HEMOPHOTONICS SL

Their core work

Hemophotonics is a Spanish medical device SME that develops non-invasive optical monitoring systems for clinical use, specializing in near-infrared spectroscopy and biophotonics. Their core product line focuses on measuring tissue oxygenation and blood flow at the bedside — particularly for brain monitoring in newborns and ICU patients. They combine photonics hardware with biomedical signal processing to give clinicians real-time insight into microvascular health without requiring invasive procedures.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In their early H2020 period (2016–2017), Hemophotonics focused on optical diagnostics for specific organs — brain injury detection (BitMap), thyroid cancer screening (LUCA), and neonatal brain monitoring (BabyLux). By 2020, their work shifted toward systemic vascular assessment and critical care, with VASCOVID targeting tissue oxygenation, endothelial dysfunction, and cardio-pulmonary interactions in ICU settings. The trajectory shows a clear move from organ-specific diagnostic devices toward portable, multi-parameter monitoring platforms for intensive care.

Hemophotonics is moving toward portable, multi-parameter critical care monitoring — expect future work in point-of-care vascular assessment and ICU decision support.

How they like to work

Hemophotonics primarily participates as a partner (3 of 4 projects), contributing specialized photonics hardware and biomedical optics expertise to larger consortia. They coordinated once — the BabyLux SME Instrument project — to commercialize their own neonatal monitor, which is typical of technology SMEs using Phase 1 funding to validate a market opportunity. With 22 unique partners across 10 countries, they connect broadly but do not repeat partners frequently, suggesting they are sought after as a specialist contributor rather than building a fixed alliance network.

They have collaborated with 22 distinct partners across 10 countries, indicating a well-distributed European network for a small company. No obvious geographic cluster — their partnerships span the consortium landscape typical of health and photonics projects.

What sets them apart

Hemophotonics occupies a rare niche at the intersection of photonics engineering and bedside clinical monitoring — they don't just do research, they build devices that clinicians can use in real hospital settings. Their progression from neonatal brain monitors to ICU vascular assessment platforms shows a company that translates optical physics into medical products. For consortium builders, they bring both the instrumentation know-how and the clinical translation experience that most academic photonics groups lack.

Highlights from their portfolio

• BabyLux
  Their only coordinated project — an SME Instrument Phase 1 to commercialize the first non-invasive neonatal brain monitoring system, signaling their product ambition.
• LUCA
  Largest single EC contribution (EUR 402,300) and an unusual combination of laser and ultrasound co-analysis for thyroid cancer detection.
• VASCOVID
  Most recent project, directly responding to the COVID-19 crisis with a portable ICU monitoring platform — shows agility and clinical relevance.