Silicon-Organic-Hybrid (SOH Modulators) on the World Stage: SILORIX at OFC and ECOC

Global Industry Showcases | 2025

The CIELO project reached a major industrial milestone as consortium partner SilOriX (SIL) showcased the disruptive potential of Silicon-Organic Hybrid (SOH) modulators at the two premier events in the optical communication sector:

  • OFC: March 30 – April 3, 2025 | Moscone Convention Center, San Francisco, CA
  • ECOC: Sept 28 – Oct 2, 2025 | Bella Center, Copenhagen, Denmark

The Demonstration: Breaking Performance Barriers

At both events, SIL featured a live booth demonstration of a fully packaged modulator successfully transmitting a 112 Gbit/s PAM4 signal. Remarkably, this was achieved with a voltage swing below 300 mV, highlighting the extreme efficiency and low power consumption of SOH technology.

Broad Industry Reach

By exhibiting active, running hardware, SIL engaged with a wide spectrum of the communications sector, including:

  • Transceiver manufacturers and telecommunications industry leaders.
  • Specialized research groups in cryo-communication.
  • Quantum computing companies seeking high-efficiency transduction.

Proving Technical Maturity

Successfully operating these modulators in a high-traffic exhibition environment—outside of a controlled laboratory—is an essential step in proving the technology’s maturity. These demonstrations underline the CIELO project’s readiness to transition from experimental research to essential components for future global data networks.

Karaoke-over-Fiber: Showcasing CIELO Tech at Swiss Quantum Week

EPFL Campus | October 18, 2025

Can you sing through a fiber optic cable? At this year’s Swiss Quantum Week, held at the SwissTech Convention Centre, the CIELO consortium proved that high-tech physics can be both groundbreaking and entertaining.

The Tech Behind the Music

Using hardware developed for the “CIELO Travelling Exhibition,” consortium partner Luxtelligence (LXT) successfully transmitted live audio signals through their proprietary PDK modulators. By converting music into light and back again, the demonstration allowed the public to experience the power of signal transduction firsthand.

Impact & Reliability

This live demo served as a key milestone for the project:

  • Public Engagement: We successfully simplified the functionality of PDK modulators for a non-scientific audience.
  • Proven Robustness: The successful operation by Luxtelligence in a busy public environment proved that the technology is stable and reliable outside of strictly controlled laboratory settings.

By bridging the gap between high-level physics and everyday experience, the CIELO project continues to showcase the real-world potential of the next generation of optical communication.

May 15th, 2025

🚀 CIELO Project Kick-Off Meeting

The CIELO project officially launched with a virtual kick-off meeting held on May 15th 2025.

It was a pleasure to see all partners come together, introduce their teams, and align on the project goals and roadmap. The meeting marked the beginning of a dynamic collaboration across disciplines and institutions, setting a strong foundation for the work ahead.

February 3rd, 2025

Agreed and Aligned: Our Path to Collaboration

The development of the Consortium Agreement (CA) was a milestone moment in the formation of our international collaboration. As one partner aptly put it during one of our many calls, “Can we just align so we can start working already?” That sense of eagerness captured the spirit of the group: motivated, committed, and ready to begin. Still, before diving into the work, we needed to build a clear and fair framework. Through a series of online meetings, legal reviews, and partner negotiations, the agreement was shaped to ensure clarity, shared understanding, and operational efficiency. The CA now serves as the cornerstone for how the consortium will collaborate throughout the duration of the project.  

December 20th, 2024

Exciting News: Project Launch Imminent!

We are thrilled to announce the forthcoming launch of our groundbreaking project! Our research aims to explore a wide array of cutting-edge fields, including microwave engineering, photonic integrated circuits, quantum optomechanics, material science, superconducting circuits, and quantum measurement.

This exciting initiative is part of the collaborative CIELO consortium, which unites seven distinguished partners: the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA), École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Technische Universiteit Delft (TUD), SilOriX GmbH (SIL), IBM Research GmbH (IBM), and Luxtelligence S.A. (LXT). Together, each partner brings their unique expertise to advance the frontiers of quantum technology. Our collective efforts are focused on developing electro-optic interconnects for coherent quantum information transfer, aiming to enable scalable, modular quantum processors.

Stay tuned for more updates as we work together to embark on this exciting journey!