ROCHESTER, NY and CARY, NC – The American Institute for Manufacturing Integrated Photonics (AIM Photonics), a public-private partnership advancing the nation’s photonics manufacturing capabilities, and Coventor®, Inc., a semiconductor process modeling software company, today announced Coventor as the newest member of AIM Photonics.   Coventor will provide access to its unique, physics-driven 3D modeling technology to improve the performance and manufacturability of complex, integrated photonic designs.

"AIM Photonics partnership with Coventor is another key building block in expanding this vital ecosystem,” said John Maggiore, New York State photonics board of officers chairman. “We are creating nothing short of a revolution in integrated photonics for our members, companies in NY’s Photonic Valley, and across the U.S.”

“Tasked with fostering advanced research in integrated photonics to enable the United States to achieve global manufacturing leadership, AIM Photonics is building a membership that includes the country’s most innovative technology companies. Each member brings vital expertise to the initiative,” said Mr. Robert Duffy, chairman of the AIM Photonics Leadership Council. “Coventor’s process modeling capabilities are strategic to our success and will help ensure the manufacturability of photonic designs produced in the United States.”

AIM Photonics, managed by SUNY Polytechnic Institute, was established in 2015 as part of the National Network for Manufacturing Innovation, a federal initiative designed to foster innovation and deliver new capabilities that can ultimately create a nationwide manufacturing infrastructure for integrated photonics.

“We are excited to be working with AIM Photonics and SUNY Polytechnic Institute, two leading institutions in the development of the emerging photonic integrated circuit industry,” said Michael Jamiolkowski, President and CEO of Coventor. “Building upon our commercial experience in the semiconductor industry, we see our membership in AIM Photonics as essential to our mission in supporting the design and manufacturing of next generation, photonic integrated components.”Coventor’s SEMulator3D platform provides a complete virtual fabrication environment that models actual semiconductor processes and parallels the capabilities of actual fabs. Coventor’s platform enables photonic device designers to perform “virtual” fabrication of their devices and accurately predict downstream ramifications of process changes that would otherwise require build-and-test cycles in the fab.

“Coventor’s expertise in process modeling brings value to AIM Photonics and its membership and is key to scaling and integrating photonic design into commercial applications,” said Dr. Michael Liehr, CEO of AIM and executive vice president of technology and innovation for SUNY Polytechnic Institute. “We look forward to working with Coventor on next-generation electronic-photonic design platforms that support first pass, high-yield manufacturing of advanced silicon photonic devices.”

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About AIM Photonics AIM Photonics is one of nine Manufacturing Innovation Institutes, an industry-driven public-private partnership that focuses the nation’s premiere capabilities and expertise to capture critical global manufacturing leadership in a technology that is both essential to national security and positioned to provide a compelling return-on-investment to the U.S. economy. For more information about AIM Photonics, visit http://www.aimphotonics.com/.

About Coventor Coventor, Inc. is the market leader in automated design solutions for developing semiconductor process technology, as well as micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS). Coventor serves a worldwide customer base of integrated device manufacturers, memory suppliers, fabless design houses, independent foundries, and R&D organizations. Its SEMulator3D modeling and analysis platform is used for fast and accurate ‘virtual fabrication’ of advanced manufacturing processes, allowing engineers to understand manufacturing effects early in the development process and reduce time-consuming and costly silicon learning cycles. Its MEMS design solutions are used to develop MEMS-based products for automotive, aerospace, industrial, defense, and consumer electronics applications, including smart phones, tablets, and gaming systems. The company is headquartered in Cary, North Carolina, and has offices in California’s Silicon Valley; Waltham, Massachusetts; and Paris, France. More information is available at http://www.coventor.com.

Accelerating Finger Lakes Forward Today’s announcement complements “Finger Lakes Forward,” the region’s comprehensive blueprint to generate robust economic growth and community development. The State has already invested more than $3.4 billion in the region since 2012 to lay the groundwork for the plan – investing in key industries including photonics, agriculture‎ and food production, and advanced manufacturing. Today, unemployment is down to the lowest levels since before the Great Recession; personal and corporate income taxes are down; and businesses are choosing places like Rochester, Batavia and Canandaigua as a destination to grow and invest in.

Now, the region is accelerating Finger Lakes Forward with a $500 million State investment through the Upstate Revitalization Initiative, announced by Governor Cuomo in December 2015. The State’s $500 million investment will incentivize private business to invest well over $2.5 billion – and the region’s plan, as submitted, projects up to 8,200 new jobs. More information is available here.