A Southampton company, spun out of the University of Southampton, that makes special crystals which change the colour of laser light and are used in lasers and quantum technology.
Covesion makes the crystals and modules that change the colour of laser light, a process called frequency conversion. Many quantum experiments need a precise laser colour that is hard to get directly, so a crystal is used to convert light from one colour to another. Covesion's speciality is a material called periodically poled lithium niobate, usually shortened to PPLN, along with a magnesium-oxide-doped version for high power and high temperature. It sells chips, fibre-coupled parts and complete modules, plus custom designs, covering wavelengths from about 390 nanometres to 6 micrometres.
The company was founded in 2009 when it was spun out of Stratophase, another University of Southampton company, to focus on this materials work. It grew out of periodic poling research at the university's Optoelectronics Research Centre. Professor Peter Smith is named as its founder and Dr Corin Gawith as chief technology officer. A university impact case study records that the company began with two former Stratophase staff and that about 95% of its sales over a three-year period went to customers abroad, with named users including Harvard, Stanford and NASA. Covesion says it offers more than 20 years of experience in the technology.
Covesion is based in Southampton, at Gamma House on the University of Southampton Science Park in Chilworth. Its own website describes it as serving quantum technology, lasers and scientific instruments, environmental, medical and life sciences, aerospace and defence, and fundamental research. That mix makes it a supplier to many of the quantum companies elsewhere in this list, since optical components like these are part of the supply chain for sensors and clocks. The sources we read do not give a headcount; they refer only to a team of engineers.
On mission, Covesion's own wording is about continuous innovation in photonics and working with customers and partners to deliver world-leading frequency conversion technology. We found no culture or values page and no profile of named staff other than the founders, so we cannot describe the working life in detail. A small company based on a science park generally keeps close contact with university researchers, who are also its customers.
Roles at a company like this include materials scientists and engineers who grow and process the crystals, optical engineers who design the modules, production and test technicians who check each part against its specification, and sales, applications and administration staff who work with customers. Physics, materials science, engineering and chemistry are relevant subjects. The company's website is the place to check for openings.
Website: www.covesion.com
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