Andor Technology Ltd is a developer and manufacturer of high performance light measuring solutions (scientific digital cameras). It became a subsidiary of
Oxford Instruments after it was purchased for £176 million in December 2013. The company is based in Belfast, Northern Ireland and now employs over 400 staff across the group at its offices in Belfast, Japan, China, Switzerland and the US.
Andor Technology designs, manufactures and sells scientific imaging equipment including
charge-coupled device
A charge-coupled device (CCD) is an integrated circuit containing an array of linked, or coupled, capacitors. Under the control of an external circuit, each capacitor can transfer its electric charge to a neighboring capacitor. CCD sensors are ...
(CCD),
electron-multiplying CCD (EMCCD), scientific CMOS (sCMOS - an improved
Active pixel sensor) and
Intensified charge-coupled device camera systems, spectroscopy instrumentation, and
microscopy
Microscopy is the technical field of using microscopes to view objects and areas of objects that cannot be seen with the naked eye (objects that are not within the resolution range of the normal eye). There are three well-known branches of mi ...
systems.
Background
Andor Technology was set up by its founders, Dr. Hugh Cormican, Dr. Donal Denvir and Mr. Mike Pringle in the mid-1980s. While studying at
Queen's University Belfast
, mottoeng = For so much, what shall we give back?
, top_free_label =
, top_free =
, top_free_label1 =
, top_free1 =
, top_free_label2 =
, top_free2 =
, established =
, closed =
, type = Public research university
, parent = ...
, they "used their physics know-how to build a highly sensitive digital camera...as a tool for their laser research." They subsequently set up Andor Technology to develop it into a commercial product for use in scientific research.
Andor Technology Ltd was established in 1989, as a spin out from Queen's University, Belfast. In December 2004 the company became a PLC when it listed on the
Alternative Investment Market
AIM (formerly the Alternative Investment Market) is a sub-market of the London Stock Exchange that was launched on 19 June 1995 as a replacement to the previous Unlisted Securities Market (USM) that had been in operation since 1980. It allows ...
of the
London Stock Exchange
London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange in the City of London, England, United Kingdom. , the total market value of all companies trading on LSE was £3.9 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Pa ...
. Andor Technology PLC was delisted from the AIM stock market following purchase of all shares by Oxford Instruments in December 2013.
Products
Andor introduced its first ''EMCCD camera'', the DV 465 in 2001 and the company was awarded The Photonics Circle of Excellence Awards from Laurin Publishing, which recognizes the 25 Most Technically Innovative New Products of the Year.
EMCCD cameras are based on CCD chips that incorporate electron multiplication, or
EMCCD technology. They are used in fields such as drug discovery, where scientists need to watch vats of chemicals in real-time, astrophysics and oceanography.
In April 2020, Andor introduced the ''Marana 4.2B-6 back-illuminated scientific camera'' that provides up to -45 °C for 95% quantum performance and vacuum cooling. For dynamic imaging or spectroscopic applications, it offers up to 74 fps, such as wavefront sensing, lucky / speckle imaging, quantum gas dynamics, or hyperspectral imaging.
BC43, a compact benchtop confocal microscope, was launched in November 2021. The microscope is designed to be simple to use and is based around a Spinning Disk Confocal approach. It incorporates an sCMOS camera and a 4-line laser engine.
References
External links
Andor Technology Corporate website{{in lang, en
Andor Technology's information site on EMCCD technology
Photography companies of the United Kingdom
Technology companies of the United Kingdom
Electronics companies of the United Kingdom
Companies of Northern Ireland
Companies based in Belfast
Photography in Northern Ireland
Research support companies
Brands of Northern Ireland