Photonicsspectra 201204

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Smarter Cameras
Keep Watch
412PScover_Layout 1 3/22/12 12:50 PM Page 1
THE INFRARED
COMPANY
THE INFRARED
COMPANY
IR OPTO-MECHANICAL DESIGN
IR LENS ASSEMBLIES IR LENS ASSEMBLIES
IR CATALOG
IR CUSTOM OPTICS
IR CRYSTAL OPTICS
IR COATINGS
ISP OPTICS USA: 50 South Buckhout St., Irvington NY, 10533
IR@ispoptics.com s www.ispoptics.com s Tel: (914) 591-3070
ISP OPTICS ISRAEL: 5 Shimshon St, Bldg B, Suite 5, Petach Tikva,
49517, Israel s IR@ispoptics.com s Tel +972 391 99876
ISP OPTICS LATVIA: 24a Ganibu Dambis, korp. 13 Riga, LV-1005,
Latvia s IR@ispoptics.com s Tel +371 67 323 779
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Apri l 2012
t
TABLE OF CONTENTS
18 | TECH NEWS
Photonics Spectra editors curate the most significant photonics research
and technology headlines of the month and take you deeper inside
the news. Featured stories include:
Avalanche of emissions creates first atomic x-ray laser
Tunable optical filter uses nanoantennas
New resonator overcomes obstacle to ultimate nanolaser
32 | FASTTRACK
Business and Markets
Making Ottawa the Worlds Photonics Center
45 | GREENLIGHT
New solar cells are more efficient
NEWS & ANALYSIS
79 | BRIGHT IDEAS
95 | HAPPENINGS
97 | ADVERTISER INDEX
DEPARTMENTS
THE COVER
Contributing Editor
Hank Hogans article
on surveillance/security
cameras inspired this
months cover. Design
by Senior Art Director
Lisa N. Comstock.
18
Photonics Spectra April 2012 4
10 | EDITORIAL
98 | PEREGRINATIONS
The physics behind the fizz
COLUMNS
412Contents_Layout 1 3/23/12 11:25 AM Page 4
PHOTONICS: The technology of generating and harnessing light and other forms of radiant
energy whose quantum unit is the photon. The range of applications of photonics extends
from energy generation to detection to communications and information processing.
Vol ume 46 I ssue 4
www. phot oni cs. com
46 | CONNECTED AND SMARTER, CAMERAS KEEP WATCH
by Hank Hogan, Contributing Editor
In all types of surveillance and security applications, IP-based digital cameras
are quickly supplanting closed-circuit television.
52 | CONSCRIPTING TERAHERTZ SENSORS
by Lynn Savage, Features Editor
The versatility of the terahertz range inspires government researchers and others
to undertake the slow process of developing its applications.
58 | MULTIBAND OPTICAL FILTERS FIND APPLICATIONS
OUTSIDE FLUORESCENCE
by Jason Palidwar and Catherine Aldous, Iridian Spectral Technologies
Besides bioanalysis, applications for multiband dielectric filters now include
entertainment, astronomy and telecommunications.
62 | THE NIGHT GLOWS BRIGHTER IN THE NEAR-IR
by Danny De Gaspari, Jan Veldeman, Patrick Lamerichs, Siegfried Herftijd,
Patrick Merken and Jan Vermeiren, Xenics NV
Airglow is most intense in the short-wave infrared range, so this regime is ideal
for night-vision applications.
66 | HOW TO EVALUATE A MEASUREMENT APPLICATIONS REQUIREMENTS
by C.W. Ron Swonger, Coherix Inc.
Dimensions and material composition arent the only factors to consider
when optimizing a noncontact metrology solution.
70 | DEFENSE, SECURITY SHOW TARGETS BALTIMORE
by Laura S. Marshall, Managing Editor
A new venue for this SPIE conference and trade show will benefit both exhibitors
and attendees.
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66
46
FEATURES
412Contents_Layout 1 3/23/12 11:25 AM Page 5
Photonics Spectra April 2012
Group Publisher Karen A. Newman
Editorial Staff
Managing Editor Laura S. Marshall
Senior Editor Melinda A. Rose
Features Editor Lynn M. Savage
Editors Caren B. Les
Ashley N. Paddock
Copy Editors Judith E. Storie
Patricia A. Vincent
Margaret W. Bushee
Contributing Editors Hank Hogan
Gary Boas
Marie Freebody
Creative Staff
Senior Art Director Lisa N. Comstock
BioPhotonics Art Director Suzanne L. Schmidt
Designer Janice R. Tynan
Director of Publishing Operations Kathleen A. Alibozek
Electronic Media Staff
Director Charley Rose
Multimedia Services & Marketing
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Web Developers Alan W. Shepherd
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412Masthead_Layout 1 3/23/12 11:24 AM Page 8
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e
EDITORIAL COMMENT
Rare Earths Trade Issues Move to WTO
W
hats a manufacturer to do? The pricing and availability of rare earths such as
cerium oxide, used in optical production, have been a concern for many com-
panies in our industry for years now, and the underlying issues remain unre-
solved. Companies whose products and processes depend on rare earth materials continue
to cut back on production and the amount of material used, seek out alternatives to the
costly elements, investigate new options for recycling used materials and, in many cases,
just pay the price.
APOMA (American Precision Optics Manufacturers Association) addressed the ongoing
issue at a meeting in January in a panel discussion called Importance of Rare Earth
Elements in Optical Production. At the event, Dr. Heather L. Rayle, vice president and
general manager of advanced optics at Schott North America Inc., said, Pricing stresses
have made it difficult to satisfy customer needs.
Although prices have dropped in recent months, the crisis is not over, said Justin J.
Mahanna, vice president of field applications at Universal Photonics Inc., a supplier of
precision surface-polishing materials. Prices dropped because people are being more
conservative in their use of cerium oxide, he said.
The rare earths issue moved recently to trade case status with the WTO (World Trade
Organization) when the US, Japan and European Union nations joined to open a case
against China, which tightly controls access to much of the worlds supply of refined rare
earth materials. President Obama said American manufacturers need access to these mate-
rials. Now, if China would simply let the market work on its own, wed have no
objections, he added.
Of course, this move will not bring swift change to the situation, but APOMA can help
keep the issue in the public eye and inform its members as the situation changes. Con-
cerned organizations can be part of the solution by getting involved with APOMA and
other such groups.
Security in sight
Our content focus this month is photonics applications in defense and security, and we
broach the subject from several angles and wavelengths. In our cover story, contributing
editor Hank Hogan reports on the increasing use of digital network cameras for surveil-
lance and security. In Connected and Smarter, Cameras Keep Watch, Hogan says the
trend is toward network cameras, which are Internet protocol (IP)-based and digital. They
offer megapixel and high-definition resolution, helping tasks ranging from security to
determining which displays attract people in a store. They also are increasingly intelligent,
able to extract and transmit only what is important in a scene. As a result, they can do
double or triple duty, he writes in the article beginning on page 46.
Photonics Spectra staff features editor Lynn Savage examines how imaging and spec-
troscopy in the terahertz frequency range will one day provide an advantage for those
working in security and the military. In Conscripting Terahertz Sensors, Savage explains
how terahertz waves short length allows them to penetrate most nonmetallic substances,
making them useful for revealing concealed weapons, chemical explosives and biological
agents. Read the article, which starts on page 52.
Finally, our security detail takes us into the near-IR, where a camera module has been
designed to capitalize on spectral irradiance caused by airglow in the 900- to 1700-nm
band for night-vision applications. The article, The Night Glows Brighter in the Near-
IR, begins on page 62. It was submitted by Danny De Gaspari, Jan Veldeman, Patrick
Lamerichs, Siegfried Herftijd, Patrick Merken and Jan Vermeiren, all of Xenics NV. They
tell us, The most natural image still is an intensified image in the visible spectrum and in
the near-IR realm, although it is very specular because of the low quantity of incident pho-
tons. Short-wavelength infrared delivers very similar images but a larger amount of inci-
dent photons.
Enjoy the issue.
Editorial Advisory Board
Dr. Robert R. Alfano
City College of New York
Walter Burgess
Power Technology Inc.
Dr. Michael J. Cumbo
IDEX Optics & Photonics
Dr. Timothy Day
Daylight Solutions
Dr. Anthony J. DeMaria
Coherent-DEOS LLC
Dr. Donal Denvir
Andor Technology PLC
Patrick L. Edsell
Avanex Corp.
Dr. Stephen D. Fantone
Optikos Corp.
Randy Heyler
Ondax Inc.
Dr. Michael Houk
Bristol Instruments Inc.
Dr. Kenneth J. Kaufmann
Hamamatsu Corp.
Brian Lula
PI (Physik Instrumente) LP
Eliezer Manor
Shirat Enterprises Ltd., Israel
Shinji Niikura
Coherent Japan Inc.
Dr. Morio Onoe
professor emeritus, University of Tokyo
Dr. William Plummer
WTP Optics
Dr. Richard C. Powell
University of Arizona
Dr. Ryszard S. Romaniuk
Warsaw University of Technology, Poland
Samuel P. Sadoulet
Edmund Optics
Dr. Steve Sheng
Telesis Technologies Inc.
William H. Shiner
IPG Photonics Corp.
John M. Stack
Zygo Corp.
Dr. Albert J.P. Theuwissen
Harvest Imaging/Delft University
of Technology, Belgium
Kyle Voosen
National Instruments Corp.
10 Photonics Spectra April 2012
412Editorial_Layout 1 3/23/12 9:17 AM Page 10
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Welcome to
Photonics Medias industry-leading site features the latest industry news and events
from around the world.
Light Matters Weekly Newscast
In the industrys only weekly newscast,
editors from Photonics.com, Photonics
Spectra and BioPhotonics magazines
bring you the top photonics research
and business news of the week. Visit
Photonics.com/LightMatters.
Prism Awards Videos
Videos featuring the winners of this years
Prism Awards for photonic innovation
can now be viewed on Photonics.com.
Announced at a prestigious ceremony at
SPIE Photonics West in San Francisco,
winners were chosen by an esteemed
panel of judges whose task was to pick
the most innovative new products from en-
tries received for each category. See this
years winning products at Photonics.com/
PrismAwards.
Sponsored by
Industry Events
Calendar
Keep track of upcoming trade
shows and courses
with Photonics Medias
interactive industry events
calendar. Search for shows
by name, date or region
and use the Add to
My Calendar tab to
personalize your searches
for future reference. Visit
Photonics.com/Calendar.
412Online_Layout 1 3/22/12 1:58 PM Page 14

412_Synopsys_Pg15_Layout 1 3/22/12 10:43 AM Page 15
In the May issue of
Check out a sample of the new digital
version of Photonics Spectra magazine
at www.photonics.com/DigitalSample.
Its a whole new world of information for
people in the global photonics industry.
You'll also find all the news that affects
your industry, from tech trends and
market reports to the latest products
and media.
3-D TV Without Glasses:
When & How?
This feature from Optics for Hire
defines the leading edge of 3-D
displays, including content-adaptive
parallax barriers, random-hole
displays, theta-parallax-only
displays, multiprojector displays
and autostereo cinema,
volumetric display, and
advances in holographic
video.
193-nm Lithography Opens
Visible/NIR for Diffractive
Micro-Optics
Advances in the tools available for the
manufacture of diffractive optics have
opened up additional opportunities in
both visible and near-infrared (NIR)
applications that require very large
angular distributions.
Time-Delay and Integration
Technology Speeds Up Imaging
Using a sensor architecture that per-
mits photoelectrons generated from
multiple exposures to be summed with
no additive noise enables high-speed
imaging in light-starved conditions.
This technology has become a stan-
dard in the automated inspection of
flat panel displays and is expanding
to other markets.
Machine Vision
for Space Exploration
Machine vision isn't just for industrial welding robots and package scanners.
Humanoid robot workers of the future will depend on stereoscopic vision that
tightly coordinates with touch and geospatial sensors. Specialists at MVTec
describe how they helped make NASA's Robonaut a valuable assistant on the
International Space Station.
Laser Safety Column
Developing a Laser Safety Culture
The laser safety program, with all
its participating parties, is the perfect
ground for organizational team play,
and the laser safety officer becomes
the laser safety leader who can moti-
vate, involve and integrate personnel
to achieve common and shared goals
within the organization.
Photonics Spectra
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Avalanche of emissions creates first atomic x-ray laser
LIVERMORE, Calif. The shortest,
purest x-ray laser pulses ever achieved
fulfill a 45-year-old prediction and could
open the door to new materials, medicines
and devices.
Physicists from Stanford Linear Accel-
erator Center (SLAC) created the pulses,
which were around 40 fs, by aiming the
centers Linac Coherent Light Source
(LCLS) at a capsule of neon gas, setting
off an avalanche of x-ray emissions to cre-
ate the first atomic x-ray laser.
The atomic x-ray laser, in potential
pump probe settings, will allow us to
study the dynamics of chemical processes,
like charge transfer, isomerization, con-
formational changes, etc., said lead in-
vestigator Nina Rohringer in an email.
Once one understands these processes
and the timescales involved, one can think
about using the new knowledge in design-
ing new materials. She collaborated with
scientists from SLAC, Lawrence Liver-
more National Laboratory and Colorado
State University.
The new laser fulfills a 1967 prediction
that x-ray lasers could be made by first re-
moving inner electrons from atoms and
then inducing electrons to fall from higher
to lower energy levels, releasing a single
color of light in the process. But until
2009, when LCLS came online, no x-ray
source was powerful enough to create this
type of laser.
To make the laser, LCLS powerful
x-ray pulses each a billion times brighter
than any available before knocked elec-
trons out of the inner shells of many of the
neon atoms. When other electrons fell in
to fill the holes, about one in 50 atoms re-
sponded by emitting a photon in the very
short hard x-ray wavelength. Those x-rays
stimulated neighboring neon atoms to emit
more x-rays, creating a domino effect that
amplified laser light 200 million times.
Using other gases, Rohringer hopes to
achieve even shorter-pulse, higher-energy
atomic x-ray lasers. The team is running
calculations using oxygen and nitrogen
molecules and has found that nuclear dy-
namics play a big role in the lasing of
molecules.
We are currently considering lasing in
nitrogen and oxygen, she said. But mol-
ecules open up new challenges. In addi-
tion to the electronic dynamics, nuclear
dynamics (vibrations) play a role this
might disrupt the lasing process.
They are working on possible applica-
tions, but the scheme of x-ray pump x-ray
probe experiments is virtually unexplored,
so that we have quite some work ahead
of us to determine the best conceptual
techniques, Rohringer said. One poten-
tial application is to use the two-color
source created, i.e., the transmitted pump
pulse (which is tunable) and the atomic
x-ray laser pulse (at fixed energy).
Next, her team will consider Raman
type lasers, where amplification and
compression of x-ray pulses via an x-ray
Raman scattering process will be ex-
ploited.
For her, the most challenging and in-
teresting question will be to transfer
nonlinear optical spectroscopic techniques
to x-rays.
This is going to be challenging be-
cause of the small interaction strength of
x-rays, combined with the ultrashort
timescales (femto- and subfemtosecond)
we have to deal with in the x-ray regime,
Rohringer said. But we would gain ele-
ment specificity and atomic spatial resolu-
tion, which would be a great step toward
understanding the structural dynamics of
chemical and biological processes.
I think that, with the invention of
x-ray free-electron lasers, it is possible
to venture [into] the field of quantum op-
tics with x-rays, she said. People have
been dreaming about this since the 60s.
The research appeared in the Jan. 26
issue of Nature (doi: 10.1038/nature
10721).
