Raytheon joins DARPA PICASSO program for photonic circuits

Raytheon received a phase-one DARPA contract to design and demonstrate an all-optical processing system under the Photonic Integrated Circuit Architectures for Scalable System Objectives programme. PICASSO aims to process signals with light while avoiding repeated conversion into electrical signals, preserving photonics' potential latency, efficiency and bandwidth advantages. Raytheon's Advanced Technology team will develop circuit techniques intended to maintain signal integrity as systems become smaller and more complex, with Synopsys providing design and simulation tools. The award funds technology development and demonstration, rather than the deployment of a completed sensor or electronic-warfare processor.