Silveray secures £4m funding boost
06/01/2025
X-ray technology innovator Silveray has secured a £4 million seed investment, led by Northern Gritstone, to enable it to launch its first product next year based on its novel semiconductor technology.
What is claimed to be the first truly flexible digital X-ray detector will be aimed at industrial radiography applications, as it can be wrapped around pipes and fed into tight spaces to check for corrosion and weld defects. Digital images will be generated at the point of use, without the film having to be sent away for chemical processing, saving time and money compared with traditional radiographic film.
Silveray’s unique approach involves the use of its novel nanoparticle-based X-ray conversion material, which is produced as a semiconductor ink and then deposited onto a pixel backplane. The electronics layer translates the signal from incoming X-rays into a digital image.
The ink layer can be tuned to increase or decrease the fraction of X-rays that interact with it and the electronics layer can be changed to output different pixel sizes, depending on the image quality required. The size and shape of the detector can also be customised for each application, including the option of having a permanently curved or flexible detector.
“Our technology holds the promise of high-performance X-ray imaging at a sustainable cost point, in contrast to existing digital flat-panel detectors, which are rigid and require a trade-off between cost, performance and efficiency,” said Dan Cathie, Chief Executive Officer at Silveray. “This seed funding will enable us to complete development of our first product ready for launch next year.”
As well as existing investors Northern Gritstone and ACF Investors, the investor consortium also includes new Silveray investors Empirical Ventures, Deeptech Labs and Hamamatsu Ventures.
Duncan Johnson, Chief Executive Officer of Northern Gritstone, said: “The progress made by the Silveray team since our initial investment in 2023 has been phenomenal. Dan and his team have the enviable combination of innovation and entrepreneurialism, having developed a novel digital X-ray solution with numerous applications, which are set to disrupt the analogue X-ray market. We are delighted to continue our support of Silveray as it builds its commercial traction, helping the team on its path to success.”
