My BiOS/PW jogging route includes…

The SPIE, producer of Photonics West (January 24-29) and BiOS (the largest of its four symposia), says that the 2009 BiOS event, starting on Saturday, will be ~15% larger than it was in 2008. I’ve packed my jogging shoes because the exhibits run only 9 hours and feature 150 companies. (The hall opens Saturday at 1 pm till 5 pm, and Sunday from 10 am till 4 pm). Here are a few stops I’m looking forward to:

The SPIE, producer of Photonics West (January 24-29) and BiOS (the largest of its four symposia), says that the 2009 BiOS event, starting on Saturday, will be ~15% larger than it was in 2008. I’ve packed my jogging shoes because the exhibits run only 9 hours and feature 150 companies. (The hall opens Saturday at 1 pm till 5 pm, and Sunday from 10 am till 4 pm). Here are a few stops I’m looking forward to:

Fianium (booth 8132) will demonstrate its recently announced supercontinuum fiber lasers, the first to use the company's new proprietary high performance photonic crystal fiber (PCF) design, developed in partnership with the University of Bath (Bath, England). The technology promises key advantages over traditional supercontinuum techniques.

Michelson Diagnostics’ (booth 8731) will demo its prototype hand-held OCT probe, based on multi-beam technology. The company plans to launch “more than one variant” of the new probe later in 2009, including a dermal version (with X-Y scanning, to enable 3D mapping of skin lesions) and a version equipped with a rigid endoscope, suitable for oral applications. The company will apply for a CE mark for the product this spring, and then file an FDA 510(k) application.

Of course the larger Photonics West event (exhibits open Tuesday, January 27) will feature plenty of companies targeting bio-optics applications, too. For instance Cal Sensors (booth 6234) will introduce LIRA-5S, a lead selenide thermal imaging array that combines sensitivity in a wider wavelength range with integrated electronics. The device can be programmed for use in a wide variety of high-speed thermal imaging applications.

And Inno-Spec GmbH (booth 1801) will introduce a mid-infrared (MIR) compact line-array spectrometer with sensitivity in the 1-3 micron wavelength region that is less expensive than competing technologies.

Spectroscopy has growth in hand

Today’s announcement by Ahura Scientific corroborates comments that Andrew Whitley, a VP at Horiba Jobin-Yvon made earlier this week during SPIE’s Spectroscopy Technology + Applications conference. Presenting a breakdown of market share, Whitley noted that Ahura has acquired 10% share since it launched its first product just three years ago. Such growth, said Whitley, is all because of the increased need for portable and handheld spectrometers. That market segment is 25% at the moment, but growing 23% CAGR, he explained.

Today’s announcement by Ahura Scientific corroborates comments that Andrew Whitley, a VP at Horiba Jobin-Yvon made earlier this week during SPIE’s Spectroscopy Technology + Applications conference. Presenting a breakdown of market share, Whitley noted that Ahura has acquired 10% share since it launched its first product just three years ago. This growth, said Whitley, is all because of the increased need for portable and handheld spectrometers--a market segment that is 25% at the moment, but growing 23% CAGR.

Whitley also discussed the “huge potential for Raman” spectroscopy in the biomedical market—though he said the realization of that potential is probably still 15 to 20 years off.

William Yang, CEO of BaySpec, which also made an interesting announcement this week concerning portable spectroscopy, defined “portable” instrumentation as units that you can carry with two hands, and “handheld” devices as those that require only one hand for transport.

More information:
SPIE’s Spectroscopy Technology + Applications
Horiba Jobin-Yvon spectroscopy