PDK (Process Design Kit)

A PDK is a set of files, component libraries, design rules (Design Rule Check), and compact models, provided by a foundry and required to design a photonic integrated circuit compatible with its manufacturing process.

What does a PDK contain?

A typical photonic PDK contains a library of ready-made components (waveguides, couplers, modulators) with their validated compact models, process geometric rules (minimum widths, spacings), lithography layers, and tools for verifying the design before sending the masks to production (tape-out).

Applications

A PDK is the starting point for every PIC project intended for production — it lets the designer simulate the circuit using validated, real process parameters, minimizing the risk of the design being incompatible with the fab's capabilities.

Related terms

PIC (Photonic Integrated Circuit)

Compact model (PIC)

Silicon photonics