Over the past year and a half, I’ve talked a lot about innovation, and for a good reason. It has a way of moving an industry forward unlike anything else. However, when innovation is also disruptive in nature, the ripple effect can quickly turn into waves.
The photonics community has introduced a wide array of disruptors in its relatively short life, from revolutionizing material processing and communications to enabling about-faced shifts in both surgical practices and health diagnostics. Likewise, laser-enabled additive manufacturing is proving quite disruptive, although primarily in strategic, lower-volume applications. The impact has been so significant that wherever these disruptors have taken hold, it is impossible to even consider going back to traditional processes or components.
And it’s the disruptors that often encourage the engineers who ultimately design these products into their offerings to take notice. Garnering this level of attention is important because of the impact a disruptive technology can have on the sophistication and feature set of offerings touching the end user.
The presence of disruptors has been instrumental in providing the photonics community with the phenomenal growth rates it has steadily enjoyed, especially over the past decade. It is a true testament to the philosophy of making yourself (or your technology) irreplaceable.
What is the likelihood of more disruptors? Quite high—in fact, we are in the middle of such a disruption as meta-optics are proving their worth, finding their way into various applications, and forcing designers to rethink their processes.
Case in point: Metalenz recently announced a partnership with United Microelectronics Corp. focused on disrupting the machine vision industry by mass-producing its metasurface optics for structured light sensing in partnership and paving the way to produce optics with unparalleled precision in the billions. The goal is to enable OEMs to deliver the first commercial end-product shipments in the third quarter.
Of course, there is a lot that goes into a successful disruption (cost effectiveness, long-term feasibility, scalability, etc.) and in some instances, it’s not the initial disruption that ultimately becomes the new norm.
It should be interesting to watch the long-term impact as metasurface pioneers like Metalenz and NIL Technology figure out both the disruptive potential and the limitations of this technology.
Peter Fretty | Market Leader, Digital Infrastructure
Peter Fretty began his role as the Market Leader, Digital Infrastructure in September 2024. He also serves as Group Editorial Director for Laser Focus World and Vision Systems Design, and previously served as Editor in Chief of Laser Focus World from October 2021 to June 2023. Prior to that, he was Technology Editor for IndustryWeek for two years.
As a highly experienced journalist, he has regularly covered advances in manufacturing, information technology, and software. He has written thousands of feature articles, cover stories, and white papers for an assortment of trade journals, business publications, and consumer magazines.