NEWS
TECH
A closer look at the most significant photonics research and technology headlines of the month
A powerful x-ray laser pulse from SLAC National
Accelerator Laboratorys Linac Coherent Light
Source comes up from the lower-left corner (green)
and hits a neon atom (center). Illustration courtesy
of Gregory M. Stewart/SLAC.
Tunable optical filter uses nanoantennas
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. A new tunable color filter based on opti-
cal nanoantennas can precisely control color output, enabling its
use for display and bioimaging applications and for marking
currency.
By precisely controlling the shape of the nanoantennas, engi-
neers at Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences
(SEAS) have created a controllable color filter that is tuned to
react differently, depending on the color and polarization, said
Tal Ellenbogen, a postdoctoral fellow at SEAS. The investigators
dubbed the filter a chromatic plasmonic polarizer.
Conventional RGB filters that are used to create color in televi-
sions and monitors have one fixed output color and create a
broader palette of hues through blending, an unnecessary step for
these filters.
Instead of changing the polarization of light to control the in-
tensity of each of the spatially separated red, green and blue parts
412TechNews_Layout 1 3/22/12 12:54 PM Page 18
of the pixel, we will change the polarization to get the desired
output color, Ellenbogen said.
To achieve this, a separate mechanism to control the bright-
ness, such as a white LED, is needed for each pixel, he explained.
Using chromatic plasmonic polarizers, we can mix two colors
into one nanoantenna placed at a single location, Ellenbogen
said. Therefore it can potentially reduce the size of the pixel
and eventually lead to better display resolution.
Because the color output of chromatic plasmonic polarizers is
sensitive to the polarization of input light, he said it holds poten-
tial for bright-field polarization imaging applications, for medical,
biological and general purposes.
Some tissues, like muscle tissues, for example, can change the
polarization state of the light that is transmitted through them, he
said. This shows as a color change at the output of the chromatic
plasmonic polarizer. Defects in tissue, such as cancerous tumors, for
example, modify the polarization of transmitted light in different
ways and, therefore, can potentially be detected by this method.
To demonstrate the technologys capabilities, the engineers
used nanoparticles to make the letters LSP, short for localized
surface plasmon. With unpolarized light or with light that is po-
larized at 45, the letters are invisible. In polarized light at 90,
the letters appear vibrant yellow with a blue background, and at
0 degrees, the color scheme is reversed. Rotating the polarization
of the incident light makes the colors of the letters change, shift-
ing from yellow to blue.
So far, we have demonstrated the concept of chromatic plas-
monic polarizers based on 2-D nanoantenna structures, Ellenbogen
said. We have ideas for using the third dimension to extend the
functionality of the devices and to create chromatic plasmonic po-
larizers based on metal apertures or more complex nanostructures.
The researchers have filed a provisional patent for their work,
which appeared in the February issue of Nano Letters (dx.doi.org/
10.1021/nl204257g).
The color output of a new type of optical filter depends on the polarization
of the incoming light. Courtesy of Tal Ellenbogen, Harvard School of
Engineering and Applied Sciences.
To demonstrate their work, Kenneth B. Crozier and his colleagues created a
plate of chromatic plasmonic polarizers that spells LSP. Under the light
of different polarizations, the letters and the background change color.
The image at far right shows the antennas themselves, as viewed through a
scanning electron microscope.
Chromatic plasmonic polarizers show polarization rotation by a plastic film.
SAN DIEGO Two very low
power lasers that produce the
smallest continuous-wave,
room-temperature telecommu-
nications frequency demon-
strated to date may be a step
closer to creating virus-size
nanolasers. The new instru-
ments a 1.5-m laser and a
1.38-m thresholdless laser
that funnels all of its protons
into lasing without any waste
were developed by electrical
engineers in the Ultrafast and
Nanoscale Optics Group at the
University of California, San
Diego (UCSD), Jacobs School
of Engineering.
The devices extremely low
operating power is an important
breakthrough because lasers
usually require greater and
greater pump power to begin
lasing as they shrink to nano
sizes. This quality, along with
their small size, could make the
lasers useful components for
applications ranging from on-
chip optical communication to
ultrahigh-resolution and high-
throughput imaging, sensing
and spectroscopy.
In this sense, the lasers are
scalable in size down to the size
of the smallest living organisms
(20-nm thickness of the gain
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material), said electrical engi-
neer Mercedeh Khajavikhan of
UCSD.
Khajavikhan and her col-
leagues in the group suggest
that the thresholdless laser also
may help researchers as they
develop new metamaterials
artificially structured materials
for applications ranging from
superlenses for seeing individ-
ual DNA molecules or viruses,
to devices that can bend light
around an object and cloak
it from view.
All lasers require a certain
amount of pump power from an
outside source to begin emitting
a coherent beam of light, said
Yeshaiahu Shaya Fainman,
the principal investigator of the
research and a professor at
UCSD.
As the laser becomes
smaller in size, especially in
microlasers and nanolasers, the
volume of the active material
becomes smaller and so does
the amplification it can provide,
but loss mechanisms in the cav-
ity do not scale down with the
same rate, said Michael Kats,
an electrical engineer at UCSD.
Because of this disproportion-
ality between the loss and gain
reduction with size, the pump
required for lasing in nanolasers
could be prohibitively large.
To overcome this problem,
the researchers designed a cav-
ity that supports one mode, sup-
pressed the coupling of emitters
to the free-space radiation
modes and provided a good
confinement of the electromag-
netic field because of its sub-
wavelength metallic structure.
The team built the threshold-
less laser by modifying the
geometry of this cavity. The
design allowed them to build
the smallest room-temperature,
continuous-wave laser to date.
The nanoscale coaxial laser is
10 times smaller in volume
than the groups previous
record-smallest nanolaser
(which did not operate in con-
tinuous-wave mode), described
in Nature Photonics less than
two years ago.
Fainman said that these
Upper left: a schematic of the coaxial laser cavity. Lower left: a scanning electron
micrograph image of the constituent ring of the coaxial structure containing the
gain section and the cover silica layer. Right: The TEM-like mode of the coaxial
structure, which is symmetric in the transverse plane, has no degeneracy and
is extremely confined. Courtesy of Mercedeh Khajavikhan and Aleksandar Simic,
UCSD.
highly efficient lasers would be useful in augmenting future com-
puting chips with optical communications, where the lasers are
used to establish communication links between distant points on
the chip. Only a small amount of pump power would be required
to reach lasing, reducing the number of photons needed to trans-
mit information.
The scalability of the laser design is an extremely important
feature that would make it possible to harvest laser light from
even smaller nanoscale structures, the researchers said, adding
that they expect to be able to build lasers with both radius and
height at 20 nm.
From an electromagnetic point of view, the lasers are infi-
nitely scalable, said electrical engineer Aleksandar Simic of
UCSD. This means that we can reduce the size to any small
value, and it still supports a mode. However, the material proper-
ties start to change when we get to sizes below 20 nm; for exam-
ple, the surface effects become significant, and the properties of
the active medium change.
This feature eventually could make them useful for creating
and analyzing metamaterials with structures smaller than the
wavelength of light currently emitted by lasers.
As for where their research is going to take them, we think
electrically pumped coaxial nanolasers [are] the most immediate
extension of this work, Khajavikhan said. The electrically
pumped nanolasers would have diverse applications in many
areas of science and technology.
Handheld rainbow could spawn
multispectral tools
BUFFALO, N.Y. A new kind of polymer that is cheap and easy
to make and reflects many different wavelengths of light when
viewed from a single perspective could form the basis of hand-
held multispectral imaging devices.
Such portable technology could have applications in a wide
range of fields from home improvement, like matching paint col-
ors, to biomedical imaging, including analyzing colors in medical
images to detect disease, said Alexander N. Cartwright, profes-
sor of electrical engineering at the University at Buffalo.
Engineers at the university developed a one-step method to
fabricate the polymer, which will make it feasible to develop
small devices that connect with cell phones to conduct multi-
spectral imaging, said Qiaoqiang Gan, assistant professor of
electrical engineering.
Our method is pretty low-cost, and because of this and the po-
tential cell phone applications, we feel there is a huge market for
improving clinical imaging in developing countries, Gan said.
Because the rainbow filters colors are produced by its surface
geometry and not some kind of pigment, the colors wont fade
over time. The same principle applies to the colors of butterfly
wings and peacock feathers. The polymer fabrication technique
was described in Advanced Materials (doi: 10.1002/adma.
201104628).
To create the rainbow material, students Ke Liu and Huina Xu
sandwiched a photosensitive prepolymer syrup between two glass
slides. Next, they directed a laser beam through a curved lens
placed above the prepolymer solution. The lens divided and bent
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the laser beam into light of continuously
varying wavelengths.
As this light hit the solution, monomers
in the solution joined into polymers, form-
ing a continuous pattern of ridgelike poly-
mer structures. Larger ridges rose where
the light struck with more intensity. The
thin filter structure that resulted is rain-
bow-colored when viewed under white
light. This is because the periodic polymer
layers reflect a continuous spectrum of
colors, from red on one end to indigo on
the other.
The single-step fabrication method
shining a laser light through a curved lens
is affordable and relatively simple.
The filter is about 25 mm long, but the
technique the researchers used is scalable:
Its possible to create filters of different
sizes by shining the laser through lenses
of different sizes.
Gan said the next step is to improve the
quality of the rainbow filter. The team also
is beginning to explore ideas for incorpo-
rating the technology into handheld de-
vices.
The university has submitted a provi-
sional patent application detailing the pro-
duction process to the US Patent and
Trademark Office.
22
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A rainbow-colored grating about 25 mm wide is shown under sunlight. Enlarged microscope images show
the graded surface, with the black bars indicating a length of 10 m. Courtesy of the University at Buffalo.
Instrument to assess auroras Alfvn effect on GPS
POKER FLAT RESEARCH RANGE,
Alaska A small rocket recently was
launched into the aurora borealis in an at-
tempt to discover how the northern lights
affect signals on global positioning system
satellites and other spacecraft.
The two-stage, 46-foot Terrier-Black
Brant rocket reached a height of about
217 miles.
Were investigating whats called
For more on Qiaoqiang Gans
research, see Slow Light
Slowed Even More,
www.photonics.com/a46696.
space weather, said Steven Powell of
Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y., the lead
investigator in the study. Space weather
is caused by the charged particles that
come from the sun and interact with the
Earths magnetic field. We dont directly
feel those effects as humans, but our elec-
tronic systems do.
The mission, called MICA (Magneto-
sphere-Ionosphere Coupling in the Alfvn
resonator), involves 60 scientists, engi-
neers, technicians and graduate students
from Cornell, Dartmouth College in
Hanover, N.H., the University of New
Hampshire in Durham, the Southwest
Research Institute in San Antonio, the
University of Alaska Fairbanks, the Uni-
versity of Oslo in Norway and NASA.
Instruments on board sampled electrons
in the upper atmosphere that are affected
by a form of electromagnetic energy
called Alfvn waves. These waves are
thought to be a key driver of discrete
aurora the typical, well-defined band of
shimmering lights that is about six miles
thick and stretches across the horizon.
Once launched, the rocket payload sep-
arated into two parts. One part extended
antennae to measure electric fields gener-
ated by the aurora. Other antennae and
sensors measured electrons and ions inter-
acting with the Earths magnetic field. In
this period of high sun activity, called
solar maximum, gases from the sun likely
are interfering with GPS (global position-
ing system) transmissions, satellite Inter-
net and other signals.
We are becoming more dependent on
these signals, Powell said. This will help
us better understand how satellite signals
get degraded by space weather and how
we can mitigate those effects in new and
improved GPS receivers.
23
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A fish-eye photo taken by an automated camera
near the entrance gate to the Poker Flat Research
Range in Fairbanks, Alaska. Courtesy of Donald
Hampton.
A two-stage Terrier-Black Brant rocket arcs through
the aurora 200 miles above Earth as the Magnetos-
phere-Ionosphere Coupling in the Alfvn resonator
(MICA) mission investigates the underlying physics
of the northern lights. Stage one of the rocket has
just separated and is seen falling back to Earth.
Courtesy of Terry E. Zaperach, NASA.
MEXICALI, Mexico, and DAVIS, Calif.
A new tool reveals how earthquake faults
behave and how, down to a few inches,
earthquakes change the landscape.
A team of geologists from the US, Mex-
ico and China has reported the most com-
prehensive before-and-after picture yet
taken of an earthquake zone, using data
from the 7.2-magnitude quake that struck
near Mexicali in April 2010.
We can learn so much about how
earthquakes work by studying fresh fault
ruptures, said Michael E. Oskin, a geol-
ogy professor at the University of Califor-
nia, Davis.
The team, working with the National
Center for Airborne Laser Mapping, flew
over the area, using new lidar equipment
to measure surface features to within a
few inches. In less than three days, they
made a detailed scan over approximately
140 sq mi, Oskin said.
They knew that the Mexican govern-
ment had mapped the area with lidar in
2006, he added. When the earthquake
occurred, he and Ramn Arrowsmith from
Arizona State University applied for and
got funding from the National Science
Foundation to carry out an immediate
aerial survey to compare the results.
Traditional ground surveys of the fault
rupture also were conducted by John
Fletcher and graduate student Orlando
Teran from the Centro de Investigacin
Cientfica y de Educacin Superior de
Ensenada (CICESE). These helped guide
planning of the aerial lidar survey and in-
terpretation of the results.
From the ground, features such as the
5-ft escarpment created when part of a
hillside abruptly moved up and side-
ways are readily visible. But the lidar sur-
vey further reveals warping of the ground
surface adjacent to faults that previously
could not easily be detected, Oskin said.
For example, it revealed the folding above
the Indiviso fault running beneath agricul-
tural fields in the floodplain of the Col-
orado River.
This would be very hard to see in the
field, Oskin said.
The geologists used the virtual reality
facility at UC Davis W.M. Keck Center
for Active Visualization in Earth Sciences
to handle and view the data from the sur-
vey. By comparing pre- and postearth-
quake surveys, they could see exactly
where the ground moved and by how
much.
The survey revealed deformation
around the system of small faults that
caused the earthquake and supplied meas-
urements that provide clues to understand-
ing how these multifault earthquakes
occur.
The 2010 Mexicali earthquake did not
occur on a major fault the San Andreas,
24
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Lidar uncovers hidden earthquake damage
Mapped fault surface ruptures (black lines) mark breaks in the Earths crust. Courtesy of Michael Oskin et al,
www.keckcaves.org.
Agricultural fields and canals of the Colorado River delta after the earthquake.
for example but ran through a series of smaller faults in the
Earths crust. These minor faults are common around major faults
but are underappreciated, Oskin said.
This sort of earthquake happens out of the blue, he added.
The new lidar survey shows how seven of these small faults
came together to cause a major earthquake, Oskin said.
This is the first earthquake to be imaged by before and
after lidar, said Ken Hudnut, a geophysicist with the US Geo-
graphical Survey and co-author of the paper. He made the first
use of airborne lidar about 10 years ago to document surface
faulting from the Hector Mine earthquake.
The findings appear in Science (doi: 10.1126/science.1213778).
The postevent data set collected by the team is publicly available
at: http://opentopography.org/.
New bandgap boundaries
could boost electronics
OAK RIDGE, Tenn. A new layer-by-layer growth technique
that reduces the bandgap of complex metal oxides by 30 percent
could improve the performance of solar cells, LEDs, displays and
other electronic devices.
For years, complex transition metal oxides have held promise
for a variety of information and energy applications, but the chal-
lenge has been to devise a method to reduce bandgaps of those
insulators without compromising the materials useful physical
properties.
The bandgap, a major factor in determining electrical conduc-
tivity in a material, directly determines the upper wavelength
limit of light absorption. Wide bandgap tunability is highly desir-
able for optoelectronic devices and energy materials.
