Cambridge Instruments

Cambridge Instruments was a pioneering manufacturer of scientific and medical instrumentation, founded in 1881 by Horace Darwin, the son of Charles Darwin. The company gained international recognition for its high-precision laboratory tools, including the development of the first commercial scanning electron microscope (SEM), the Stereoscan, in 1965. It also played a critical role in medical history by producing the first practical electrocardiograph (ECG) machines. Following a series of acquisitions and mergers in the late 20th century, the company merged with Wild Leitz in 1990 to form the Leica Group. Today, its technological heritage is preserved within Leica Microsystems, a division of Danaher Corporation, which continues to lead in microscopy and imaging solutions for life sciences.