It is developing molecular technologies that may enhance materials such as flame retardants, anti-corrosion coatings for aircraft carriers and planes, and polymers that may be applied to a soldier's helmet visor to withstand an explosion or bullet. [Luna]'s other specialty centers on sensors, developing devices able to detect and respond to environmental changes, such as heat, pressure, light or motion. Luna sensors, for example, are used by oil drillers to monitor temperatures and pressures down deep in Earth's crust.

"If you look at Luna since the day we owned it, we were profitable," said [Murphy], one of the firm's founders in 1990. Luna could be a money-making entity if it stopped investing in research, he said.

Business lines: Luna finds new technologies to develop into commercial products. Luna products sold or in development include anti-corrosion coatings for ships and planes, bullet- and blast- proof coatings, flame-retardant materials, chemicals used in MRI testing to better detect diseases and more efficient solar panels. The Luna Technologies division sells devices used by telecommunications companies to test the quality of fiber-optic communication lines so consumers' video, TV or Internet services run properly.