What Research Electro-Optics (REO) does

Research Electro-Optics (REO), founded in 1993 and originally headquartered in Boulder, Colorado, was a specialist in high-precision thin-film coatings, optics, and opto-mechanical assemblies spanning the ultraviolet, visible, and infrared spectrums. REO has been acquired by and fully integrated into Excelitas Technologies Corp., a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-headquartered global photonics company; the reoinc.com domain now redirects to excelitas.com, and REO's coating and optomechanical capabilities have been absorbed into the parent's broader sensing, detection, imaging, optics, and specialty illumination portfolio.

The combined product platform spans five core categories: Cameras (FLIM, high-speed, industrial, intensified, scientific — PCO software), Detectors & Sensors (silicon avalanche photodiodes, pyroelectric and thermopile thermal IR sensors), Light Sources (X-Cite fluorescence illuminators, deuterium lamps, Cermax xenon lamps, diode and SS-OCT lasers, LED components, UV curing systems including Phoseon VeriCure and OmniCure, UVC disinfection sources), Optics (custom optical components and assemblies, LINOS standard elements and lenses, MeVis imaging lenses, F-Theta laser optics, integrated OEM sub-systems, LINOS Microbench optomechanics, CobraEye night vision modules), and Electronics & Power (capacitor chargers and power supplies). Nine sub-brands — PCO, X-Cite, LINOS, Phoseon, OmniCure, Noblelight, Axsun, Cermax, CobraEye — are maintained as separate go-to-market identities with dedicated customer-support portals.

The business model is predominantly hardware sales of both off-the-shelf components and custom/bespoke integrated sub-systems, sold through direct enterprise field sales for design-in OEM engagements and complemented by a global authorized distributor network with dealer-search capability. End-markets are organized into ten verticals: Automotive, Consumer Electronics, Industrial Manufacturing (including semiconductor equipment, LiDAR, additive manufacturing, machine vision), Medical (clinical diagnostics, endoscopy, surgery, ophthalmology, dentistry), Safety and Security (night vision), Sciences (astronomy, biology, physics), UV Curing, UVC Disinfection, Semiconductor, and Aerospace and Defense. Pricing is not publicly disclosed; ITAR, cybersecurity, and corporate compliance programs are maintained to qualify for defense procurement. The company is privately held with 251-500 employees; leadership comprises Paul Kelly (President and CEO) and Susan J. Anway (Vice President of Finance and CFO).

Name

Research Electro-Optics (REO)

Legal name

Excelitas Technologies Corp.

Website

https://reoinc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Research Electro-Optics (REO), now part of Excelitas Technologies, designs and manufactures high-precision thin-film coatings, optics, and opto-mechanical assemblies serving life sciences, advanced industrial, semiconductor, and aerospace and defense customers globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Boulder

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Photonic Products and Components: Sale of off-the-shelf and custom photonic products including cameras, detectors, sensors, light sources, lasers, LEDs, UV curing systems, and optical components for industrial, medical, scientific and defense applications.
2. Custom Solutions and Bespoke Optical Systems: Bespoke solutions tailored to customer-specific requirements including design, specifications, and integrated OEM optical sub-systems.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Research Electro-Optics (REO), now operating as part of Excelitas Technologies, manufactures and sells high-precision thin-film coatings, optical components, opto-mechanical assemblies, photonic detectors, thermal infrared sensors, cameras, lasers, LED-based illumination systems, UV curing systems, and custom integrated OEM optical sub-systems for ultraviolet, visible and infrared applications. The company sells both off-the-shelf catalog products and bespoke engineered solutions tailored to customer specifications across life sciences, industrial, semiconductor, aerospace and defense end-markets.

Product overview

Research Electro-Optics (REO), now part of Excelitas Technologies, offers a comprehensive portfolio of photonic products organized across multiple core categories: Cameras (FLIM, high-speed, industrial, intensified, scientific cameras with PCO software), Detectors & Sensors (photonic detectors including silicon APDs, thermal infrared sensors with pyroelectric and thermopile technology), Light Sources (fluorescence illuminators under the X-Cite brand, deuterium lamps, Cermax xenon lamps, lasers and emitters including diode lasers and SS-OCT lasers, LED components and systems, UV curing systems with Phoseon and OmniCure brands, UVC disinfection systems), Optics (custom optical components, standard optical elements and lenses under LINOS brand, imaging lenses including MeVis, laser optics, integrated OEM solutions, optomechanical components), and Electronics & Power (power supplies). The company provides both off-the-shelf products and custom/bespoke solutions tailored to specific customer requirements, serving markets in Life Sciences, Advanced Industrial, Semiconductor, Aerospace and Defense.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• PCO: FLIM camera systems for scientific imaging applications
• X-Cite
• LINOS
• Phoseon
• OmniCure
• Noblelight
• Axsun
• Cermax

