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GlobalFoundries Expands SiGe Capacity for AI Optical Links
GlobalFoundries and Marvell expand a multi-year agreement to increase silicon germanium capacity at GF’s Burlington, Vermont facility. The capacity will support optical transceivers, near-packaged optics and co-packaged optics for AI data c
AI.info Team ·
GlobalFoundries and Marvell Add SiGe Capacity in Vermont
GlobalFoundries and Marvell Technology announced on September 17 an expanded multi-year agreement to increase production capacity for silicon germanium technology at GlobalFoundries’ facility in Burlington, Vermont. The companies say the additional capacity will support optical connectivity used in next-generation AI and cloud data centers.
The agreement builds on more than a decade of collaboration between the two companies and existing production programs. Neither company disclosed the size of the capacity increase, the investment required or a target date for bringing the added output online.
GlobalFoundries describes the move as a response to demand for high-performance SiGe technology in pluggable optical transceivers, near-packaged optics and co-packaged optics. Those components move data between processors, switches and other systems as data centers assemble larger AI clusters.
Why Silicon Germanium Matters to Optical Networking
SiGe is used in the high-frequency electronic circuits that drive and receive signals in optical links. GlobalFoundries says its platform provides the frequency performance, signal integrity and power efficiency required for advanced optical networking applications.
The company’s current technology supports 200G-per-lane optical connectivity, according to the announcement. GF also says its roadmap is designed to address higher-speed generations as bandwidth requirements rise across AI and cloud data centers.
“SiGe is where GF’s decades of high-performance radio frequency and analog leadership translate directly into breakthrough optical performance,” said Shankaran Janardhanan, senior vice president of Photonics & RF businesses at GlobalFoundries.
Marvell Targets Near-Packaged and Co-Packaged Optics
Marvell is positioning the agreement around a shift in how optical components connect to computing systems. Pluggable transceivers remain separate modules attached to network equipment, while near-packaged and co-packaged designs place optical functions closer to, or alongside, the switching and compute silicon.
Robb Johnson, Marvell’s vice president of Foundry Technology, said the company is investing to support higher-bandwidth optical architectures. “Our expanded collaboration with GF will help ensure we have the SiGe technology and manufacturing capacity to support the significant growth we see ahead,” Johnson said.
The companies’ announcement does not identify specific Marvell products or customers tied to the expanded capacity. It connects the agreement to Marvell’s broader optical portfolio and to the expected growth of AI data center networks, where the amount of data moving between compute systems can constrain overall performance.
Vermont Expansion Follows GF’s Photonics Push
The Burlington capacity expansion arrives as GlobalFoundries builds a wider U.S. silicon photonics program. In July, the company announced a letter of intent with the U.S. Department of Commerce for an expected $300 million CHIPS Research and Development award focused on optical materials, wafer technologies and advanced packaging.
That earlier program includes work on GlobalFoundries’ SCALE platform, which the company says targets 400Gb/s performance and a fivefold increase in energy efficiency over current-generation implementations. GF said the research would use capabilities in Malta, New York, and Burlington, Vermont, to support a U.S.-based path to higher-volume silicon photonics manufacturing.
The July announcement focused on silicon photonics and packaging research, while the new Marvell agreement concerns added manufacturing capacity for SiGe. Together, the announcements show GlobalFoundries expanding several parts of the optical supply chain rather than relying on a single device technology.
AI Data Centers Turn Connectivity Into a Manufacturing Priority
GlobalFoundries said modern AI data centers operate as distributed compute systems whose performance depends on the links moving data among accelerators and other components. The company’s second-quarter results statement in August identified optical networking within the AI data center as one of its growth areas, citing demand for its silicon photonics and SiGe technologies.
The Marvell agreement gives that demand a specific manufacturing commitment at Burlington, but it does not provide a production volume or financial value. The disclosed target is narrower: more capacity for the SiGe devices used in optical connectivity, including systems built around 200G-per-lane links and future higher-speed designs.
For GlobalFoundries, the announcement extends a relationship with Marvell that has lasted more than ten years. For Marvell, it adds foundry capacity for the electronic layer behind optical links as AI systems push data center networks toward higher bandwidth and closer integration between optics and compute.
Read GlobalFoundries’ announcement of the expanded agreement with Marvell.