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Impact: Economic The light-emittingdendrimers are a new class of materials for organic light-emitting diodes, a major display technology. They have been commercialised by Cambridge Display Technology (CDT), the leading developer of polymer light-emitting diodes.
Significance Light-emitting dendrimers provided a breakthrough in the efficiency of organic light emitting diode (OLED) materials deposited from solution. This enabled the convenience of solution-processing to be combined with high efficiency, and enabled solution-processed materials to compete with evaporated materials.
Beneficiaries CDT, display manufacturers around the world and display users.
Attribution The research was performed by Professor Samuel in collaboration with Professor Burn of the University of Oxford.
Reach Materials based on light-emitting dendrimers are manufactured by Sumitomo Chemical in Japan and supplied to global displays manufacturers.
Interdisciplinary research on a new class of organo-metallic light emitting polymers showed that they could produce white light very efficiently. A consortium of the University and Industry (predominantly Thorn Lighting, the largest lighting manufacturing employer in the North East) developed and patented these into a viable alternative to mercury vapour fluorescent lights with a £4.3M grant from the DTI with matched funding from industry. The companies are investing in scaling this up to a full commercial supply chain, supported by a £4M grant from the Technology Strategy Board. The success of the project helped BIS secure £20.5M to support Plastic Electronics in the UK, creating 26 jobs, and was cited as a factor in the Thorn decision not to close down its North East site, safeguarding 600 jobs.
The company Ossila Ltd has developed a range of products targeted at developers of organic electronic devices, with products based on know-how derived from research within the Soft Matter Physics (SMP) group in the Department of Physics and Astronomy. The company also supplies research-based services to technical markets around the world. Since its establishment in 2010, the company has grown organically, and now has a growing revenue stream that makes it a sustainable profit-making entity, with 85% of its products sold to overseas markets. The company enjoys rapid growth and currently employs 10 people (~7 FTE equivalent). Ossila's financial turn-over has increased by between 50-100% annually, [text removed for publication].
Implementation of photonic quasi-crystals on light emitting diodes (LEDs) can produce more light using less energy. This technology was brought to the global market via the successful commercialisation of laboratory devices derived from research in nanophotonics and the subsequent development of photonic quasi-crystals by a multi-disciplinary team from the University of Southampton. The intellectual property of the technology was acquired and adopted in 2008 by Luxtaltek Corporation, a global manufacturer of LEDs. In the period 2008-2012 Luxtaltek Corporation, made total profits of £35 million utilising the photonic quasi-crystal LED technology, employing more than 300 people in its production facilities.
Impact: Economic gains
PHYESTA research has led to the setting up of a company now known as ForthDD. Since 2008 it has increased its annual revenue by more than 25% to around US $5M, and its global workforce from 25 to 35. It has released new products directly underpinned by PHYESTA research as recently as October 2012.
Significance:
A consortium involving PHYESTA staff in collaboration with Edinburgh's School of Engineering and five industrial partners realised the world's first high-resolution ferroelectric liquid crystal over silicon (FLCOS) microdisplay. This digital display attracted investment from the UK, Taiwan, and USA of over $40m, and was taken forward to production by MicroPix, MicroVue, and Forth Dimension Displays.
Reach:
ForthDD now has offices in Valencia, USA, and Berlin, Germany. The company designs, develops and manufactures single chip microdisplays used in the demanding near to eye (NTE) training and simulation systems, HD video camera viewfinders, medical imaging systems and virtual reality and head-mounted displays.
Beneficiaries:
ForthDD, its customers and business partners (e.g. in the medical imaging sector).
Attribution: This work was led within PHYESTA by Professor David Vass involving PHYESTA and done in collaboration with Edinburgh's School of Engineering.
Research at Swansea University on light therapy has contributed to an extensive market in laser and intense pulsed light (IPL) products for the therapeutic and cosmetic treatment of skin conditions. Impacts include: globally registered intellectual property; local manufacturing of a wide range of laser and IPL products; their distribution to over 40 countries; and resulting benefits to health in treating acne, rejuvenating skin and removing hair. The research undertaken by Swansea University and its companies pioneered this market in partnership with Procter & Gamble and Unilever; and established a joint venture with Sony UK to manufacture these laser and IPL products in South Wales. The Welsh government views this collaboration as an exemplar for the resurgence of UK specialist manufacturing.
Regulation of our sleep-wake cycle is crucial to health and well-being. The quality (intensity and spectral distribution) of artificial light is currently described according to its ability to activate rod and cone photoreceptors in the human eye. This approach ignores the discovery of a third photoreceptor that Lucas and his group have shown to be responsible for a range of sub-conscious neurophysiological and neurobehavioural responses to light, which together strongly contribute to health, productivity and well-being. Their research has established ways of measuring light that predict its effect on these newly discovered photoreceptors. They have partnered with industrial [text removed for publication] and public policy (various) organisations to translate this knowledge into improved artificial light sources and updated international standards for architectural lighting, for use in a wide range of domestic, public and industrial settings.
Periodontitis is a significant public health concern affecting more than half of those over 30 years of age. Our research on light-activated antimicrobial agents (LAAAs) has resulted in the development of a novel, non-invasive therapy that quickly and safely treats periodontitis, thereby reducing antibiotic usage. This technology was developed for commercial use through a licence agreement with Ondine Biomedical and their subsidiary company PDT Inc., as a system called Periowave. Periowave is available in Canada, Mexico and South East Asia, has been granted CE marking and FDA approval is currently being sought. To date an estimated 92,000 treatment kits have been sold and 313,000 patients treated. The system has now also been adapted for use in hospitals to eradicate MRSA from the anterior nares thereby preventing post-surgical infections.
Circadian rhythms impact upon a large proportion of human biology. Disruption due to genetic or environmental (e.g. altered sleep patterns in shift workers) cues results in reduced quality of life and increased morbidity for millions of people every year.
Researchers at Surrey first demonstrated blue light sensitivity of the human circadian system, resulting in increased alertness and mood. This led to changes in international lighting standards and the development and use of novel lighting systems, such as blue-enriched polychromatic lighting. These systems have been employed in homes for older people, factories, offices, hospitals and schools, increasing health and wellbeing.
Impact: Economic Based on research carried out within PHYESTA, a range of novel laser devices have been produced and sold under licence by M Squared Lasers Ltd Glasgow.
Significance: The products have significantly expanded the M Squared product range and have led to increased sales and new customer relationships.
Reach: M-Squared have marketed these lasers worldwide and has had major sales from customers in the defence and oil and gas sectors. New collaborations have been enabled with international partners including the Fraunhofer Centre for Applied Photonics (Glasgow).
Beneficiaries: M-Squared Lasers
Attribution: The devices were developed by PHYESTA Researcher Professor Malcolm Dunn's research group