// Indium Phosphide
Silicon Photonics Indium Phosphide Optical Networking SiPh InP Photonic Integrated Circuit CMOS Coherent Optics Supply Chain Intel Cisco Lumentum Coherent Corp Foundry Semiconductor

Silicon Photonics vs Indium Phosphide — The Foundry War Behind Your Optics

Two materials. Two manufacturing ecosystems. Two different bets on the future of optical networking. The choice between Silicon Photonics and Indium Phosphide determines who can build your optics, how fast,

Rene Fichtmueller / 2026-04-30 / ~3 min read min read
400G 400ZR 400ZR+ Coherent Optics QSFP-DD OSFP DWDM Optical Networking Data Center Network Design Supply Chain Capacity Planning Lead Time DP-16QAM Indium Phosphide Optical Transceiver ECMP

Coherent 400G ZR+ — When Lead Time Becomes a Design Problem

The design is complete. Procurement comes back: 400ZR+ optics are not available for four to five months. That is not a supply chain problem. It is a design assumption problem.

Rene Fichtmueller / 2026-04-13 / ~3 min read min read