The industrialization of silicon carbide optical waveguides is picking up speed. Leading manufacturers like AAC Technologies, Goertek Optics, and Sunny Optical are rolling out silicon carbide optical waveguide solutions boasting a field of view of 50° or wider. The path to industrializing silicon carbide as an optical wafer for AR glasses is becoming clearer by the day. Amidst this industry shift, Shanghai Fanchuangwei Technology Co., Ltd. has officially set up its high-transparency optical AR glasses lens project in Huangyan, Taizhou.

On October 12, Lu Mingyu, Deputy Secretary of the Party Working Committee and Director of the Management Committee of the Huangyan Economic Development Zone, headed a delegation to inspect the R&D and experimental base of Shanghai Fanchuangwei Technology in Nantong, Jiangsu. During the visit, they inked an Intentional Cooperation Agreement with the company. By October 14, both sides had ironed out details regarding factory site selection.

Fanke Technology (Taizhou) Co., Ltd. will roll out the project in two phases over three years, with a total investment of around 550 million yuan. The initial phase will see an investment of roughly 150 million yuan, with construction slated to kick off within the year. The science and technology innovation center and pilot production line are expected to be up and running by 2027. The second phase, involving a 400 million yuan investment, will focus on building a 50-acre production base, aiming to reach an annual production capacity of 100 tons of high-purity silicon carbide optical materials by 2028. Initially, the company will carry out small-batch testing during the laboratory R&D phase in Huangyan, gradually ramping up to large-scale mass production.

According to Zeng Lixuan, the head of Shanghai Fanchuangwei Technology, the project is geared towards next-gen smart terminals like AI glasses and AR devices. It zeroes in on the R&D and industrialization of high-transparency optical AR glasses materials and new optical devices, establishing a comprehensive system that spans from optical-grade high-transparency materials, custom processing, and etching processes to optical devices and customer verification.

Fanke Technology (Taizhou)’s technical team is a blend of renowned overseas material scientists and researchers from domestic universities and research institutes. Leveraging a brand-new technical approach for optical high-transparency materials, combined with grating etching processes, the company crafts high-transparency customized AR glasses lenses. It plans to use Shanghai as its R&D and operational hub, working hand-in-hand to advance the construction of the industrialization base in Taizhou.