The vantage point, published.
The full MEMS Journal archive — 19 articles across two decades of sensors, MEMS, and microtechnology.
Thorlabs acquires chemical sensors maker Coda Devices
Thorlabs announced earlier this month that it completed the acquisition of Coda Devices, a manufacturer of Raman-based solutions for analyzing the chemical composition of substances within a laboratory environment or in the field. Based in Menlo Park, California with an R&D center and production in Moscow, Russia ,…
Optical image stabilization: comparison of MEMS and non-MEMS technologies
MEMS Drive is a fabless MEMS based actuator device maker focusing on optical image stabilization (OIS) technology for mobile devices. The company raised $11 million in its series B round in October 2016, and is aiming to replace the currently dominant voice coil motor (VCM) technology with its MEMS based chip. The…
Si-Ware's MEMS based spectrometer gaining traction in the marketplace
Depending on the performance , traditional spectrometers sell for $5,000 to as much as $100,000 per instrument. Si-Ware Systems (SWS) says that its MEMS based Fourier transform infrared ( FTIR ) spectrometer module enables instrument makers to sell their products at well below the current price levels. There are…
MEMS based optical engine platforms: market and technology overview
With applications such as pico-projectors , head-up displays ( HUDs ), and gesture sensing , MEMS based optical engine platforms are quickly emerging to become the next “killer app” in the MEMS and microsystems component market. We spoke with Matan Naftali , the CEO of an Israeli startup company Maradin that is…
Si-Ware Systems licenses its MEMS spectrometer technology to Hamamatsu Photonics
Si-Ware Systems (SWS), a provider of MEMS and IC solutions for industrial and consumer applications, has licensed its MEMS FT-IR spectrometer technology to Hamamatsu Photonics of Japan. Hamamatsu is the world leading supplier of optoelectronics components . The company announced its new FT-IR spectrometer last…
Optical MEMS switch company CrossFiber raises $13.4 million, acquires OMM
CrossFiber , a developer and manufacturer of MEMS based photonic switches for use in data centers and next-generation telco fiber-optic networks , announced this week the completion of the final tranche of its Series D funding, now totaling $13.4 million . The company said that the majority of the funds have been…
Vuzix, Fraunhofer to develop MEMS based displays
Vuzix Corporation announced this week a strategic technology development partnership with the Fraunhofer Institute for Photonic Microsystems (IPMS). Vuzix and Fraunhofer IPMS have been engaged in the development of MEMS devices optimized for augmented and virtual wearable display solutions. Vuzix said that this…
MEMS based micromirror arrays for vision systems and display applications
by Murali Jayapala, Ph.D. Senior Researcher, IMEC The possibility to fabricate micromirror arrays has sparked a revolution in display systems . Today, devices using micromirror arrays are already indispensable in many products, such as large-scale projection engines or portable projectors . But the promise of…
Qualcomm MEMS to invest $975 million for a fabrication facility in Taiwan
Qualcomm MEMS Technologies announced this week the culmination of months of collaboration with Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs to expand the manufacturing capacity of its MEMS based displays in Taiwan with the construction of a new fabrication facility in Longtan. The initial phase of the announced facility…
Water quality monitoring system enabled by optical MEMS technology
by John Williamson Contributing Editor, MEMS Investor Journal Real-time detection of degradation in the quality of public water supplies currently relies on bulky monitoring stations which typically contain a range of traditional, non-MEMS sensors and also require use of chemicals and continual maintenance . This…
DALSA delivers MEMS for JDSU's optical communication products
DALSA Semiconductor has announceed this week the qualification of a new generation of optical MEMS products for optical communications leader JDSU. These new optical MEMS devices enable JDSU's ROADM products which are a key building block for the next generation of optical networks and improve the performance of…
MEMS focus on cell phone camera market
by Roman Gutierrez CTO and VP of Engineering, Tessera Technologies Auto focus (AF) is a common feature for digital still cameras (DSCs) to ensure that the object being photographed is in focus. However, AF has only recently been introduced into high-end cell phone cameras where the image quality, as well feature…
MEMS enabled micro mirrors provide platform for single chip cameras
by John Williamson Contributing Editor, MEMS Investor Journal Belgium-based research center imec’s NVision machine-vision program provides a new platform that replaces separate camera lenses with MEMS enabled micro mirrors on a single chip . “We set out to make a zoom lens system for digital single lens reflex (…
Optical MEMS finally arriving
by R. Colin Johnson Contributing Editor, MEMS Investor Journal Optical MEMS have long been a goal of forward-thinking electronics innovators , but these technologies have had a rocky development road. Lately, however, the big money in semiconductor research – IBM and Intel – have reported significant successes in…
MOEMS actuator moves FTIR spectrometers from lab to the field
by John Williamson Contributing Editor, MEMS Investor Journal Conventional FTIR spectrometers are characterized as bulky and sensitive to vibration and mechanical shock. This sensitivity causes spectrometer mirror plates to come out of adjustment thereby rendering the instrument to be unusable until it is…
MEMS pico projectors aim at mass market
by R. Colin Johnson, Contributing Editor MEMS Investor Journal Digital micro-mirrors could become the next mass market MEMS chip as pico projectors are built into a wide array of consumer products. Today Texas Instruments (TI) leads with its MEMS digital light processing (DLP) chip for pico projectors. TI's main…
IMT to produce MEMS wavelength switches for Capella
"We needed a world class technology and foundry partner who had proven before that it could tackle hard problems and bring highly complex MEMS devices into production. We evaluated foundries around the world and chose IMT ," said Larry Schwerin , CEO of Capella.
MOEMS: history, current status and future trends
While MOEMS, the combination of micro-optics and MEMS , have been slowed down by the telecom downturn in the early part of this decade, these technologies are now making a comeback . In addition to telecom , MOEMS applications include sensors, projection and mobile systems and devices . We recently spoke with Dr.…
Optical MEMS: A Brief History and Future Trends
We recently spoke with Dr. Joseph Ford about optical MEMS . In this detailed interview, Dr. Ford reviews the history of optical MEMS and discusses possible future trends.