Kaohsiung Partners With The 'Valley Of Optics' As NSYSU Advances AI Silicon Photonic Chips

As artificial intelligence and cloud computing continue to surge, the global technology industry is confronting a new challenge: confronting the rocket-growing data transmission challenge, the transmission bandwidth obviously becomes the bottleneck. To seize the next wave of critical semiconductor technologies, Kaohsiung Mayor Chi-Mai Chen led a city delegation, alongside National Sun Yat-sen University (NSYSU), to visit the University of Arizona (U of A), a global hub for optical research. The visit focused on fostering collaboration in silicon photonics, widely regarded as a core technology in the "post-Moore's Law" era.

NSYSU was represented on this visit by Yao-Ching Hsieh, Chair of the Department of Electrical Engineering. The University of Arizona also proposed establishing the "Silicon Photonics Arizona Kaohsiung Center" (SPARK), symbolizing a strategic alliance between the two institutions to advance next-generation semiconductor technologies.

NSYSU was the only university invited to join the Kaohsiung City delegation to Tucson, Arizona, known as the "Valley of Optics" and the state's second-largest city. Together with the Arizona Commerce Authority, Pima County Government, the City of Tucson, and the University of Arizona, the delegation signed a "Six-Party Memorandum of Understanding on Semiconductor Ecosystems and Global Talent Partnership" at the iconic Pima County Historic Courthouse. This agreement marks a significant milestone in Taiwan–U.S. collaboration across government, industry, and academia to build a transnational semiconductor network.

During the meetings, Yao-Ching Hsieh actively engaged in discussions, highlighting NSYSU's research strengths in semiconductors and optoelectronics. He noted that NSYSU is honored to be part of the delegation and that, beyond strengthening collaboration in silicon photonics research, the university will actively promote dual-degree programs to cultivate students' global competitiveness and technological vision through international training.

NSYSU President Chih-Peng Li expressed gratitude to Mayor Chen for facilitating the six-party agreement, which opens a new chapter in Taiwan–U.S. cooperation in semiconductor industry development and talent cultivation. It also deepens the inter-university memorandum of understanding signed between NSYSU and the University of Arizona in 2023. Moving forward, both sides will collaborate in four key advanced fields, semiconductors, optoelectronics, artificial intelligence, and health technology, through joint research projects, faculty and student exchanges, and industry–academia partnerships to promote innovation and global talent development.

President Li added that as Taiwan's semiconductor supply chain becomes increasingly integrated with Arizona, Kaohsiung is actively developing a comprehensive semiconductor ecosystem. This collaboration is expected to enhance Taiwan–U.S. technological R&D and high-level talent exchange, cultivating engineers and technology professionals with global perspectives and interdisciplinary capabilities, while also supporting Kaohsiung's industrial development strategy and driving urban innovation and upgrading.

Mayor Chen noted that the global semiconductor industry is entering the "post-Moore's Law" era, where performance gains can no longer rely solely on process miniaturization. Instead, heterogeneous integration that combines multiple technologies will be key, with silicon photonics seen as critical for overcoming the "bandwidth wall" in AI computing. He emphasized, "Kaohsiung is not only pursuing leadership in manufacturing processes, but also positioning itself at the forefront of future technologies." With TSMC's advanced processes being established in Kaohsiung, alongside ASE's advanced packaging and AMD's silicon photonics R&D capabilities, the city is gradually forming a silicon photonics ecosystem. This partnership aims to connect Kaohsiung's R&D capacity with the world-leading "Valley of Optics", building a more resilient transnational semiconductor collaboration network.

The University of Arizona also expressed strong support for the visiting delegation. Tomas Diaz de la Rubia, Senior Vice President for Research and Partnerships, stated that the university has long been committed to integrating advanced research with industry applications, maintaining close collaboration with global companies such as TSMC and Intel. Taiwan plays a critical role in the global semiconductor supply chain, as Kaohsiung builds a comprehensive semiconductor ecosystem. Future cooperation among academia, industry, and government is expected to further drive innovation, R&D, and talent development.

Brian Anderson, Dean of the Wyant College of Optical Sciences, noted that the college is one of the three major optical research centers in the United States, with research spanning astronomical telescopes and quantum nanophotonics, and applications in astronomy, defense, medicine, and quantum technologies. The college is also actively advancing semiconductor silicon photonics research, extending its strengths into cutting-edge chip technologies.

Professor of the Wyant College of Optical Sciences, Nasser Peyghambarian, proposed the SPARK initiative, emphasizing a collaborative model in which "industry defines the challenges and international academia provides the solutions." This approach will enable research teams to address industry needs directly, align academic work with technological developments at companies such as TSMC and AMD, and potentially serve as a model for Taiwan–U.S. technological collaboration.

NSYSU explained that global attention on silicon photonics stems from the limitations of traditional chips, in which signal is transmitted by electrons flowing through circuits, like cars on a highway with limited lanes that can easily become congested. In contrast, silicon photonics uses photons to transmit signals, literally placing data on a "light-speed train," enabling higher speed and greater data transmission capacity.

With the rapid growth of AI, cloud computing, and large-scale data centers, data transmission speed and energy consumption have become critical challenges. As AI models process vast datasets and cloud service providers respond instantly to global demand, traditional electronic transmission is becoming short-handed. Silicon photonics, using photon to convey signals, offers significantly higher bandwidth and lower energy consumption, making it a key technology for next-generation high-performance computing in data centers. Through joint efforts by the Kaohsiung City Government, NSYSU, and the University of Arizona, the Taiwan–U.S. semiconductor collaboration is reaching a new milestone, accelerating advanced technological development and fostering a new generation of globally competitive talent.