Ho Nyung Lee of Oak Ridge National Laboratory developed
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ORNLs materials scientists developed a synthesis strategy for discovering novel
complex oxide thin films for stronger solar light absorption. Courtesy of ORNL.
the layer-by-layer growth technique. For his achievement, he re-
ceived the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and En-
gineers. He and his colleagues then used the method to achieve a
30 percent reduction in the bandgap of complex metal oxides,
surpassing previous accomplishments of 6 percent or 0.2 eV
and opening the door to new approaches to controlling bandgap
in complex oxide materials.
Our approach to tuning bandgaps is based on atomic-scale
growth control of complex oxide materials, yielding novel artifi-
cial materials that do not exist in nature, Lee said. This epi-
taxy technique can be used to design entirely new materials or
to specifically modify the composition of thin-film crystals with
subnanometer accuracy.
With this discovery, the potential exists for oxides with band-
gaps to be continuously controlled over 1 eV by site-specific al-
loying developed by the ORNL team.
This work exemplifies how basic research can provide techni-
cal breakthroughs that will result in vastly improved energy tech-
nologies, said Michelle Buchanan, associate lab director for
ORNLs Physical Sciences Directorate.
A patent is pending for the technology. The research was
funded initially by the Laboratory Directed Research and Devel-
opment program and later by the US Department of Energys Of-
fice of Science. Optical measurements were performed in part at
the Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, a DOE-BES user
facility at ORNL.
The findings were outlined in Nature Communications (doi:
10.1038/ncomms1690).
Lasers probe planet formation
LIVERMORE, Calif. Experiments using high-power lasers
could help scientists understand how planets are formed.
Phase changes in liquid magmas at pressures and temperatures
that exist deep inside Earth-like planets could provide insight into
the processes that govern planet formation. Just as graphite, under
high pressure, can be transformed into diamond, liquid magmas at
high pressure may similarly be altered to become denser materials,
say researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
Using high-power lasers, the scientists discovered that molten
magnesium silicate subjected to increasing pressure undergoes a
phase change, abruptly transforming into a denser liquid.
Phase changes between different types of melts have not been
taken into account in planetary evolution models, said lead sci-
entist Dylan Spaulding, a University of California, Berkeley,
graduate student who conducted most of his thesis work at the
laboratorys Jupiter Laser Facility. But they could have played
an important role during Earths formation and may indicate that
extrasolar Super Earth planets are structured differently from
Earth.
Melts play a significant role in planetary evolution and may in-
fluence the thermal transport and convective processes that gov-
ern the formation of a mantle and core early in a planets history,
the scientists say. A liquid-liquid phase transition similar to what
would be found in terrestrial planetary mantles could help explain
the thermal-chemical evolution of exoplanet interiors, they add.
The team used the labs Janus laser and the University of
Rochesters OMEGA during experiments to achieve the extreme
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temperatures and pressures that exist in the interiors of exoplan-
ets. In each experiment, a powerful laser pulse generated a shock
wave as it traveled through the sample. By looking for changes in
the velocity of the shock and the temperature of the sample, the
team identified discontinuities that signaled a phase change in the
material.
In this case, the decay in shock velocity and thermal emission
both reverse themselves during the same brief time interval,
Spaulding said.
The scientists concluded that a liquid-liquid phase transition in
a silicate composition similar to what would be found in terres-
trial planetary mantles could help explain the thermal-chemical
evolution of exoplanet interiors.
The research, which was funded by the National Nuclear Secu-
rity Administration, the National Science Foundation and the
University of California, appears in Physical Review Letters
(doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.108.065701).
TEMPE, Ariz. Improved infrared pho-
todetector technology that uses ultrathin
layers of materials should have an impact
on critical applications ranging from na-
tional defense to medical diagnostics.
Arizona State University researchers
have discovered how infrared photodetec-
tion can be achieved more effectively
using certain materials arranged in specific
patterns in atomic-scale structures. The
scientists formed crystals on multiple
nanometer-thick layers of materials, then
combined the layered structures to form
superlattices.
27
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An artists conception of the planet Kepler-22b, which orbits in the habitable
zone of a G-type star the same category as our sun beyond our solar
system. A habitable zone is a region around a star where liquid water, a
requirement for life on Earth, could persist. Kepler-22b is 2.4 times the size of
Earth. Courtesy of NASA.
Photodetectors made of various crystals
absorb different wavelengths of light and
convert them into an electrical signal. The
conversion efficiency achieved determines
a photodectectors sensitivity and the qual-
ity of detection it provides, said electrical
engineer Yong-Hang Zhang.
Nanomaterial combinations enhance IR photodetection
The detection wavelengths of superlat-
tices can be broadly tuned by changing the
design and composition of the layered
structures. The precise arrangements of
the nanoscale materials in superlattice
structures help to enhance the sensitivity
of infrared detectors, Zhang said.
The team combined indium arsenide
and indium arsenide antimonide to build
the superlattice structures. The combina-
tion allows devices to generate the photo-
electrons necessary to provide infrared
signal detection and imaging, said Eliza-
beth Steenbergen, an electrical engineering
doctoral student who performed experi-
ments on the superlattice materials with
collaborators at the US Army Research
Laboratory.
In a photodetector, light creates elec-
trons, Steenbergen said. Electrons
emerge from the photodetector as elec-
trical current. We read the magnitude
of this current to measure infrared light
intensity.
The scientists use of the new materials
reduces the loss of optically excited elec-
trons, increasing the electrons carrier life-
time by more than 10 times that achieved
with other combinations of materials tradi-
tionally used in the technology, Zhang
said. Carrier lifetime is a key parameter
that in the past has limited detector effi-
ciency.
The infrared photodetectors made from
these superlattice materials also are advan-
tageous because they do not need as much
cooling. Such devices are cooled as a way
of reducing the amount of unwanted cur-
rent inside the devices that can bury
electrical signals, Zhang said. Less cooling
means that less power is needed to operate
the photodetectors, making the devices
more reliable and the systems more cost-
effective.
Researchers say that improvements can
still be made in the layering of the intri-
cate superlattice structures and in develop-
ing device designs that will allow the new
combinations of materials to work most
effectively.
The advances could pave the way for
improved guided weaponry, sophisticated
surveillance systems, industrial and home
security systems, infrared detection for
medical imaging, and road-safety tools for
driving at night or during sandstorms or
heavy fog.
The research appeared in Applied
Physics Letters (doi: 10.1063/1.3671398).
28
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Laser-induced heat can record information
YORK, UK A revolutionary magnetic
recording method that uses an ultrashort
heat pulse to switch magnetic polarity en-
ables information processing hundreds
of times faster than current hard-drive
technology.
Previously, it was believed that mag-
netic recording required the application
of an external magnetic field, which in-
verted magnetic poles. The stronger the
applied field, the faster a magnetic bit of
information could be recorded.
But scientists at the University of York
and a team of researchers from Spain,
Switzerland, Ukraine, Russia, Japan and
the Netherlands discovered that they could
record information using only heat a
previously unimaginable scenario.
For centuries, it has been believed that
heat can only destroy the magnetic order,
said Dr. Alexey Kimel of the Institute of
Molecules and Materials at Radboud Uni-
versity Nijmegen in the Netherlands.
Now we have successfully demonstrated
that it can, in fact, be a sufficient stimulus
for recording information on a magnetic
medium.
They demonstrated that the inversion of
magnetic poles can be achieved with an
ultrashort heat pulse, harnessing the power
of much stronger internal forces of mag-
netic media.
Instead of using a magnetic field to
record information on a magnetic medium,
we harnessed much stronger internal
forces and recorded information using
only heat, said Thomas Ostler, a Univer-
sity of York physicist. This revolutionary
method allows the recording of terabytes
(thousands of gigabytes) of information
per second, hundreds of times faster than
present hard drive technology.
The research appeared in Nature Com-
munications (doi: 10.1038/ncomms1666).
29
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Experimental images showing the repeated deterministic switching of nano islands. Initially, the two nano
islands have different magnetic orientations (black and white, respectively). After the application of a single
pulse, the magnetic direction of both islands changes. Further pulses repeat the process, switching the
magnetic state back and forth. Courtesy of Johan Mentink and Alexey Kimel, Radboud University Nijmegen;
and Richard Evans, University of York.
Visualization of ultrafast heat-induced magnetic
switching. Before the laser pulse, the two compo-
nents of the ferromagnetic material, Fe (blue) and
Gd (red), are aligned antiparallel to each other.
The 60-fs laser pulse rapidly heats the material,
and this alone induces a transient ferromagneticlike
state, where the Fe and Gd moments are aligned
in parallel. After the laser pulse, the components
relax to their usual state, completing a single
switching event in less than 5 ps. Courtesy of
Richard Evans, University of York.
PARIS The European
Space Agency (ESA) is
developing 3-D imaging
light detection and rang-
ing (lidar) as a naviga-
tion aid for deep-space
exploration.
Lidar operates in the
same fashion as radar
but with shorter wave-
lengths because it uses
light rather than radio
waves. A pulsed laser beam scans targets by measuring the time
it takes for the light to bounce back; its shorter wavelengths offer
more precise measurements nanometers rather than the cen-
timeters offered by radar.
Separate designs were built in parallel by two consortia, one
led by Jena-Optronik of Jena, Germany, and the other by ABSL
of Culham, UK.
The two designs were aimed at different guidance and naviga-
tion applications. The German-led unit demonstrates a future ren-
dezvous sensor, while the British-led design is intended to help a
lander touch down safely on a planet while detecting and avoid-
ing potential hazards.
The shoebox-size imaging lidar system relies on a steerable
scan mirror that flicks the laser beam across the target, and a
highly sensitive light detector measures the returning beams
from several kilometers away.
Imaging lidar could prove useful for guiding, navigating and
controlling planetary landers, for steering rovers on planetary
surfaces, and for assistance in docking the craft in planetary
orbit, said Joo Pereira do Carmo of ESA.
Terrestrial imaging lidar [systems] already exist, typically
used for scanning buildings or industrial sites, but they are much
too bulky for use in space, Carmo said. The challenge is to pro-
duce a new class of imaging lidar, much smaller and needing less
power.
For missions deeper into our solar system, ESA hopes to use
3-D imaging lidar to build up a complete picture of targets such
as boulder-strewn surfaces. It would work much as a stereoscopic
imager does, but it would also work in total darkness or blinding
sunlight.
The Imaging Lidar Technology project was supported through
ESAs Basic Technology Research Programme, which is aimed at
prototyping promising new engineering concepts, and the newly
designed 3-D lidar system is expected to help in the safe landing
of ESAs Lunar Lander in 2019.
The engineers are looking at using new types of detectors and
micromechanical optical mirrors to make the systems smaller.
It is expected that we can reduce the mass and power con-
sumptions of current commercial imaging
lidar systems by at least 70 percent,
Carmo said.
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Ashley N. Paddock
ashley.paddock@photonics.com
ESA pursues 3-D imaging lidar
ABSL prototype lidar system, intended to help
a lander touch down safely on a planet while
detecting and avoiding hazards. Courtesy of
ESA/ABSL.
Lighting and Imaging
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412_SchottNA_Pg31_Layout 1 3/22/12 10:44 AM Page 31
Making Ottawa the worlds photonics center
OTTAWA, Ontario, Canada A $55 mil-
lion photonics center that was expected to
break ground on the University of Ottawa
campus in March will help fulfill the
schools goal to make Ottawa the global
hub of photonics.
The five-story Centre for Advanced
Photonics and Environmental Analysis
(CAPEA) will house specialized labs and
equipment and will attract the worlds out-
standing researchers in the fields, univer-
sity President Allan Rock said at a mayors
breakfast sponsored by the Ottawa Cham-
ber of Commerce and the Ottawa Business
Journal on Feb. 23. The center will also
house Canadas only accelerator mass
spectrometer for conducting research in
photonics and environmental analysis.
Photonics is having a transformative
impact on our daily lives, Rock said,
from bar codes to flat-screen televisions,
from advanced laser surgery to telemedi-
cine and sophisticated security systems.
I am sure that is why the city has included
photonics among its key priorities in its
new economic development plan.
Both the university and the Canadian
government have been positioning Ottawa
as one of the worlds best optics and
photonics research centers for several
years.
In May 2010, $10 million in govern-
ment funding allowed the university to
recruit quantum optics and photonics
pioneer Robert W. Boyd as its inaugural
Canada Excellence Research Chair in
Quantum Nonlinear Optics.
Boyd was wooed from the University
of Rochester, where he had worked for
more than 30 years, to establish a world-
class quantum nonlinear optics program at
Ottawa. One of his first projects at Ottawa
was co-organizing the Quantum Photonics
Seminar Series, bringing leaders in the
field to the university for lectures and
discussions.
A primary focus of the centers research
program under Boyd is slow light,
caused when light travels hundreds of
times slower than the speed of light in a
vacuum.
Slowing lights speed by using specially
fabricated photonic crystals could lead to
spectrometers of unprecedented precision
for environmental sensing,
another key research area for the center.
By using nanostructured materials, we
can create novel structures and devices to
create slow light, which can have applica-
tions in areas like telecommunications and
laser radar, Boyd said.
In November 2011, the university un-
veiled Destination 20/20, its strategic
plan for the next decade focusing on re-
search, student experience, international-
ization and bilingualism. Among the
plans research initiatives is CAPEA.
The new center, which has expanded to
five stories from the originally planned
three, is scheduled to take approximately
18 months to complete.
We want to make Ottawa the world
photonics center. Our
goals really have no
limits, Boyd said.
TRACK
FAST
Melinda A. Rose
melinda.rose@photonics.com
Artists representation of what the $55 million University of Ottawa Centre for Advanced Photonics and
Environmental Analysis (CAPEA) will look like, as submitted to the City of Ottawa Urban Design Review Panel.
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[Photonics] is having a trans-
formative impact on our daily
lives, from bar codes to flat-
screen televisions, from advanced
laser surgery to telemedicine and
sophisticated security systems.
I am sure that is why the city has included photonics among
its key priorities in its new economic development plan.
Allan Rock, University of Ottawa
Allan Rock

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412_FastTrack_Layout 1 3/22/12 3:27 PM Page 32
412_EdmundOptics_Pg33_Layout 1 3/22/12 10:51 AM Page 33
Grant Program Open Applications are being
accepted for the 2012 Edmund Optics Higher
Education Grant Program. Worldwide, Edmund
Optics of Barrington, N.J., will be awarding
grants totaling $80,000 in products. The pro-
gram supports students in undergraduate and
graduate optics programs in science, technol-
ogy, engineering and mathematics at nonprofit
colleges and universities. Students involved in
projects using components related to optics,
optomechanics or imaging are encouraged to
apply at: www.edmundoptics.com/grant. Appli-
cations must be submitted by June 30, 2012.
Recipients will be selected based on technical
merit and innovative use of optics in a research
setting or lab.
Companies to Develop Laser Projection
Imax Corp. will partner with global technology
company Barco to develop laser projection tech-
nology for its Imax theaters. The collaboration
will implement the patents that Imax exclusively
licensed from Eastman Kodak Co. last year. The
new digital laser projector will deliver greater
brightness and clarity, a wider color gamut and
deeper blacks, and will consume less power and
last longer than existing digital technology, Imax
reported. Under the seven-year agreement,
Barco will be Imaxs exclusive worldwide partner
in the development of the technology. Imax is
based in New York, Toronto and Los Angeles.
