In 1861 the rapidly growing company had a staff of about 20[citation needed] and won a gold medal at the Thuringian Industrial Exposition.

In 1872 physicist Ernst Abbe joined Zeiss, and along with Otto Schott designed greatly improved lenses for the optical instruments they were producing.

Zeiss Ikon represented a significant part of the production, along with dozens of other brands and factories, including a major works at Dresden.

As part of Nazi Germany's Zwangsarbeiter program, Zeiss used forced labour, including Jews and other minorities during World War II.

Early on, Carl Zeiss realised that he needed a competent scientist so as to take the firm beyond just being another optical workshop.

In 1890, Rudolph designed an asymmetrical lens with a cemented group at each side of the diaphragm, appropriately named "Anastigmat".

Marketed in 1894, it was called the Protarlinse Series VII, the most highly corrected single combination lens with maximum apertures between f/11 and f/12.5, depending on its focal length.

Rudolph also investigated the Double-Gauss concept of a symmetrical design with thin positive menisci enclosing negative elements.

One of the most significant designers was the ex-Ernemann man Dr Ludwig Bertele, famed for his Ernostar high-speed lens.

However Leitz could see the potential offered by the Contax and rapidly developed a coupled rangefinder and started to introduce additional lenses.

The last important Zeiss innovation before World War II was the technique of applying an anti-reflective coating to lens surfaces invented by Olexander Smakula in 1935.

At first, both firms produced very similar lines of products, and extensively cooperated in product-sharing, but they drifted apart as time progressed.

Jena's new direction was to concentrate on developing lenses for 35 mm single-lens reflex cameras, and many achievements were made, especially in ultra-wide angle designs.

Zeiss has licensed its name or technology to various other companies including Hasselblad, Rollei, Yashica, Sony, Logitech and Alpa.

[25] On 17 December 2020, Vivo and Zeiss announced a long-term strategic partnership to jointly promote and develop breakthrough innovations in mobile imaging technology.

Despite German production, the folding Super Ikonta was among the mainstays of British Army photographers during World War II.

In 1936, an improved model, the Contax II, was introduced and became the favorite of many renowned photographers and journalists, including Robert Capa and Margaret Bourke-White.

But by the time the IIa and IIIa hit the market, they faced strong competition from many European and Asian brands, notably the visually similar Nikon produced by Nippon Kogaku, which was a high quality camera sharing the same lens-mount and most of the features.

Zeiss claims that the 25mm ƒ/2.8 ZM achieves a resolution of 400 lp/mm in the center of the image at ƒ/4, which is equal to the calculated diffraction limit for this aperture.

They feature electronic contacts allowing for focus-confirmation, and electric aperture operation as with standard Canon EF lenses.

Otus lenses are complex no-compromise designs which Zeiss refers to as the "best in the world" in the normal lens and short telephoto categories.

Zeiss produces manual focus Milvus lenses for the Nikon F-mount (ZF.2) and Canon EF lens mount (ZE), covering the 35mm format.

[34] A unique triplet of ultra-fast 50 mm f/0.7 lenses originally created by Zeiss for NASA's lunar program had the distinction of being reused by Stanley Kubrick in the filming of his historical drama Barry Lyndon.

[39] The largest part of Carl Zeiss AG's revenue is generated by its Semiconductor Manufacturing Technologies division, which produces lithographic systems for the semiconductor industry, as well as process control solutions (electron microscopes, mask repair tools, helium ion microscopes).

[40] Carl Zeiss Sports Optics division produces rifle telescopic sights, spotting scopes, binoculars, and distance measuring devices for outdoors enthusiasts.

Carl Zeiss Vision Care division develops, manufactures and distributes ophthalmic lenses, optical coatings, and dispensary technologies and services.

[53] These lens adaptors are sold for a wide variety of Virtual Reality headsets, like the Apple Vision Pro, allowing those with visual impairments to use them without wearing glasses or contact lenses.

[56] Carl Zeiss SMT systems for DUV and EUV electromagnetic radiation are used in chip-lithography machines for focusing the extremely short wavelengths.

[58] Together with the company ASML and its subsidiaries and partners Zeiss is the sole supplier of the lithography systems that are able to manufacture core layers of the latest semiconductor chips.

[example needed] These had heat fuses that melted and dropped the shutter over the hole if the film caught fire in the projection booth.