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NIR photodetection

SiMO™ — ultra-low-cost near-infrared photodetection.

SiMO™ (Silicon Metal Oxide) is a revolutionary near-infrared photodetector technology with 10+ granted patents worldwide — an extremely low-cost alternative to expensive III-V detectors, with no environmental burden and full CMOS compatibility.

The technology

Near-infrared photodetection, 1000–1800 nm.

Our team combined deep expertise in semiconductor and metal-oxide electronics, advanced materials simulation and plasmonics to develop this cutting-edge detector — engineered to compete with state-of-the-art InGaAs solutions at a fraction of the cost.

Developed in collaboration with the Centre for Process Innovation (CPI) in Durham, UK, SiMO™ combines innovative device design with efficient manufacturing to significantly reduce production costs — making advanced NIR sensing accessible across industries, from high-speed data communication and on-chip optical-interconnect receivers to LiDAR and other Time-of-Flight sensing such as bio-imaging, industrial automation and facial recognition.

Unique selling points

Why SiMO wins.

Low cost orders of magnitude

Silicon-based NIR detection, orders of magnitude cheaper than existing In(Ga)As solutions — the lowest-cost technology in the industry, with no compromise on performance.

Low dark current low noise

Very low dark current minimises noise, ensuring high sensitivity and reliable signal detection even in challenging conditions.

CMOS compatible full BEOL

Designed to be fully compatible with all CMOS processes, enabling seamless integration into existing semiconductor chip and product design.

High efficiency <1 ps

Extremely high-efficiency NIR photodetection with response times down to <1 ps, unlocking unmatched dynamic performance.

Applications

Where SiMO goes to work.

Data

High-speed data communication

On-chip optical-interconnect receivers and high-speed links, where low response time and CMOS integration matter most.

Sensing

LiDAR & Time-of-Flight

Automotive and industrial LiDAR and ToF sensing, delivering InGaAs-class performance at silicon cost.

Imaging

Bio-imaging & recognition

Bio-imaging, industrial automation robots and facial recognition — precision NIR sensing at scale.

Sensing in the 900–1800 nm range?

We invite interested early adopters with near-infrared sensing requirements to get in touch today.

Get in touch today