Products and services

• Cameras Portfolio of FLIM, high-speed, industrial, intensified, and scientific camera systems sold under the PCO brand with dedicated PCO camera software, targeted at scientific imaging, life sciences, and industrial inspection customers.
• Photonic Detectors Silicon Avalanche Photodiodes and other photonic detection components used for precision sensing in industrial, scientific, medical and defense applications.
• Thermal Infrared Sensors Pyroelectric detectors, thermopile detectors, and specialized modules and arrays for thermal infrared sensing used in motion detection, gas sensing, thermometry and industrial monitoring.
• Power Supplies High-voltage electronics and capacitor charging power supplies (e.g., XLS 302 3kW) used in industrial pulsed power and photonic system applications.
• Fluorescence Illuminators (X-Cite) LED-based fluorescence illumination systems (including XYLIS II) sold under the X-Cite brand for biomedical, clinical diagnostics, and life sciences research applications requiring precise wavelength specificity.
• Industrial Infrared Thermal Processing Solutions Industrial infrared thermal processing solutions used in automotive components, composites, coatings, building and construction, food processing, plastics, and metals manufacturing.
• Deuterium Lamps & Systems Deuterium lamps and complete lamp systems used as UV light sources for scientific and analytical instrumentation such as spectroscopy and chromatography.
• Cermax Xenon Lamps High-performance xenon lamp systems sold under the Cermax brand for industrial, medical, and scientific illumination applications requiring high-intensity broadband output.
• Lasers & Emitters Diode laser modules, IR emitting diodes, pulsed laser diodes, tunable lasers, and Axsun swept-source OCT (SS-OCT) lasers used in industrial processing, medical imaging, and scientific instrumentation.
• LED Components & Systems LED chip-on-board solutions and complete LED illumination systems for industrial and commercial lighting applications, sold as components or as integrated systems.
• UV Curing Systems UV LED curing systems including OmniCure and the Phoseon VeriCure water-cooled UV LED curing lamp portfolio used in industrial printing, coatings, composites, and insertable medical device manufacturing.
• UVC Disinfection Light Sources UVC light sources including the Kepri upper-air disinfection system, used for water purification, surface disinfection, and oxidation applications in air, water and surface treatment.
• Custom Optical Components & Assemblies Laser crystal coated optics and custom optical assemblies designed and manufactured to customer specifications for specialized industrial and scientific applications.

Quantifiable outcome

• Real-time surgical guidance enabled through next-generation fluorescence systems with closed-loop feedback and AI

Segments10 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

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Jenoptik: German photonics and optics group with divisions in optical systems, laser processing, and photonic sensing. Directly comparable in custom optical assemblies, imaging lenses, and OEM subsystems for semiconductor and life sciences end-markets.
• Lumentum: US-headquartered photonics company focused on optical components, lasers, and 3D sensing for telecom, industrial, and life sciences. Comparable in laser optics, OEM laser sub-systems, and OCT light sources (Axsun competes directly with Lumentum OCT lasers).
• Edmund Optics: Major US supplier of optical components including lenses, filters, prisms, and optomechanics for industrial, life sciences, and research applications. Directly competes with REO's LINOS and standard optics portfolio and offers comparable custom optical assemblies.
• Hamamatsu Photonics: Japanese global leader in photonic components including detectors, light sources, and optical sensors. Directly comparable to REO/Excelitas across silicon APDs, thermal IR sensors, scientific cameras, and OEM optical sub-systems serving life sciences and industrial markets.
• Thorlabs: US-based vertically integrated photonics and optics manufacturer offering optical components, lasers, detectors, cameras, and optomechanics. Direct competitor to REO's LINOS brand for standard optical elements and to REO's custom optical assemblies in research and OEM channels.
• IDEX Health & Science: Subsidiary of IDEX Corporation specializing in fluidic and optical components for life sciences and medical diagnostics. Comparable in OEM optical assemblies, precision optomechanics, and custom sub-systems sold to medical and analytical instrument OEMs.

Emerging players

• IPG Photonics: Global leader in fiber lasers and diode lasers for materials processing, medical, and sensing applications. Overlaps with REO/Excelitas in laser emitters and diode laser modules, particularly for industrial processing and OEM integration.

Broad incumbents

• Coherent Corp: Large US-headquartered photonics platform spanning lasers, optics, and instrumentation across materials processing, semiconductor, and life sciences. Comparable as a broad incumbent offering overlapping products in laser optics, F-Theta lenses, and OEM photonic sub-systems.
• ams OSRAM: European-headquartered optoelectronics leader producing LEDs, laser diodes, sensors, and illumination modules. Comparable to REO/Excelitas in LED components, UVC disinfection sources, and specialty illumination, particularly for automotive and industrial customers.
• MKS Instruments: Global provider of instruments, subsystems, and process control solutions for semiconductor, industrial, and life sciences markets. Overlaps with REO/Excelitas in photonic detectors, sensors, and OEM subsystems, particularly after its acquisition of Newport and Atotech.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Excelitas
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@ExcelitasTech
• Facebookfacebook.com/researchelectrooptics
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/research-electro-optics
• Instagraminstagram.com/excelitas_technologies_corp

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 Research Electro-Optics (REO)