Zecotek Commercializing Photodetectors
Zecotek Photonics Inc., based in Richmond,
British Columbia, Canada, has achieved com-
mercial production status with its advanced
solid-state micropixel avalanche photodiode
(MAPD) photodetectors, the MAPD-3N. Manu-
factured under a contract with the Malaysian
Institute of Microelectronic Systems and
Omega Semiconductor Sdn Bhd (MIMOS),
they offer performance advantages over photo-
multiplier tubes. Photon detection efficiency
and working gain have been improved, and
dark count rates have been reduced. These
upgrades make the universal adoption of the
technology a reality for positron emission
tomography medical scanners and gamma
camera applications, particularly when the
MAPD-3Ns are combined with Zecoteks LFS
scintillation materials.
Armstrong Optical to Represent Ophir
Optics Armstrong Optical Ltd. of Northampton,
UK, will represent the Infrared Optics Group of
Ophir Optronics Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary
of Newport Corp., for sales of its thermal imag-
ing lens systems and optical imaging compo-
nents. The agreement covers the UK and Ire-
land. Ophir Optronics anticipates that the
collaboration will help it penetrate the defense
and security market in the UK, which it served
previously through catalog houses or by itself
from its offices in Jerusalem and Heerbrug,
Switzerland. Armstrong Optical has extensive
knowledge of the business aspects of the UK
defense market, Ophir said.
Newport Acquiring ILX Lightwave Newport
Corp. of Irvine, Calif., will expand its capabili-
ties in photonics test and measurement by
acquiring ILX Lightwave Corp. of Bozeman,
Mont., for $9.3 million in cash. ILX, which
offers a broad range of photonics instrumenta-
tion, will become a wholly owned subsidiary
and will operate as part of Newports Photonics
and Precision Technologies Div. The company
expects 2011 revenues of approximately
$8 million.
Gigaphoton Reaches Milestone Lithography
light source manufacturer Gigaphoton Inc. of
Oyama, Japan, shipped its 1000th excimer
laser for semiconductor photolithography in
December. Komatsu, Gigaphotons predecessor,
marketed Japans first excimer laser in 1985,
followed by the worlds first excimer laser for
semiconductor photolithography in 1987. Since
then, Gigaphoton has developed and marketed
excimer laser units to meet the needs of the
semiconductor industry. Gigaphotons next-
generation ArF excimer laser for multipatterning
immersion lithography scanners, the GT63A
series, was created to reduce running cost and
34
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FASTTRACK
BUSINESSBRIEFS
412_Coherent_DiodeLasers_Pg35_Layout 1 3/22/12 10:52 AM Page 35
to achieve higher uptime, wider depth of
focus and higher stability.
Carl Zeiss SMS Opens South Korea Office
To provide on-site activities for its customers
and faster delivery of spare parts, the Semicon-
duc tor Metrology Systems (SMS) Div. of Carl
Zeiss SMT GmbH of Oberkochen, Germany,
has opened an office in the Bundang province
of South Korea. Located near its main semi -
conductor customers, the new office also will
provide an environment for knowledge sharing
among the Carl Zeiss teams, the company
said. The SMS Div. supplies metrology and
manufacturing equipment for the semiconduc -
tor industry.
Bridgelux Attracts $25M Investment Kaistar
Lighting Co. Ltd. of Xiamen, China, will invest
$25 million in Bridgelux Inc., an LED lighting
technologies and solutions manufacturer based
in Livermore, Calif. Bridgelux will use the equity
investment to further accelerate research, devel-
opment and production of LED chip and pack-
aging technology for general illumination appli-
cations. This investment marks the beginning
of our cooperation with Kaistar to lead the tran-
sition to solid-state lighting, said Bill Watkins,
CEO of Bridgelux. He added that Kaistars man-
ufacturing capabilities combined with Bridge -
luxs packaging solutions will continue to drive
down the cost of solid-state technology for gen-
eral lighting.
Jenoptik Wins Order for Traffic Monitors
The Traffic Solutions Div. of Jenoptik AG
of Jena, Germany, has won a 40 million
($52.8 million) order to equip streets in
Malaysia with traffic safety systems. Jenoptik will
deliver, install and implement up to 550 traffic
monitoring systems in Malaysia and will support
the operation over a five-year period. The scope
of delivery encompasses stationary and mobile
systems for monitoring red-light and speed
violations and further on-site services, includ -
ing equipment installation and the implementa-
tion of comprehensive software covering the
entire process chain. The project is part of a
Malaysian government initiative to improve
road safety.
Vixar Wins VCSEL Contract The National
Science Foundation has awarded Vixar of
Plymouth, Minn., a Small Business Innovation
Research (SBIR) Phase I contract to demonstrate
the feasibility of a composite resonator vertical-
cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) that can
achieve a 40- to 100-Gb/s serial data trans -
mission rate. Under the Phase I project, Vixar
will fabricate a composite resonator VCSEL
(CRVCL), demonstrate the push-pull nature
of the modulation to a minimum of 20 GHz,
and demonstrate the reduction, or elimination,
of relaxation oscillations. The new VCSELs
will be essential for the development of
optical interconnects within a cabinet or
circuit board.
OLED Glass Venture Formed Corning Inc. of
Corning, N.Y., and Samsung Mobile Display Co.
Ltd. of Yongin City, South Korea, have signed
an agreement to establish an equity venture to
manufacture specialty glass substrates for the
organic LED (OLED) market. The business will
be located in South Korea. Combining Corn-
ings Lotus Glass substrate technology with
Samsungs OLED display experience, the entity
will supply OLED backplane glass substrates for
Samsung Mobile Display as well as the broader
South Korean market. OLED technology ad-
vanced rapidly in 2011, setting a trend that is
forecasted to continue through this decade,
according to a report from NPD DisplaySearch,
a market research company.
Radiant Zemax Secures Company To bol-
ster its European presence, Radiant Zemax LLC of
Redmond, Wash., has acquired its longtime UK-
based distributor, Optima Research Ltd. Financial
terms of the agreement were not disclosed. Op-
tima Research will continue to operate as Eu-
ropes local office for sales and support of Zemax
12 optical and illumination design software for
flat panel display and LED manufacturers. Our
acquisition formalizes and strengthens the long-
standing business relationship between Optima
Research and Radiant Zemax, said Neil Barrett,
managing director of Optima Research.
Obzerv Wins Contract for Cameras Obzerv
Technologies Inc. of Quebec City has received a
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FASTTRACK
Think New Technology
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Hamamatsu incorporates the latest technologies and techniques, such as MEMS and CMOS
technologies, to develop photonics products with improved characteristics. Products with
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looking for detectors, image sensors, cameras, light sources, or complete turnkey solutions,
look to Hamamatsu technology for high-quality products.
Visit us online at http://sales.hamamatsu.com
412_Hamamatsu_Pg37_Layout 1 3/22/12 10:56 AM Page 37
contract from state-owned electronics company Bharat Electronics Ltd. (BEL)
of Bengaluru, India, to supply 46 ARGC-2400 cameras. Obzervs electro-
optic cameras will be integrated by BEL into a multisensor coastal surveil-
lance system. Each system, to be supplied to the Indian Coast Guard, will
include the ARGC-2400, a thermal imager, a radar station and meteoro-
logical sensors. All systems will be mounted on lighthouses and towers.
The radar stations and thermal imagers will detect and locate any intrusions
from the sea, while the ARGC-2400 cameras will identify and classify those
targets.
NeoPhotonics Completes Phase NeoPhotonics Corp. of San Jose, Calif.,
has completed the first phase of its plan to increase production capacity
of narrow-linewidth tunable lasers (NLW-TL). Since initiating the plan in
the fourth quarter of 2011, the company has doubled its NLW-TL output
and added customers. Demand for the products has outstripped industry
capacity because of the need for coherent optical technology and the
supply constraints attributed to the Thailand flooding in 2011. The com-
pact, widely tunable assemblies offer up to 35 mW of launch power in
the C-band and 20 mW in the L-band. Narrow linewidths are designed
to facilitate digital signal processing.
Power Technology Adds Branch To improve its services to customers in
Germany and throughout Europe, laser diode manufacturer Power Tech-
nology Inc. of Little Rock, Ark., has established a European sales office.
The branch will be headed by Tony Pope and Damon Cookman, who
founded Photonic Products Ltd. (now ProPhotonix) in 1995. The two men
have a combined experience of more than 30 years in the photonics in-
dustry and an in-depth knowledge of the German and other European
markets. The new direct sales center is the third for Power Technology.
The company also has centers in the US and Canada.
Siemens Unit Sets Record Siemens AG of Munich has announced that
its Osram subsidiary has set a new efficiency record, developing an OLED
that generates 32 lm of light per watt, making it more efficient than a
halogen lamp. Osram has produced a flexible OLED that emits white light
from a surface measuring approximately 11 3 cm. The 32-lm/W device
was feasible in part because of a special design for the vacuum-metal-
lized electrical contacts. The efficiency values were measured using a
large-area sample under the most realistic conditions possible, and
without any lenses or other devices to increase the light yield.
Companies to Develop InF Fiber Tech Daylight Solutions of San Diego
has entered into a strategic business relationship with infrared fiber com-
pany IRphotonics of Hamden, Conn., to advance indium fluoride (InF)
fiber technology. Daylight said that the partnership leverages its expertise
in transitioning critical technologies into new products and that it has
begun to incorporate fiber optic delivery into its product capabilities, en-
abling new applications in the mid-infrared. Daylight also will distribute
IRphotonics infrared product line. IRphotonics InF fiber technology now
offers low loss, high mechanical quality and broad coverage throughout
the mid-IR spectrum. Daylight Solutions manufactures molecular detection
and imaging systems.
Nanopatterning Agreement Signed EV Group (EVG) of St. Florian, Aus-
tria, has entered into a joint development and licensing agreement with
Eulitha AG of Switzerland to establish a low-cost-of-ownership nanopat-
terning solution for high-brightness LED manufacturing. EVG will integrate
Eulithas Phable mask-based UV photolithography technology with its auto-
mated mask aligner product platform. Demo capabilities are in place, and
the first products are expected to ship later this year. Combining Eulithas
full-field exposure technology with EVGs mask alignment platform enables
automated fabrication of photonic nanostructures over large areas, and
supports the production of energy-efficient LEDs, LCDs and solar cells.
JDSU Acquires Dyaptive Systems JDSU of Milpitas, Calif., has acquired
Dyaptive Systems of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, a provider of
capacity test products for 2G, 3G and 4G wireless networks. Specific terms
of the deal were not disclosed. Dyaptive Systems provides subscriber emu-
lation systems for wireless technologies, including emerging long-term
evolution/4G being deployed by service providers. Such systems support
network capacity planning and quality performance by emulating thou-
sands of mobile devices in high-bandwidth applications, such as stream-
ing video. It is a high-growth segment of the communications test market
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FASTTRACK
412_Nufern_Pg39_Layout 1 3/22/12 10:57 AM Page 39
and generated revenue in the high single-digit
millions in 2011.
PPGI Becomes Inrad Optics Seeking to capital-
ize on its longevity in the industry, Photonic Prod-
ucts Group Inc. (PPGI) of Northvale, N.J., is now
Inrad Optics Inc., restoring its original name.
The original Inrad organization possessed a re-
markable history that began in the formative
years of the laser industry, said Joe Rutherford,
CEO of Inrad Optics. The company was founded
in 1973 and operated under the name Photonics
Products Group Inc. until the recent name
change. The change was approved at a special
meeting of the shareholders held Jan. 18.
AMS Technologies Acquires Azpect AMS
Technologies AG has acquired Sweden-based
Azpect Photonics AB, creating the largest pan-
European provider of products for optical,
power and thermal management technologies,
AMS said. Specific terms were not disclosed.
Azpect Photonics supplies lasers, optics, spec-
troscopy products and OEM components to the
Nordic market. Based outside Munich, AMS
Technologies provides optical, power and ther-
mal management products to the renewable
energy, medical, defense and aerospace, tele-
com and datacom, research and scientific mar-
kets, and other industrial segments.
Affymetrix to Acquire eBioscience In Califor-
nia, Affymetrix Inc. of Santa Clara signed a
definitive agreement to acquire eBioscience Inc.
of San Diego, a flow cytometry and immunoas-
say reagents company, for $330 million in cash,
subject to certain customary adjustments. With
eBioscience, Affymetrix will significantly expand
its addressable markets by adding an industry-
leading portfolio of cell-based and immunoas-
says, said Dr. Frank Witney, president and
CEO of Affymetrix. These new products are a
critical part of our customers work flow in our
key target markets of translational medicine,
oncology and immunology. Affymetrix manu-
factures systems for the diagnostic, biotechnol-
ogy and pharmaceutical industries.
Laser 2000 Adds Machine Vision Team
Laser 2000 GmbH, an optical technologies
company, has established a machine vision
sales department to address increased interna-
tional demand for industrial and scientific image
processing technology. The company plans to
add more staff this year and has hired Armin
Herweg as an industrial image processing spe-
cialist. He has experience in the quality control,
image processing and industrial automation
fields. Laser 2000, with headquarters in Munich,
delivers services and products in core areas of
the photonics market.
Companies Settle Dispute In California,
Optovue Inc. of Fremont and Carl Zeiss Med-
itec Inc. of Dublin have signed a settlement
agreement resolving two pending US District
Court patent infringement cases. Specific terms
of the settlement were not disclosed. Under the
agreement, the two companies dismissed all
currently pending litigation and entered into a
cross-license agreement of certain issued and
soon-to-be-issued patents owned or controlled
by each party. Optovue is a privately held oph-
thalmic device company. Carl Zeiss Meditec is a
medical technology supplier.
Modulight Revenue up in 2011 Revenue for
2011 was up 10 percent over 2010 for laser
manufacturer Modulight Inc., president and
CEO Petteri Uusimaa has announced. The Tam-
pere, Finland, company attributed its growth to
establishing business with new customers and
generating business in new areas, including the
development of OEM laser solutions for therapy
and diagnostic applications. The work was sup-
ported by the receipt of ISO 13485:2003 certifi-
cation in 2011, which Uusimaa said proved to
clients that its processes directly support medical
equipment manufacturing without compromise.
Modulight began the new year with a backlog
of orders that is half of the 2011 revenue, Uusi-
maa said.
Gooch & Housego Leads Project Gooch &
Housego of Somerset, UK, will lead a 4.5 mil-
lion (about $5.9 million) collaborative European
Union-funded FP7 project titled Integrated dis-
ruptive components for 2 m fiber lasers (ISLA)
launched in October 2011 at Trinity College in
40
f
FASTTRACK
With over 150 R&D staf, and more than 500 Zygo
patents supporting him, Dan Musinski, Zygo
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412_Zygo_Pg41_Layout 1 3/22/12 10:57 AM Page 41
Dublin. The 2-m fiber laser technology has the
potential to open new applications, such as in-
dustrial processing, free-space communications
and medical procedures, because of its in-
creased core size and higher nonlinear thresh-
olds. It offers a tenfold increase in raw power
compared with current 1-m-based technology.
Other partners include Rofin Sinar Laser GmbH,
Oclaro, Time-Bandwidth Products, the University
of Southampton, Trinity College and Vivid Com-
ponents.
Company Supplies Light Sensors for Smart-
phones Austriamicrosystems of Unterprem-
staettten, Austria, is supplying high volumes of
intelligent ambient light and proximity sensors
for four Samsung Galaxy smartphone models.
The sensors, which are being integrated into
the Galaxy Ace, Galaxy Gio, Galaxy Mini and
Galaxy Neo models, are used in the displays to
adapt the display brightness to the current light
environment and to control the display and
touch screen on/off status when the phone is
held to the ear. Austriamicrosystems designs
and manufactures analog integrated circuits for
consumer and communications, industry and
medical, and automotive applications.
BMC to Improve Imaging of Exoplanets
NASA has awarded Boston Micromachines
Corp. (BMC) of Cambridge, Mass., a Phase I
Small Business Innovation Research contract for
$125,000 to advance exoplanet imaging re-
search involving deformable mirrors. One of
NASAs core objectives is to explore exoplanets
earthlike planets outside our solar system.
