About Integrated Optics
Integrated Optics, a high-tech laser and photonics manufacturer in Lithuania, develops and manufactures ultra-compact laser sources for advanced scientific and industrial applications worldwide. Its MatchBox laser platform is used across a wide range of demanding applications, including spectroscopy, microscopy, flow cytometry, particle analysis, quantum technologies, and LiDAR systems. It is an ultra-compact, configurable family of integration-ready laser sources, including continuous-wave, multi-wavelength and pulsed lasers, with optics, control electronics and thermal stabilisation integrated into a single enclosure.
As laser-based systems become more advanced, customers require compact sources that combine high performance, reliability, and consistent spectral quality. For Integrated Optics, this makes precise measurement and quality control a critical part of both product development and manufacturing.
The company’s multidisciplinary team focuses on ensuring that every aspect of the MatchBox laser platform meets the standards of quality, reliability, and performance expected by customers in scientific and industrial markets.
The Challenge
Background
Visible-range lasers are used in applications where spectral quality, stability, and repeatability are essential. In fields such as microscopy, spectroscopy, flow cytometry, quantum technologies, and LiDAR, even weak spectral components or unwanted modes can affect measurement quality, system performance, or application reliability.
For Integrated Optics, maintaining consistent laser quality during manufacturing is therefore both a technical and business priority. As laser performance requirements continue to increase, the company needs to accurately characterize laser outputs, detect weak spectral components, and verify that each laser source meets the required performance standards.
The challenge
Integrated Optics required a measurement solution capable of supporting both production quality control and new product development. The instrument had to provide high accuracy, sufficient wavelength resolution, wide close-in dynamic range, and reliable operation within an efficient production workflow.
A key requirement was the ability to detect weaker spectral modes during laser characterization. This is important for final product quality inspection, as well as for identifying spectral behavior during intermediate production and assembly stages.
The team also needed a solution that could reduce measurement complexity. By enabling accurate measurements with less required optical power, the analyzer could simplify the setup and save time during production operations.
The Solution
Application requirements
To validate and manufacture its chip-scale visible-range laser sources, Integrated Optics needed an optical spectrum analyzer suitable for measurements from 350 to 1200 nm, with the close-in dynamic range, sensitivity, and reliability required for demanding laser characterization.
The team evaluated available solutions based on several key criteria: close-in dynamic range, wavelength resolution, measurement speed, and overall suitability for efficient production workflows. The ability to perform accurate measurements quickly and reliably was an important factor in the selection.
Yokogawa’s AQ6373E OSA covering 350–1200 nm
Measurement solution
Integrated Optics uses the Yokogawa AQ6373E Optical Spectrum Analyzer, covering 350–1200 nm, throughout its laser manufacturing and assembly processes.
The AQ6373E supports spectrum monitoring during single-mode laser production, spectral filtering, component characterization, and new product development. Its high measurement accuracy, wide close-in dynamic range, and reliability allow Integrated Optics to verify laser performance efficiently and ensure that its products consistently meet demanding customer requirements.
One of the key advantages of the AQ6373E is its wide close-in dynamic range of 60 dB. This enables the detection of weaker spectral modes, making the instrument suitable for final product quality inspection and deeper characterization of laser performance.
The high dynamic range also reduces the amount of optical power required during measurements. This simplifies the measurement setup and saves time during intermediate production operations, improving workflow efficiency while maintaining measurement confidence.
“Yokogawa provides a highly capable, telecom-grade instrument whose performance is exceptionally well suited for laboratory laser measurements. We benefit from the reliability expected of telecommunications equipment while also achieving the resolution and sensitivity required to characterize far more demanding laser sources”
Evaldas Pebreza, CEO, Integrated Optics
Although there were some initial challenges integrating the software into existing systems, the Integrated Optics engineering team successfully developed a solution that allowed the instrument to be integrated effectively into its workflow. The physical setup and commissioning were straightforward, requiring only basic preparation and calibration.
Results
AQ6373E: High dynamic range supports reliable visible-laser validation and production quality control
Using Yokogawa optical spectrum analyzers, Integrated Optics can perform fast, accurate, and reliable spectral measurements across the wavelength range required for its laser products.
The AQ6373E helps Integrated Optics clearly characterize key laser performance parameters during manufacturing, assembly, and product development. Its 60 dB close-in dynamic range allows engineers to detect weaker spectral modes and confirm spectral purity more effectively during final product quality inspection.
This capability supports more reliable validation of single-mode laser performance, spectral filtering, component behavior, and overall product consistency. It also helps the team identify weak spectral components that might otherwise be difficult to detect, improving confidence that each laser source meets demanding customer requirements.
By reducing the amount of optical power required during measurement, the AQ6373E also simplifies test setups and saves time during intermediate production operations. This improves measurement efficiency while helping Integrated Optics maintain consistent quality throughout the manufacturing process.
For Integrated Optics, the main benefit is confidence in laser performance. Yokogawa’s measurement reliability, wide close-in high dynamic range, and wavelength resolution support both efficient quality control and new product development, enabling the team to validate chip-scale advanced visible-range laser sources for medical, scientific, industrial, and quantum applications.
AQ6373E Optical Spectrum Analyzer
The AQ6373E provides high-speed, accurate analysis of the short wavelengths from 350 to 1200 nm.
With three available models to meet the demands of various applications, this versatile OSA accelerates the development and manufacturing of short wavelength lasers, passive devices, and LEDs, as well as equipment that use these devices for the biomedical, material processing, consumer product, and telecommunications markets.
The benefits of the AQ6373E include:
Performance
Excellent optical wavelength resolution, accuracy and close-in dynamic range specifications allow optical signals even in narrow bandwidth to be clearly separated and accurately measured.
Productivity
Smart technology and functionality such as an intuitive touchscreen, automated wavelength calibration, optimized sweep speed and dedicated application set-up menus allow users to operate the OSA efficiently.
Expertise
For more than 40 years, Yokogawa’s development and product specialist teams have been listening to the needs of OSA users, refining the OSA product range to provide them with innovative and effective measurement tools.
