Daylight Solutions, Inc.

Mission

Our Mission is to develop and deliver industry-leading molecular detection and imaging solutions in the mid-infrared (mid-IR) using External Cavity Quantum Cascade Laser technology (ECqcL™). Industry leadership will be demonstrated through market share, profitability, IP, and customer satisfaction.





History

Opportunities

Daylight Solutions was founded in December 2004 after Dr. Timothy Day, Paul Larson, and Sam Crivello completed a study of market and technology opportunities. The high-tech sector in the 1990s and early 2000s was characterized by significant investment and advances in:



fabless semiconductor technology and manufacturing,

laser photonics technology,

packaging, and

disk drive technology and manufacturing.





The cofounders used their experience in these industries to identify new markets to leverage these investments.



Goal

Research advances in the area of quantum cascade technology added a new critical ingredient that, when combined with semiconductor, photonics, and disk drive technologies, would enable new markets in:



Defense

Medical Diagnostics,

Environmental and Industrial Monitoring, and

Scientific Research.





Daylight Solutions was created with the goal of developing and manufacturing mid-IR platform solutions that could serve these markets. The company decided to develop external cavity based quantum cascade laser systems and subsystems to serve as platform modules for molecular detection and imaging applications throughout the mid-IR.



Inception

The team formed an advisory board of leading experts in the areas of quantum cascade laser technology, molecular detection, and breath diagnostics, as well as individuals with high-tech business backgrounds. The company commenced formal operations in January 2005 and spent this first year developing and adapting the core external cavity technology for use in the mid-IR. A small team recruited from key industries rapidly developed early prototypes.



Funding

The founders invested their own money and received some funding from a small group of investors with high-tech experience. CCAT awarded the company a small grant to offset initial R&D expenses for developing key components. Investment opportunities emerged, and the company closed its Series A round of funding in July 2006. Continued success and growth created a second investment opportunity that resulted in the completion of a B round.



First Product

In less than 1 year, Daylight Solutions developed its first product, enabling the company to introduce a revolutionary new laser to the scientific community. This broadly tunable ECqcL™ system allowed true turnkey mid-IR operation at room temperatures, with very little effort on the part of the laboratory researcher. Prior to the introduction of this product, researchers would often spend as much as a year building a suitable laser source from various components. Now the laser could serve as a tool to the experiment, rather than serve as part of the experiment. Upon introduction, the product won the PHAST/LFW 2006 award for innovation.



Growth

During 2007 and 2008, Daylight Solutions focused on advancing both the products and the technology while building out the company’s infrastructure to support applications that could use the core technology. The company rapidly completed

application demonstrations in Defense, Security, Breath Diagnostics, and Environmental and Industrial Monitoring, resulting in revenue growth that has doubled each year since the company’s inception. In less than 5 years, Daylight Solutions has emerged as the world leader in mid-IR solutions for molecular detection and imaging.



Future

The year 2009 and beyond will be characterized by the delivery of molecular detection and imaging solutions into the company’s various markets, including OEM modules for high-volume applications. Daylight Solutions has a successful program of continued partnering and collaboration with its customers and suppliers. The company remains focused on growing revenues and enabling application opportunities for its valued customers.