SYNOPSYS SOFTWARE NETHERLANDS BV

Their core work

PHOENIX (now part of Synopsys) develops photonic integrated circuit (PIC) design software and process design kits — essentially the CAD tools that enable engineers to design photonic chips before fabrication. Based in Enschede, Netherlands, they are a critical enabler in the European photonics supply chain, providing the design automation layer that connects chip designers to foundries. Their tools support multiple material platforms including silicon nitride, indium phosphide, and silicon photonics, serving applications from telecom to biosensing.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

Their early H2020 work (2016-2018) was research-oriented, exploring advanced concepts like plasmonic waveguides, CMOS-compatible photonic integration, and monolithic integration of plasmonics with electronics. By 2017-2023, the focus shifted decisively toward industrialization: pilot lines, assembly and packaging, supply chain standards, SME training, and building a self-sustained PIC ecosystem. This mirrors the broader European photonics sector's maturation from lab research to manufacturing infrastructure.

Moving firmly toward production-readiness and ecosystem building — future collaborations should expect a partner focused on industrializing photonic design tools and lowering barriers for SME access to PIC fabrication.

How they like to work

PHOENIX consistently operates as a participant or third party — never as coordinator — across all six projects, suggesting they prefer a specialist contributor role where they provide design expertise without taking on consortium management overhead. With 69 unique partners across 18 countries, they have a remarkably broad network for an SME, indicating they are a sought-after partner rather than a project initiator. Their presence in multiple pilot-line projects (PIX4LIFE, PIXAPP, InPulse) signals that large consortia actively recruit them for their design automation capabilities.

Extensive network of 69 unique partners across 18 countries, heavily weighted toward the European photonics ecosystem including foundries, research institutes, and end-users. For an SME, this is an unusually wide reach — a reflection of being a key infrastructure provider in a specialized supply chain.

What sets them apart

PHOENIX occupies a rare niche as the design automation layer in European photonics — without design tools and process design kits, chips cannot move from concept to fabrication. This makes them a near-essential partner for any consortium building a photonic pilot line or foundry access program. Their acquisition by Synopsys (a global EDA leader) further validates their technology and gives them access to resources that few European photonics SMEs can match.

Highlights from their portfolio

• InPulse
  Their largest funded project (EUR 480K) — building a self-sustained indium phosphide pilot line and PIC ecosystem, representing the culmination of their shift toward industrialization.
• PLASMOfab
  Most technically ambitious early project — integrating plasmonics, photonics, and electronics on a single CMOS-compatible chip, combining three normally separate domains.
• PIXAPP
  First European pilot line for PIC assembly and packaging — addresses a critical gap in moving photonic chips from wafer to usable product.