Zygo corporation
Encyclopedia
Zygo Corporation is a company that specializes in optical systems & equipment for areas such as optical metrology. Zygo's metrology systems are based on optical interferometry measuring displacement, surface figure, and optical wavefront. Metrology and optical markets for end-user and OEM applications include semiconductor capital equipment, aerospace/defense, automotive, and research.
Zygo Corporation is listed on NASDAQ
and traded under the symbol ZIGO. It is headquartered at Middlefield, Connecticut
, and has 484 employees worldwide.
with the highest precision plano surfaces and angles.
It was recognized that in order to achieve such a goal, practical and easy-to-use interferometry
would have to be a standard part of the fabrication process. While there were several interferometers available on the market at that time, none had all the flexibility or features ZYGO considered important to their goal. So the decision was made to design an interferometer for in-house use. However, as the concepts for this new interferometer began to develop, ZYGO recognized that others might have a similar need, and the in-house breadboard interferometer was soon converted to a program to develop ZYGO's first product; the Model GH Interferometer, named for ZYGO's first non-founding employee, George Hunter.
In 1972, ZYGO introduced the model GH-1 interferometer system at the annual meeting of the Optical Society of America
. The GH was the first commercial interferometer to incorporate an alignment system that enabled an operator to quickly obtain a fringe pattern. The system was modular in design, and incorporated the ability to use bayonet-mounted transmission elements to enable the construction of various configurations for testing different kinds of optics. Transmission elements, such as transmission flats and transmission spheres, was a new concept based upon a Fizeau unequal path configuration. This construction greatly simplified the optics required for the interferometer and significantly increased the accuracy to which an interferometer could be made to operate. In conjunction with a patented quick fringe acquisition system and alignment scheme, this provided a flexible, rapid-to-change and easy-to-use instrument.
In 1973, with 16 employees, ZYGO moved into a new 10000 square feet (929 m²) facility in Middlefield, Connecticut.
In 1981, with a growth rate averaging about 50% per year, ZYGO expanded to a 100000 square feet (9,290.3 m²) facility, also in Middlefield, CT.
In December 1983, ZYGO completed its initial public offering.
Zygo Corporation is listed on NASDAQ
NASDAQ
The NASDAQ Stock Market, also known as the NASDAQ, is an American stock exchange. "NASDAQ" originally stood for "National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations". It is the second-largest stock exchange by market capitalization in the world, after the New York Stock Exchange. As of...
and traded under the symbol ZIGO. It is headquartered at Middlefield, Connecticut
Middlefield, Connecticut
Middlefield is a town in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 4,203 at the 2000 census. The town includes the village of Rockfall-History:...
, and has 484 employees worldwide.
Early history
ZYGO was founded in 1970 by Paul Forman, Carl Zanoni, and Sol Laufer, with financial support from Canon Inc. (Japan) and Wesleyan University (CT, USA). An initial priority for the Company was to build a world-class optical fabrication facility for producing opticsOptics
Optics is the branch of physics which involves the behavior and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of instruments that use or detect it. Optics usually describes the behavior of visible, ultraviolet, and infrared light...
with the highest precision plano surfaces and angles.
It was recognized that in order to achieve such a goal, practical and easy-to-use interferometry
Interferometry
Interferometry refers to a family of techniques in which electromagnetic waves are superimposed in order to extract information about the waves. An instrument used to interfere waves is called an interferometer. Interferometry is an important investigative technique in the fields of astronomy,...
would have to be a standard part of the fabrication process. While there were several interferometers available on the market at that time, none had all the flexibility or features ZYGO considered important to their goal. So the decision was made to design an interferometer for in-house use. However, as the concepts for this new interferometer began to develop, ZYGO recognized that others might have a similar need, and the in-house breadboard interferometer was soon converted to a program to develop ZYGO's first product; the Model GH Interferometer, named for ZYGO's first non-founding employee, George Hunter.
In 1972, ZYGO introduced the model GH-1 interferometer system at the annual meeting of the Optical Society of America
Optical Society of America
The Optical Society is a scientific society dedicated to advancing the study of light—optics and photonics—in theory and application, by means of publishing, organizing conferences and exhibitions, partnership with industry, and education. The organization has members in more than 100 countries...
. The GH was the first commercial interferometer to incorporate an alignment system that enabled an operator to quickly obtain a fringe pattern. The system was modular in design, and incorporated the ability to use bayonet-mounted transmission elements to enable the construction of various configurations for testing different kinds of optics. Transmission elements, such as transmission flats and transmission spheres, was a new concept based upon a Fizeau unequal path configuration. This construction greatly simplified the optics required for the interferometer and significantly increased the accuracy to which an interferometer could be made to operate. In conjunction with a patented quick fringe acquisition system and alignment scheme, this provided a flexible, rapid-to-change and easy-to-use instrument.
In 1973, with 16 employees, ZYGO moved into a new 10000 square feet (929 m²) facility in Middlefield, Connecticut.
In 1981, with a growth rate averaging about 50% per year, ZYGO expanded to a 100000 square feet (9,290.3 m²) facility, also in Middlefield, CT.
In December 1983, ZYGO completed its initial public offering.