Photonic chip based high-throughput, multi-modal and scalable optical nanoscopy platform

Introduction

The invention of super-resolution optical microscopy (nanoscopy) has given us a glimpse of its impact in all fields of science and medical care. Imagine the new scientific discoveries that can be realized if every research and clinical laboratory is equipped with an optical nanoscope that can deliver super-resolution imaging, enabling researchers a window to nanoscale biology.

Current Challenges

However, several pain points of the available solutions currently hinder wide-scale penetration of optical nanoscopy, such as:

• Cost
• Complexity
• Small throughput
• Limited flexibility in terms of choice of resolution and field-of-view (FOV)

Solution Overview

NanoVision will fill this pressing gap in the market with an affordable, compact, multi-modal, and high-throughput photonic-chip based optical nanoscopy. Present-day nanoscopes use a simple glass slide to hold the sample and a complex and bulky microscope setup to illuminate and image.

Innovative Approach

We change the current paradigm to a mass-producible photonic-chip to hold and illuminate the sample and a simple and compact optical microscope to image it. Our radical idea is thus to take out laser light steering and delivery from the microscope and transfer it to a photonic-chip.

Benefits of NanoVision

Photonic-chip based nanoscopy improves:

1. Throughput by a factor of 100x
2. Cost by a factor of 2x
3. Flexibility in terms of resolution and FOV

These key differentiators of NanoVision will not only extend the present market of nanoscopy but could also open new market opportunities.

Development Status

Founded on two patent families, it has been brought up to TRL 4. A spin-off, Chip NanoImaging (CNI), has been incorporated. NanoVision will propel the technology to TRL 6 by developing a user-friendly prototype and validating its impact during year-long user tests.

Financial Projections

The business and market development activities will enable us to attract investments of Euro 2M by 2024, with an estimated revenue of Euro 60M by 2029.