Startup Boston Laser Formed From Polaroid Diode Laser Business
Editor's Report
There's a new entry in the semiconductor laser market as telecom hopeful Boston Laser Inc. (Norwood, MA) launches into business with the acquisition of the diode laser business of <%=company%> (Cambridge, MA) for cash and securities. As part of the agreement, Boston Laser is purchasing certain assets, patents and licensing from Polaroid and other patents related to the diode laser business; specific financial terms were not disclosed.
Specializing in high-brightness, high-power diode laser systems, Boston Laser was formed by CEO Aharon Meytahl, who offered positions to all of the employees in the Polaroid diode laser business. Boston Laser holds a five-year lease on a 2000-sq.-ft. space in Polaroid's Norwood site, which will soon be converted into an industrial park, according to Boston Laser executive vice president Aland Chin. Fellow tenants are SDL's fiber laser group and 3M's polarizer group, both of which were former Polaroid holdings (see SDL Buys Polaroid's Fiber Laser Business; 3M Acquires Polaroid Technical Polarizer and Display Films Business).
The Polaroid business initially fabricated diode lasers for printing applications. Current product lines include devices operating at 808 nm, 840 nm, 915 nm, 975 nm, and 1550 nm. The unit has been selling 808 nm devices as pump lasers for neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet (Nd:YAG) lasers, giving it a solid supplier foothold in the diode-pumped solid state (DPSS) laser market.
Now, says Chin, Boston Laser is poised to move aggressively into the telecom components market. Prior to joining Polaroid in 1986, Chin worked at Bell Labs in Murray Hill, NJ, so he's familiar with the level of reliability testing required, as are other members of the team. "We're also going to be bringing in new people with recent experience in the telco industry," he adds.
According to Polaroid vice president Robert Murray, the company sold off the business as part of its strategy of focusing on its imaging business.
By Kristin Lewotsky, Editor, Photonics Online