BMC will develop and demonstrate a microfab-
rication process to substantially improve the
surface quality achievable in high-resolution
continuous-membrane MEMS (microelectro -
mechanical systems) deformable mirrors. The
goals include at least a twofold improvement in
small-scale surface flatness in comparison with
the state of the art, and corresponding reduc-
tions in diffraction.
FDA Approves Brain Injury Detector A hand -
held device intended to aid in the detection of
life-threatening bleeding in the skull has been
approved by the FDA. The device, called the
Infrascanner Model 1000, can help health
care providers identify patients with critical
head injuries who need an immediate brain
imaging study. Made by InfraScan Inc. of
Philadelphia, it uses a near-IR scanner, which
can nondestructively penetrate the skull through
tissue and bone. Blood from intracranial hema -
tomas absorbs the light differently than other
areas of the brain. The scanner detects varia-
tions in light absorption and transmits the infor-
mation wirelessly to a display on a handheld
computer.
PhotOral Licenses Technology Life sciences
startup PhotOral of Lexington, Mass., has li-
censed patented technology from Harvard
University-affiliated Forsyth Institute to develop
an intraoral device that uses blue light for tar-
geting and obliterating potentially harmful
dental plaque microorganisms. The agreement
enables PhotOral to commercialize Forsyths
photomedicine portfolio, which addresses the
$7 billion oral care market. Stamatis Astra,
PhotOrals founder and CEO, is fundraising to
support prototype production, clinical trials and
marketing operations. The companys goal is
to have its first intraoral light cleaning device
available by late 2012. The Forsyth Institute of
Cambridge, Mass., will conduct PhotOrals clini-
cal trials.
BinOptics Attracts $13M in Funding Bin-
Optics Corp. of Ithaca, N.Y., has closed on
$13.3 million in new funding, which it will use
to continue the expansion of its product lines
and to accelerate the development of its new
products. New investors participating in this
round of funding are Advantage Capital Part-
ners, Enhanced Capital Partners, Gefinor Ven-
tures, Onondaga Venture Capital Fund and
Rand Capital. They join existing investors Arrow-
Path Venture Partners, Cayuga Venture Fund,
Draper Fisher Jurvetson and FA Technology
Ventures. The funding will help BinOptics meet
the increased demand for its 2.5 and 10 Gb/s
distributed feedback laser products and help to
create new jobs at the organization.
Cree Licenses Phosphor Patents Through its
remote phosphor licensing program, semicon-
ductor solutions company Cree Inc. of Durham,
N.C., has granted licenses for select remote
phosphor patents to five LED lighting manufac-
turers. The license further enables LED lighting
adoption through the development of lights that
combine remote phosphor optical elements with
blue LEDs, the company said. Initial licensees
to Crees remote phosphor patents include
Aurora Energie Corp., Horner APG, Ledzworld
Technology, Vexica Technology and Wyndsor
Lighting LLC. Cree has been in discussions
with other companies to sign additional
agreements.
Datalogic Acquires PPT Vision Automatic
data capture and industrial automation com-
pany Datalogic SpA of Bologna, Italy, has ac-
quired machine vision technologies provider PPT
Vision Inc. for $5.2 million, financed with inter-
nal capital resources. Under the agreement, PPT
will operate as a separate company within Dat-
alogic Automation, the industrial automation di-
vision of Datalogic Group. PPT will maintain its
Minneapolis office, with a network of strategic
sales partners, distributors and integrators. The
acquisition is expected to provide both organi-
zations with stronger global sales channels,
additional product development resources, and
industry leadership positions in automation and
machine vision.
SpectraFluidics Secures Contract Spectra-
Fluidics Inc. of Santa Barbara, Calif., has
earned a $1.3 million contract from the US De-
partment of Homeland Security, Transportation
Security Administration to develop and validate
a system that detects homemade explosives, in-
cluding on passengers and in baggage. The
company develops and manufactures vapor
trace chemical detection technology. The com-
pany says the system will be readily integrated
with imaging equipment. SpectraFluidics
patented technology leverages two physical
principles combined into a single system: free-
surface microfluidics and surface-enhanced
Raman spectroscopy.
42
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412_CookeCorp_Pg43_Layout 1 3/22/12 10:58 AM Page 43
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GreenLight
New solar cells are more efficient
A
novel solar cell design could har-
vest energy from the sun much
more efficiently than traditional
devices do, dramatically improving the
amount of useful energy solar panels can
create.
Traditional solar cells capture only
certain wavelengths from the sun, which
means that much of the absorbed lights
energy is lost as heat particularly the
energy from the photons in the blue range.
And that means that traditional solar cells
cannot convert more than 34 percent of
available sunlight into electricity.
The work was done by a team in the
department of physics at the University
of Cambridge in the UK, led by professor
Neil Greenham and professor Sir Richard
Friend.
The new hybrid cell absorbs red as well
as blue light to boost the electrical
current. A typical solar cell gener-
ates a single electron for each
photon captured. But by adding
the organic semiconductor pen-
tacene, the solar cells can
generate two electrons for
every photon from the blue
light spectrum. This could en-
able the cells to capture 44 per-
cent of the incoming solar energy.
Pentacene is special, since
absorbing one photon rapidly
produces two charge-pairs rather
than the usual one, Green-
ham said. There arent
many other organic materials
out there at the moment that do
this, but maybe we could design
more now that we understand the
physics.
The researchers do not yet plan to reach
out and harness additional wavelengths.
It makes sense to stick with just two
materials in the device, Greenham said.
The lead selenide absorbs the red and in-
frared light, and the pentacene efficiently
captures the energy of the green and blue
light.
To do even better than this in a single
device, wed need a material that gener-
ates three pairs of charges for each photon
absorbed, but this would be hard to do
and wouldnt give a big increase in effi-
ciency.
The paper, Singlet Exciton Fission-
Sensitized Infrared Quantum Dot Solar
Cells, was published in Nano Letters
(doi: 10.1021/nl204297u).
Its a good start, the researchers said,
but there is more to be done. The work
we published shows that this new effect
works, but the actual efficiencies we
achieve still arent great, Greenham said.
Were working hard to push the efficien-
cies up, but theres a lot of work still to
do before we have devices that can be
deployed in real applications.
At the same time, lots of companies are
developing low-cost printed photovoltaics
for different markets. By demonstrating
this new strategy for beating the usual
solar-cell efficiency limits, weve raised
the target for everyone to aim at.
But solar cell efficiency itself isnt the
only factor in cost-effectiveness. Organic
and hybrid solar cells have an advantage
over current silicon-based technology
because they can be produced in large
quantities at low cost by roll-to-roll print-
ing, said Bruno Ehrler, lead author on the
paper. However, much of the cost of a
solar power plant is in the land, labor and
installation hardware. As a result, even if
organic solar panels are less expensive,
we need to improve their efficiency to
make them competitive.
Otherwise, itd be like buying a cheap
painting, only to find out you need an
expensive frame. l
45
BY LAURA S. MARSHALL
MANAGING EDITOR
The devices harvest blue as well as red light to reap more energy than ever before.
A new solar cell developed by researchers at the
University of Cambridge in the UK is more efficient
than traditional cells because it harnesses more than
just red light. Courtesy of Bruno Ehrler and Neil
Greenham, University of Cambridge.
Laura S. Marshall
laura.marshall@photonics.com
By demonstrating this new strategy for beating the
usual solar-cell efficiency limits, weve raised the target
for everyone to aim at. Professor Neil Greenham, University of Cambridge
412GreenLight_Layout 1 3/22/12 1:05 PM Page 45
Connected
and Smarter,
Cameras
Keep Watch
BY HANK HOGAN
CONTRIBUTING EDITOR
F
ading fast are the days of closed-
circuit television, yesterdays video
surveillance staple that displays the
output of analog cameras on monitors. It
can be an inexpensive solution. However,
the image can be grainy, the hours spent
recording video a hassle, and the multi-
camera installation management difficult
and costly.
Today, the trend is toward network
cameras, which are Internet protocol (IP)-
based and digital. They offer megapixel
and high-definition resolution, helping
tasks ranging from security to determining
which displays attract people in a store.
They also are increasingly intelligent, able
to extract and transmit only what is impor-
tant in a scene. As a result, they can do
double or triple duty.
In traffic monitoring, you can use them
to just get warnings and traffic informa-
tion, but they can also be used if someone
is breaking the rules, said Jonas Anders-
son, director of business development at
Axis Communications, a Lund, Sweden-
based pioneer of network video cameras.
Not unlike the cameras, Andersson has
more than one job. He also chairs the
steering committee for the industry forum
ONVIF, which is standardizing IP surveil-
lance interfaces, thereby opening up the
market. Another trade group, the Physical
Security Interoperability Alliance, seeks
something similar, although using a differ-
ent approach.
As with the latter, ONVIF has released
a core specification that covers video stor-
age devices, video analytics engines, cam-
eras and encoders. Thus, if a camera and a
server are both stamped as satisfying the
ONVIF streaming video profile, the two
can communicate with each other, no mat-
ter the manufacturer. To help ensure this,
ONVIF has created tools to test device
conformance, Andersson said.
Growing capabilities
As for the future, the group is looking
to expand its reach. For example, it is con-
sidering incorporating into its specs other
aspects of security, such as building access
control. It has already tackled such things
as camera control.
We have the possibility to look at ex-
posure and so on, Andersson said. It is
an optional feature that can handle iris,
shutter time and so on.
Putting on his Axis Communications
hat, he noted that network cameras can do
Digital network cameras are increasingly
coming into play for surveillance
and security applications.
Cameras being installed at RS Davis Recycling in Clackamas, Ore. Courtesy of Toshiba American
Information Systems.
412SurveillanceFeature_Layout 1 3/22/12 1:05 PM Page 46
more than simply capture video. For in-
stance, they can recognize when a car has
pulled up, image its license plate and
transmit only that or extracted identifiers.
This is possible because the cameras have
spare processing capacity that can be used
for intelligent features and to power third-
party applications hosted by the device
itself, Andersson said.
NPD In-Stat, a Scottsdale, Ariz.-based
market analysis firm, predicts that the
image sensors and other chips found in
video surveillance gear will approach $3.5
billion in revenue by 2015. Semiconduc-
tors then will make up about 21 percent of
the total surveillance market revenue.
When it comes to the sensor at the heart
of the cameras, there is a clear favorite,
said Max Baron, an NPD In-Stat analyst.
Since were talking video, CMOS is
gaining market share.
CMOS dominance is particularly evi-
dent in faster and more expensive cameras
that offer higher resolution and higher per-
formance. Sergio Collazo is director of
sales and marketing for Irvine, Calif.-
based Toshiba Surveillance & IP Video
Products. The companys offerings range
from analog to the latest network cameras.
Many of Toshibas megapixel surveillance
cameras use CMOS not CCD sensors.
CMOS sensors take up less space, con-
sume less power and are cheaper than the
alternative, Collazo said. He added that,
with the use of infrared, LEDs and day/
night imaging, CMOS-based cameras per-
form as well in poor light conditions as
CCD-based ones, even in situations of
near complete darkness.
Collazo noted that worldwide sales of
network cameras are more than $1 billion,
and he expects that to grow fourfold by
2015. Analog camera sales, in contrast, are
flat or falling. By 2014 or so, the sales of
the two will cross, although analog cam-
Thanks to their image quality, network cameras can do more than security. St. Cloud, Fla., uses cameras
to watch the perimeter of the citys water treatment facility, with high-definition video and alarms monitoring
tanks and gauges. Courtesy of Axis Communications.
Network cameras
monitor a luxury car
auction and record
any events in or
around the vehicles.
Courtesy of IQinVision.
eras will still make up the majority of
unit sales.
As for general trends, he pointed to the
emergence of high-definition video, mega -
pixel cameras and the adoption of the
H.264 compression standard as all benefit-
ing IP cameras. He also said that network
cameras can reduce overall installation
costs, particularly because current infra-
structure often can be used. Little or no,
or new, wiring may be needed, either for
data or power.
Onboard PoE (Power over Ethernet)
now allows a single Ethernet cable to
transfer both data and power to and from
an IP camera, Collazo said.
He predicted that video analytics will
gain traction in the future. Substituting
software for security personnel automates
such tasks as counting the number of
people entering or exiting a building,
detecting unattended objects or spotting
someone entering a restricted area. Once
a problem is uncovered, an alarm can
be sent by email, voice, text or another
means.
Video analytics should indeed drive
sales of future surveillance cameras and
systems, said John Devlin, London-based
group director for the security and identifi-
cation practice at consultancy ABI Re-
search. The company foresees a more than
10 percent growth rate year over year for
the next half-decade for video analytics.
Security accounts for 70 percent of sur-
veillance system expenditures today;
Devlin expects it to fall to 60 percent by
2016, thanks to the rising use of video
analysis in business intelligence and other
applications.
He sees the shift to edge devices to do
the analysis as part of the evolution of
cameras. One aspect of this is that more
network cameras are being installed. An-
other is that those cameras already have
or soon will pack the necessary processing
power. And if semiconductor trends hold,
cameras will be capable of performing
even more sophisticated analysis in the
future.
The edge analytics impact will be
largely on the system as a whole, Devlin
said. For instance, if a video feed is exten-
sively analyzed, then perhaps only a small
amount of data will actually have to travel
over the network. That will reduce data
volumes being transmitted, a challenge
facing video surveillance, and what data
there is can be distributed over many de-
vices.
Cloud-based analytics have been touted
Surveillance Cameras
Megapixel images helped a jewelry store first confirm a theft and then identify the perpetrator,
who had palmed a $40,000 ring and walked out. Courtesy of IQinVision.
Because they are connected, IP cameras can output images to anywhere on a network. Here, multimode
fiber optic cable transmits video signals from cameras to a 32-channel network video recorder 600 ft away.
This allows remote viewing of payment, truck traffic and the weighing of recycled materials. Courtesy of
Toshiba American Information Systems.
CMOS dominance
is particularly evident
in faster and more
expensive cameras
that offer higher
resolution and higher
performance.
412_JenoptikOptical_Pg49_Layout 1 3/22/12 11:00 AM Page 49
as one possible countervailing trend. In
a way, this is a back-to-the-future case,
as all video analysis used to be done re-
motely. In practice, there are problems
with actually carrying out cloud-based
analytics. There are privacy concerns and
uncertainty about who owns the video.
Overrun with pixels
There also are issues in dealing with
the large amount of data generated. For
one thing, it demands an always-on and
always-present high-bandwidth connec-
tion, which can be a problem.
The required level of redundancy is
not possible at the level of bandwidth
required for the transmission of a high-
capacity video feed, Devlin said.
Handling the output that high-resolution
cameras can produce is a general industry
concern. Don Ashley, product manager
of network camera maker IQinVision of
San Juan Capistrano, Calif., noted that its
possible to put a 20-megapixel camera in
a surveillance system. However, it then
can become a burden to store, transmit,
decode, view and analyze the data. Larger
sensors also can mean heavier optics, ne-
cessitating heftier pan, tilt and zoom mo-
tors, if these are present. The entire assem-
bly then may need a beefed-up mounting
bracket and a sturdier pole.
Clearly, its important to have the right
resolution for a particular situation. There
has to be enough detail to reveal whatever
is of interest, but anything beyond that
may be a megapixel too far.
As for analytics done on the edge
and perhaps in the camera itself, that, too,
requires striking a balance. Intelligent
analysis can, for example, make large
megapixel sensor deployments more
efficient by identifying motion and send-
ing only images or areas with movement
to a recording solution.
