Awards - PI (Physik Instrumente) L.P.
Industry Recognizes PI’s Multi-Channel Photonics Alignment Platform for the Fourth Time
PI (Physik Instrumente) a global leader in precision motion control, automation, and nanopositioning solutions, announces that its PINovAlign active parallel photonics alignment platform was recognized with a 2026 Lightwave Innovation Award.
The award was presented at the OFC Conference in Los Angeles, CA, where PI’s Matt Price and Nikta Jalayer accepted the honor from Lightwave Magazine Editor Sean Buckley.
This recognition marks the fourth major industry award for the PINovAlign system, underscoring its impact on high-speed, high-precision photonics alignment. The platform combines advanced motion control, integrated alignment algorithms, and high-performance hardware to significantly improve throughput and repeatability in photonic device manufacturing and testing.
Parallel, Multi-Channel Optimization
Designed for silicon photonics wafer testing, high-throughput fiber alignment, FAU (fiber array unit) alignment, and PIC (photonic integrated circuit) alignment in both test and assembly environments, PINovAlign’s parallel, multi-channel optimization approach addresses one of the key bottlenecks in scaling silicon photonics manufacturing. By combining high-dynamics precision motion with embedded alignment intelligence, the system enables rapid, repeatable coupling of optical components with nanometer-level accuracy.
Photonics at the Core of Data Centers: Advancing Performance While Reducing Energy Use
At the heart of the platform, the PILightning algorithm dramatically accelerates first-light acquisition and alignment convergence compared to legacy sequential methods. The result is significantly shorter cycle times, higher yield, and improved process stability, all of which are critical for high-volume production.
As silicon photonics emerges as a key enabling technology for AI infrastructure and next-generation data centers, the need for fast, automated, and scalable alignment solutions is becoming increasingly urgent. By reducing alignment times from minutes to seconds and enabling parallel multi-channel optimization, PINovAlign removes a major barrier to mass adoption and supports the growth of the high-speed optical interconnects that will power future data communication.
By replacing electrons with photons for data transfer, photonic chips have the potential to dramatically reduce power consumption in next-generation data centers while delivering the bandwidth required for AI-scale computing.
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