News 2014 Vol. 2
4
R&D Interview
New miniaturized fingertip-sized
spectrometer will open up new
applications.
Micro-spectrometer C12666MA
It has been some 5 years since our thumb-sized mini-spectro
meters (MS series) went on sale and drastically expanded
the applications for spectrometers. Hamamatsu Photonics
has now developed a cost-effective micro-spectrometer that
is smaller than ever before. This micro-spectrometer is an
ultra-small model with an extremely light weight of 5 grams.
Though performance is largely the same as our current mini-
spectrometers (MS series), the micro-spectrometer is more
compact and rugged and comes at a low price. Applications
include the field of consumer electronics, where a huge
untapped market still exists. To find out more about the
background of micro-spectrometer development, potential
applications and future prospects, we talked to four staff
members involved in developing this product.
Interviewees:
World’s smallest spectrometer
How did you go about turning the idea of a fingertip-sized
micro-spectrometer into a product?
Shibayama:
The usual image of a spectrometer is a large piece
of equipment mounted on a table in a laboratory, but we persisted
with R&D efforts aimed at developing a product that was highly
portable and mobile in the smallest possible size. About 10 years ago
we released palmtop-sized mini-spectrometers (TG series) and some
5 years ago released thumb-sized mini-spectrometers (MS series).
However, our clients are still asking us to “make it smaller and make
it less expensive." So, we got to work and developed the new
micro-spectrometer.
Katsuro Hikita
(Manufacturing Dept.)
Takafumi Yokino
(Manufacturing Dept.)
Katsumi Shibayama
(MEMS Dept.)
Toshinori Ito
(Sales Promotion Dept.)
