Ansys has entered into a definitive agreement for the sale of its PowerArtist business to Keysight Technologies, Inc., a developer of design and simulation software for semiconductors. PowerArtist is a comprehensive register-transfer level design-for-power platform used by semiconductor companies for early-stage power analysis, profiling, and reduction. Ansys and Synopsys determined that the sale of PowerArtist was necessary to obtain regulatory approval for Synopsys' proposed acquisition of Ansys, which is pending regulatory approvals and expected to close in the first half of 2025. Ansys entered into an agreement with Synopsys for its acquisition in January 2024 in a deal worth $35 billion. VISTA, Calif. — Anatomic and digital pathology solutions company Leica Biosystems has agreed to make a significant strategic investment in AI-powered digital pathology software developer Indica Labs. As part of the agreement, Leica Biosystems and Indica Labs plan to launch a diagnostic digital pathology platform, pairing Leica Biosystems’ Aperio scanner portfolio with a customized version of Indica Labs’ HALO AP image management software, for use by clinical customers. Additionally, Leica Biosystems expects to integrate Indica Labs into the company’s companion diagnostic (CDx) development program, working with Indica Labs on next-generation AI-enabled CDx assays. SINT-PIETERS-LEEUW, Belgium — CCS Europe N.V., a machine vision lighting company, has opened a new branch in Munich, Germany. The company said the new branch was opened in an effort to increase its presence in the Germany, Austria, and Swiss Confederation market and expand its offerings to customers throughout Europe. Europa Clipper’s MISE. Courtesy of VIAVI Solutions. CHANDLER, Ariz. — Provider of network test, monitoring, and assurance solutions VIAVI Solutions has fulfilled an order from NASA to supply a precision order sorting filter for the mapping imaging spectrometer for Europa (MISE) on the Europa Clipper spacecraft. MISE is designed to analyze the surface composition of Jupiter's moon Europa and determine the habitability of its subsurface ocean by mapping the distribution of organics, salts, acid hydrates, and water ice phases. VIAVI's precision order sorting filter will enable MISE to capture high-resolution spectral data in the IR range from 0.8 µm to 5 µm. Inprentus will provide six diffraction gratings for Lawrence Berkeley National Lab’s Advanced Light Source upgrade. Courtesy of Inprentus. CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Inprentus, a blazed diffraction gratings solutions manufacturer, has been awarded a $427,300 contract to provide Lawrence Berkeley National Lab’s Advanced Light Source (ALS) with six diffraction gratings for its facility upgrade, including two for the COSMIC beamline and four for the MAESTRO beamline. The upgraded ALS will occupy the same facility as the current ALS, replacing the existing electron storage ring and leveraging $500 million in existing ALS infrastructure and experimental systems. The upgraded facility will produce bright, steady beams of high-energy light to probe matter with greater detail. LIVERMORE, Calif. — FormFactor, Inc., a supplier of electrical test and measurement solutions for the semiconductor industry, has entered into technology partnership and share purchase agreements with Advantest Corporation, a manufacturer of automatic test equipment for the semiconductor industry. The expanded partnership and purchase of FormFactor shares by Advantest build upon a multi-year collaboration between the companies, including FormFactor’s 2020 purchase of Advantest’s probe-card assets and a recent partnership in developing wafer-level test cells for high-volume manufacturing of silicon photonics integrated circuits. (From left) Heraeus Covantics managing directors Michael Werth, Nikolas Pojezny, and Christoph Fark. Courtesy of Heraeus Group. KLEINOSTHEIM, Germany — Technology company Heraeus Group has combined its Heraeus Conamic and Heraeus Comvance subsidiaries into Heraeus Covantics. Heraeus Covantics will manufacture semi-finished products, complex system components, and custom-tailored solutions made of quartz glass, fused silica, and ceramic materials. These products are used in the data transmission and telecommunication industry, the production of specialty optical fibers for industrial and medical applications, semiconductor manufacturing, and optical applications among others. SUWON, South Korea — Park Systems Corp., a nanometrology solutions company, has acquired Lyncée Tec SA, a Swiss digital holographic microscope (DHM) technology developer, in an effort to strengthen its optical metrology business. Based on hologram technology, DHM acquires 3D information of a sample over the full field of view without scanning, producing imaging speeds faster than conventional interferometry-based optical profiling. WARRINGTON, England — Infrared quantum dot company Quantum Science has signed a joint development agreement with a European sensor company to integrate its quantum dot ink products into high-tech imaging systems. The first stage of the development agreement will last 12 months, during which time both companies will cooperate to demonstrate the integration of Quantum Science’s inks into a machine vision system. DENVER — York Space Systems, an aerospace company, has successfully completed the first low Earth orbit inter-vendor laser communication link for the Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture. The link has connected a Tranche 0 Transport satellite built by York with a Tranche 0 Tracking satellite built by SpaceX. Successfully closing this laser communication link between vendors and across two network layers and orbital inclinations validates the Space Development Agency's decision to adopt a standardized optical communication terminal protocol to enhance interoperability.