NanoScale Systems

What NanoScale Systems does

NanoScale Systems (legally Nanoss GmbH) is a privately held German deep-technology company founded in March 2005 as a spin-off of Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main and headquartered at the Technologie- und Innovationszentrum (TIZ) in Darmstadt, Germany. It develops and manufactures force, pressure, and strain nanosensors based on its patented nano3DSense 3D Nanoprinting Platform, a maskless lithography process using focused electron beam induced deposition (EBID) to print nanogranular tunneling strain sensors with true nanometer precision (below 10nm sensor sizes, less than 2nm positioning accuracy, sub-1nm edge roughness) directly onto customer-specified substrates. The platform is described as the world's first 3D printing approach at the true nanoscale and eliminates more than 250 conventional cleanroom process steps, yielding up to 500x higher signal strength and 100x smaller transducer size than conventional piezoresistive sensors while operating at temperatures above 500°C.

The company monetizes through a mix of custom sensor development and manufacturing, technology migration consulting (from laser-optical, piezoresistive, capacitive, and piezoelectric systems to the nano3DSense platform), automated batch production of several hundred thousand sensors per year per production tool, and participation in EU and German publicly funded research consortia (FP7-ALBICAN/FALCON, Horizon 2020, EIC Pathfinder BioRobot-MiniHeart, BMBF, ZIM, Hessian state innovation funding). Its primary customer segments are medical technology and healthcare (implants, catheters, IOP/bladder/intracranial pressure monitoring, CGM), diagnostics and point-of-care (label-free immunoassays for cardiac markers, cancer biomarkers, pathogens), life sciences and biotechnology (AFM cantilevers, bioprocess monitoring), and — to a lesser extent — industrial, automotive, aerospace, and research institutions. Go-to-market is direct B2B enterprise sales driven by technical consultation, feasibility assessments, and collaborative development projects, complemented by participation in EU research programs and trade shows (Hannover Messe, Sensor & Test, TechConnect).

The company remains founder-controlled under Managing Director Dr. Alexander Kaya, with a disclosed headcount of 1-10 employees, no external institutional investors, no acquisitions, and no public listing. Its pricing is custom and not publicly disclosed, and revenue, ARR, and contract values are not reported in available materials.

Name

NanoScale Systems

Legal name

NanoScale Systems, Nanoss GmbH

Website

https://nanoss.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

NanoScale Systems (Nanoss GmbH) is a Germany-based developer and manufacturer of ultra-miniaturized force, pressure, and strain nanosensors built on its patented nano3DSense 3D nanoprinting platform, serving medical device, diagnostics, MEMS/NEMS, and life sciences customers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nanosensors and Nanofabrication Equipment

NAICS

Research and Development in Nanotechnology (541713), Semiconductor and Other Electronic Component Manufacturing (33441)

SIC

Laboratory Analytical Instruments (3826), Special Industry Machinery, Nec (3559), Metalworkg Machinery & Equipment (3540)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYIMAAAAAI

Micro/Nanoscale & Precision 3D Printers (Two-Photon, Micro-SLA)

Industrials, Manufacturing & Construction/3D Printing/3D Printing Hardware (Printers & Systems)

SECONDARYIMAAADAF

Precision Micro-3D Printing Services (micro-SLA, micro-metal, microfluidics)

Industrials, Manufacturing & Construction/3D Printing/3D Printing Services (On-Demand Manufacturing & Service Bureaus)

SECONDARYIMAAAFAH

Electronics & Enclosure Prototyping (Additive)

Industrials, Manufacturing & Construction/3D Printing/Rapid Prototyping & Product Development (Additive)

SECONDARYHDAHALAK

Biosensors & Lab-on-Chip (BioMEMS)

Hardware, Technology & Telecom/Semiconductors & Electronic Components/Sensors, MEMS & Optoelectronics

SECONDARYHDAHALAJ

MEMS Actuators & Micro-Mechanisms (Micromirrors/Microfluidics)

