Microworks
Microworks is a German precision manufacturer of X-ray optical components using LIGA microfabrication, serving research institutions, universities, and industrial NDT/QC customers with gratings, apertures, beamstops, lenses, and the TALINT interferometer system.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2009
- HeadquartersEggenstein-leopoldshafen, Germany
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Microworks does
Microworks is a German GmbH based in Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen that manufactures precision X-ray optical components for non-destructive testing (NDT), quality control (QC), and scientific research. Founded around 2007-2009 (firmographic sources and company history disagree on the exact year), the company is headquartered at the Zeiss InnovationHub adjacent to the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) and operates with a team of approximately seven employees. Following its acquisition by Swiss X-ray optics firm XRnanotech in fall 2024, Microworks operates as a subsidiary under shared managing director Dr. Florian Döring, with founder Joachim Schulz transitioning to a Senior Advisor role.
The company's core technology is the LIGA microfabrication process, combining X-ray, e-beam, UV, and 2-photon lithography with electroplating to produce metallic microstructures with extreme aspect ratios of 20x to 100x. Its product portfolio includes Grating Sets, Apertures, Beamstops, Resolution Targets, X-Ray Lenses, and the TALINT X-ray interferometer system, alongside custom manufacturing services for client-specific designs. The TALINT launch marked a transition from passive optical components into integrated measurement instruments.
Microworks sells primarily to research institutions, universities, and synchrotron facilities (named customers include Diamond Light Source, Johns Hopkins, Hochschule Luzern, and Bar-Ilan University), with industrial NDT/QC identified as the expansion target. Pricing is quote-based and customized to specification. Go-to-market combines direct sales with channel partners Asicon Tokyo (Japan, South Korea, Taiwan) and Top Unistar (China) for Asian market coverage, enabling geographic reach disproportionate to the small headcount.
Microworks firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Microworks
- Legal name
- Microworks GmbH
- Website
- https://microworks.de
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2009
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Microworks is a German precision manufacturer of X-ray optical components using LIGA microfabrication, serving research institutions, universities, and industrial NDT/QC customers with gratings, apertures, beamstops, lenses, and the TALINT interferometer system.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Microworks industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Precision X-Ray Optics
- NAICS
- Irradiation Apparatus Manufacturing (334517), Navigational, Measuring, Electromedical, and Control Instruments Manufacturing (3345)
- SIC
- Optical Instruments & Lenses (3827), X-Ray Apparatus & Tubes & Related Irradiation Apparatus (3844)
- akta.pro primary industry
- NDT/NDE Inspection Equipment (Ultrasonic, eddy current, radiography, thermography) (IMAGAFAI)
Keywords
Where Microworks is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Eggenstein-leopoldshafen
- HQ country
- Germany
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Microworks business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Precision X-Ray Optical Components: Sale of standardized and custom products for X-ray nondestructive testing (NDT) and X-ray quality control. Products include gratings, apertures, beamstops, resolution targets, X-ray lenses, and TALINT interferometer systems. Custom and standard product offerings with quote-based pricing.
- Custom Product Manufacturing: Custom production services for X-ray gratings, apertures, beamstops, resolution targets, and X-ray lenses to customer specifications including particular shapes, sizes, heights, energies, and geometries.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Custom Solutions |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels3 records
Microworks product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Microworks manufactures standardized and custom precision X-ray optical components for nondestructive testing (NDT) and X-ray quality control. The portfolio includes X-ray gratings, apertures, beamstops, resolution targets, refractive X-ray lenses, and the TALINT grating-based X-ray interferometer system, all produced using LIGA technology (X-ray, e-beam, UV, and two-photon lithography combined with gold and nickel electroplating) and serving the 1-100 keV energy range.
