Near-Sensor Edge Computing System Enabled by a CMOS Compatible Photonic Integrated Circuit Platform Using Bilayer AlN/Si Waveguides

Abstract

A novel near-sensor edge computing system integrates aluminum nitride (AlN) microrings for photonic feature extraction and Si Mach–Zehnder interferometers for photonic neural network operations, achieving real-time artificial intelligence (AI) processing. Demonstrates high classification accuracy (96.77% for gestures, 98.31% for gaits) with low latency (< 10 ns) and minimal energy consumption (< 0.34 pJ). Enables low-power, high-speed AI applications with seamless hybrid photonic-electronic integration on a bilayer AlN/Si waveguide platform.