Safran, CNRS and University of Poitiers set up joint research lab

PRIMEO will conduct research on innovative materials and processes to apply deposits on optical components, which may in due course be used on cameras, binoculars, telescopes and other products. The lab will be tasked with bringing fundamental research and possible industrial applications closer together, with a view to gaining agility and efficiency, and thereby building competitive advantages. This partnership will identify, optimise and fast-track possible transfers between fundamental research findings and expertise at Institut P' on the one hand, and industrial applications on Safran Electronics & Defense products on the other. The goal is to give all partners the resources to grow strong together, become more competitive, and grow. Academic research will focus on studying innovative materials and researching new physical properties that may lead to step changes in technology and create differentiating value in civil and military products. The technology developments revolve around processes to deposit thin layers (in the single-digit nanometer range) on optical components to upgrade their performance and lower production costs. Work at PRIMEO labs will be funded equally by both partners and the team will comprise over a dozen people (researchers, engineers, PhD students and interns). "Safran Electronics & Defense and Institut P' have worked together on many early-stage technology developments in photonics and optronics, and filed several patents in the process, over the past eight-plus years. I am delighted with the realization of this partnership which marks a new phase and allows us to envisage major innovations in photonics." said Safran Electronics & Defense Chief Executive Officer Martin Sion. "The partnership with Safran Electronics & Defense is old and trong. The creation of this new joint laboratory will strengthen the shared potential for research and innovation in the strategic field of materials and optronics," explained University of Poitiers President Yves Jean. "The CNRS believes strongly in these places of co-construction of innovation and mixing of two cultures that have sometimes ignored each other. Here it is not the case since it is another step on the way of an already longstanding and fruitful relationship between the academic world and Safran" added CNRS Executive Officer for valorization Michel Mortier.