The photonics industry plays a crucial role when it comes to strategic autonomy of the European Union. But the photonics sector in Europe is in distress. Vice President Global Innovation Ecosystem Partnership at Nokia Bell Labs and Board Member at Photonics21 Jean-Luc Beylat talks about what is at stake and what needs to be done in order to secure Europe´s future.
Photonics is a strategic sector for Europe and plays an important role in most industrial sectors. This technology has become indispensable in many fields, including manufacturing, defence, healthcare, agriculture, mobility, electronics and augmented reality.
It allows a number of data or signal processing functions to be combined on a single electronic chip. Signals are transmitted, processed or interpreted in the form of light or electromagnetic waves. Specifically, fibre optics and semiconductors would not exist without this sector.
It is also one of the most innovative sectors in Europe, with an R&D rate of more than 10%. The European photonics industry is the second largest in the world, just behind China.
But this strategic sector is at stake. Faced with foreign competition and supply chain disruptions, the photonics industry is in deep trouble. The European Union must strive to maintain its leadership in this key sector, finds Jean-Luc Beylat. In the byline published in the French business media "Les Echos", the Vice President Global Innovation Ecosystem Partnership at Nokia Bell Labs and Board Member at Photonics21 points out:
- How the photonics industry is trying to solve supply chain issues.
- Why and how European policymakers must act now.
Read the article here.