FOCUS BUSINESS NEWS
Scanlab acquires Next Scan Technology
Scanlab has acquired Dutch company Next Scan Technology to further increase its stake in the polygon scanner market. Ultra-short-pulse (USP) lasers are popular for ultra-precise micro- machining of diverse materials through cold ablation, allowing for particularly fine, targeted material removal. To achieve industrial-scale productivity, USP lasers are best combined with ultra-fast scanners – for example a polygon scanner. In 2014, Scanlab introduced its hybrid polygon scan system. Next Scan technology is well known as the manufacturer of the Line Scan Engine (LSE) product family, a group of high-speed polygon scanners containing patent-pending one dimensional large field f-Theta optics that keep the spot focused on the substrate. The two firms create a team with
differing, yet integrable polygon system approaches to USP laser processing. It is anticipated that the acquisition will lead to smart cross-over designs using galvo, polygon and mirror F-theta technology, and therefore a line of systems for diverse applications. Under the new agreement, Next Scan
Technology and its 10 employees will retain its operational site in Evergem, near Ghent, Belgium. ‘We see great potential in the polygon scanner market, so it’s natural to position ourselves here accordingly. Next Scan Technology’s expertise suits our approach well and our products complement each other superbly,’ said Scanlab CEO Georg Hofner.
IN BRIEF
Trevor Cross, group chief technology officer at e2v, has been awarded the honorary title of Professor from the University of Birmingham’s College of Engineering and Physical Sciences for his role in quantum technology. E2v and the University have secured funding for the lead role in an £80 million Quantum Technology Hub for Sensors and Metrology, to be based at the University.
Optical filters and coatings company, Alluxa, has expanded its Santa Rosa, CA facilities, which now contains 10 plasma deposition machines. Its headquarters has also received ISO 9001:2008 certification.
Ireland’s scientific community gains €28m investment
S
cience Foundation Ireland has announced a €28 million investment in research equipment and facilities across 21 research projects in Ireland. The announcement was made by the Irish Minister for Jobs, Richard Bruton, together with the Minister for Research, Innovation and Skills, Damien English. The projects supported by the funding include those in the fields of geo-sciences, pharmaceutical manufacturing, bio-banking, marine renewable energy, Internet of things, astronomy, big data, and additive manufacturing using nano-materials. Projects focused on Internet of Things (IoT) that will get funding include a new Ireland- wide wireless network testbed to support new IoT concepts, business models and devices (funding approved for €1.8m); a radio testbed for the development and testing of new radio technologies for IoT (€0.5m funding); and a 400+ Gigabit-per-second communications testbed to enable the development of the next generation core network and data centre technologies (€1.45m funding).
Integrated photonics manufacturing will gain
funding, including a tool capable of growing complex stacks of metal and oxide thin films for applications such as integrated photonics (€3.24m investment). Infrastructure to support the packaging and assembly of a wide range of miniaturised photonic devices used in data- communications, sensing and point-of-care medical diagnostics, will also be supported (€0.74m). Investment will also be made in an early life lab to monitor how the brain grows in children, a sensing suite to develop new therapeutic strategies for metabolic and neuromuscular disease, as well as work on sensing for natural disasters and additive manufacturing. Professor Mark Ferguson, director general Science Foundation Ireland and chief scientific adviser to the Government of Ireland, commented: ‘Ireland is increasingly becoming the location of choice for multinational companies to develop and test tomorrow’s technologies and this investment demonstrates our commitment and expanded ability to engage, discover and collaborate at all levels. Ultimately, this is about providing Irish researchers in strategic areas with the tools to be world leading.’
Ciena purchases TeraXion photonic assets for $32m
Telecommunications company, Ciena, has bought TeraXion’s High-Speed Photonics Components (HSPC) assets for approximately $CA 46.6 million (USD $32 million) in cash. Canadian firm TeraXion provides photonic products for fibre optic communication, fibre lasers and optical sensing applications.
The purchase includes
TeraXion’s high-speed indium phosphide and silicon photonics technologies, as well as underlying intellectual property. These technologies are key enablers of Ciena’s WaveLogic coherent optical chipsets, which make the optical layer of next-generation networks more intelligent.
Alain-Jacques Simard,
TeraXion’s president and CEO, commented: ‘Being part of
Ciena will provide the scale needed to accelerate the development of the HSPC technologies, and will enable the continued development of highly differentiated solutions for Ciena’s customers.’ ‘The TeraXion HSPC assets advance Ciena’s established leadership in high-speed optics and enhance our ability to develop differentiated solutions that enable service providers to scale their networks with greater programmability and agility,’ said Scott McFeely, senior vice president, networking platforms at Ciena. With this acquisition, Ciena will maintain critical design and innovation resources in Québec City and bolster its R&D centre of excellence in Ottawa. ‘This is a new chapter for our HSPC activities and clearly an exciting
opportunity for our employees to advance our technology’ said Martin Guy, TeraXion’s current chief technology officer, who will join the Packet Optical Platforms organisation at Ciena and serve as the company’s site leader in Québec City. ‘As part of Ciena, the HSPC team will be in a position to optimise its high speed photonic solutions specifically for use in Ciena’s WaveLogic coherent platform,’ said Ian Woods, TeraXion’s current HSPC business unit leader who will also be joining the Packet Optical Platforms organisation at Ciena. TeraXion will continue to operate its fibre-optic communication, fibre lasers and optical sensing business, with 120 employees remaining with TeraXion in Québec City.
6 ELECTRO OPTICS l FEBRUARY 2016
@electrooptics |
www.electrooptics.com
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