Superlight launches compact wideband laser for industrial spectroscopy

Enschede-based startup Superlight Photonics has introduced its first product, a new light source designed for advanced spectroscopy in industrial applications. The newly launched SLP-Venus offers a compact and cost-effective alternative to traditional, bulky solutions. The company is ramping up production and plans to ship the first commercial units later this year.

Many of today’s spectroscopy systems use halogen light sources, which couple poorly into optical fibers, resulting in significant power loss. To compensate, they require long integration times, making them unsuitable for fast-paced industrial or medical applications.

Wideband lasers offer far more efficient fiber coupling, delivering significantly higher brightness than halogen sources. However, traditional wideband lasers suffer from spectral instability, which often requires averaging across thousands of pulses. This again limits their use in high-speed industrial environments where real-time performance is critical.

The SLP-Venus generates a broad light spectrum using a simplified optical design that avoids the complex and fragile setups typical of conventional supercontinuum sources. This approach yields a more robust and efficient system that takes up less space and is easier to integrate into other products or use directly in the lab.

By overcoming long-standing trade-offs between size, performance and durability, Superlight positions the SLP-Venus as a strong choice for spectroscopy tasks in areas like semiconductor inspection and quality control in pharmaceuticals, food and beverage and materials manufacturing.