High-speed non-volatile barium titanate field-programmable photonic gate array

Programmable integrated photonics aims to replicate the versatility of field-programmable gate arrays in the optical domain. However, scaling these systems has been prevented by the high power consumption and thermal crosstalk of conventional volatile phase shifters. Here we introduce a non-volatile field-programmable photonic gate array, implemented on a hybrid silicon–barium titanate platform, which overcomes the power scaling limitations of previous technologies. Unlike traditional thermo-optic devices that require constant power to maintain a state, our device utilizes ferroelectric domain switching to provide non-volatile memory, allowing optical circuits to be programmed and retained without any holding power or electrical bias. The hexagonal waveguide mesh integrates 58 programmable unit cells and 116 actuators, achieving nanosecond-scale switching speeds of 80 ns while reducing static power consumption to negligible levels (560 nW per π phase shift). To validate this platform, we configured the mesh to perform diverse signal processing functions, including tunable filtering, 4 × 4 linear unitary transformations and optical routing. This work establishes non-volatile ferroelectric silicon photonics as a scalable, heat-free platform essential for the next generation of energy-efficient photonic computing. Barium titanate ferroelectric is used in photonic phase shifters arranged in a hexagonal waveguide mesh, forming a programmable photonic array. The device achieves sub-100-ns switching speeds, while each individual gate retains its state without continuous powering, enhancing overall energy efficiency.