July 18, 2005 — Agilent Technologies Inc. and Asylum Research have signed a joint development agreement to collaborate on technologies and applications in the area of nanotechnology measurements. Agilent is also making an equity investment in the Santa Barbara-based company. Terms of the agreement have not been disclosed.
Agilent’s Nanotechnology Measurements Division (NMD), part of the company’s test and measurement business, is focused on the development of tools for the growing nanotechnology market. Asylum Research, based in Santa Barbara, Calif., develops atomic force microscopes, a principal measurement tool used by researchers working in nanotechnology.
The agreement will allow Agilent to begin developing new features for AFMs as well as gain more knowledge about AFM technologies and customer needs, the company said. It will also enable the companies to jointly develop techniques and applications by leveraging the technologies and strengths of each organization.