VANCOUVER, British Columbia, April 15, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Zecotek Photonics Inc. (TSX-V:ZMS) (Frankfurt:W1I), a developer of leading-edge photonics technologies for medical, industrial and scientific markets, is pleased to announce that the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) experiment at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), Switzerland, has placed initial purchase orders for Zecotek's proprietary MAPD-3N Micro-pixel Avalanche Photo Diodes. Not only does Zecotek's MAPD-3Ns feature important radiation hardness, its unique, large micro-pixel density of 15,000 per mm2 provides the high linearity required in a hadronic detector such as the CMS Hadron Calorimeter. The selection of the MAPD-3N follows several months of trials and testing of the devices which are slated for a key element of the CMS particle detector. CERN is working with several of Zecotek's photo detector configurations including single MAPDs and standard and customized arrays. The order will be delivered through Zecotek Imaging Systems Pte. Ltd., Zecotek's Singapore based wholly owned subsidiary, and manufactured under contract by MIMOS and Omega Semiconductor.
"We are very pleased that the CMS team of CERN considers our MAPD as a critical enabling solution for use in their experiment," said Dr. A.F. Zerrouk, Chairman, President, and CEO of Zecotek. "CERN is one of the world's leading centres for scientific research, and their selection of our MAPDs for CMS, one of the largest ever experiments in fundamental physics, is a very welcomed endorsement for our technological solutions. We look forward to a long term relationship to support this monumental scientific quest."
About CERN
CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, is one of the world's largest and most respected centres for scientific research. Its business is fundamental physics, finding out what the Universe is made of and how it works. At CERN, the world's largest and most complex scientific instruments are used to study the basic constituents of matter -- the fundamental particles. By studying what happens when these particles collide, physicists learn about the laws of Nature. CERN is the home of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). LHC experiments will address questions such as what gives matter its mass, what the invisible 96% of the Universe is made of, why nature prefers matter to antimatter and how matter evolved from the first instants of the Universe's existence. The instruments used at CERN are particle accelerators and detectors. Accelerators boost beams of particles to high energies before they are made to collide with each other or with stationary targets. Detectors observe and record the results of these collisions. Founded in 1954, the CERN Laboratory sits astride the Franco-Swiss border near Geneva. It was one of Europe's first joint ventures and now has 20 Member States. For more information about CMS please visit http://cms.web.cern.ch/cms/Detector/WhatCMS/index.html.
About Zecotek
Zecotek Photonics Inc. (TSX-V:ZMS) (Frankfurt:W1I), is a photonics technology company developing high-performance crystals, photo detectors, lasers, optical imaging and 3D display technologies for commercial applications in the medical diagnostics and high-tech industries. Founded in 2003, the company operates three distinct divisions: imaging, lasers and 3D display, with labs located in Canada, USA, Singapore and Russia. Zecotek commercializes its novel, patented and patent-pending photonic technologies directly and through strategic alliances and joint ventures with multinational OEMs, distributors and other industry leaders. For more information, please visit www.zecotek.com.
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