Belfast-based Andor became only the second Northern Irish firm to list on AIM after First Derivatives. A spin-out from Queens University, Andor develops high performance digital cameras used for the measurement of light. It raised £4.5m pre-expenses through a placing of 5m new shares priced at 90p. Chief executive Dr Hugh Cormican and chairman Dr Bryan Keating say they'll use the funds to accelerate R&D, buy capital equipment, and develop new sales channels. Andor operates at the 'high-value end' of a $38.6bn global digital camera market, and boasts a portfolio of over 70 products sold into drug discovery, food quality testing, defence and medical diagnosis. Customers include large OEMs, as well as top universities like Cambridge and Princeton. Keating argues the business is well balanced, with 40% of sales made to the US, 40% to the UK and Europe, and 20% to Japan. Significantly, Andor's cameras can measure light down to just one photon, as well as light occurring within 1 billionth of a second, which Keating says presents huge long-term opportunities in markets like life sciences, 'space' and home security. Last year to September, Andor made profits of £1.2m on sales of £11.6m.