Construction has officially begun on the world’s first industrial-scale 6-inch Indium Phosphide photonic chip factory at High Tech Campus Eindhoven.
The move positions the Netherlands to become the centre of Europe’s next-generation semiconductor ambitions.
“Our mission as High Tech Campus Eindhoven is to support companies and institutes that develop cutting-edge technologies. We were asked to invest and provide the building and cleanroom for this pilot line,” said Otto Van Den Boogaard, CEO of High Tech Campus Eindhoven.
The facility, developed by TNO, forms one of five pilot lines under the EU Chips Act and represents an investment of more than €150m ($172m), one of the most significant commitments to the European chip sector in decades.
From lab to fab
The new factory is designed to bridge the long-standing gap between research and volume manufacturing in integrated photonics.
By enabling production on a 6-inch wafer scale, an industry first for InP photonics, the site will allow innovations to move more rapidly from laboratory development into commercial deployment.
Applications are expected to span high-growth sectors including AI data centres, 6G communications, medical technologies, defence systems and high-performance computing.
Dutch companies such as SMART Photonics will make use of the facilities, which are intended to strengthen the entire Dutch ecosystem surrounding photonic chips.
The factory is funded through the EU Chips Act, PhotonDelta, the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Ministry of Defence, and TNO, and is part of the European initiative PIXEurope.
Crucially, the pilot line strengthens Europe’s ability to retain control of the full photonics value chain, supporting both resilience and competitiveness.
Cleanroom at the core
The development will include a state-of-the-art cleanroom facility at High Tech Campus Eindhoven, to support advanced photonic chip manufacturing and stringent contamination control requirements.
The project is being delivered through a collaboration of major engineering and construction partners, including BAM Nederland, Equans Nederland and cleanroom specialist Interflow, alongside design and consultancy firms such as Broekbakema, Deerns and others.
Interflow’s involvement reflects a broader industry trend: highly specialised cleanroom environments are becoming central to scaling photonics manufacturing, where even minor environmental variations can impact yield and performance.
High-level backing
A groundbreaking ceremony for the fab was attended by senior European and Dutch officials, including European Commission Executive VP Henna Virkkunen, and Dutch ministers Heleen Beljaars and Dilan Yeşilgöz-Zegerius.
Industry leaders and regional stakeholders also marked the milestone, highlighting the collaborative nature of the initiative across government, research and industry.
Five flags were raised on site, representing the Municipality of Eindhoven, High Tech Campus Eindhoven, PhotonDelta, SMART Photonics and TNO, symbolising the joint commitment to advancing Europe’s photonics capabilities.