Cambridge spin-out raises £813,000 to improve 5G with graphene

8 Aug 2022

Image: © koya979/Stock.adobe.com

With fresh funding from the UK’s Wealth Club, CamGraphic will soon start consumer testing for its graphene-based telecoms technology.

CamGraphic, a spin-out from the University of Cambridge, has raised more than £813,000 in an investment round for its graphene-based photonics technology that could be used to improve 5G networks.

The start-up specialises in graphene-integrated photonics technology that has the potential to greatly enhance next-generation optical cores for transceivers and telecoms networks of the future.

Owing to its unique physical properties, graphene acts as a material that can absorb, transmit and change the phase of light. It is compatible with many photonic materials and can be synthesised and integrated through scalable wafer-level processes.

CamGraphic says that its technology can provide high-bandwidth density, low-cost, low-power consumption, high-traffic capacity and temperature resilience. According to CEO Paul Mantle, the technology has the potential to “transform high-speed data and telecommunications”.

The latest funding round was led by members of Wealth Club, a UK-based investment service for high net-worth individuals, through the Enterprise Investment Scheme for tax reliefs to investors.

Alex Davies, CEO and founder of Wealth Club, said that CamGraphic has the potential to be a “leading manufacturer of next-generation optical devices” for use in 5G markets across the world, according to UKTN.

“While still under development, the products appear to be delivering performance at low cost and have achieved key milestones since the last funding round.”

The start-up will use the funding to finish the fabrication and testing of its prototype devices, with consumer testing planned to start next month.

The fresh investment brings the total funding to £1.26m raised through an equity funding round from existing and new investors led by Frontier IP and Wealth Club. CamGraphic previously raised £1.6m in September 2021.

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Vish Gain is a journalist with Silicon Republic

editorial@siliconrepublic.com