LI-COR Biosciences is an international biotech company which designs, manufactures, and markets instruments, measurement systems, and software for biological and environmental research, and develops relevant measurement methodologies and techniques. LI-COR environmental instruments and software are used for photosynthesis research, greenhouse gas monitoring, greenhouse gas flux measurements, and soil respiration measurements.
LI-COR also manufactures light sensors, leaf area meters, and plant canopy analyzers, all of which are used to make fundamental measurements in disciplines including plant physiology, climate change, agronomy (forestry and agriculture), and other areas of the natural sciences. LI-COR Biosciences is a privately held company based in Lincoln, Nebraska with subsidiaries in Germany and the United Kingdom, and an extensive network of global distributors. It was founded in 1971 under the name Lambda Instruments Corporation. The name was shortened to LI-COR, Inc., in 1978.