What PVD Products does

PVD Products, Inc. is a privately held manufacturer of thin film deposition systems, founded in the mid-1990s and headquartered in a 17,000-square-foot facility in Wilmington, Massachusetts. The company designs and builds Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD) equipment across three core technology platforms: Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD), Magnetron Sputtering, and Thermal/E-beam Evaporation, with a portfolio that spans compact R&D tools (Nano PLD, PLD 2000/3000) through to large-area production systems handling substrates up to 12 inches (PLD 12000). Differentiated components include the proprietary Intelligent Window (extending optical window life 20–50x), ferrofluidic UHV target manipulators, constant fluence optical trains for uniform deposition, and exclusive off-axis sputtering technology licensed from Ohio State University.

The company sells globally via a direct enterprise field sales motion, with no resellers or distribution intermediaries, targeting Fortune 500 industrials, national laboratories, and leading research universities. Revenue is generated primarily through one-time equipment sales with project cycles of 6–18 months, supplemented by contract thin film deposition services, custom deposition system and LabVIEW software design, and an installed-base upgrades and maintenance business. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. End-use applications include semiconductors, aerospace and defense, optics and photonics, advanced materials, energy storage, quantum technology, microelectronics, and high-temperature superconductor coated conductor tape manufacturing.

The customer base is anchored by marquee research institutions (MIT, Northwestern, Duke, University of Leeds) and government agencies (NASA), with an attributed Bioz Stars rating of 94/100 and over 563 scientific citations of its products. The company maintains a 30+ year track record with stable ownership, no disclosed external funding, and a leadership team of founder/president James Greer (the original developer of the Intelligent Window and laser beam rastering) and CTO Lawrence Scipioni, PhD. The firm operates with a modest headcount (11–50 employees) and is affiliated with Hit Superconductors through shared branding and management.

Name

PVD Products

Legal name

PVD Products, Inc.

Website

https://pvdproducts.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

PVD Products is a privately held US manufacturer of custom thin film deposition systems — including PLD, magnetron sputtering, and thermal/e-beam evaporation tools — sold direct to research universities, national laboratories, and Fortune 500 industrial customers worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Thin Film Deposition Equipment

NAICS

Semiconductor Machinery Manufacturing (333242)

SIC

Miscellaneous Fabricated Metal Products (3490)

akta.pro primary industry

Deposition Equipment (CVD/PVD/ALD/Epitaxy) (HDAHAEAB)

Keywords

• Thin film deposition
• Pulsed laser deposition
• Magnetron sputtering
• Evaporation systems
• Coated conductor equipment

Headquarters

HQ city

Wilmington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Custom Thin Film Deposition Equipment: Design, manufacture, and sale of custom physical vapor deposition systems including PLD, sputtering, and evaporation systems. Equipment ranges from compact R&D systems to large-scale production tools. Revenue is project-based with typical timelines of 6-18 months from consultation to installation.
2. Thin Film Deposition Services: Contract thin film deposition services using company-owned equipment for customers who need specific coatings without purchasing full systems.
3. Deposition System Design Services: Custom engineering and design services for deposition systems, including process development and optimization support.
4. Deposition Software Design Services: Custom LabVIEW-based software development for deposition system control, data logging, recipe management, and process automation.
5. Upgrades and Maintenance Services: System upgrades, retrofits, maintenance contracts, and extended training programs for existing PVD and OEM deposition systems.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

PVD Products designs, manufactures, and sells custom thin film deposition systems used to deposit complex multi-element materials with stoichiometric fidelity on substrates from 5mm to 12 inches in diameter. Core offerings span Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) systems, magnetron sputtering systems, thermal and electron beam evaporation systems, and coated conductor production tools, complemented by contract deposition services, custom engineering design, software development, and ongoing maintenance support. Customers include Fortune 500 manufacturers, leading research universities, and national laboratories across semiconductors, aerospace and defense, optics, photonics, advanced materials, superconductors, and microelectronics.

