History & Innovations | nanoplus

nanoplus Nanosystems and Technologies GmbH About Us History & Innovations

Our story

History & Innovations

Important Milestones that shaped us

nanoplus Nanosystems and Technologies GmbH, Germany, is an ISO 9001:14001 certified supplier of semiconductor devices and one of the leading manufacturers of lasers for gas sensing applications.
The success of nanoplus is based on a unique and patented concept for the fabrication of DFB laser sources.
nanoplus is a SME and was founded in 1998 as a spin off from Würzburg University. The following overview quickly outlines the history of nanoplus:

2024

High-Power DFB interband cascade lasers at 3345 nm and 4565 nm with up to 40 mW

2024

Dual-color RCICLED Resonant Cavity Interband Cascade Light-Emitting Diodes between 2 µm and 20 µm

nanoplus today

One of the leading manufacturers of laser sources for gas sensing

Within less than 20 years nanoplus has become the worldwide no. 1 for DFB laser sources in the gas sensing business. We are the key supplier for the top equipment manufacturers in the gas sensing industry.

2023

continuous-wave Quantum Cascade Lasers from 6 µm - 11 µm

2021

cw MIR LEDs (also known as ICLED) and DFB ICLs up to 6.5 µm

2020

Superluminescent Diodes (SLD) from 760 nm to 2900 nm
High-Power Fabry-Pérot Lasers up to 1 W

2018

cw MIR-LEDs in the 3 µm to 5 µm range

2017

nanoplus opens US subsidiary in Boulder, Colorado

nanoplus America, Inc.

Offers all high-precision lasers and OEM modules of nanoplus
Provides technological advice, sales assistance and after sales service
Includes small scale production and characterization laboratory

2015

Compact collimation module and point gas sensor module for OEM applications

2014

ICL performance records: including shortest (2.7 µm) and longest (5.2 µm) DFB emission wavelength

2014

Second clean room facilities in Meiningen completed

Equipped for high volume production

2012

First ICL DFB devices made commercially available, licence agreement with U.S. NRL

2009

DFB laser diodes for Cs clock applications at 852 nm and 894 nm
with 100 mW output power and linewidth < 1 MHz demonstrated

2009

Longest wavelength GaSb based DFB devices at 2.9 µm

2009

New production facility in Meiningen

Processing site for expanded capacity

2008

Space-qualified 2.7 µm laser diode package for NASA Mars Science Laboratory mission

2006

Demonstration of temperature insensitive 1.3 µm Quantum Dot DFB lasers for 10 GBit/s transmission

2006

Widely tunable QCLs at 10.7 µm demonstrated

2004

Long wavelength GaSb based DFB devices at 2740 nm

2003

Long wavelength GaSb based DFB devices at 2330 nm

2001

1310 nm DFB emission demonstrated based on quantum dot active material

2001

Start of device production at production facility in Gerbrunn

First 250 m² clean room facility established including complete process line for laser fabrication and corresponding device characterization

1999

First commercial single mode laser based on metal grating concept

1999

Foundation of nanoplus Nanosystems and Technologies GmbH

Starting point: license agreement for laterally coupled DFB lasers
Since then: continuous upgrade in equipment and products