By Anna Ettlin
The picturesque town of Spiez on the shores of Lake Thun looks like the epitome of alpine charm. But one of its gabled roofs conceals one aspect of “Swissness” that is rarely seen on postcards but is just as much a part of Switzerland as the Alps: high-tech innovation. This is the home of Swiss Cluster, an Empa spin-off specializing in novel systems for the manufacture of thin films. Swiss Cluster was founded in late 2020 at Empa in Thun by a team from the Mechanics of Materials & Nanostructures laboratory led by materials researcher Carlos Guerra and electronics engineer Kevin Lücke. The two co-founders were working on more robust and durable thin films.
Thin films are of interest to many industries; their applications are numerous. Thin films protect sensitive components from wear and corrosion. In optics, they reduce lens glare and enable the manufacturing of specialized filters. Decorative thin films give watch components a unique play of colors. Coated medical implants are better accepted by the body. And in microelectronics, thin-film technologies are absolutely essential: Transistors, computer chips, and displays consist of precise sequences of micro- and nanometer-thin layers of material.
Two processes in tandem
A common method for producing thin films is physical vapor deposition (PVD). In this process, the starting material – usually a metal or a metal oxide – is vaporized in a vacuum chamber and condenses onto the component to be coated, the substrate. Swiss Cluster combines this established method with the much newer vacuum-based process known as atomic layer deposition (ALD). Unlike PVD, the ALD process introduces alternating gas precursors into the vacuum chamber, forming the coating onto the substrate through a chemical reaction with atomic precision of the thickness.
“ALD enables the creation of very thin, homogeneous coatings that offer excellent protection against corrosion and oxidation. PVD, on the other hand, produces very hard coatings,” explains Carlos Guerra, CEO of Swiss Cluster. “By combining the two processes, we can produce thin films that are exceptionally durable: hard yet ductile, thermally robust, and resistant to corrosion.”
Combining the two thin-film processes is complex. Removing the substrate from one device and inserting it into the next does not yield the desired result: Exposure to air causes the surface to oxidize and become contaminated, which impairs the adhesion of subsequent layers. “For laboratory experiments at Empa, an early system consisted of two separate vacuum chambers for ALD and PVD. A doctoral student had to manually move the substrate between the chambers for each individual layer without breaking the vacuum,” recalls Guerra.
To improve this process – partly out of entrepreneurial spirit and partly out of personal need – the first Swiss Cluster machine was developed. It combines the ALD and PVD systems in a single vacuum chamber. Nano-layered structures, which previously took the researcher a week to produce in the lab, can now be created in just a few hours. “When we built the prototype in the lab, we realized it could become a product,” says Guerra. Swiss Cluster was born.
Making innovation more accessible
Swiss Cluster is not the first company to combine PVD and ALD. The “power couple” has already gained a foothold in the semiconductor industry. “Semiconductor manufacturers use the combined process in a very specific way that is difficult to transfer to other industries,” says Guerra. “Instead, we want to focus on the rest of the market.” After all, thin, robust, and functional coatings are in demand everywhere, from the watch industry to the manufacture of optical components, batteries, implants, and microelectronics. And for those customers interested solely in the emerging ALD process, Swiss Cluster offers a second machine. It enables so-called “Batch ALD”: a variant of atomic layer deposition that is faster and allows for the simultaneous coating of multiple components or of large and complex parts.
“ALD is a relatively new process and has only been used in industry for about 20 years,” says Guerra. “We are convinced that it will continue to grow in importance and expand into additional sectors.” Although vacuum-based processes are often costly, they deliver highly precise results, giving them an edge over conventional coating processes for many applications.
Unlike the equipment typically used in the semiconductor industry, Swiss Cluster’s machines are compact and relatively easy to install and operate. “We’re making these high-tech processes more accessible,” explains the founder. In its own lab in Spiez, the startup also offers coating services. “We work closely with our customers to find suitable coatings for their applications. This helps us further improve our equipment – and the customer can test-drive the coating process without having to invest in a new machine right away,” says Guerra.
What began in a lab at Empa in Thun with two people and a prototype has now become a successful young company. Fifteen employees work for Swiss Cluster in Spiez, supported by a global network of partners. Swiss Cluster machines are in use at research institutions and companies in Switzerland, the U.S., and the U.K. Deliveries to France, Brazil, Italy, and China are currently lined up.
This is where Swiss Cluster stands out from many other high-tech startups: The young company started with a customer on board from day one and has grown mostly organically to date, through the sale of equipment and services. “We didn’t get our first investment until 2025,” says Guerra. A success, but also a challenge: “We had to get it right from the start,” the co-founder smiles. “That’s one of the reasons why we are very grateful for the initial support we received from Empa as a spin-off.” Now, Swiss Cluster has received the coveted Swiss Economic Award from the Swiss Economic Forum in the “Industry/Production” category. The jury lauded the spin-off for combining scientific excellence, industrial understanding and entrepreneurial execution.
Info box: Swiss Cluster AG
Swiss Cluster was founded in November 2020 as a spin-off of Empa in Thun. The company develops systems for coating components using various thin-film processes and offers both machines and services. Swiss Cluster is led by co-founders Carlos Guerra (CEO) and Kevin Lücke (CTO) as well as late co-founders Gabriela Sanchez (COO) and Bryan Dousse (CPO). The company is based in Spiez and currently has 15 employees in Switzerland.
