By: IPP Bureau
Last updated : August 27, 2026 9:03 am
WISE is available as a liquid that can also be cast into moulds to create micron-scale structures, enabling applications across imaging and microstructured device workflows
US-based neurotechnology company Axoft has launched Fleuron Water Invisible Soft Elastomer (WISE), a UV-curable polymer designed to minimise optical distortions when imaging biological samples in aqueous environments.
The material is engineered to closely match the refractive index of water, making it effectively optically invisible when submerged. Axoft said this property can help create a clearer imaging environment for high-resolution visualisation of water-immersed biological specimens.
WISE is available as a liquid that can be UV-cured into different shapes or as sheets with defined thicknesses. It can also be cast into moulds to create micron-scale structures, enabling applications across imaging and microstructured device workflows.
According to Axoft, the material combines ultra-softness, flexibility, biocompatibility and water impermeability. It is also selectively permeable to oxygen and carbon dioxide, compatible with harsh solvents and designed to exhibit ultra-low sorption of small molecules.
Dr Paul Le Floch, Co-founder and CEO, Axoft, said WISE was developed for advanced biological imaging applications where even small refractive-index differences can affect image quality.
Floch further said the material could support biopharmaceutical and medical device companies, as well as research institutions developing imaging platforms for living organisms and biological samples.
The development was carried out in collaboration with the Shroff Lab at Janelia Research Campus, which specialises in visible-light super-resolution imaging of cellular structures.
Axoft plans to present additional findings on WISE at the Materials Research Society’s autumn conference in Boston on December 1.
WISE expands Axoft’s Fleuron material portfolio, which was initially launched in 2025 and also supports applications in microfluidics and organ-on-chip systems. The materials platform forms the basis of the company’s implantable brain-computer interface (IBCI) devices.
In April 2026, Axoft completed a $55 million fundraising round, with the company planning to use the capital to advance development of its IBCI technology.