Abstract: With the considerable progress achieved in the capabilities of laser / optical technology in combination with growing computing resources today the laser- and image-based measurement techniques can be found in a wide variety of applications. In turbomachinery research, laser-optical techniques such as PIV in most cases do complement conventional rig testing and are often used to provide validation data for accompanying numerical simulation methods. Drawing the attention to the full potential of PIV, a number of research projects have been set up specifically addressing the aerodynamic flow analysis based on spatio-temporal resolved experimental data. The presentation will give a summary of latest research activities in a circumferential compressor as well as provide a brief overview of other laser-diagnostic applications in axial fan and compressor rigs.