CHIBA, JAPAN - At InterOpto 2005 this month, SAES Getters S.p.A. (Milan, Italy), the parent company of the SAES Getters Group, revealed that it will acquire a 30% shareholding in Scientific Materials Europe S.r.l (Tortolì-Arbatax, Italy), a manufacturer of solid-state laser components, including undoped and doped Nd:YAG laser rods, slabs, and Q-switches. The intent is to strengthen the SAES Getters Group’s penetration of the solid-state laser material market.
A producer of “getter” components for high-vacuum applications, SAES Getters entered the advanced-material market last year with the launch of a product line of crystal substrates for optoelectronic-device and solid-state-laser applications. Getters are materials that react with any remaining gases in a vacuum environment, maintaining the vacuum. They are useful in technologies ranging from vacuum tubes to miniaturized silicon-based micromechanical devices.
The partnership between the two Italian companies will focus on two main product-development stages, the first being the extension of the YAG product portfolio currently offered by SAES to encompass Er:YAG, Yb:YAG, and others. The second project will consist of integrating this product line with new optical crystals and in consolidating the production capability for lithium tantalate to target cutting-edge laser applications.
SAES Getters and Scientific Materials Europe worked together for more than one year, both on the manufacturing and marketing side, to set the terms for the agreement, noted Mario Musolino, business-development area manager of the optoelectronic-materials product line at the SAES Getters Group.