Peter O'Brien

Head of Research Group, Director of Photonics Packaging Pilot Line, Head of European Photonics Academy

Tyndall National Institute

Prof. Peter O'Brien is Head of Advanced Packaging & Systems Integration Research at the Tyndall Institute, University College Cork, Ireland. He is also Director of the European Photonics Pilot Line (PIXAPP), Leader of Advanced Packaging in the new EU Chips Act Photonics Pilot Line (PIXEurope). His group is involved in multiple national and European projects, as well as projects funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and DARPA, in addition to numerous direct industry collaborations. His research team specialises in the development and scaling of photonic and electronic packaging technologies — from fundamental simulation and design to prototype development and transition to pilot-scale production. They apply their expertise to a wide range of applications, including high-speed communications, artificial intelligence, augmented reality, quantum technologies, medical diagnostics, and sensing. Prof. O'Brien previously founded and served as CEO of a start-up company manufacturing specialty photonic systems for biomedical applications, which he sold in 2009. He was a postdoctoral researcher at the California Institute of Technology and a research scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where he developed submillimetre-wave devices for remote sensing applications. He received his degree and PhD in Physics from Trinity College Dublin and University College Cork, respectively.