Intellectual Property

Team science, strong patents, real impact

Assignees include: Broadcom (Avago Technologies) • Fuji Xerox • The Regents of the University of California & Multiple SME's

Artificial intelligence hardware is entering a transformative era, where efficiency, scalability, and specialization are redefining the computing landscape. Traditional electronic approaches to AI acceleration are approaching physical and thermal limits, creating an urgent need for novel architectures that combine high throughput with ultra-low energy consumption. Photonics has emerged as a compelling candidate to overcome these bottlenecks, offering unparalleled bandwidth, reduced latency, and the ability to process information in parallel with minimal power dissipation. Integrating photonic devices with advanced packaging, neuromorphic designs, and secure hardware systems is paving the way for next-generation AI platforms capable of real-time decision-making in autonomous systems, quantum-classical hybrid computing, and mission-critical defense and healthcare applications.

This convergence of photonics, materials innovation, and secure hardware design is not only expanding the performance envelope but also addressing trust and traceability challenges in global supply chains. As AI workloads continue to diversify—from large-scale foundation models to edge intelligence—the hardware stack must evolve to balance speed, energy, and reliability in ways previously unattainable with electronics alone. Universities, through programs such as UF Innovate, are driving this frontier forward by securing intellectual property that shapes the trajectory of computing for the coming decades.

https://innovate.research.ufl.edu/3d-optical-packaging-for-next-gen-ai-chips/ https://innovate.research.ufl.edu/dalir-chip-nswc/
https://innovate.research.ufl.edu/funding-to-develop-oilwell-monitoring-devices/

https://innovate.research.ufl.edu/dalir-chip-nswc/

2014

Granted — JP 5645546 B2 — Surface-emitting semiconductor laser and optical transmission apparatus

2015

Granted — JP 5721246 B1 — Surface-emitting laser with optical modulation function

2016

Granted — US 9,350,139 — Vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser diode and optical transmission apparatus

2017

Granted — US 9,806,498 — Vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser diode and optical transmission apparatus
Granted — JP 6240429 B2 — Surface-emitting semiconductor laser and optical transmission apparatus

2020

Granted — US 10,658,815 — Optical devices with transverse-coupled-cavity
Granted — US 10,775,651 — Double-layer graphene optical modulators and methods of fabrication thereof

2023

Pending — T19107 — Developing X-Ray Inspection Compatibility Metric for Advanced Chip Packages Based on DFI Parameters

2024

Granted — US 11,921,037 — Vertical photonic crystal waveguide for gas detection
Pending — T19267 — Multiplexed Orbital Angular Momentum Beam Demultiplexing via 4F-Based Fourier-Optics CNN
Pending — T19367 — Inherent Fingerprint for IC Packaging Hardware Identification: Traceability and Security
Pending — T19433 — Photonic Integrated Circuits Hardware Fingerprint
Pending — US/PCT (MT4-001USP1) — photonic modulator, photonic device, and method of manufacturing

2025

Pending — T19483 — High-Speed Optical Neural Network Accelerator Using Adiabatic-Elimination-Based ITO Logic Gates
Pending — T19622 — Boosting Photonic Computing Efficiency with Photonic Memory and Energy-Efficient ADC/DAC Design
Pending — T19629 — Fast Tunable Laser Using a Transverse Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (TCSEL) Near an Exceptional Point
Pending — T19801 — Dual-Input Electro-Optic Modulator with Ultra-Low Energy for Monolithic Integrated Photonics
Pending — T19823 — Orbital Angular Momentum Demultiplexing Using a Hybrid Fourier Phase-Shift Neural Network
Pending — T19899 — Scaling Photonic Accelerators
Pending — T19951 — High-Accuracy & Lightweight CNN-Based Fingerprint Recognition: Model and FPGA Implementation
Pending — T19950 — BAM-Net: Hardware-Friendly Associative Memory Using Binary-Dominant Weights and NAND Logic