Metalenz

Metalenz is a pioneering fabless semiconductor optics company at the forefront of revolutionizing optical sensing by commercializing meta-optics. Founded in 2016 by Rob Devlin and Federico Capasso, the company emerged from foundational research conducted at the Capasso Lab at Harvard University, to which Metalenz holds an exclusive worldwide license for the foundational intellectual property related to metasurfaces. This technology allows Metalenz to design and manufacture metasurface-based optical systems that transform how light is manipulated in a wide array of applications, including consumer electronics, automotive, and smart robotics.

The core innovation of Metalenz lies in its ability to replace traditional, bulky, and complex multi-element curved lenses with a single, flat, and planar meta-optic. These metalenses are fabricated using standard semiconductor manufacturing processes, essentially printing lenses like computer chips. This approach not only simplifies the optical module, reducing size and cost, but also enhances performance and enables new sensing capabilities. Metalenz's technology offers complete control over the intensity, phase, and polarization of light, allowing for the implementation of multiple optical functions within a single semiconductor layer. This leads to significant improvements in signal-to-noise ratios in 3D imaging systems and extreme temperature stability. The company's meta-optics can be mass-produced cost-effectively in existing semiconductor foundries, consolidating the supply chain and opening new avenues for integrating advanced optical sensing into billions of devices worldwide.

Metalenz made its market debut in 2022 through a partnership with STMicroelectronics, marking the first time metasurface technology was commercially available and used in consumer devices. Their technology has been integrated into STMicroelectronics' FlightSense™ Time-of-Flight (ToF) modules, which are used for applications like 3D sensing, facial recognition, and augmented reality in smartphones, drones, robots, and vehicles. Key products include Polar ID, a full system solution for smartphone biometrics that uses polarization-sensitive imaging for secure face unlock, and Orion™ dot pattern projectors for 3D depth sensing. Metalenz is focused on making smart sensing and new information accessible to a mass market, aiming to change how people and machines interact with and understand the world. The company continues to expand its portfolio, including polarized optics with its PolarEyes™ sensing technology, and is actively working with OEMs to integrate its solutions into a broader range of devices.