Published on 26 February 2025
The Insider’s Perspective series shines a spotlight on the innovative and cutting-edge stakeholders shaping the future of the algae sector. In this fourteenth edition, we focus on Photonics Bretagne and its pivotal contributions to bringing deep-tech innovations to the algae sector. Read on to explore how this pioneering innovation hub is advancing technology to unlock the full potential of algae-related industries.
Photonics Bretagne: Pioneering Deep-Tech for Algae Innovation
Located at the heart of the Photonics Park in Lannion, Brittany (North-Western France), the Photonics Bretagne Innovation Hub unites and represents the Breton photonics ecosystem. Committed to driving progress, they support innovation, promote excellence, and foster growth in Breton photonics. By connecting industry, academia, and policymakers – both regionally and internationally – Photonics Bretagne Innovation Hub helps turn ideas into impact, strengthening photonics and its applications across various sectors. Watch their promo video to see their innovations in action!
As a not-for-profit association, Photonics Bretagne Innovation Hub brings together a dynamic Research and Technology Organisation (RTO) and a thriving business cluster of over 120 members – including companies, research centres, schools, and support agencies.
Its work is driven by two key pillars:
- A vibrant cluster that coordinates the sector, fostering collaboration and offering tailored continuing education programs.
- A Research & Technology Organisation (RTO) with deep expertise in special optical fibres, components, and biophotonics engineering.
Together, they empower innovation and advance photonics excellence.
Photonics Bretagne offers technological consulting, in-situ scientific studies, and proof-of-concept development, bridging photonics with life sciences. With expertise in design, numerical simulation, engineering, and data analysis, the organisation also develops advanced optical sensors for this expanding field, utilising technologies such as hyperspectral imaging, fluorescence, and wavelength-dependent absorbance.
What is Photonics? Illuminating Algae’s Future with Light-Based Technologies
The term “photonics” may be unfamiliar to many, but it’s quite intuitive: it refers to the use of light and the technologies developed to harness it as a precise tool for measurement, control, and diagnosis. From cameras and lasers to optical fibres, photonics is truly a toolbox of possibilities.
One of the key missions of Photonics Bretagne is to connect with sectors that could benefit from photonics advancements but may not yet realize how these tools can solve their challenges or enhance product development.
Advancing Algae Innovation: Imaging and Spectroscopy in Photonics
Photonics Bretagne’s Biophotonics team has developed strong expertise in rugged, custom-designed imaging and spectroscopy systems, initially applied to land agriculture – an important sector in Brittany – and their first venture into the life sciences.
Imaging systems, essentially cameras, capture images in the visible or infrared regions of the light spectrum. These cameras can, for example, be used for pattern recognition to assess plant maturity or pathology, or for high-speed counting of algae growth in vats.
Spectroscopy systems go a step further by analysing the information in an image and breaking it down into its wavelength components (its “colours”), which can range from visible to invisible wavelengths like UV or infrared. This detailed analysis provides deeper insights, often allowing the quantification of specific parameters, such as nitrogen content in algae (both wet and dry) or the onset of disease. Additionally, it enables the extraction of physiological traits for monitoring growth.
The Breton algae sector is at an exciting juncture, and Photonics Bretagne sees this as the perfect opportunity to bring deep-tech innovations to the field. By fostering collaboration between algae experts and technology specialists, the potential of the sector in Europe can be fully unlocked.
Shaping the Future: Expanding Photonics Innovation in the Algae Sector
Photonics Bretagne is actively engaged in numerous regional, national, and European collaborative projects, driving innovation in oceanography and biomedicine. The organisation is eager to extend this momentum into advancing the algae sector as well, recognising the transformative potential that photonics can bring to algae research, cultivation, and processing.
Photonics Bretagne encourages all stakeholders in the algae industry to reach out and explore opportunities to support the growth and development of this promising field. By working together, they can help unlock the full potential of algae, driving sustainable innovation across Europe.
Stay Connected with Photonics Bretagne
Stay updated on Photonics Bretagne’s latest news by visiting their official website and following them on LinkedIn.
For more information, you can also reach out to them at: biophotonics@photonics-bretagne.com.
Have you heard about the EU4Algae Interactive Platform?
Designed to promote algae product awareness and increase consumer knowledge, the EU4Algae Interactive Platform offers a range of activities. Take the EU4Algae Quiz to test your algae knowledge, participate in our Survey to share your algae-eating habits (the first 200 respondents get a free eBook!) and play the interactive Game to discover which type of algae you are.