CES 2025 has been more than a showcase for leading brands and their latest technologies, as many small and medium Taiwanese startups have also brought their unique capabilities to the show floor. One of these distinctive exhibitors is Taiwan Nano & Micro-Photonics (N&M), which has applied silicon photonics (SiPh) technology not to the more common field of communications, but instead to the sensor market.
According to N&M chairman Rone Chiu, the company's one-of-a-kind mid-to-long wave infrared SiPh light emission and detection chips have attracted much attention from leading international companies. By pushing their technology into more mainstream applications, N&M hopes to enable more precise sensing capabilities.
Chiu notes that current approaches to mid-to-long wave infrared light on chips rely on costly compound semiconductors, which fail to satisfy clients' increasing demands in terms of precision. In contrast, N&M's products, developed in collaboration with TSMC, are purely silicon-based, helping to lower costs drastically in a major advantage over the competition.
However, it is the enormous potential of mid-to-long wave infrared sensing technology that has leading foreign companies interested. As Chiu points out, mid-to-long wave infrared light absorbs specific spectral energy when it comes into contact with different gases, allowing for accurate detection of gases in the environment.
Harnessing this property of infrared light, the company's current three-in-one solution uses a single chip to detect CO2, CO, and alcohol concentrations in the air. The product is primarily targeted toward the automotive electronics sector, using in-vehicle CO2 and CO concentrations to monitor driver fatigue, a more precise method than the image-based systems currently used in driver monitoring systems (DMS). In addition, alcohol detection systems to prevent drunk driving have rapidly become a standard feature among global carmakers.
The ability to precisely detect gases also opens up a wide range of applications. Potential use cases Chiu presented to prospective clients include assessing the health of lithium batteries by analyzing the gases they emit and detecting potential health issues through the gases exhaled by humans or even animals. In addition, as European countries take stricter measures to achieve net zero emissions, the technology can also be used to monitor methane emissions in livestock.
Chiu stresses that SiPh technology can find applications far beyond the commonly accepted field of communications: developments have been ongoing in sensing and high-performance computing as well, where SiPh technology holds significant practical and market potential.
N&M's decision to focus on sensing stems from the considerable scale of the market, as well as the presence of leading clients with clear-cut end-user needs. This can translate into a significant revenue stream and a faster entry into the market. The company has discussed potential partnerships with numerous major international companies at CES 2025 and hopes to showcase Taiwan's world-class technological capabilities on the global stage.
Article translated by Kevin Wang
