“Most People Worldwide Have Used Products Made using Lithuanian Lasers,” Says Industry Expert
Lasers drive advancements in science and industry, opening new possibilities for various applications from semiconductor, consumer electronics sector to medical applications. Lithuania’s photonics sector is a key innovator, supplying femtosecond lasers to 96 of the world’s top 100 universities.
Photo: Nail Garejev
January 6, 2025. Laser systems from a single Lithuanian company are used in 96 of the top 100 universities worldwide, including Cambridge University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). This company, Light Conversion, produces femtosecond lasers—ultra-fast and precise—empowering groundbreaking research across the globe. It is one of approximately 60 photonics companies in Lithuania, a small country punching above its weight in the photonics industry.
“Lithuania may be a lesser-known country, yet most people have used life-changing products produced using our lasers, such as smartphones, TV’s or blood vessel stents,” Karolis Neimontas, Head of Research & Development at Light Conversion, says. “Few people realize just how essential lasers are for the technologies we rely on today and the innovations shaping tomorrow.”
How lasers shape the modern world
“Without laser technology, computers and smartphones wouldn’t exist,” says Neimontas, explaining that lasers are key in semiconductor industry—the chips that give these devices their processing power. For example, femtosecond lasers help scientists study how electrons move in certain materials, which affects how fast, efficient, and energy-saving our devices can be. “Lasers help identify materials where electrons move more easily, leading to faster data processing and lower energy consumption, making them a key driver in advancing modern electronics,” the expert explains.
Lasers are also advancing medical research by making it safer. Infrared lasers enable multiphoton microscopy, a technique that can reach up to two millimeters below the surface to examine tissue samples without causing damage. This non-invasive diagnostic tool is valuable in fields like neuroscience and oncology, offering safer, deeper insights into biological structures.
Thanks to their exceptional precision, femtosecond lasers are also widely used in medical procedures, such as vision correction surgeries. “The laser beam allows accurate incisions on the cornea with minimal thermal effects, decreasing the risk of inflammation,” Neimontas explains.
Lithuania’s laser legacy
The country’s first milestone in laser technology was already in 1966 when the country shot its first laser beam, just six years after the first laser was developed in the United States. Since then, the photonics sector has become a cornerstone of the country’s industrial ecosystem, centered in Vilnius, allowing close collaboration between science and industry.
Neimontas attributes the success of Lithuania’s laser sector to its local supply chain for high-tech components like optics, electronics, and mechanical parts. “Relying on nearby suppliers boosts our production quality and control,” he says. This close network enables fast collaboration, efficient workflows, and mutual business relationships, with suppliers often becoming customers who integrate lasers into their own products. This collaborative ecosystem strengthens Lithuania’s position in laser technology.”
The company’s lasers have even found their way into the laboratories of the Nobel Prize winners. In 2023, one of the company’s high-intensity laser systems was installed at Lund University’s laboratory of French physicist Anne L’Huillier, who received the Nobel Prize in Physics, installed one of the company’s high-intensity laser systems at her lab at Lund University to advance her groundbreaking research in attosecond science. These lasers enable the study of ultra-fast phenomena, such as capturing the motion of electrons—events that occur on the incredibly brief timescale of one quintillionth of a second.