A spectrometer on a chip — the size of a grain of rice.
270 spectral channels and 30 polarization channels on 8 square millimeters. The duotec Chip-Size Spectrometer brings laboratory-grade spectroscopy into every device.
What it is
A spectrometer measures what something is made of. It splits light into its color components — like a rainbow — and reads from it properties such as ripeness, moisture, ingredients or contamination.
Until now, such devices were either as big as a lunchbox or could only distinguish a handful of colors. The duotec Chip-Size Spectrometer is different: a single chip, the size of a grain of rice, delivers measurements that previously required a benchtop device.
This is made possible by a new technology: CMOS plasmonics. Instead of prisms and moving parts, microscopic structures are built directly into a semiconductor chip. Hundreds of spectral channels can be captured simultaneously — on an area smaller than a watch face.
The technology behind the chip
CMOS plasmonics combines two worlds:
CMOS is the standard process used to manufacture nearly every chip in every smartphone. Scalable, precise, affordable.
Plasmonics uses the behavior of light at tiny metal structures. When these structures are smaller than a wavelength of light, they sort colors — without filters, without optics, without moving parts.
duotec patterns these plasmonic filters directly into the metal layers of a CMOS wafer. Filter, photodiode and signal processing emerge from a single manufacturing process. The result: a spectrometer without mechanics, manufacturable in semiconductor volumes.
Key Facts
Spectrum and polarization on a single chip. Spectrum reveals what something is — polarization reveals how it is structured (e.g. whether a surface is smooth or rough, a coating thin or thick). Both pieces of information on one chip — that does not exist anywhere else.
Laboratory-grade resolution at the size of a grain of rice. 270 spectral channels between 400 and 1,000 nanometers. That matches the resolution of a mid-range benchtop spectrometer — in a component measuring 2.3 × 3.4 × 0.75 millimeters.
No moving parts. No filter wheel, no grating, no MEMS mechanics. This makes the chip robust, durable and insensitive to vibration — essential for machines, vehicles and mobile devices.
Simple integration. Standard SPI interface. 3.3 V supply. 16-bit on-chip signal processing. The chip connects to any common controller — no special electronics required.
Typical applications for spectrometer:
In various highly regulated and sensitive industries, duotec's non-invasive pressure sensors offer unparalleled benefits.
Agriculture and harvesting machinery Detect plants before they become diseased. Measure each plant's nitrogen needs individually. Determine ripeness and quality as the machine passes. One sensor per nozzle, instead of one camera per field.
Food sorting Distinguish fresh from spoiled. Separate different plastic films. Find foreign objects invisible to normal cameras. Polarization reliably distinguishes glossy from matte surfaces — even under changing light.
Home appliances The fridge knows what is inside and when it will spoil. The oven knows when the cake is done. The washing machine sees how dirty the fabric is. The dishwasher checks itself whether the dishes are clean. All of this becomes possible because a spectrometer finally fits into a home-appliance bill of materials.
Personal care and cosmetics Skin analysis at home rather than at a studio. Moisture, sebum, pigment distribution — measured, not estimated. Polarization reveals what lies beneath the skin's surface.
Medical and point-of-care Rapid tests that fit in one hand. Blood markers, skin analysis, wound healing monitoring. Anywhere a laboratory device used to be needed.
Industrial machine vision Real-time material identification. Coating thickness control. Contaminants in transparent materials. With polarization, also stress in glass and plastics.
Lighting and LED industry Color and quality of light measured in every fixture. Compensate for shifting LED color temperatures before the eye notices.