However, there will be some level of
false-positives, times when an alarm is
tripped but nothing is actually amiss.
That figure can run as much as 25 percent,
Ashley said; that is, perhaps one out of
four times, motion will be detected when
nothing actually moves, other than per-
haps a shadow.
Even given these realities, however,
video surveillance and the cameras that
produce it can still be critically important.
The video can help companies catch
thieves or identify why a retail sales
campaign is successful. That makes the
camera more valuable than it first appears.
How do companies view these devices?
Its not just a camera, Ashley said.
Its the camera that creates video that
they view as an asset.
hank.hogan@photonics.com
Surveillance Cameras
Network surveillance cameras operate in all
conditions and over temperatures ranging from
40 to 167 F. Here a snow-covered camera keeps
watch on a Canadian car dealership. Courtesy of
Axis Communications.
412_ISPOptics_Pg51_Layout 1 3/22/12 11:01 AM Page 51
Conscripting Terahertz Sensors
BY LYNN SAVAGE
FEATURES EDITOR
T
erahertz waves are short enough to
provide resolution of less than 1 mm,
yet long enough to penetrate most
nonmetallic substances, such as the mate-
rials used to make clothing, rucksacks and
tarps. As such, they are useful to security
agents and military personnel alike for
revealing concealed weapons, chemical
explosives and biological agents. Besides
security applications such as airport
screeners, higher-resolution terahertz
sensors could provide enhanced identifica-
tion of battlefield targets, better missile
guidance and other combat advantages.
Soldiers, marines and fighter pilots are
increasingly trained to use not only the
visible wavelengths that their eyes can
process, but infrared wavelengths as well.
To some in the military-aligned industries,
sensors that read terahertz frequencies
could help augment what the US Army
calls its Future Combat System by sup-
porting a wide range of microdevices that
scan multiple frequencies at all times.
The US Army Research Office is a
main driver of all terahertz-related defense
technologies, according to Dwight Wool -
ard of the US Army Research Laboratory
in Research Triangle Park, N.C. However,
he noted, because the terahertz spectrum is
very broad with extreme diversity across
the regime, the ARO places emphasis on
select scientific and technology projects
that are high risk and high reward.
As far as researchers in the field are
concerned, the terahertz range runs from
300 GHz to as high as 10 THz. The spec-
tral territory beyond that is largely unex-
plored until you get closer to microwave
frequencies.
Terahertz technology looks at the col-
lective motion of molecules stacked in
a group, said M. Hassan Arbab of the
University of Washington in Seattle.
The spectral lines come from the
vibrational modes of large molecules.
Spectral information acquisition has
thus far relied upon only a couple of basic
technologies, namely antenna-coupled
semiconductors, cryogenically cooled
bolometers and uncooled microbolometers
paired with quantum-cascade lasers
(QCLs).
Antenna-coupled sensors operate in the
subterahertz (0.1 to 1 THz) or low-tera-
hertz range (<2 THz), whereas thermal
detectors provide broader spectral cover-
age, depending upon the characteristics
of the terahertz absorber employed, said
Gamani Karunasiri of the Naval Postgrad-
uate School (NPS) in Monterey, Calif.
Due to the lack of appreciable tera-
hertz power in the thermal background,
it is necessary to use an illumination
Imaging and spectroscopy in the terahertz frequency range
eventually will give troops a welcome advantage in the field.
Terahertz imaging reveals a surgical blade hidden
inside a piece of Styrofoam. Courtesy of Gamani
Karunasiri, Naval Postgraduate School.
A schematic (below) and micrograph (above) show the design and fabrication of a metamaterial
structure tuned to a quantum cascade laser (QCL) frequency. Courtesy of Gamani Karunasiri,
Naval Postgraduate School.
412_Battlefield Feat_Layout 1 3/22/12 1:06 PM Page 52
source for imaging using uncooled thermal
sensors, Karunasiri said. Initial terahertz
imaging using a standard infrared micro -
bolometer camera with modified optics
and a quantum cascade laser illuminator
showed good promise in real-time
imaging.
Rough work
Making an explosive may not actually
resemble cooking in the kitchen, but con-
ceptually you end up with something akin
to a meatloaf. As with the chunks of ham-
burger and breading that make the meal,
explosives such as C-4 and RDX (cyclo -
trimethylenetrinitramine, or cyclonite) are
composed of a mash of volatile chemicals
and binders.
Capturing reflectance from such mix-
tures requires a certain amount of surface
roughness in the target material. Plastic
explosives such as C-4, for example,
have fairly rough particles, which have
the same approximate size as the terahertz
waves themselves. However, particles over
a certain size tend to overly scatter tera-
hertz waves, affecting overall absorption.
Therefore, despite being mostly acceptable
targets of terahertz radiation, some targets
will have particles that naturally dampen
the ability of a scanner to successfully
identify them.
Oddly, alpha-lactose, a form of the
common sugar found in milk, makes a
handy (and safe) stand-in for some explo-
sives. Particles made of the materials,
when excited, exhibit resonances at 540
GHz, 1.2 THz and 1.38 THz. Pellets made
chiefly of lactose particles are available in
a multitude of sizes representing various
surface roughness grades (akin to sand-
paper ratings), and tests using these have
shown that terahertz waves become less
reliable as the particle size and thus
overall surface roughness increases.
In 2010, researchers at the University
of Washington devised a mathematical
transform method to address the issue of
surface roughness. Typical time-domain
spectrographic analysis involves acquiring
multiple pulsed reflection measurements
from several spots on the target surface,
then calculating the Fourier transform
of each metric. At terahertz frequencies,
however, target irregularities scatter so
much energy that any signal gets buried
in an avalanche of noise.
Instead, the Washington group Arbab
and his colleagues Antao Chen, Eric I.
Thorsos and Dale P. Winebrenner
tweaked a wavelet transform method, not
uncommon in terahertz investigations.
Dubbed the maximal overlap discrete
wavelet transform, the groups technique
permits a better spectral signal-to-noise
ratio from targets, even given very rough
surface equivalents and only a few disjoint
terahertz measurements of the target parti-
cles. The researchers report, however, that
more work is needed to nail down the
minimum number of measurements
needed for certainty.
Their development of the wavelet trans-
form was reported in Proceedings of SPIE,
Vol. 7601, and in Applied Physics Letters,
Vol. 97, 181903.
Illumination
Since terahertz radiation is highly
absorbed by the atmosphere, long-range
standoff imaging requires relatively high-
power terahertz illuminators, depending
Everything is 10 to 20 years
down the road.
M. Hassan Arbab,
University of Washington
The Main Hurdles to Terahertz Technology
#
1
Terahertz imaging and terahertz spectroscopy use different parts
of the spectrum and require different technologies. Imaging at
300 GHz (as with airport scanners) is not harmful to people, but you
dont get vital spectrographic information from it.
#
2
Water vapor, even in very dry deserts, brings about major
atmospheric attenuation; for example, in a room with 20 percent
humidity, a terahertz signal ends at 1 m.
#
3
More powerful lasers are needed to make both terahertz spectros-
copy and imaging possible from greater distances between source
and target, and powerful QCLs and FELs are too large and expensive to
hand out to troops in the field.
Measured absorption characteristics of a metamaterial structure and THz-QCL emission spectrum.
Courtesy of Gamani Karunasiri, Naval Postgraduate School.
on the distance, said Karunasiri of the
NPS. The best laser sources available to
date are either terahertz QCLs or free-
electron lasers (FELs), which require [a]
large infrastructure to operate.
FELs offer high power and a wide
range of tunability within the terahertz
frequency range, which is important
not only for imaging, but also for spec-
troscopy, which permits better identifica-
tion of chemical and biological threats.
More compact FELs that are under devel-
opment should lead to compact high-
power sources for field applications,
Karunasiri said.
Graphene individual sheets of carbon
atoms also is gaining attention as a pos-
sible terahertz source. The optoelectronic
properties of graphene make the material
an interesting subject for a number of re-
search groups, including that of Alexander
W. Holleitner at the Technical University
of Munich in Garching, Germany.
Generally, my group explores the time-
resolved optoelectronic dynamics in a
variety of nanoscale materials, including
nanowires, carbon nanotubes, metal nano-
particles, molecules and corresponding
hybrid structures, Holleitner said. The
dynamics comprise ultrafast dielectric
displacement currents, the drift currents
of photogenerated charge carriers and re-
combination processes. Furthermore, the
tunable bandgap in bilayer graphene is in
the terahertz range, he said.
Holleitner and his colleagues reported
in the April 12, 2011, issue of Nature
Communications that they tested the pho-
toelectric response of graphene. They
placed bilayered graphene into a circuit
that also included a pair of titanium and
gold striplines.
Using a mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser
with a pulse width of ~160 fs and a repeti-
tion rate of about 76 MHz, the investiga-
tors pumped the graphene. Terahertz radia-
tion was emitted from a charge-carrier
plasma that was generated by the optically
pumped graphene. Increasing the laser
power, Holleitner said, increased the
frequency of the terahertz emission.
The striplines are made out of titanium
and gold, but in principle, any metal will
Terahertz Imaging
Applying Terahertz
Waves to Burn Triage
T
erahertz radiation, it turns out,
isnt only good for determin-
ing the threat level of a would-be
terrorist or combatant.
The problem with military/
security applications is that youre
always playing hide-and-seek,
said M. Hassan Arbab of the Uni-
versity of Washington in Seattle.
Its important, but it occurred to
us that there are targets that
dont hide.
More than a million people
are treated for burns in the US
every year; battle wounds and
burns also must be evaluated
to determine which tissue is dam-
aged, how badly it is damaged
and which is still healthy. Third-
degree burns are the most prob-
lematic because they require
excision of the injured tissue. Its
not as easy as making a quick
visual inspection; current tech-
niques for evaluating third-
degree burns are only about 60
percent successful, and that is
under optimal conditions.
Terahertz radiation, which is
nonionizing and thus will not
further harm skin cells, is highly
sensitive to the water content
of the dermal layers of the skin.
When heat burns the skin, fluids
build up between the skin cells,
protecting whats left of the der-
mis. Arbab and his colleagues
reported in the Aug. 11, 2011,
issue of Biomedical Optics that
terahertz signals increase when
the fluids called interstitial
edema are present. They
found, for example, that third-
degree burns have about 30
percent higher reflectivity in
the terahertz range than does
normal skin.
The variations in terahertz
reflectivity readings permit rapid
diagnosis of not only the current
state of a burn, but also of its
future. Terahertz radiation helps
tell which partial-thickness burns
will progress to full-thickness,
Arbab said.
Lactose pellets stand in for more volatile chemicals when testing the effects of surface roughness on
terahertz sensing. a 400 grit (23-m particle diameter); b 150 grit (92 m); c P80 grit (201 m).
(d) shows the normalized reflection spectral amplitudes of these samples. Reprinted with permission
of Applied Physics Letters.
When pumped by a QCL laser, two or more layers
of graphene freely suspended on bimetal supports
emit terahertz radiation. This could lead to compact
emitters necessary for portable operation. Courtesy
of Alexander W. Holleitner, Technical University of
Munich.
412_Coherent_Meterless_Pg55_Layout 1 3/22/12 11:01 AM Page 55
do it, Holleitner said. The co-planar
striplines fulfilled two purposes for the
researchers. First, they acted as a near-
field antenna for the terahertz radiation;
and second, they transduced the signal to
an ultrafast low-temperature-grown GaAs
photodetector placed to the side of one of
the metal striplines. The stripline circuit
is up to five orders of magnitude more
sensitive in picking up the terahertz signal
than are far-field detection mechanisms,
Holleitner said.
Attenuation due to atmospheric effects
is a problem. Attenuation can be hundreds
of decibels per kilometer. At shorter dis-
tances say, hundreds of meters it is
less of an issue. Large bands in the 300-
GHz to 2-THz and 6- to 10-THz ranges
are particularly less prone to atmospheric
effects. More powerful lasers, such as
free-electron devices, can increase the
amount of safe distance, but are so large
as to preclude field use.
Diode lasers are more compact, of
course, but are generally very low in
power. This is a trade-off that researchers
are attempting to avoid with new tech-
nologies.
For example, one alternative to address-
ing the attenuation problem has been pro-
posed: Xi-Cheng Zhang of the University
of Rochester in New York and his col-
leagues have developed a method to gen-
erate terahertz waves close to a target,
then analyze and communicate the spec-
troscopic findings to personnel a safe
distance away via 800-nm waves.
The future warrior
The most important terahertz applica-
tion, Karunasiri said, is standoff detection
of concealed weapons and identification
of explosives. At the NPS, work on future
terahertz sensors includes the development
of thermal detectors based on microbo -
lometers and on bimaterial pixels.
Bimaterial detectors, which combine
heat-sensitive substances such as SiO
2
and aluminum, rely on the deflection
resulting from differences in the thermal
expansion of the two materials, Karunasiri
said. Besides focal plane arrays compris-
ing SiO
2
and aluminum (sans substrate),
his group has developed nanoscale films
made of chromium or nickel that provide
up to 50 percent terahertz absorption
within the 1- to 10-THz range. The film
thickness and conductivity play an impor-
tant role in achieving the 50% absorption
for a given metal. The group has also
developed metamaterial-based narrowband
(~1 THz) devices that absorb nearly 100
percent at a targeted terahertz frequency
in the 1- to 10-THz range.
Our goal is to develop highly sensitive
terahertz focal plane arrays for real-time
terahertz imaging, he said.
Everything is 10 to 20 years down the
road, Arbab said. But one day, robots will
roll down the road, emitting laser beams
toward suspected targets and identifying
dangerous contents within innocuous-
looking packages, he suggests. Currently,
terahertz technology can be used to look
for the spectral signatures of C-4, TNT,
RDX and more. A spectral database of
most/all of the known explosives is
practically there, he said.
Its now a matter of making the technol-
ogy catch up.
Terahertz Imaging
Lynn Savage
lynn.savage@photonics.com
OPTI CS
COATI NGS
ASSEMBLI ES
HENE LASERS
303.938.1960 | reoinc.com
Research Electro-Optics, Inc. Boulder, Colorado precision optical solutions
Covering the full spectrum of your photonics needs

Think REO
the tools to deliver
Optical Coatings
412_ResElectroOptics_toolbox_Pg57_Layout 1 3/22/12 11:02 AM Page 57
Multiband Optical Filters
Find Applications Outside Fluorescence
I
n the past, most optical filters had a
single transmission or blocking band at
a particular wavelength. But today, the
demand for multiband filters is surging in
many areas of application. The benefits
of multiband dielectric filters go beyond
well-known fluorescence applications to
providing a new dimension to entertain-
ment, studying the universe and connect-
ing us to the Internet.
Todays state-of-the-art optical filters
owe much to the telecom boom at the turn
of the millennium. The stringent demands
on filter performance (both spectrally and
from a reliability perspective) drove man-
ufacturers to develop improved energetic
sputtering processes and materials to en-
able controlled and repeatable deposition
of dielectric filters with many hundreds
of layers. To minimize any changes in
performance both in the short-term operat-
ing environments and over the life of the
optical network, these dense optical films
also were designed to be resilient to the
effects of temperature and humidity.
After the market for telecom filters
evaporated in the dot-com crash of 2002,
optical filter manufacturers looked to
other markets where the enhanced per-
formance could be an advantage. At the
time, the optical filtering used in spec-
troscopy and microscopy instrumentation
was dominated by soft coatings and
holographic filters. The new sputtered di-
electric films quickly proved their worth
by providing previously unachievable
performance (transmission and blocking
levels, edge steepness and ripple). The
frequent requirement to replace the soft-
coated or holographic filters as they wore
out also was eliminated by these new thin
films. They found a home and flourished
there, dominating the marketplace and
facilitating new spectroscopic analysis
capabilities.
