# MAPS: Multi-Fidelity AI-Augmented Photonic Simulation and Inverse Design Infrastructure

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2503.01046 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2503.01046/

## Key facts

- Cited by 2 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 12 of its 23 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 2 Mar 2025.

## Builds on (most cited first, 12 of 12)

- [U-Net: Convolutional Networks for Biomedical Image Segmentation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1505.04597/) (2015)
- [Fourier Neural Operator for Parametric Partial Differential Equations](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2010.08895/) (2020)
- [Physics-Informed Neural Operator for Learning Partial Differential Equations](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2111.03794/) (2021)
- [Factorized Fourier Neural Operators](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2111.13802/) (2021)
- [Wave Physics as an Analog Recurrent Neural Network](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1904.12831/) (2019)
- [NeurOLight: A Physics-Agnostic Neural Operator Enabling Parametric Photonic Device Simulation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2209.10098/) (2022)
- [SineNet: Learning Temporal Dynamics in Time-Dependent Partial Differential Equations](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2403.19507/) (2024)
- [Inverse design of photonic devices with strict foundry fabrication constraints](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2201.12965/) (2022)
- [A Generative Machine Learning-Based Approach for Inverse Design of Multilayer Metasurfaces](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2008.02074/) (2020)
- [PACE: Pacing Operator Learning to Accurate Optical Field Simulation for Complicated Photonic Devices](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2411.03527/) (2024)
- [PIC2O-Sim: A Physics-Inspired Causality-Aware Dynamic Convolutional Neural Operator for Ultra-Fast Photonic Device FDTD Simulation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2406.17810/) (2024)
- [GPU-Accelerated Inverse Lithography Towards High Quality Curvy Mask Generation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2411.07311/) (2024)

## Built on by (most cited first, 2 of 2)

- [Inverse Design in Nanophotonics via Representation Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2507.00546/) (2025)
- [Democratizing Electronic-Photonic AI Systems: An Open-Source AI-Infused Cross-Layer Co-Design and Design Automation Toolflow](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2601.00130/) (2025)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Inverse design has emerged as a transformative approach for photonic device optimization, enabling the exploration of high-dimensional, non-intuitive design spaces to create ultra-compact devices and advance photonic integrated circuits (PICs) in computing and interconnects. However, practical challenges, such as suboptimal device performance, limited manufacturability, high sensitivity to variations, computational inefficiency, and lack of interpretability, have hindered its adoption in commercial hardware. Recent advancements in AI-assisted photonic simulation and design offer transformative potential, accelerating simulations and design generation by orders of magnitude over traditional numerical methods. Despite these breakthroughs, the lack of an open-source, standardized infrastructure and evaluation benchmark limits accessibility and cross-disciplinary collaboration. To address this, we introduce MAPS, a multi-fidelity AI-augmented photonic simulation and inverse design infrastructure designed to bridge this gap. MAPS features three synergistic components: (1) MAPS-Data: A dataset acquisition framework for generating multi-fidelity, richly labeled devices, providing high-quality data for AI-for-optics research. (2) MAPS-Train: A flexible AI-for-photonics training framework offering a hierarchical data loading pipeline, customizable model construction, support for data- and physics-driven losses, and comprehensive evaluations. (3) MAPS-InvDes: An advanced adjoint inverse design toolkit that abstracts complex physics but exposes flexible optimization steps, integrates pre-trained AI models, and incorporates fabrication variation models. This infrastructure MAPS provides a unified, open-source platform for developing, benchmarking, and advancing AI-assisted photonic design workflows, accelerating innovation in photonic hardware optimization and scientific machine learning.