STMicroelectronics and Metalenz to accelerate Metasurface optics adoption

STMicroelectronics and Metalenz, the pioneer of metasurface optics, have announced a new license agreement.

The agreement broadens ST’s capability to use Metalenz IP to produce advanced metasurface optics while leveraging ST’s unique technology and manufacturing platform combining 300mm semiconductor and optics production, test and qualification.

Alexandre Balmefrezol, Executive VP and GM, STMicroelectronics’s Imaging Sub-Group, said: “STMicroelectronics is the unique supplier on the market offering a groundbreaking combination of optics and semiconductor technology. Since 2022, we have shipped well over 140 million metasurface optics and FlightSense modules using Metalenz IP.

"The new license agreement with Metalenz bolsters our technology leadership in consumer, industrial and automotive segments, and will enable new opportunities from smartphone applications like biometrics, LIDAR and camera assist, to robotics, gesture recognition, or object detection. Our unique model, processing optical technology in our 300mm semiconductor fab, ensures high precision, cost-effectiveness, and scalability to meet the requests of our customers for high-volume, complex applications.”

 “Our agreement with STMicroelectronics has the potential to further fast-track the adoption of metasurfaces from their origins at Harvard to adoption by market leading consumer electronics companies,” said Rob Devlin, co-founder and CEO of Metalenz.

“By enabling the shift of optics production into semiconductor manufacturing, this agreement has the possibility to further redefine the sensing ecosystem. As use cases for 3D sensing continue to expand, ST’s technology leadership in the market together with our IP leadership solidifies ST and Metalenz as the dominant forces in the emergent metasurface market we created.”

The new license agreement aims to address the growing market opportunity for metasurface optics projected to experience significant growth to reach $2 billion by 2029; largely driven by the industry’s role in emerging display and imaging applications.