In the field of fluorescence imaging,
the proliferation of multiple fluorophores
began to enable users to label and analyze
multiple objects or events in the same
specimen. The filter cubes of the time
consisted of sets of excitation, dichroic
and emission filters that were switched in
and out of the light path according to the
specific fluorophore under interrogation.
The imaging was time-consuming, greatly
limiting the ability to analyze live or time-
sensitive specimens.
To address both these needs, multiband
filters were developed that provide the
ability to transmit, reflect, and block exci-
tation and emission bands for multiple dif-
ferent wavelengths within a single optical
filter (Figure 1). This development in opti-
cal filters greatly improved ease of use
and data collection and led to the ability to
study cells and their development or death
in real time (critical in the field of cancer
research, among other disciplines).
But thats just the beginning of the
story of multiband filters. Although this
new development revolutionized live-cell
and other fluorescence imaging modali-
ties, the approach also found its way into
several other completely different appli -
cations: from 3-D cinema to astronomy,
even to finding new life back in the
telecom cradle.
Coming to a theater near you
The recent boom in 3-D movies has
been driven by the evolution from the
headache-inducing red-blue glasses of the
past to new technologies leveraging the
properties of multiband dielectric filters.
All 3-D entertainment systems operate by
projecting two physically offset images
(one image intended for viewing by each
Whether used for imaging cells or astronomical bodies, multiband filters
can improve signal-to-noise ratio while reducing cost, size, and setup and
data-acquisition times in optical systems and instruments.
BY JASON PALIDWAR AND CATHERINE ALDOUS
IRIDIAN SPECTRAL TECHNOLOGIES
Figure 1. Transmittance of multiband emission filter measured at 46 (s-polarization). The emissions
of common fluorophores are shown. Images courtesy of Iridian Spectral Technologies.
412_Multiband OptFilters Feat_Layout 1 3/22/12 1:08 PM Page 58
eye) that produce the illusion of depth.
To create the best color contrast while
minimizing crosstalk, companies such
as Infitec, Dolby and Panavision have
employed a wavelength-multiplex visu-
alization approach to producing and
viewing these two images.
Viewing separate wavelengths of light
with each eye was the basis for the red-
blue 3-D anaglyph glasses but by simply
separating the visible spectrum into two
bands, each eye perceived radically differ-
ent color palettes. The complementary
multiband filters in the two lenses enable
both eyes to view a spectrum of red, green
and blue wavelength components, repre-
senting the three spectral ranges to which
the eyes receptors are sensitive (Figure 2).
This approach provides a balanced color
palette and eliminates ghosting caused by
images reaching the wrong eye.
The robust nature of these dielectric
multiband 3-D glasses, once again lever-
aging the telecom heritage, allows them
to be cleaned and reused rather than dis-
carded after a single use, as is the case
with most polarization-based glasses.
This provides a cost-per-use advantage,
as these glasses can withstand hundreds
of repeat uses. Aside from the cost benefit,
the environmental advantages of these
glasses include reduced transport costs
and fuel usage (each new movie neednt
be accompanied by a truckload of glasses);
they also preclude the need for landfill
disposal of used glasses.
Some of these 3-D cinema systems
employ a filter wheel, with one half-
coated to correspond to one eye and the
other corresponding to the complementary
multiband spectra, rotating in front of the
movie projector to create these two images
on-screen. This enables the use of a white
light source to create the two multiband
color images for each eye without the
need for dedicated light sources.
To infinity and beyond
Astronomical cameras can benefit
from multiband filters in several ways.
In ground-based applications, background
from OH emission lines in the atmosphere
can be a problem. These lines are concen-
trated in several wavelength regions, such
as in the J-band, and multiband filters
can reject these unwanted regions while
accepting the light in between.
There are also several objects (Type Ia
supernovae, Type T brown dwarfs, etc.)
that can be recognized by characteristic
spectra. Using a multiband filter with a
transmission curve corresponding to a
characteristic spectrum, an object of inter-
est can be identified or sought. At Johns
Hopkins University, Daniel Scolnic, Nobel
Prize winner Adam Riess and Mark Huber
used a multiband filter to find Type Ia
supernovae and their redshifts.
1
Among
the advantages, they describe this as a
speedier up to 30 times faster than long-
slit spectroscopy methods approach, and
more economical and reliable as well.
Switching between single-bandpass fil-
ters is not always easy some astronom -
ical cameras have filters that are sealed
in a cryostat or that operate in space.
Multiband filters offer a great advantage
in situations where such adjustments are
extremely inconvenient.
Party like its 1999
How fast is fast enough: 3G/4G, Wi -
Max, LTE? The demand for ever-faster
wireless networks is fueling a new tele-
com arms race to provide the maximum
bandwidths of voice, video and data to
users everywhere, on demand, with in-
creases in network speed. This opens the
door to new or improved applications
requiring faster access to even more
bandwidth.
End users experience only the wire-
less transport of information to and from
mobile devices. However, this massive
amount of information is transported
largely along fiber optic telecom back-
bones between central base stations and
various passive cells that pick up and radi-
ate wireless digital signals. As is the case
with fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) telecom-
munications systems, these wireless net-
works have adopted a triple-band archi -
tecture: Wavelengths around 1310 nm
transport data upstream to the network
with wavelengths from 1450 to 1490 nm
transporting data (Internet and phone)
and 1510 to 1570 nm transporting digital
video downstream to users. The upstream
and downstream data transport is accom-
plished with multiplexing optical filters
(Figure 3).
Increasing demands on networks require
more signals to more users, with more
content leading to more filter-based opti-
cal components. Use of dual-band optical
filters in these next-gen telecom applica-
tions halves the number of optical compo-
nents required. By allowing easier and
cheaper provisioning of the wireless net-
works with these three telecom services,
multiband filters reduce costs and module
sizes for systems manufacturers.
Figure 2. (1) Red, green and blue (RGB) images are projected toward the screen; (2) a rotating filter wheel
chops the RGB into two colors for each band; (3) the projection on the screen consists of two offset images,
each with different sets of RGB colors; (4) the different lenses in the 3-D glasses allow only one set of RGB
colors to reach each eye; (5) the viewer perceives a 3-D RGB image.
The next chapters
New applications for multiband filters
are continuing to emerge. Multiband di-
electric filters are being used to provide
enhanced image contrast for 3-D endo-
scopic imaging applications. Simply using
one multiband filter can improve image
contrast, giving a better view of surface
texture, and improving diagnosis and
differentiation of certain types of tissue.
2
Taking this a step further, Ronald Korniski
presents the idea of using complementary
multiband filters to provide a 3-D endo-
scopic image.
3
By providing a sense of
depth and eliminating the need for addi-
tional imaging tools, this gives a signifi-
cant advantage to surgery guided by an
endoscope.
The hazards that handheld laser pointers
pose to pilots, train conductors and law
enforcement personnel have also presented
a new need to be addressed by multiband
filters. Glasses with notches corresponding
to multiple laser pointer wavelengths can
be designed to provide protection from
sudden vision loss or distraction while
maintaining high transmission.
This is not the end of the story of multi-
band filters. Multiband filter technology
has enabled optical products and compo-
nents to be more compact and economical
while providing improved functionality in
these (and other) new applications. The
benefits of multiband dielectric filters will
continue to open doors in areas beyond
bioanalysis, entertainment, astronomy
and telecom.
Meet the authors
Jason Palidwar is an account manager at Iridian
Spectral Technologies in Ottawa, Ontario,
Canada; email: jason.palidwar@iridian.ca.
Catherine Aldous is a sales engineer at Iridian;
email: catherine.aldous@iridian.ca.
References
D.M. Scolnic et al (October 2009). Optical
cross correlation filters: an economical ap-
proach for identifying SNE Ia and estimating
their redshifts. Astrophys J, pp. 94-107.
ASGE Technology Committee et al (April
2008). Narrow band imaging and multiband
imaging. Gastrointest Endosc, pp. 581-589.
R. Korniski et al (September 2011). 3D imaging
with a single-aperture 3-mm objective lens:
concept, fabrication, and test. Proc SPIE,
Vol. 8129, 812904.
Multiband Optical Filters
Filter 1 Filter 2 Filter 2 Filter 1
Optical Fiber
1490-nm
Download 1310 nm Upstream
to Central Office
1490/1550
Downstream to User 1550-nm
Download
1550-nm
Download
1310-nm
Upload
1310-nm
Upload
1490-nm
Download
Figure 3. The 1310/1490/1550 filters are applied in FTTx single-fiber bidirection- and multiple-wavelength
systems to manage the video, voice and data upstream or downstream transmission (Filter #1 1490T/1550R;
Filter #2 1490&1550T/1310R).
412_LightworksOptics_Pg61_Layout 1 3/22/12 11:03 AM Page 61
The Night Glows Brighter
in the Near-IR
S
pectral irradiance, caused by airglow,
is several times stronger in the 900-
to1700-nm band than in the visible
realm. This makes the near-IR band the
best choice for night-vision applications.
For handheld systems, size and power
consumption of the camera engine are
almost as important as its performance.
The most natural image still is an inten-
sified image in the visible spectrum and in
the near-IR realm, although it is very spec-
ular because of the low quantity of inci-
dent photons. Short-wavelength infrared
(SWIR) delivers very similar images but a
larger amount of incident photons. These
two types of images not only allow the
recognition of objects, but also the identi-
fication of objects or persons. We will use
the terms detection, recognition and
identification in the military sense,
following Johnsons criteria.
1
Airglow phenomenon
Airglow, sometimes called nightglow, is
a very weak emission of light in the upper
atmosphere. Therefore, the night sky is
never absolutely dark, even after removing
the influence of starlight and diffused sun-
light from the other side of the globe.
Three effects mainly contribute to airglow:
recombination of particles photoionized by
the sun, luminescence from cosmic rays
striking the upper atmosphere, and chemi-
luminescence caused by oxygen and nitro-
gen, which react with hydroxyl ions.
The wavelength spectrum of airglow,
depicted in Figure 1, shows its maximum
intensity in the SWIR range between 1
and 1.8 m. Even if the moon is shining,
the SWIR realm is hardly affected because
this contributes to the intensity only in the
visible range. At full moon, the radiation
densities of moonlight and airglow are
comparable (Figure 1), proving that the
strength of airglow should be sufficient
for night-vision applications with suitable
equipment.
Low-light-level cameras
The sensor material for SWIR low-
light-level cameras must offer high quan-
tum efficiency (QE) in the near-IR range.
For this purpose, InGaAs is an optimal
material because its QE in the 0.9- to
1.65-m range exceeds 80 percent (Figure
2). For special purposes, such as combined
Imaging in very low light requires extra sensitivity and image fusion.
Figure 1: Airglow lightening the sky in the near-IR spectrum as compared with moonlight
in the visible realm. Source: Reference #2. Images courtesy of Xenics NV.
The night sky is never absolutely
dark, even after removing the
influence of starlight and diffused
sunlight from the other side
of the globe.
BY DANNY DE GASPARI, JAN VELDEMAN, PATRICK LAMERICHS, SIEGFRIED HERFTIJD, PATRICK MERKEN AND JAN VERMEIREN, XENICS NV
Feat IR Imaging Xenics_Layout 1 3/22/12 1:09 PM Page 62
visual and near-IR focal plane arrays
(FPAs), InGaAs also can be made sensi-
tive for the visible and near-IR ranges
where the QE in the 0.5- to 0.9-m range
is more than 50 percent.
When every photon counts, losing any
sensitive area should be avoided. Unlike
most CMOS and CCD imagers, InGaAs
sensors have a fill factor of nearly 100
percent, compared with typical 50 percent
for (interline) CCD and 20 to 30 percent
for CMOS.
To make low-light-level imagers, it is
important to choose the highest possible
sensitivity. Under night operation condi-
tions, large signal wells never get filled
and will cause only additional noise. This
way, the sensitivity of InGaAs sensors can
easily reach 32 V/e
.
Noise generation of the sensor array and
its readout circuitry must be kept as low as
possible. Commonly, imagers have a noise
level of ~100 to 120 e
for the high sensi-

tivity from above, whereas image sensors
using correlated double sampling reduce
their noise levels to the 30- to 60-e
range.
Noise levels as low as 5 to 10 e
are ex-
pected for future commercial devices.
Unlike other SWIR sensor technologies,
InGaAs sensors dont need cooling to
feature these low noise levels.
Integration time must be as long as pos-
sible. It is defined by the capacity of the
well and depending upon the application
should not exceed 40 ms for smooth
movement visualization at a 25-Hz frame
rate. This parameter needs the lowest pos-
sible dark current and, hence, as low bias
as possible. However, this introduces cer-
tain requirements for the input-referred
nonuniformity of the readout circuit. Fol-
lowing this advice results in SWIR camera
systems for low-light-level operation with
outstanding features and high sensitivity
(Figure 3).
Additional requirements imposed by the
application of the camera, especially for
handheld or portable operation, are small
size, low weight and low power (SWaP),
as well as high operating temperature
(HOT). SWaP is essential for nonfatiguing
use and long battery life. HOT means that
InGaAs can be operated at near room tem-
perature.
Camera engines
Xenics is developing a camera engine
family that is well suited to fulfill SWaP
and HOT requirements. The engines are
compact, low in weight and efficient with
power. An additional advantage is that
InGaAs sensors and FPAs do not need
cooling.
The XSW (Xenics Short Wave) cam-
era engine family is built around a VGA-
format FPA with 640 512 pixels. It
will be complemented soon by an XGA-
format 1280 1024 FPA, and a dedicated
low-light-level version with
1
4-VGA reso-
lution of 320 256 pixels.
The camera engine is available in two
versions: self-contained and as a basic
camera core. The latter is very compact,
measuring just 40 40 20 mm. It con-
sists of an analog sensor board with digital
driver and a signal processing board. It
consumes less than 2.5 W and weighs just
150 g. With these properties, it offers the
highest flexibility for integration in cus-
tomer setups such as helmet-mount, un-
manned aerial vehicle (UAV) and compact
analysis equipment.
The self-contained camera core consists
of the basic core plus a power condition-
ing unit and a communications module,
which governs two data transmission pro-
Every photon counts
Because light levels are very low,
the requirements for a SWIR cam-
era for night-vision or low-level
imaging can be derived quite eas-
ily from the general principle every
photon counts:
High quantum efficiency
High fill factor
High sensitivity
Low noise
Long integration times
Figure 2: The near-IR sensitivity of InGaAs focal plane arrays covers most of the nightglow
spectrum. Source: Reference #3.
Figure 3: Night-vision images taken on a moonless night. The person on the left is standing
in the shadow of trees. Right: A country road at low contrast, with a farmhouse in the background.
Even the best SWIR camera
cannot deliver optimal results
under all operational conditions.
tocols: GigE Vision and CameraLink.
The robust construction contains a printed
circuit board frame and measures 40
40 40 mm without the lens. Good ther-
mal housekeeping ensures high reliability.
Power can be supplied via the Ethernet
connection, which is limited to 4.5 W.
Optical interfacing with a C-mount
adapter accommodates all conventional
visible-NIR lenses and a wide variety of
specialized SWIR lenses.
Both versions are equipped with a
14-bit analog-to-digital converter, whose
dynamic range (in high gain) is close to
60 dB. In low-gain conditions, its 66 dB.
Figure 4 shows the self-contained camera
core, the Bobcat camera equipped with
this core, and the Meerkat Fusion, which
features image fusion, covering visible
to SWIR to long-wavelength infrared
(LWIR).
Camera fusion
Even the best SWIR camera cannot de-
liver optimal results under all operational
conditions. Especially under very low
light level conditions, most cameras fall
short. Image fusion offers a solution be-
cause it allows the merger of two or three
images from a thermal, a visible and a
SWIR camera. For this purpose these
images are overlaid, where those parts
of the images with highest contrast take
precedence.
