From Bell Labs Innovation to Advanced Amorphous Fluoropolymers

Chromis Technologies was founded on a legacy of materials innovation. In the 1990s, while at the legendary Bell Laboratories, our founders invented the process for extruding graded-index polymer optical fiber (GI-POF) from CYTOP^®, a highly transparent amorphous fluoropolymer produced by AGC. This breakthrough made possible GigaPOF^®, a new class of polymer optical fibers that offered low attenuation and high bandwidth — an alternative to glass fiber for high-speed data communication and sensing.

In 2004, Chromis was established to commercialize this patented technology. By 2013, our team introduced a series of award-winning HDMI active optical cables based on GigaPOF, enabling uncompressed, zero-latency video transmission at distances up to 100 meters for commercial design-build integrators and residential custom installers working on high-end digital signage and custom AV installations.

To push beyond the limits of CYTOP and ensure supply chain independence, we assembled a team of former DuPont fluorine chemists and polymer scientists. Their expertise led to the development of our own line of amorphous fluoropolymers, engineered to deliver exceptional optical clarity, low refractive index, and chemical resistance.

Today, Chromis offers the CyclAFlor^® product family, a portfolio of high-performance materials designed for demanding applications in semiconductors, clean energy, gas separation membranes, water- and oil-repellent coatings, and myriad other industrial and high-technology applications. From our origins in polymer optical fibers to our leadership in specialty amorphous fluoropolymers, our history is defined by disrupting the status quo and testing the limits of materials innovation.