Hardware, Technology & Telecom/Semiconductors & Electronic Components/Sensors, MEMS & Optoelectronics

Keywords

• Nanoscale sensors
• 3D nanoprinting
• MEMS NEMS force sensors
• Medical implant nanodevices
• Atomic force microscopy cantilevers

Headquarters

HQ city

Darmstadt

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Custom Sensor Development & Manufacturing: Development and manufacturing of customized nanosensors for medical, analytical, and industrial applications based on the nano3DSense platform. Includes rapid prototyping and tailored sensor solutions.
2. Technology Migration Services: Migration and upgrade services for existing sensor systems (laser-optical, piezoresistive, capacitive, piezoelectric) to the nano3DSense platform. Includes consultation and implementation support.
3. EU Research & Development Projects: Collaborative R&D projects funded by European programs including EIC Pathfinder, Horizon 2020, and FP7. Involves consortium-based development work.
4. Batch Production of Nanosensors: Automated batch process for series production of sensors in quantities of several hundred thousand per year per production equipment. For medical devices, MEMS/NEMS, and analytical applications.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

NanoScale Systems (Nanoss GmbH) develops and manufactures ultra-miniaturized force, pressure, and strain nanosensors using its proprietary nano3DSense 3D nanoprinting platform. The maskless, cleanroom-free electron beam induced deposition (EBID) process prints sensor structures directly onto customer-specific substrates with sub-10 nanometer sensor dimensions and sub-2 nanometer positioning accuracy. Offerings target medical device manufacturers, life-science analytical instrument makers, AFM/microscopy vendors, and MEMS/NEMS developers via custom sensor design, rapid prototyping, batch production, and consortium-based collaborative R&D.

Product overview

NanoScale Systems (Nanoss GmbH) offers the nano3DSense platform as its core technology—a patented 3D nanoprinting system using electron beam induced deposition (EBID) that enables maskless fabrication of sensors with nanometer precision. The platform supports multiple applications including force/pressure/strain sensors for medical devices, self-sensing AFM cantilevers, biosensors for Point-of-Care diagnostics, and MEMS/NEMS sensors. Services include rapid prototyping for customer-specific sensor solutions and ongoing research projects like BioRobot-MiniHeart for biohybrid systems. All offerings are designed for medical technology, life sciences, and industrial sensor applications requiring extreme miniaturization.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• nano3DSense: Patented 3D nanoprinting technology platform for manufacturing force, pressure, and strain sensors with nanometer precision on various substrates

