measurement, and high-speed communications.