RAITH founder Hermann Raith passed away

It is with deep sadness that we must announce the passing of our previous owner and founder, Hermann Raith. With the age of 89 he passed away in Perth, Australia, where he moved to after his retirement in 1998.

Born in Flöha, Saxonia, Germany, he got his university degree and PhD in Physics at the Technial University of Berlin. At an early stage, he realized already that scanning electron microscopes (SEM) could be used in a more versatile way through application-oriented additional developments. In 1980, he and a few fellows founded Raith KG, which concentrated on "special electron optical developments". Motorizations and digitization of SEM sample platforms and in particular a conversion of SEMs to nanolithography systems became sought-after products. Both areas, lithography and precision mechanics, soon became an important base for the company's core competencies – and still is today.

What started as a vision of turning an SEM into a nanolithography system turned into the global market and technology leader in maskless nanofabrication systems and characterization solutions. Something, Hermann Raith as a founder made him extremely proud. He maintained a regular and interested contact with his old place of work and visited RAITH GmbH and his former colleagues every time he traveled to Europe. While he will be greatly missed here, our condolences go to the relatives and friends of Hermann Raith.