Delivering Industry-Ready Skills for Advanced PIC manufacturing: Training through the PIXEurope Pilot Line (Invited Paper)

Skills shortages are a critical bottleneck to innovation in photonics, especially in the evolving field of Photonic Integrated Circuits (PICs). Addressing this requires more than individual courses or ad hoc training efforts. One response to this challenge is developing a training programme, whose objectives, design approach, and early outcomes are outlined here. The training programme is designed and delivered within PIXEurope, the first fully integrated, open-access PIC pilot line, which bridges the gap between laboratory prototyping and full-scale manufacturing. Targeting SMEs, start-ups, and industrial users, it delivers industry-aligned training in PIC manufacturing, leveraging Pilot Line infrastructure and expertise. By focusing on training unique to pilot line technologies, it will complement existing initiatives in the field. Its objective is to equip users to become literate in the pilot line research and technologies, and to enable them to translate and apply the skills and expertise in their own environments. The programme will be fully operational by summer 2028 and expected to engage 1000 users annually. It is designed as a modular and expandable structure, with low access barriers being critical for its success. The programme offers training in PIC design, fabrication, packaging, testing, reliability, and equipment operation. These courses are delivered as stand-alone modules at introductory, advanced and specialised levels, allowing users to select courses aligned with their skills, needs, and interests. One example of an advanced stand-alone module is hands-on training in micro-transfer printing, a key enabling technology for heterogeneous integration in next-generation PICs. Developed and delivered by Tyndall National Institute’s in-house experts, this course offers the world’s first hands-on training programme in this cutting-edge technology for heterogeneous integration. It provides training on the state-of-the-art equipment, processes and semiconductor materials that underpin micro-transfer printing. To date, 56 professionals have been trained, with sustained oversubscription demonstrating strong demand within the PIC ecosystem.