Description of Business	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2015
Description of Business
Description of Business	Note 1—Description of Business Bruker Corporation, together with its consolidated subsidiaries ("Bruker" or the "Company"), is a designer and manufacturer of high-performance scientific instruments and analytical and diagnostic solutions that enable our customers to explore life and materials at microscopic, molecular and cellular levels. Many of our products are used to detect, measure and visualize structural characteristics of chemical, biological and industrial material samples. Our products address the rapidly evolving needs of a diverse array of customers in life science research, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, applied markets, cell biology, clinical research, microbiology, in-vitro diagnostics, nanotechnology and materials science research. The Company has two reportable segments, Bruker Scientific Instruments (BSI), which represents approximately 92% of the Company's revenues during the year ended December 31, 2015, and Bruker Energy & Supercon Technologies (BEST), which represents the remainder of the business. Within BSI, the Company is organized into three operating segments: the Bruker BioSpin Group, the Bruker CALID Group and the Bruker Nano Group. For financial reporting purposes, the Bruker BioSpin, Bruker CALID and Bruker Nano operating segments are aggregated into the BSI reportable segment because each has similar economic characteristics, production processes, service offerings, types and classes of customers, methods of distribution and regulatory environments. Bruker BioSpin— Bruker BioSpin designs, manufactures and distributes enabling life science tools based on magnetic resonance and preclinical imaging technologies. Bruker BioSpin sells various systems utilizing magnetic resonance technology, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) systems, nuclear magnetic resonance systems (NMR) and electron paramagnetic resonance systems (EPR), as well as OEM MRI magnets sold to medical device manufacturers. Bruker BioSpin also sells single and multiple modality systems using MRI, position emission tomography (PET), single photon emission tomography (SPECT), computed tomography (CT), magnetic particle imaging (MPI) and optical imaging (fluorescence and bioluminescence) technologies to preclinical markets. Bruker CALID (Chemicals, Applied Markets, Life Science, In-Vitro Diagnostics, Detection)— Bruker CALID designs, manufactures and distributes life science mass spectrometry instruments that can be integrated and used along with other sample preparation or chromatography instruments, as well as Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and Explosive (CBRNE) detection products. Bruker CALID also designs, manufactures and distributes instruments based on Raman molecular spectroscopy technologies. Bruker CALID's mass spectrometry units are typically used in applications of expression proteomics, clinical proteomics, metabolic and peptide biomarker profiling, drug discovery and development, molecular diagnostics research, molecular and systems biology, basic molecular medicine research and clinical microbiology. Bruker Nano— Bruker Nano designs, manufactures and distributes spectroscopy and microscopy instruments for the understanding of composition and structure in material science and life science samples. The instruments are based on advanced technologies in X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray micro computed tomography (CT), atomic force microscopy (AFM), stylus and optical metrology (SOM) and fluorescence microscopy (FM), and also include analytical tools for electron microscopes, handheld, portable and mobile X-ray fluorescence and spark optical emission spectroscopy systems. The Company's BEST reportable segment develops and manufactures superconducting and non-superconducting materials and devices for use in renewable energy, energy infrastructure, healthcare and "big science" research. The segment focuses on metallic low temperature superconductors for use in magnetic resonance imaging, nuclear magnetic resonance, fusion energy research and other applications, as well as ceramic high temperature superconductors primarily for energy grid and magnet applications.

Note 1—Description of Business

Bruker Corporation, together with its consolidated subsidiaries ("Bruker" or the "Company"), is a designer and manufacturer of high-performance scientific instruments and analytical and diagnostic solutions that enable our customers to explore life and materials at microscopic, molecular and cellular levels. Many of our products are used to detect, measure and visualize structural characteristics of chemical, biological and industrial material samples. Our products address the rapidly evolving needs of a diverse array of customers in life science research, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, applied markets, cell biology, clinical research, microbiology, in-vitro diagnostics, nanotechnology and materials science research.

The Company has two reportable segments, Bruker Scientific Instruments (BSI), which represents approximately 92% of the Company's revenues during the year ended December 31, 2015, and Bruker Energy & Supercon Technologies (BEST), which represents the remainder of the business. Within BSI, the Company is organized into three operating segments: the Bruker BioSpin Group, the Bruker CALID Group and the Bruker Nano Group. For financial reporting purposes, the Bruker BioSpin, Bruker CALID and Bruker Nano operating segments are aggregated into the BSI reportable segment because each has similar economic characteristics, production processes, service offerings, types and classes of customers, methods of distribution and regulatory environments.

Bruker BioSpin— Bruker BioSpin designs, manufactures and distributes enabling life science tools based on magnetic resonance and preclinical imaging technologies. Bruker BioSpin sells various systems utilizing magnetic resonance technology, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) systems, nuclear magnetic resonance systems (NMR) and electron paramagnetic resonance systems (EPR), as well as OEM MRI magnets sold to medical device manufacturers. Bruker BioSpin also sells single and multiple modality systems using MRI, position emission tomography (PET), single photon emission tomography (SPECT), computed tomography (CT), magnetic particle imaging (MPI) and optical imaging (fluorescence and bioluminescence) technologies to preclinical markets.

Bruker CALID (Chemicals, Applied Markets, Life Science, In-Vitro Diagnostics, Detection)— Bruker CALID designs, manufactures and distributes life science mass spectrometry instruments that can be integrated and used along with other sample preparation or chromatography instruments, as well as Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and Explosive (CBRNE) detection products. Bruker CALID also designs, manufactures and distributes instruments based on Raman molecular spectroscopy technologies. Bruker CALID's mass spectrometry units are typically used in applications of expression proteomics, clinical proteomics, metabolic and peptide biomarker profiling, drug discovery and development, molecular diagnostics research, molecular and systems biology, basic molecular medicine research and clinical microbiology.

Bruker Nano— Bruker Nano designs, manufactures and distributes spectroscopy and microscopy instruments for the understanding of composition and structure in material science and life science samples. The instruments are based on advanced technologies in X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF), X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray micro computed tomography (CT), atomic force microscopy (AFM), stylus and optical metrology (SOM) and fluorescence microscopy (FM), and also include analytical tools for electron microscopes, handheld, portable and mobile X-ray fluorescence and spark optical emission spectroscopy systems.

The Company's BEST reportable segment develops and manufactures superconducting and non-superconducting materials and devices for use in renewable energy, energy infrastructure, healthcare and "big science" research. The segment focuses on metallic low temperature superconductors for use in magnetic resonance imaging, nuclear magnetic resonance, fusion energy research and other applications, as well as ceramic high temperature superconductors primarily for energy grid and magnet applications.