Modulight, Inc.

Different wavelength lasers are widely used in ophthalmology for example for selectively heating certain tissues of the eye or unleashing the potential of photoactive pharmaceuticals. The problem with many ophthalmic laser-based treatments such as photodynamic therapy for age-related macular degeneration is that the laser technology is outdated and no longer supported despite the wide clinical use of these therapy modalities. Modulight has developed a configurable cloud-connected ophthalmic laser device that can house any of Modulight’s semiconductor lasers and is wirelessly controlled with an iPad. In addition to novel ophthalmic laser technology, Modulight has also developed a novel beam shaping unit which yields superior beam quality and enables exceptionally large treatment spots eliminating the need for multi-spot treatment for larger lesions.

Fluorescence guided resection (FGS) is commonly used for better distinguishing high-grade glioma tissue from adjacent normal brain. Dyes that are used in glioma resections such as 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) are also strong photosensitizers meaning that they can be used for photodynamic therapy providing an additional method for treating difficult tumor margin areas of gliomas which has potential for reducing recurrence rates. Modulight has developed a novel laser platform ML7710i for glioblastoma which will utilize real-time treatment monitoring based on spectral properties of the tissue and used photoactive drug. Spectral information is collected from eight channels and the data is automatically uploaded to Modulight cloud. This provides treating surgeon with real-time information on light distribution and drug bioavailability.

Prodrug development for cancer treatment is urgently needed. One recent prodrug example, the light-activated TLD1433, has successfully begun phase II clinical trials for bladder cancer. Development of phototherapeutics, however, has a critical bottleneck since no high-throughput platform has been introduced, limiting development of phototherapeutics. This type of drug screening calls for an automated and scalable plate illuminator. We have developed the ML8500 illuminator to address this need, enabling flexible experimental design with systematic control over the light parameters (wavelength, irradiance, fluence) and multiplexing capability with fluorescence detection. Herein, we report characterization and early filtering of phototherapeutics with the ML8500.

Cancer drugs are most effective when given in combination. The combination of light activation and chemotherapy has the potential to overcome the limitations traditionally associated with light-based therapies and simultaneously limit the well-known adverse effects of chemotherapy. Modulight ML7710i medical laser systems have not only been shown to unleash the cytotoxic potential of different photochemotherapeutic compounds encapsulated into liposomal envelopes but also to effectively monitor the drug release process providing clinicians real-time information on treatment progress and preliminary projections on therapy outcome. Interstitial spectral measurement capability combined with novel fluorescent nano-constructs has the capability to take the efficacy of light-based therapies to a new level.

Individually addressable laser diode arrays (IABs) working at 8xxnm and 9xxnm are commercially demonstrated in printing industry.1,2. IABs operating in visible region has been less reported3. In this work we report the state-of-the-art high brightness IABs operating at visible red wavelengths. The single-mode red IAB design is scalable from a few IA emitters to tens of emitters per array with a highly uniform operation and repeatability and can be applied from 630nm to 690nm. The IAB at 640-660nm with a dense <100µm device pitch produce a record 3W total output power per array, with 0.85 W/A slope efficiency.

Vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) have proved themselves as excellent illumination source for 3D sensing applications, owing to multiple advantageous features of VCSELs, such as narrow linewidth, good beam quality, low temperature sensitivity and possibility of nanosecond pulse generation. Surface emission allows direct integration, which significantly reduces illumination module size and costs, crucial for the use in portable devices, while also allowing arrangement of VCSEL single-emitters into high-power 2D arrays for longer-distance time-of-flight applications. This work reports on the Modulight’s development process of high-efficiency VCSEL single-emitters and high-power VCSEL 2D arrays meant for 3D sensing applications at the 940 nm wavelength.

Autonomous driving and automated ships are in increasing demand. Harsh weather conditions lower the atmospheric transmission for eye-safe wavelengths at longer distances. We present a collection of eye-safe LIDAR sources with varying laser pulse parameters for demanding conditions. Wavelength range from 1400 to 1560 nm with peak powers from a few Watts to up to 18 kW and repetition rates up to 100 kHz. Excellent temporal resolution is enabled here with even down to sub-10 ns pulses. Such high peak power, high repetition rate lasers present the state-of-the-art performance for long range LIDAR.

The demand for fiber lasers has increased due to widening of application areas and higher power levels. As fiber lasers have become the main workhorse for high power material processing applications and competition among fiber laser manufacturers have become more evident, the laser manufacturers are in the process to find ways to lower overall cost of ownership to become more competitive. We present high-efficiency and high brightness laser diode for fiber laser pumping, which is optimized for lowered operating voltage while maintaining high power conversion efficiency of 60%.

Directly modulated (DML) distributed feedback (DFB) lasers are an important component in data center communications. Their small size and low power consumption make them excel in uncooled operation and make them cost-efficient. Usage of AlGaInAs allows the laser to operate more efficiently even in higher temperatures. Main concern for these components is that they must be operated with relatively high input current to achieve the bandwidth requirements. This challenge of DML-DFB lasers can be overcome by optimizing the device performance and reliability. This work demonstrates Modulight’s process of developing highly reliable 25G DML-DFB lasers operating in O-band.

Commercial well plate readers support a vast number of different biochemical and cellular in vitro assays but cannot provide the illumination versatility required for optogenetics and discovery of photosensitive drugs. Hence, we have developed an automated, laser-based well plate illuminator ML8500 specifically to support these fields. ML8500 enables variation of multiple wavelengths, irradiances, and total light doses within a single experiment on a single plate. The possibility to add fluorescence recording increases the number of assays that can be performed. Temperature and CO2 can be controlled which ensures optimal conditions for performing cell-based assays and minimizes fluctuations in the conditions.

Modelling light distribution in tissues is of utmost importance in all light-based treatment modalities but no tools currently exist for monitoring light propagation in tissues real-time. Modulight has developed a configurable medical laser platform capable of measuring treatment light and photosensitizer distribution and treatment progress interstitially with same fibers that are used for illumination. Spectral data is available to the operation from Modulight cloud real-time making data access and analysis easy and reliable. This type of a novel medical laser platform compatible with all existing photosensitizers could ultimately enable better treatment outcomes when light dose could be optimized for each patient individually.

LiDAR sensors for autonomous driving applications must balance between contradicting requirements, including range and eye-safety. Currently widely available detectors are designed for 800-900nm wavelengths but using those wavelengths will require compromises with detection range due to eye-safety. In the presentation we propose a solution using a segmented flash illumination and readout concept utilizing state-of-the-art laser diode technology and CMOS imaging at <1µm wavelength. The proposed solution can achieve long range detection while still fulfilling eye-safety requirements for practical applications. It has also advantages related to detector resolution and detection frequency when compared with traditional approaches.