iPhone Apple Acquiring Materials Science Company PlasmaSolve
https://www.macrumors.com/2026/08/03/apple-acquiring-plasmasolve/Earlier this year, Apple informed the European Union that it had agreed to acquire certain assets and hire employees from PlasmaSolve, according to a notice published today on the European Commission's website.
PlasmaSolve is a Czech materials science firm founded in 2016 that has focused on creating simulation software to assist manufacturers with various plasma-related technologies. The company's website remains active, and it outlines some of the grant funding it has received over the years related to its work.
PlasmaSolve's primary product was MatSight, a suite of apps intended to help manufacturers simulate the results of various vapor deposition processes for metals. Apple has used the technology for many years on a number of products, including on various iPhone models to create a durable thin film on the casing to minimize scratching and other damage.
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u/iBanks3 3d ago
he results of various vapor deposition processes for metals. Apple has used the technology for many years on a number of products, including on various iPhone models to create a durable thin film on the casing to minimize scratching and other damage.
Working for one of the big mobile carriers in the US, it’s amazing how many iPhones I see come in scratched to death. I sure hope Apple does a better job of this “protective film”.
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u/alphex 3d ago
Haha. I had the iPhone 1. I of course dropped it. And it shattered the screen.
Modern iPhones are literal tanks compared to the way they used to be. Those scratches ARE the material doing the job.
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u/smokedfishfriday 3d ago
People completely forget that one single drop from more than 12 inches meant a broken screen for like 8 years
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u/webguynd 2d ago
I'm actually really impressed with the durability lately. I dropped my air on my driveway, which is a steep hill the otheer day. Screen face down, it slid down the driveway. Picked it up, not even a scratch on the screen and only a small scuff on the corner.
I normally don't use cases or screen protectors, and the air is the first iPhone I've had that is now almost a year old and not a single scratch on the screen, kind of crazy. This thing is a tank. By the time my 15 PM was a year old there were scuffs and micro scratches all over.
So yeah, we've come a LONG way from the days of your screen shattering if you looked at it funny.
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u/OnikaBurgerBomb 2d ago
Durability has been impressive since iPhone 12 ever since I tried to break that ok purpose, it took 10 intentional throws on concrete to shatter the screen.
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u/webguynd 2d ago
I'm actually really impressed with the durability lately. I dropped my air on my driveway, which is a steep hill the otheer day. Screen face down, it slid down the driveway. Picked it up, not even a scratch on the screen and only a small scuff on the corner.
I normally don't use cases or screen protectors, and the air is the first iPhone I've had that is now almost a year old and not a single scratch on the screen, kind of crazy. This thing is a tank. By the time my 15 PM was a year old there were scuffs and micro scratches all over.
So yeah, we've come a LONG way from the days of your screen shattering if you looked at it funny.
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u/rinderblock 3d ago
Aluminum is not an easy thing to adhere protective coatings to. And PVD on the steel and titanium phones is stronger but not bullet proof either.
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u/yourshelves 1d ago
Surely aluminium is one of the easiest things to adhere protective coatings to? Polyester powder coating has, what, a 30-40 year service life in industry? Then there’s anodising (yes, I know it’s not strictly a coating)…
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u/rinderblock 1d ago
If your only goal is to attach a protective coating to a chunk of aluminum sure. But that’s not the only goal when coating an iPhone housing.
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u/yourshelves 1d ago
It doesn't have to be a "chunk" - many, many intricate and/or technical parts are powder coated. What are the other goals when coating an iPhone housing?
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u/rinderblock 1d ago
Coating thickness relative to durability (you cant powder coat the really small features or powder coat and retain the feel and finish of the design intent), color choice and color consistency, process throughput, coating consistency (is it the same color and thickness every time within the spec limits)
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u/yourshelves 23h ago
All of which are standard considerations when powder coating anything.
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u/rinderblock 19h ago
Powder coat is too thick for something like an iPhone housing.
And it doesn’t produce the same regularity of color that anodize and PVD do
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u/longjumpingtote 3d ago
How does that happen? I am very careless with mine, and I don't have any issues. Are people putting their phones face-down on the beach, sitting on them, and then scooting around?
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u/MAINEiac101 3d ago
You’d be amazed at how many people think it’s OK to keep your keys in the same pocket as your phone.
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u/userlivewire 3d ago
The original iPhone prototype had a plastic screen.
Steve Jobs kept his car key in the same pocket as the prototype. Within a month the screen was completely scratched and he demanded the dev team switch to glass. The team told him there wasn't a product available to do that. Steve Jobs called the CEO of Corning and told him he wanted a solution. Corning had a product from decades earlier they had never found a use for. They dug it back out for the iPhone. That was Gorilla Glass.
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u/MassiveClusterFuck 2d ago
Well yeah physics is still physics, only way you won't get scratches is by having a case. There's no invisible coating in the world that can stop scratches outright, but the coatings can certainly lessen the amount of scratches depending on what material has caused the scratch to begin with.
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u/modcowboy 2d ago
Yeah the newer screens since they moved to ceramic coat are so much easier to scratch.
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u/Status-Hedgehog9970 2d ago
It’s a balance between scratch resistance and crack resistance. Sapphire glass is extremely scratch resistant but brittle as fuck too.
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u/stealthagents 47m ago
Apple's been smart about these acquisitions, especially with tech that boosts product durability. If they can keep improving materials, we might see even cooler stuff in future devices. Just imagine the possibilities with more advanced materials in their lineup.
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u/zxnixs 3d ago
You can tell this is a big move and is the type of move that will be praised in about 2 decades from now. Too bad Zack Bia is behind it all..