Lasers & Sources

Trumpf acquires Amphos, manufacturer of ultrashort pulsed lasers

Jan. 26, 2018

Amphos develops and produces ultrafast lasers based on InnoSlab technology.

A 200-W ultrashort pulse laser from Amphos machines carbon fiber reinforced plastic.

Amphos (Aachen, Germany), a maker of ultrashort pulse lasers, has been acquired by Trumpf (Ditzingen, Germany). Amphos was founded in 2010 as a spin-off of RWTH Aachen and the Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology ILT (Aachen). It develops and produces ultrashort pulse (also known as ultrafast) lasers based on InnoSlab technology. The purchase price was not disclosed

InnoSlab technology was co-developed by the company’s founders while still a part of ILT. Trumpf says it will open up an new range of parameters for its ultrashort pulsed lasers. Ultrashort pulsed lasers are especially important in electronics manufacturing, where they are used to produce items such as printed circuit boards, displays, and cover glass.

Related: Trumpf is riding the tiger, an interview with Peter Leibinger and Christian Schmitz of Trumpf

“Amphos is an innovative manufacturer of lasers and the market leader in this field, and its managers have been developing industrial lasers for over 15 years,” says Christian Schmitz, head of the Laser Technology division.

Amphos develops ultrashort pulsed lasers with output power between 200 and 400 W. The company also offers high-power lasers for research applications that have an output as high as 1.5 kW. The three co-founders and managing directors of Amphos, Claus Schnitzler, Torsten Mans and Jan Dolkemeyer, stated that they look forward to exchanging know-how, tapping new sales opportunities, and advancing the technology in the near future.

Source: Trumpf

About the Author

Conard Holton | Editor at Large

Conard Holton has 25 years of science and technology editing and writing experience. He was formerly a staff member and consultant for government agencies such as the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority and the International Atomic Energy Agency, and engineering companies such as Bechtel. He joined Laser Focus World in 1997 as senior editor, becoming editor in chief of WDM Solutions, which he founded in 1999. In 2003 he joined Vision Systems Design as editor in chief, while continuing as contributing editor at Laser Focus World. Conard became editor in chief of Laser Focus World in August 2011, a role in which he served through August 2018. He then served as Editor at Large for Laser Focus World and Co-Chair of the Lasers & Photonics Marketplace Seminar from August 2018 through January 2022. He received his B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania, with additional studies at the Colorado School of Mines and Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.