Why Hamamatsu ?
Our mission is to benefit society through the development of technologies that capture, measure, and generate various types of light.
That's why we re-invest at least 9% of our yearly revenue into research and development - to maintain cutting-edge quality across 90 types of image sensors, light sources, components, and systems with capabilities that span the spectrum from x-ray to infrared.
We are one of the only companies in the world that develops a wide range of both light sensors, such as photomultiplier tubes and photodiodes, and light sources such as lasers, LEDs, and measurement lamps.
The components we manufacture measure and generate not only visible light, but also ultra-low, ultraviolet, infrared, and x-ray light.
Our light sensor and light source components are also available as modules and units with dedicated circuits. These devices can be incorporated into systems we develop, such as optical measurement systems, imaging systems, and image analysis systems.
These products are used in a wide range of applications, ranging from everyday technology like smartphones to measurement instruments that support cutting-edge academic research.
Customers face more than one issue for the products they desire, such as the required performance, operating environment, and size and shape. Our customization process starts with consultations with highly specialized engineers to identify the necessary specifications, from material selection to the initial design phase. We use our technologies and expertise to deliver a solution that meets your specific requirements.
We own high-precision manufacturing technologies that require hand craftsmanship, as well as production lines that can manufacture small and large volumes. Our manufacturing technology and production capacity enables us to deliver what customers need, regardless of lot size.
Our quality management system adheres to ISO9001. We also conduct industry-specific tests to ensure our products meet the requests and requirements of our customers.
We established the Central Research Laboratory, Tsukuba Research Center, and Industries Development Center to explore light through basic and applied research.
Our collaboration with industries, government, and universities allow us to go beyond corporate boundaries and build cooperative relationships.
We are progressing step by step toward a new type of information processing through research into highly sophisticated light control and measurement on the spatial axis, time axis, and wavelength axis of light.
In order to bring "true health" to all of us, we have continually applied a wide range of photonics technologies including PET applied research and biosensing into this field.
We have been continuously researching how biological phenomena interacts with light. Through understanding these mechanisms, we hope to create useful tools that will improve our lives.
We call the word nanophotonics to refer to this mutual interaction between light and matter and between light and electrons in the nano-region. We are constantly researching new materials that utilize this interaction between light and matter.
To foster and develop new industries, we now aim to create them by utilizing light based primarily on research into laser fusion capable of extracting energy from hydrogen isotopes available in seawater.
"Try before you say you can’t."
Our success pioneering initiatives without precedent is the result of our determination to take on entirely new challenges in order to meet customer needs.
In 1979, Hamamatsu Photonics began development on a 25-inch diameter photomultiplier tube capable of observing proton decay at the request of professor Masatoshi Koshiba of the Faculty of Science at the University of Tokyo. At that time in the industry's history, development had only recently begun on 8-inch diameter tubes, so developing a PMT with a 25-inch diameter was beyond anyone's imagination. However, our former President Teruo Hiruma was undeterred: He decided we would "just try it anyway."
Development was an uphill battle with more than its fair share of trial and error, but our first prototype achieved an extraordinary accomplishment: It already cleared specification requirements.
Since then, we have continued to develop exciting innovations and establish leading expertise in the optical technologies industry. Our succcess stems from the spirit of Hamamatsu Photonics, demonstrated by the moment our engineers and manufacturers rose to President Teruo Hiruma's challenge to "just try" the impossible.
Many of our products are used in advanced research. Our photomultipliers are used in the detection of neutrinos at Kamiokande and the detection of dark matter in the XMASS experiment. Our silicon strip detectors (SSD) are used in the discovery of the Higgs boson using CERN’s high-energy particle accelerator. Our image sensors are also built in the prime focus camera in the state-of-the-art Subaru Telescope at the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan.
Hamamatsu Photonics has been supplying products that contribute to the improvement of automobile comfort and safety for 40 years. Many vehicles use our ambient light sensors for automatic lighting and air conditioning, as well as our optical semiconductor devices for optical links used for in-vehicle information communication. Technology for self-driving cars and advanced driving support systems is developing at a fast pace. Sensing technologies for detecting the distance between cars and surrounding obstacles has become increasingly important. Hamamatsu Photonics is contributing to the future of automobiles by providing the Si APD, a high-performance optical semiconductor device for measuring distances with LiDAR.
The human body is made up of 60 trillion cells, all working together following the script provided by our genes. Life science researchers are working to unravel the details of this complex story, with every intricate plot twist offering insight into improving human health. By providing advanced scientific tools for imaging, we enable scientists to write whole new chapters about the microscopic cellular dramas that play out every day in our bodies and the living world around us.
Human actions have caused environmental problems such as air and water pollution, global warming, and radiation exposure. Highly accurate optical measurement techniques are essential to protect our world from these problems and achieve a sustainable society. Hamamatsu Photonics designs and fabricates environmental measurement devices that capture accurate information on air and water quality, as well as optical measurement products such as mini-spectrometers and module products specifically designed for detecting radiation.
