This Innovation Corps project will focus on extending the boundaries of quantitative phase imaging (QPI) developed by the PI to high-impact applications including neuroscience, cancer imaging, and cell membrane biophysics. The PI/team intend to build an "alpha unit" prototype of the QPI technology.
If successfulu, the proposed technology has the potential to provide affordable, fast and accurate instruments for the medical community; and to offer improved quality setups for industry. The main features the proposed technology provides are: noninvasive, label-free, quantitative, nanoscale, and 3D imaging.
for Award ID 1237243 Team Phi Optics participated in the NSF Innovation Corps (I-Corps) program between March and May 2012 with the following team: Entrepreneurial Lead Dr. Catalin Chiritescu, Principal Investigator Prof. Gabriel Popescu, and Business Mentor Mr. Tim Hoerr. The I-Corps program combines several key elements to produce a highly catalytic environment for the launch of technology start-ups. Those elements are (a) top-drawer entrepreneurial education from experienced, "real world" instructors, (b) significant interaction with potential users/customers of the subject technology/product, (c) maximum accountability to the teaching team and program peers. This combination of elements makes the I-Corps quite unique among federal programs, and increases the odds of commercial success of the program’s participants. The striking feature of the program is that it offers a "scientific" approach to commercialization. Through interactions with potential customers, participants have the opportunity to test certain hypotheses, e.g., what is the proper set of features for our product, how much should it cost, etc. This is similar to the approach that PIs and some ELs have in the laboratory, where, in order to understand a certain phenomenon, experimental validation is sought for various hypotheses. The program provides an opportunity to validate the commercial potential of a technology, before significant investments from federal and private sources are committed. In essence, the probability of success for the projects going forward is maximized, while the losses due to the projects unlikely to succeed are minimized. The taxpayers receive a huge return from their investment. Successful commercialization of a technology creates wealth and jobs, while improving the life of the society at large The participation in the I-Corps program has made a tremendous impact in the potential for success of Phi Optics. With the knowledge gathered during the program and adjustments to the business model, Phi Optics has completed the Customer Discovery process, has established contacts with Key Partners and is now seeking a seed fund for translation from lab to manufacturing. Phi Optics evolved the business model throughout the process, refined the value proposition, and focused the go-to-market strategy. Phi Optics received the first order for the alpha-prototype for a Quantitative Phase Imaging (QPI) instrument from a major life sciences company. An application has been submitted to NSF-SBIR Phase I and has passed the review stage with potential funding starting January 2012. Phi Optics received Requests for Technology from numerous market leaders in optical microscopy, electron microscopy and life sciences instrumentation interested to partner and co-develop the technology into commercial products. The broader impact/commercial potential of this project is that it will result in commercialization of a technology that will improve human health at several different levels. A successful launch will also contribute toward maintaining the US edge in the area of high-tech biomedicine. Phi Optics will create 10 new jobs in the next three years, with many more to be added as the production is scaled-up. The range of tasks for QPI-enabled microscopes will include novel drug discovery by accurate monitoring of cell response to treatment, automatic diagnosis of cancer biopsies and various blood diseases testing, and fundamental studies of cell functions. Due to its full automation, QPI instruments can operate in areas with limited access to trained personnel and provide the digital data necessary for remote diagnosis. The images are quantitative, meaning that there is no calibration necessary when operating the instrument at different sites. These features recommend the QPI technology for applications of global coverage, such as screening for malaria in under-served populations of the US and the World.
