The 61st International Conference on Microelectronics, Devices and Materials – MIDEM 2026 took place from 28 to 30 September 2026 at the University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, bringing together Slovenian and international researchers, experts and industry representatives working across microelectronics, semiconductor technologies, materials, integrated circuits, optoelectronics, sensors and MEMS.
As part of the conference programme, CC Chip.si supported and enabled the Integrated Photonics Workshop, held on 29 September and dedicated to the latest developments and future directions in integrated photonics and photonic integrated circuits (PICs).
The workshop brought together leading European experts and researchers and provided participants with insights into developments ranging from silicon photonics and photonic computing to quantum photonics and emerging integrated photonic technologies.
A particular highlight was the plenary lecture “Silicon photonics: emerging trends, opportunities and challenges” delivered by Roel Baets from the Photonics Research Group (Ghent University – imec), Department of Information Technology (INTEC) and imec, Ghent, Belgium. The presentation highlighted how photonic integrated circuits (PICs) have become a key enabling technology, with the vast majority of today’s deployments found in data centres and telecommunications networks (99,9% world production). At the same time, rapid advances are opening opportunities in emerging application areas, including sensing, healthcare, artificial intelligence, automotive systems, and quantum technologies, demonstrating the significant long-term potential of PIC technologies.
The programme also featured distinguished invited speakers:
- Photonic Integrated Circuits for Signal Processing and Computing by Andrea Melloni from Politecnico di Milano.
- Quantum Photonic Integrated Circuits with Self-Assembled Quantum Dots by @Leonardo Midolo from the Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen.
- Microscale generation and control of nanosecond light by light in liquid crystals by Igor Muševič from the Jozef Stefan Institute and the Univerza v Ljubljani.
Through initiatives such as this workshop, KC Čip.si supports the development of Slovenia’s semiconductor and photonics ecosystem, promotes the dissemination of cutting-edge research, and strengthens collaboration between academia and industry. By bringing world-leading experts to Slovenia, the workshop provided participants with direct insight into the latest developments in silicon photonics, photonic integrated circuits, and quantum photonics, while helping to raise awareness of the growing importance of these technologies for Europe’s future competitiveness.
Learn more about the conference here.