As the demand for stricter food safety practices and higher quality of industrial products has increased, so has the efficiency of production processes. Our wide x-ray product lineup supports non-contact and non-destructive detection of minute defects in internal structure, as well as contributing to productive manufacturing and inspection processes.
Even the healthiest person is susceptible to the risk of future disease, which is why early diagnosis is very important. Hamamatsu Photonics manufactures high-performance devices optimized for medical use such as positron emission tomography (PET), mammography, and x-ray CT. Throughout the world, our devices play an important role in medical examinations by detecting diseases such as cancer in their early stages.
Our sophisticated technologies are enabling safer, more convenient lifestyles: Our light and color sensors are widely used for adjusting the brightness in lighting equipment and LCDs, while compact photodiodes and image sensors are in evolving electronics such as wearable devices and automatic vacuum cleaners. Our imaging devices are used in the field of security and survellinace for schools and hospitals.
It looks like you're in the . If this is not your location, please select the correct region or country below.
You're headed to Hamamatsu Photonics website for US (English). If you want to view an other country's site, the optimized information will be provided by selecting options below.
In order to use this website comfortably, we use cookies. For cookie details please see our cookie policy.
This website or its third-party tools use cookies, which are necessary to its functioning and required to achieve the purposes illustrated in this cookie policy. By closing the cookie warning banner, scrolling the page, clicking a link or continuing to browse otherwise, you agree to the use of cookies.
Hamamatsu uses cookies in order to enhance your experience on our website and ensure that our website functions.
You can visit this page at any time to learn more about cookies, get the most up to date information on how we use cookies and manage your cookie settings. We will not use cookies for any purpose other than the ones stated, but please note that we reserve the right to update our cookies.
For modern websites to work according to visitor’s expectations, they need to collect certain basic information about visitors. To do this, a site will create small text files which are placed on visitor’s devices (computer or mobile) - these files are known as cookies when you access a website. Cookies are used in order to make websites function and work efficiently. Cookies are uniquely assigned to each visitor and can only be read by a web server in the domain that issued the cookie to the visitor. Cookies cannot be used to run programs or deliver viruses to a visitor’s device.
Cookies do various jobs which make the visitor’s experience of the internet much smoother and more interactive. For instance, cookies are used to remember the visitor’s preferences on sites they visit often, to remember language preference and to help navigate between pages more efficiently. Much, though not all, of the data collected is anonymous, though some of it is designed to detect browsing patterns and approximate geographical location to improve the visitor experience.
Certain type of cookies may require the data subject’s consent before storing them on the computer.
This website uses two types of cookies:
This website uses cookies for following purposes:
Cookies help us help you. Through the use of cookies, we learn what is important to our visitors and we develop and enhance website content and functionality to support your experience. Much of our website can be accessed if cookies are disabled, however certain website functions may not work. And, we believe your current and future visits will be enhanced if cookies are enabled.
There are two ways to manage cookie preferences.
If you don’t want to receive cookies, you can modify your browser so that it notifies you when cookies are sent to it or you can refuse cookies altogether. You can also delete cookies that have already been set.
If you wish to restrict or block web browser cookies which are set on your device then you can do this through your browser settings; the Help function within your browser should tell you how. Alternatively, you may wish to visit www.aboutcookies.org, which contains comprehensive information on how to do this on a wide variety of desktop browsers.
Occasionally, we may use internet tags (also known as action tags, single-pixel GIFs, clear GIFs, invisible GIFs and 1-by-1 GIFs) at this site and may deploy these tags/cookies through a third-party advertising partner or a web analytical service partner which may be located and store the respective information (including your IP-address) in a foreign country. These tags/cookies are placed on both online advertisements that bring users to this site and on different pages of this site. We use this technology to measure the visitors' responses to our sites and the effectiveness of our advertising campaigns (including how many times a page is opened and which information is consulted) as well as to evaluate your use of this website. The third-party partner or the web analytical service partner may be able to collect data about visitors to our and other sites because of these internet tags/cookies, may compose reports regarding the website’s activity for us and may provide further services which are related to the use of the website and the internet. They may provide such information to other parties if there is a legal requirement that they do so, or if they hire the other parties to process information on their behalf.
If you would like more information about web tags and cookies associated with on-line advertising or to opt-out of third-party collection of this information, please visit the Network Advertising Initiative website http://www.networkadvertising.org.
We use third-party cookies (such as Google Analytics) to track visitors on our website, to get reports about how visitors use the website and to inform, optimize and serve ads based on someone's past visits to our website.
You may opt-out of Google Analytics cookies by the websites provided by Google:
https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=en
As provided in this Privacy Policy (Article 5), you can learn more about opt-out cookies by the website provided by Network Advertising Initiative:
http://www.networkadvertising.org
We inform you that in such case you will not be able to wholly use all functions of our website.
Close