Product overview

PVD Products offers a comprehensive portfolio of thin film deposition systems and components, organized as a platform of modular product lines centered around three core deposition technologies: Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD), Magnetron Sputtering, and Evaporation. The PLD portfolio includes Nano PLD (compact research systems), PLD/MBE 2000 Series (hybrid PLD/MBE systems for epitaxial growth), PLD 2000/3000 (R&D systems for substrates up to 3 inches), PLD 5000/6000 (larger R&D and pilot production for up to 6 inches), and PLD 8000/12000 (production systems for up to 12-inch substrates). Specialized PLD variants include MAPLE for polymer films, RIR PLE for resonant IR deposition, and fs/ps PLD for ultrafast laser applications. The Sputtering product line covers Magnetron Sputtering Systems, Facing Magnetrons, Combinatorial Sputtering, and Off-Axis Sputtering (based on Ohio State University technology). Evaporation Systems handle thermal and e-beam deposition. The Coated Conductor Systems product line addresses superconductor applications. All product lines are supported by a comprehensive Components portfolio including UHV Target Manipulators, PLD Intelligent Window, Optical Trains, Substrate Heaters, and DC/RF Switches, as well as Services including Thin Film Deposition, System Design, Software Design, and Upgrades/Maintenance. The entire portfolio is customizable to meet specific customer requirements.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) Systems High-performance pulsed laser deposition systems for researchers and engineers developing next-generation materials, thin films, and functional coatings, used by leading universities, national labs, and advanced manufacturing teams worldwide.
• Magnetron Sputtering Systems Sputtering systems for depositing metal and dielectric thin films on substrates up to 300 mm in diameter, using RF, DC, HiPIMS, or pulsed DC power operated singly or in co-deposition mode.
• Evaporation Systems Complete thermal and electron beam evaporation systems with single or multiple thermal sources, multi-pocket e-beam sources, and multi-gun sources designed to meet specific deposition needs.
• Coated Conductor Systems Full range of coated conductor systems for depositing High Temperature Superconductor (HTS) materials and buffer layers on continuous metal tapes, spanning PLD, magnetron sputtering, evaporation, and Ion Beam Assisted Deposition (IBAD).
• Custom Deposition Systems Custom-engineered thin film deposition systems built to meet specific research or production requirements, including combinatorial deposition tools and reel-to-reel deposition equipment for the coated conductor market.
• Thin Film Deposition Services Contract thin film deposition services using PLD, sputtering, evaporation, and ion beam deposition techniques on a wide range of substrates for customers who need specific coatings without purchasing full systems.
• Deposition System Design Services Custom engineering services for designing deposition systems to meet specific research or production requirements, including process development and optimization support.
• Deposition Software Design Services Custom LabVIEW-based software development services for deposition system control, including deposition recipes, data logging, and process control.
• Upgrades and Maintenance Services System upgrades, retrofits, and maintenance services for existing PVD and OEM deposition systems, including component upgrades and process optimization.

Quantifiable outcome

• Film thickness uniformity of ±1% over 3-inch wafers with Yttrium oxide films
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature8 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• The Ohio State UniversitycoreOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing Partner · 1 September 2018Exclusive licensing agreement with The Ohio State University Department of Physics for patent-pending thin film deposition technology based on off-axis sputtering. The technology enables growth of epitaxial films with crystalline quality rivaling more expensive processes like MBE and PLD. PVD Products commercializes this technology for both academic and industrial R&D markets.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Applied Materials: The largest semiconductor equipment manufacturer globally, with significant PVD (Endura) and CVD product lines serving logic, memory and specialty foundry customers. While Applied Materials does not focus on PLD, its footprint in industrial PVD is the dominant competitive threat in advanced-node and large-area manufacturing.
• Veeco Instruments: A large US-headquartered manufacturer of semiconductor and thin-film process equipment, including sputtering, ion beam deposition and MOCVD systems. Veeco competes with PVD Products in advanced PVD and sputtering tools, particularly in photonics and specialty semiconductor end markets, although it does not specialize in PLD.
• ULVAC: Japanese manufacturer of vacuum and thin-film deposition equipment (sputtering, evaporation, PLD-related systems) serving display, semiconductor and photovoltaic customers. ULVAC competes with PVD Products in academic and industrial sputtering and evaporation systems, particularly across Asia.
• Solmates (now part of Veeco) / Oxford Instruments PLD divisions: Oxford Instruments and historically Solmates supply PLD and pulsed electron deposition (PED) systems for functional oxide research. They overlap with PVD Products in the academic/oxide-research segment, particularly across European research institutions.
• Scientech (Scienta Omicron / Alluxa / Scientech regional group): Scienta Omicron and related thin-film equipment vendors supply MBE and PLD-adjacent deposition tools for materials research and surface science. While broader in scope (ESCA, MBE, ARPES), they overlap with PVD Products at the high-end research customer base.

Direct peers

• AJA International: A US manufacturer of magnetron sputtering, e-beam evaporation, and PLD-related deposition systems used in academic and small-scale industrial research. AJA competes directly with PVD Products across sputtering and evaporation product lines for university and government-funded labs.
• Angstrom Engineering: A Canadian manufacturer of thin-film deposition systems including PLD, sputtering, and thermal evaporation tools for R&D and small-scale production. Angstrom is a direct competitor to PVD Products in the academic and startup lab market, often competing on similar PLD and sputtering specifications.
• Neocera (Pioneer Energy / Neocera): A specialty PLD equipment company historically close to the PLD research community, offering pulsed laser deposition systems for oxide and superconducting thin films. Neocera is the closest direct peer to PVD Products, competing head-to-head in academic and small-scale R&D PLD purchases.
• Mantis Deposition (Sigma Technologies / Mantis group): A UK-based manufacturer of pulsed laser deposition, sputtering and combinatorial deposition systems for materials research. Mantis competes directly with PVD Products in the European research segment and shares a strong focus on combinatorial and custom PLD platforms.

Others

• Plasmaterials (subsidiary / related thin-film materials group): A provider of sputtering targets, PLD targets and evaporation source materials for thin-film deposition users. While not a direct equipment competitor, Plasmaterials serves many of the same research and industrial customers and represents an adjacent supply-chain peer in the thin-film deposition ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/PVDProducts

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 PVD Products