Between 1995 and 1998, the Bank of Canada tested a substrate trademarked as "Luminus" consisting of a polymer core sheet layered between two paper sheets for use in printing banknotes. It printed 100,000 experimental $5 Birds of Canada banknotes. In June 1998, the Bank of Canada prepared to use Luminus as the substrate for the 2001 Canadian Journey series, but in December 1999, the manufacturer withdrew its supply bid because it could not produce the substrate at the scale required by the Bank of Canada for printing banknotes. The bank printed the 2001 Canadian Journey series on a cotton fibre substrate with similar surface characteristics to Luminus so that it could transition production to using the polymer substrate when scale production issues were resolved. The Bank of Canada also secured Canadian rights for Luminus and continued to develop the substrate for future use.
