# Mian Zhang

> Mian Zhang is the co-founder and CEO of HyperLight, the Cambridge-based deep-tech company commercializing thin-film lithium niobate (TFLN) photonics. A Cornell-trained physicist who did his foundational work in Marko Loncar's lab at Harvard, Zhang took a notoriously hard-to-manufacture optical material and shrank it onto silicon-style chips - cutting signal loss roughly 100-fold in work published in Nature. HyperLight now runs the industry's first high-volume, qualified 6-inch TFLN production line and is pushing 400G-per-lane photonic circuits into hyperscale AI data centers through partnerships with UMC, Wavetek, and Jabil.

- **Role:** Co-founder & CEO at HyperLight
- **Organizations:** HyperLight, Harvard University (former), Cornell University (alumnus)
- **Education:** PhD, Applied/Engineering Physics (silicon photonics), Cornell University, Postdoctoral Fellow, Applied Physics (Loncar Lab), Harvard University
- **Known for:** Co-invented chip-scale thin-film lithium niobate electro-optic modulators while at Harvard, reducing optical signal loss by roughly 100x (published in Nature)., Co-founded and leads HyperLight, which operates the industry's first high-volume, qualified 6-inch TFLN manufacturing line in production., Drove HyperLight's $37M Series B funding led by Summit Partners (2024).

## Career timeline

- **2015** — Earned PhD from Cornell University, working on silicon photonics.
- **2015-2018** — Postdoctoral fellow at Harvard's Laboratory for Nanoscale Optics in Marko Loncar's group, developing thin-film lithium niobate modulators.
- **2017** — Co-authored Nature work demonstrating chip-scale lithium niobate modulators with roughly 100x lower loss.
- **2018** — Co-founded HyperLight as a Harvard spin-out, backed by The Engine; became CEO.
- **2021** — HyperLight debuted its integrated TFLN electro-optic platform at ECOC 2021 and demonstrated an industry-first DFB-laser hybrid transmitter on TFLN.
- **2024** — Raised $37M Series B led by Summit Partners; expanded modulator product line.
- **2026** — Launched TFLN Chiplet platform, partnered with UMC/Wavetek and Jabil, and introduced 400G-per-lane PICs for AI interconnects.

## Achievements

- Co-invented chip-scale thin-film lithium niobate electro-optic modulators while at Harvard, reducing optical signal loss by roughly 100x (published in Nature).
- Co-founded and leads HyperLight, which operates the industry's first high-volume, qualified 6-inch TFLN manufacturing line in production.
- Drove HyperLight's $37M Series B funding led by Summit Partners (2024).
- Brought 400G-per-lane TFLN photonic integrated circuits to market for next-generation AI networking (2026).
- Named to The Photonics100 list by Electro Optics.
- Prolific researcher in integrated photonics, electro-optic frequency combs, and nonclassical light.

## Latest updates

- **2026-03** — HyperLight, UMC and Wavetek teamed with Jabil to scale TFLN photonics for hyperscale AI data center deployment.
- **2026-03** — HyperLight introduced 400G-per-lane PICs on its TFLN Chiplet platform for next-generation AI interconnects.

## Links

- Website: https://hyperlightcorp.com
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/zhangmiango

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/mian-zhang
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-10