Product overview
Microworks manufactures precision X-ray optical components for non-destructive testing (NDT) and X-ray quality control applications. The product portfolio consists of six core offerings: Grating Sets (for Talbot-Lau interferometry and edge illumination from 1-100 keV), Precision Apertures (gold apertures in various shapes for beam control), Beamstops (freestanding gold cylinders for X-ray blocking), Resolution Targets (calibration devices including Yxlon and NanoXSpot variants), X-Ray Lenses (compound refractive lenses, Fresnel lenses, and prism lenses in epoxy polymer), and TALINT (a modular X-ray interferometer enabling absorption, phase-contrast, and dark-field imaging modes). The company operates as part of the XRnanotech Group and serves researchers, educators, and industrial customers using LIGA technology (X-ray, e-beam, UV, and 2-photon lithography combined with electroplating).
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Grating Sets X-ray gratings designed for Talbot-Lau interferometry and edge illumination imaging, operating from 1 keV to 100 keV. Available in various layouts (60×20 mm² to 160×90 mm²) with standard options including 6 µm period at 40 keV, 2.4 µm period at 8 keV, 4.8 µm period at 20 keV, and 8.0 µm period at 55 keV. Custom gratings including 2D hole arrays for Hartmann sensors are available. Targeted at researchers and synchrotron facilities requiring high-precision diffraction, interferometry, and spectroscopy components.
- Apertures Precision X-ray apertures that control the size and shape of X-ray beams while efficiently blocking stray light. Available in various shapes (square, round, star-shaped, slitted) with gold heights ranging from 50 µm to 200 µm depending on aperture width. Standard slits are 10 mm long in 50 µm sections separated by 2 µm gaps. For researchers and instrument builders requiring customizable size and shape options and precision slit arrays.
- Beamstops Freestanding miniature gold cylinders that block X-rays, designed for X-ray microscopy applications. The unique freestanding design allows operation from a few 100 eV to several keV. Standard devices feature 16 beamstops with diameters ranging from 10 µm to 160 µm in 10 µm increments, with gold thickness exceeding 80 µm. For X-ray microscopy and beam attenuation applications requiring broad energy range and freestanding design.
- Resolution Targets Quality control and machine performance verification devices for X-ray imaging systems. Standard offerings include Yxlon Targets (8 mm × 8 mm chip with line widths from 5.0 µm down to 0.3 µm on 200 µm silicon substrate with 3 µm gold absorbers) and NanoXSpot Targets (10 mm × 10 mm chip with modified Siemens stars featuring line and space widths from 12 µm to 3 µm). For calibration and verification of X-ray imaging systems with tight tolerances for accurate measurements.
- X-Ray Lenses Refractive X-ray lenses made of epoxy polymer (SU-8 resist) for focusing X-rays in analysis applications. Types include Compound Refractive Lenses (CRL), compact motorized zoom lenses, Fresnel-type lenses, and prism lenses. Specifications include radius of curvature greater than 5 µm, photon energy greater than 8 keV (optimal 8-40 keV), focal length greater than 30 mm, physical aperture 100 µm to 2 mm, and minimum focal spot size greater than 0.5 µm. Customizable options available for X-ray imaging applications requiring superior resolution, contrast, and image quality.
- TALINT X-Ray Interferometer Advanced grating-based X-ray interferometer providing three imaging modes: absorption, phase-contrast, and dark-field contrast. The modular system includes TALINT EDU, TALINT ONE, and TALINT PRO variants. Designed for 40 keV (6.00 µm period, greater than 120 µm gold absorber height) or 21 keV (4.80 µm period, greater than 40 µm gold absorber height) with 35 mm field of view. Assembles in under 30 minutes and integrates with existing X-ray tube and detector setups, providing detailed insights within minutes using grating-based interferometry. Compatible with high-power, large focal spot sources and standard CT image acquisition pipelines.
Quantifiable outcome
- 30-minute assembly time for TALINT system
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Microworks
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Microworks technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature6 records
Microworks partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Asicon TokyocoreMicroworks representative in Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. Distributes Microworks products in these regions.
- Top UnistarcoreMicroworks representative in China. Distributes Microworks products and is also listed as a customer of custom gratings and X-ray interferometers.
- Fachhochschule Oberösterreich (FHOO)minorPartner displayed on TALINT product page. Academic institution collaborating on X-ray imaging technology.
- Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)coreMicroworks is located in close proximity to Campus North of KIT. Uses KIT's synchrotron (KARA) for X-ray lithography. Access to KIT/IMT's EBPG5200Z e-beam lithography system.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Microworks competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Bruker: Large scientific instruments manufacturer with a significant X-ray analytical and nano-CT portfolio. Overlaps with Microworks in the X-ray components and analytical instrument ecosystem and competes for advanced imaging customers.
- Sigray: US-based X-ray technology company producing X-ray sources, optics, and complete instruments for research and industrial applications. Broader portfolio than Microworks, but comparable customer base in synchrotrons and advanced imaging, and listed as a Microworks partner.
- Carl Zeiss (ZEISS): German optics and metrology giant that operates the Zeiss InnovationHub where Microworks is headquartered. Operates broadly in optics, semiconductor metrology, and industrial quality control, making it a thematic and physical ecosystem peer.
- Rigaku: Japanese manufacturer of X-ray analytical and imaging equipment with broad global reach in crystallography, materials, and semiconductor inspection. Comparable customer overlap in advanced X-ray imaging with broader systems offering.
- YXLON International: German-based X-ray inspection equipment manufacturer offering complete industrial and security inspection systems. A partner of Microworks and broader incumbent that integrates X-ray optical components from suppliers like Microworks.
Emerging players
- AdlOptica: Berlin-based optical systems company specializing in adaptive optics and deformable mirrors for advanced imaging applications. Compares as a smaller, specialized European optics innovator with adjacent technology positioning to Microworks' lithography-based optics work.
Others
- Microworks (self-reference) — alternative: Paul Scherrer Institut (PSI) spinoff ecosystem: Research institutes like PSI, DESY, and ESRF host LIGA/X-ray lithography infrastructure and produce in-house optical components, sometimes via spinoff companies. They are ecosystem participants that overlap with Microworks in serving synchrotron customers with specialized X-ray optics.
- KETEK GmbH: German manufacturer of silicon drift detectors and X-ray detectors used in spectroscopy and analytical instrumentation. Adjacent ecosystem participant that complements X-ray optics in complete imaging systems rather than competing directly.
Direct peers
- Imagine Optic: French provider of X-ray optics and metrology solutions including wavefront sensors and adaptive optics. Comparable in offering X-ray optical components to research and industrial customers; partner logo on Microworks website.
- XRnanotech: Swiss parent company of Microworks and direct peer in X-ray optics, specializing in refractive X-ray lenses and nanofocusing optics for synchrotrons and laboratories. Most directly comparable peer given overlapping LIGA-derived X-ray optics product lines and shared KIT-adjacent ecosystem.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Microworks social profiles
Digital presenceMicroworks financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Microworks leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Microworks funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Microworks M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Microworks
What does Microworks do?
Microworks manufactures standardized and custom precision X-ray optical components for nondestructive testing (NDT) and X-ray quality control. The portfolio includes X-ray gratings, apertures, beamstops, resolution targets, refractive X-ray lenses, and the TALINT grating-based X-ray interferometer system, all produced using LIGA technology (X-ray, e-beam, UV, and two-photon lithography combined with gold and nickel electroplating) and serving the 1-100 keV energy range.
Is Microworks a public or private company?
Microworks is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Microworks founded?
Microworks was founded in 2009. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Microworks based?
Microworks is headquartered in Eggenstein-leopoldshafen, Germany, in the Europe region.
How does Microworks make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Precision X-Ray Optical Components are the primary driver. The others are custom Product Manufacturing.
Who are Microworks's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Bruker, Sigray, Carl Zeiss (ZEISS), Rigaku and YXLON International. AdlOptica is listed as an emerging player. Others are Microworks (self-reference) — alternative: Paul Scherrer Institut (PSI) spinoff ecosystem and KETEK GmbH. Direct peers are Imagine Optic and XRnanotech.
Does Microworks have an API?
No public API is recorded for Microworks.
What industry is Microworks in?
Microworks's product category is Precision X-Ray Optics. Its primary akta.pro industry code is IMAGAFAI, NDT/NDE Inspection Equipment (Ultrasonic, eddy current, radiography, thermography). Its NAICS code is 334517 and its SIC code is 3827.