Products and services

• nano3DSense Platform Patented 3D nanoprinting technology platform that enables maskless fabrication of highly precise force, pressure, and strain sensors on customer-specific substrates using electron beam induced deposition (EBID), with sub-10 nanometer sensor dimensions and sub-2 nanometer positioning accuracy.
• nano3DSense for Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) Self-sensing AFM cantilevers with integrated nano3DSense force sensors enabling laser-free, ultra-compact atomic force microscopy systems for biotechnology, life sciences, and high-speed imaging.
• Medical Sensors for Implants and Catheters Ultra-miniaturized force, pressure, and strain sensors for medical implants and catheters featuring biocompatible materials, transducer dimensions under 100 micrometers, and true 3D force sensing capability for minimally invasive devices.
• Biosensors for Point-of-Care (POC) Diagnostics Label-free immunoassay biosensors using micro/nanofabricated cantilever arrays for rapid detection of antibodies, antigens, disease markers, and DNA with real-time results and multiplex capability.
• MEMS/NEMS Force and Strain Sensors Customized force and strain sensors for micro-electro-mechanical and nano-electro-mechanical systems with positioning accuracy below 5 nanometers and sensor dimensions as small as 10 nanometers.
• Rapid Prototyping Services Fast prototyping service enabling direct sensor printing on customer products or test substrates without conventional cleanroom lithography processes, reducing development cycles and time-to-feasibility for customers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 250 process steps eliminated compared to traditional cleanroom manufacturing
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• BioRobot-MiniHeart Consortium (EIC Pathfinder)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 January 2023EU-funded consortium project under EIC Pathfinder focusing on development of 3D-printed biological heart models (MiniHeart) with integrated miniaturized sensor systems. Combines 3D nanoprinting, biomedicine, and nanotechnology for novel biohybrid systems. Nanoss contributes miniaturized pressure and force sensors for measuring physiological parameters in engineered living materials.
• European Commission (FP7-ALBICAN)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFP7 EU research project for development of novel self-sensing AFM cantilevers using 3D nanoprinted nanosensors for ultra-fast atomic force microscopy in bio and life science applications. Established foundational technology platform.
• European Commission (FP7-FALCON)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFP7 EU follow-up project (successor to ALBICAN) for market introduction phase of next-generation self-sensing high-speed AFM cantilevers. Focuses on automated manufacturing processes for MEMS/NEMS sensors in scanning probe microscopy.
• European Commission (Horizon 2020)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHorizon 2020 funded concept study for novel long-term implants for continuous heart pressure measurement in heart failure patients. Includes feasibility assessment for implantable sensor platform.
• Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität FrankfurtminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity spin-off origin. Company founded in March 2005 as spin-off from Goethe University Frankfurt am Main, establishing academic roots and ongoing research connections.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Nanosurf: Swiss manufacturer of atomic force microscopes and cantilever probes for nanoscale imaging. Directly comparable to Nanoss in the self-sensing AFM cantilever and high-resolution force-sensing space, targeting life sciences and materials research customers.
• SPECS Zurich (SPECS Surface Nano Analysis): Provider of nanoscale surface analysis and SPM/AFM cantilever technologies with deep roots in electron-beam and scanning probe instrumentation. Closely comparable in combining EBID/nanofabrication know-how with sensor manufacturing for research customers.
• SmartTip (SmartTip B.V.): Specialist manufacturer of custom and standard AFM probes, including functionalized and MEMS-based cantilevers. Comparable niche player focused on advanced probe manufacturing for the same AFM/scientific customer base.
• Raith (RAITH GmbH): German manufacturer of electron-beam lithography and nanofabrication systems used by research and industry customers. Highly comparable in using focused electron-beam tools for nanoscale device patterning, with adjacent but overlapping customer base in nanotech R&D.
• Heidelberg Instruments: German manufacturer of maskless lithography and direct-write systems for nanofabrication. Closely comparable technology overlap with Nanoss's maskless EBID approach, addressing similar MEMS/NEMS and photonics customers.

Broad incumbents

• Bruker Nano Surfaces: Division of Bruker offering AFM systems, probes, and nanoscale instrumentation across a broad scientific customer base. Comparable end application (AFM, force measurement, life sciences) but a much larger, diversified incumbent rather than a niche nanoprinting platform.
• Oxford Instruments (Asylum Research): AFM and scanning probe microscopy business of Oxford Instruments. Overlaps with Nanoss in the AFM and self-sensing cantilever space but serves customers as a broad incumbent scientific instruments provider rather than a nanoprinting platform.
• Imec: Large European R&D center for nanoelectronics, MEMS and life-science applications. Comparable in developing MEMS/NEMS sensors and implantable medical devices, but at vastly greater scale and as an open-innovation consortium rather than a focused nanoprinting vendor.
• TESCAN: Manufacturer of electron microscopes and related nanofabrication tools. Comparable in deploying focused electron-beam technology for nanoscale analysis and patterning, serving an overlapping academic/industrial research customer base.

Emerging players

• NanoAndMore: European distributor and supplier of AFM probes and nanopositioning consumables. Comparable in serving AFM and nanoprobe customers but as a distribution/sourcing model rather than a nanoprinting platform.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about NanoScale Systems