Imagine a single flashlight that can shine every color at once — from ultraviolet through visible light all the way to infrared. That's essentially what a supercontinuum light source does, and this project built better versions of it. These ultra-broadband light beams let you see inside living tissue, detect food contamination, or identify pollutants with far more detail than conventional light sources. The team of 22 partners across 10 countries developed new glass fibers and laser setups that push this technology from the lab closer to real-world products.
Companies making optical instruments — from medical scanners to food safety testers — are limited by their light sources. Conventional lasers work at single wavelengths, forcing manufacturers to use multiple expensive sources or accept narrow measurement windows. A single broadband source covering UV to infrared would simplify instrument design and unlock capabilities like multi-modal imaging in one device.
The project built 5 key demonstrators: custom tellurite optical fibres transparent up to 5 μm, a multimodal mid-IR–OCT prototype combining multiple imaging modes on a single light source, a watt-level all-fibre supercontinuum source for multi-tone spectroscopy, an automated multimodal fluorescence microscopy platform, and a beyond-state-of-the-art supercontinuum generation setup ready for partner implementation.
If you are a medical imaging company struggling to improve resolution and depth range in your OCT systems — this project developed a multimodal mid-IR–OCT prototype based on a single supercontinuum source. It combines multiple imaging modes into one device, potentially replacing separate instruments. The consortium included 8 industry partners across 10 countries who validated the technology.
If you are a food company or equipment maker needing faster, non-destructive quality checks — this project built a watt-level all-fibre supercontinuum source for multi-tone spectroscopy. This enables scanning food products across a wide wavelength range to detect contaminants or verify composition without destroying samples. The technology was specifically designed for food quality control applications.
If you are a biotech or pharmaceutical company that depends on fluorescence microscopy for drug discovery or cell analysis — this project delivered an automated multimodal fluorescence microscopy platform. It uses broadband supercontinuum light to excite multiple fluorescent markers simultaneously, reducing scan times and improving image quality compared to single-wavelength laser setups.
Based on available project data, specific licensing costs are not disclosed. The project was an MSCA training network coordinated by Danmarks Tekniske Universitet with 4 non-academic beneficiaries. Interested companies should contact the coordinator or industrial partners directly to discuss licensing terms for the prototypes developed.
The project built several working prototypes including a watt-level all-fibre supercontinuum source, which suggests power output suitable for commercial instruments. Custom tellurite fibres were fabricated by partner ITME with documented performance. However, scaling from lab prototypes to volume production would require further engineering and manufacturing partnerships.
The project objectives explicitly mention patent protection as part of the training program, and 15 deliverables were produced. Specific patents would be held by the 22 consortium partners across 10 countries. Prospective licensees should inquire with DTU or the relevant industrial partner for IP availability.
The project specifically aimed to solve current challenges preventing supercontinuum light sources from taking over key market shares. Key improvements targeted reducing noise and increasing pulse energy, as well as extending into UV and mid-IR wavelength regimes using new fibre types transparent up to 5 μm.
The project demonstrated applications in optical coherence tomography, IR multimodal spectroscopy, confocal and fluorescence microscopy, photoacoustic imaging, and food quality control. Each application had a dedicated prototype built. Companies in medical imaging, food safety, and life sciences instrumentation are the nearest adopters.
Based on available project data, regulatory pathways were not explicitly addressed. Medical imaging applications (OCT, photoacoustic imaging) would require CE marking and FDA clearance as components of medical devices. Food quality control applications would need to meet relevant food safety inspection standards.
The SUPUVIR consortium is unusually broad for a training network: 22 partners across 10 countries (AT, AU, CH, DE, DK, FI, FR, PL, UK, US) including non-EU members Australia and the US. Of these, 8 are industry partners (36% industry ratio) and 1 is an SME, with 9 universities and 3 research organizations rounding out the group. This strong industry presence — including fibre manufacturers, laser companies, and instrument makers — means the prototypes were developed with commercial input from day one. The coordinator, Danmarks Tekniske Universitet, is a leading photonics research university in Denmark. For a business considering this technology, the wide geographic spread and mix of fibre fabricators, laser specialists, and application experts provides multiple entry points for collaboration or licensing.
Danmarks Tekniske Universitet (DTU), Denmark — reach out to the DTU Photonics department or the project's principal investigator
Want to connect with the SUPUVIR team or explore licensing one of their 5 prototypes? SciTransfer can arrange a direct introduction to the right partner — contact us for a matchmaking consultation.