This technique allows a considerable
increase in scene quality in terms of dy-
namics (depth of digitization), contrast,
and detection/recognition. The method
also allows visualization of other aspects
of a scene; for example, heat accumulation
and the flash-over risk under fire condi-
tions as well as skin diagnostics and vege-
tation detection. Figure 5 shows an exam-
ple of a fusion of LWIR and SWIR
images: The truck in the shadow and its
warmed tires can clearly be distinguished
from the background, while the pole in
the upper center compared with a SWIR
image alone offers more contrast against
the background.
The camera engine is well suited for
image fusion applications because it can
be operated easily together with the XTH
companion thermal module for LWIR. Be-
cause of their small size, the parallax ef-
fect is minimized. Also, the small size and
the potential for detached operation of the
sensor head allow for parallax-free opera-
tion based on a single lens and a beam-
splitter, or integration with dual-in-line
catadioptric optics.
SWIR camera modules enable new
ways of building advanced night-vision
equipment for search and rescue opera-
tions as well as autonomous flight opera-
tion of unmanned aerial vehicles in envi-
ronments that are illuminated just by air-
glow. Together with cameras for other
spectral ranges, they unveil hidden details
of scenes that cannot be detected with
only one type of camera.
References
1. J. Johnson (1958). Analysis of image form-
ing systems. Image Intensifier Symposium,
AD 220160 (Warfare Electrical Engineering
Department, US Army Research and Devel-
opment Laboratories, Fort Belvoir, Va.), pp.
244-273.
2. M.L. Vatsia (September 1972). Atmospheric
optical environment. Research and Develop-
ment Technical Report ECOM-7023. http://
www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/750610. pdf.
3. M.P. Hansen and D.S. Malchow (March
2008). Overview of SWIR detectors, cam-
eras, and applications. Proc. SPIE, Vol.
6939. http://lib.semi.ac.cn:8080/tsh/dzzy/
wsqk/SPIE/vol6939/69390I.pdf.
Meet the authors
Danny De Gaspari, Jan Veldeman, Patrick
Lamerichs, Siegfried Herftijd and Jan Ver-
meiren are employees of Xenics NV in Leuven,
Belgium. Patrick Merken is an employee of
Xenics NV and a professor at the Royal Mili-
tary Academy in Brussels. The primary author,
Vermeiren, can be contacted at jan.vermeiren
@xenics.com.
Night Vision
Figure 4: Camera module XSW, Bobcat camera and image fusion with Meerkat.
Fusion covers the visible spectrum to SWIR to LWIR.
Figure 5: The fusion of SWIR and LWIR realms detects hidden structures in the shadow
and before bright backgrounds.
Every photon counts.
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412_LeadingMags_Pg65_Layout 1 3/22/12 11:03 AM Page 65
How to Evaluate a Measurement
Applications Requirements
BY C.W. RON SWONGER
COHERIX INC.
T
he competing requirements for the
most challenging measurement appli-
cations in industry and other techni-
cal endeavors can be daunting when their
complexity takes the design or application
engineer into territory that is uncharted
in his or her experience.
This is especially the case when 3-D
high-precision measurement or sensitive
multispectral measurement requirements
are part of the application picture. A deep
analysis of all relevant optical characteris-
tics of all system components is required,
as is an understanding of the surface char-
acteristics and composition of the materi-
als that are to be measured and the ambi-
ent operating conditions under which
measurements must be performed.
Dimensional considerations
It is deceptively easy to say that mea-
surement accuracy and repeatability must
be better than some particular value sim-
ply because the established tolerances for
the quantity to be measured are some
number of times greater than that. But in
reality, the surface structure and geometry
can produce surprises in the testing and
validation of systems if they are not ana-
lyzed in advance. Measurement errors
may not be Gaussian in their distributions
under some conditions related to processes
that created the surfaces and other factors.
Complete height maps may be needed
(Figure 1).
It is important to understand whether
the conventional 3-sigma or other statis-
tical accuracy measures are adequate for
meeting the basic objectives of the meas-
urement process. For example, in some
applications, the worst-case errors are the
most critical to control. In addition, the
accuracy of any system can vary with sur-
face conditions, so that actual accuracy
statistics may be multimodal that is,
their distributions may differ for variations
in surface finish, ambient conditions or
other process variables.
Surface finish considerations
For some classes of precision-manu-
factured parts or materials, the general
class of surface finish measurements is
of primary interest. It is common to di-
vide that range of measurements accord-
ing to the spatial frequency (or spatial
wavelength) domains of roughness,
waviness and profile (or shapiness),
and to focus on which of those domains
are most relevant to the functioning and
appearance of the surface. A wide variety
of metrics has been used for each of
these domains. Unfortunately, legacy
devices using old mechanical technology
are not practical for measuring those
surface metrics in all directions on the
surface nor to measure the entire surface
in acceptable periods of time. So few are
experienced in measuring dynamically
directional surface metrics in which
the important direction of measurement
varies across the surface.
There is also little experience in indus-
try with measuring these surface finish
metrics in all directions at once: omnidi-
rectional (directionally independent)
roughness, waviness or profile (Figure 2).
Yet one or more of these directionally sen-
sitive measurements may be the critical
factor in the actual performance of the sur-
face, such as when bearing or sliding sur-
faces are involved.
Precision noncontact metrology application factors can seem complicated, especially when
3-D or multispectral measurements are involved. Heres how to ensure a robust and
otherwise optimized metrology solution for your application.
Figure 1. A 3-D pump body height map. Images courtesy of Coherix Inc.
412_Metrology Coherix Feat_Layout 1 3/22/12 1:10 PM Page 66
Local defect/artifact detection
A second class of inspection applica-
tions is concerned with detecting small
defects or contaminants on surfaces.
Often, these may be as small as microns in
size and may occur unpredictably at any
point on a surface (Figure 3). The result
may be either functional failure of the sur-
face or cosmetic defects that lead end
users to perceive low quality of the sur-
face. In this class of application, the re-
quirements often include:
A very high probability of detection,
well exceeding 99 percent.
A low false-detection rate to ensure
minimal rejection of good product.
Accurate classification of defect types
so that proper remedial actions can
be taken.
Such isolated surface defects may be
3-D or 2-D, spectral or best defined in
terms of surface finish parameters de-
scribed earlier. The minimum defect size
of interest is another key requirement
issue that must be addressed in such appli-
cations.
Surface spectral considerations
When surfaces must be inspected (mea-
sured and classified) on the basis of their
optical spectral (e.g., color) characteristics,
an entirely different set of issues exists.
The factors that are critical may include
polarization, saturation, hue, brightness
and specularity. In turn, some of those
characteristics will depend upon the condi-
tion of the part in terms of applied mois-
ture, dust, contaminants, corrosion and
other external effects.
Complete optical characterization of
surface samples, used to define an opti-
mum sensing component configuration in
a metrology system, is referred to scientif-
ically as the bidirectional reflectance dis-
tribution function, or BRDF. It is never
practical to have a metrology system, in
online production use, measure the BRDF
of surfaces being inspected. But it can
be very important to consider the BRDF
of the surfaces of interest during the de-
sign/development phases of the metrology
or inspection solution, so that the
inevitable variations in surface characteris-
tics do not result in undesirable accuracy
shortfalls.
User understanding
An often underestimated factor in high-
precision multidimensional metrology is
Factors to keep in mind
when assessing a
metrology solution:
All three dimensions of the
object to be measured and those
of the smallest defects that must
be detected.
The quality of the part or
materials surface finish
its roughness and waviness.
Local defect/artifact detection.
Surface spectral considerations
the surface reflectance
as a function of the optical
wavelength.
User understanding of the
material and of the manu-
facturing process.
Measurement throughput.
Figure 2. An omnidirectional ISO Ra surface roughness map.
Figure 3. An example of a machined surface with porosity, with enlarged view of an area
where pores from a few tens of microns to a few hundred microns in size are detected.
Tool marks on the surface also are visible.
the human usage factor. Even when the
ultimately intended mainstream purpose
of the measurement or inspection is an
automated pass/fail decision, it can be
almost guaranteed that the most urgent
moments of use will come when an intelli-
gent and experienced user must immedi-
ately understand the characteristics and
significance of the data underlying those
results. And in many applications, the op-
portunity for design engineering or manu-
facturing engineering analysis of measure-
ments is a frequent and high-value benefit.
Immediate interactive human visualization
functions of the measurement system will
accelerate production process launches,
shorten the time for correcting process
faults and avoiding scrap, provide data
for reducing product costs, and prevent
wasted downstream processing of defec-
tive product components.
Multispectral and 3-D visualization of
measurement results bridges the gap be-
tween the noncontact sensor/processing
system and the intellect of the engineering
and manufacturing human experts who un-
derstand what to do when abnormal mea-
surements occur. The designs of the most
successful and valuable measurement sys-
Metrology Optimization
Contaminant Class 1
Contaminant Class 2
Contaminant Class 3
Noncontaminant
Multispectral Signature #1
M
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#
2
3.5
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16
Figure 4. Two multispectral signatures produced on every resolved surface point enable
automated detection and classifying of three types of contaminants and also artifacts of no
concern. Higher-D multispectral vectors that separate more classes do not clearly display on paper.
for Night Vision, Instrumentation,
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tems take into account who will want to
use the system to quickly answer which
specific questions and when (Figure 5).
Measurement throughput
Measurement and inspection of various
manufactured parts and other materials
occur at a very wide range of surface and
object coverage rates across different ap-
plications.
Traditionally, there has been a tendency,
forced by old technology, to measure less
completely than the processes warrant in
terms of surface coverage or of sampling
rates. Modern measurement technology
platforms now permit consideration of
any application with regard to:
The speed with which defects
can develop.
How randomly the defects occur
in time and in location on the surface.
How large of an area requires
measurement.
How rapidly parts and surfaces
are produced on the production line.
The cost penalty for any given
amount of delay in detecting
defects or process drift.
Depending upon the specific types of
measurements required, throughput may
be most appropriately stated in terms of
either tens of thousands of inspected parts
per hour or in terms of surface sampling
rates of millions of 3-D surface sample
measurements per second. The value of
measurement and inspection information
depreciates rapidly as the time delays in-
crease from when a surface defect is cre-
ated until actionable information can be
taken to prevent its undesirable recurrence
on subsequent surfaces.
The bottom line
Noncontact multidimensional platforms
exist that each address some part of the
measurement/inspection applications
space. Diverse applications are found in
the many industries and other sectors
where precision verification and process
control in the manufacturing or handling
of materials are important.
Although there is no single silver bul-
let that is the optimum configuration for
every measurement application in this
large and challenging measurement/in-
spection applications space, a solution
can be configured to address and solve
almost any point in that space. The rapid
pace of advances in sensing, processing
and algorithm technology components has
significantly expanded the range of techni-
cally and economically feasible solutions.
It only takes experienced and thorough
analysis and engineering to select and con-
figure the right platform for the applica-
tion at hand.
Meet the author
C.W. Ron Swonger is director of advanced
contract developments at Coherix Inc. in Ann
Arbor, Mich.; email: rons@coherix.com.
Metrology Optimization
Figure 5. An interactive high-definition
metrology display.
Defense, Security Show
Targets Baltimore
BY LAURA S. MARSHALL
MANAGING EDITOR
A
t the mention of Baltimore, certain
things come to mind: crab cakes,
the Orioles, Camden Yards, Edgar
Allan Poes grave and, now, defense and
security technologies.
SPIE will host its popular annual con-
ference and exhibition Defense, Security
and Sensing in the Charm City this year
specifically, April 23-27 at the Baltimore
Convention Center.
Organizers said the move from Orlando,
Fla., was based on Baltimores proximity
to noted research institutions, military
installations, innovators and decision mak-
ers in defense R&D funding; the areas
growth in technological conferences and
exhibitions; and even its popular sights
and sites.
In addition to providing a larger num-
ber of potential exhibition visitors, the
move also provides room for growth in
the exhibition a trend which the event
has been following for several years, said
Diane Cline, SPIEs event manager for
DSS. Maintaining an East Coast location
avoids disrupting accessibility for Euro-
pean participants and brings the meeting
to within a drive for a large group of
American participants.
So, overall, we see the move as help-
ing to accommodate industry growth and
to enable more of the community to at-
tend.
As it has done every year, the event
will bring together industry, military,
government and academic engineers and
scientists from all over the world. This
year, DSS will offer more than 2400 pre-
sentations. The technical conference will
include presentations on research in sensor
systems and platforms; sensor and data
analysis; video work flows and technolo-
gies for intelligence, surveillance, recon-
naissance and situational awareness; com-
pressive sensing; and cyber sensing.
More than 6000 industry professionals
are expected to attend, and the exhibition
will showcase more than 500 companies.
Plenary presentation
This years symposium-wide plenary
talk will be given by Bruce Carlson, who
has been director of the National Recon-
naissance Office (NRO) since June 2009.
Carlson retired from the US Air Force
in January 2009. He then served as a con-
sultant to the defense industry and was a
member of the board of directors at EADS
North America, which focuses on defense
and homeland security, commercial avia-
tion, helicopters and telecommunications
technologies.
In his current appointment, Carlson
guides, directs and oversees the NRO, and
also carries other assignments from the
Secretary of Defense and the Director of
National Intelligence.
DSS attendees set strategies, goals and
directions for their organizations, Cline
said. To do so, they need to understand
the concerns, future plans and strategies of
the National Reconnaissance Office.
Carlsons talk will share the NRO per-
spective. His comments should give the
audience valuable insights on how to keep
improving and developing the sensors,
satellites and networking data that support
intelligence systems.
Technical events
We are excited about the amount of
defense technology and research to be
presented at our new location in the Balti-
more Inner Harbor, said 2012 symposium
chair Kevin Meiners, Acting Deputy
Undersecretary of Defense for Portfolio,
Programs and Resources. We expect even
SPIE moves its DSS conference and trade show to the Charm City to maximize exposure
to governmental agencies, military institutions and research organizations
412DefenceSecuritiesPreview_Layout 1 3/22/12 4:09 PM Page 70
more key funders and decision makers
than ever to join us at SPIE Defense,
Security and Sensing as a result of this
proximity to many US federal government
research labs and related industries.
The technical conferences are organized
by technology, grouped into program
tracks and further gathered into sessions
of papers on related topics. Program tracks
include IR sensors and systems; defense,
homeland security and law enforcement;
imaging and sensing; sensing for industry,
environment and health; emerging tech-
nologies; laser sensors and systems; inno-
vative applications for displays; space
technologies and operations; unmanned,
robotic and layered systems; sensor data
and information exploitation; signal,
image and neural net processing; and in-
formation systems and networks: process-
ing, fusion and knowledge generation.
Photonics technologies are highly in-
terdisciplinary, Cline said. Having the
right variety of topics on the program is
invaluable to researchers with new work
to share and developers looking for solu-
tions for their new ideas.
The fact that technical attendees tend
to hear talks in a variety of conferences
bears this out. The infrared program track
is a long-established and well-attended
area, and we are seeing large numbers of
papers in micronanotechnology and multi-
/hyper-/ultraspectral imagery as well.
The technical program also includes
several special panel discussions and
workshops, and poster sessions.
Panel discussion topics include motion
imagery; standards; social/cultural model-
ing; geospatial information for intelligence
analysis; and social networking innova-
tions.
The invited panel discussion Real-
World Issues and Challenges in Social/
Cultural Modeling with Applications to
Information Fusion will be hosted by
Ivan Kadar of Interlink Systems Sciences
Inc. and John J. Salerno Jr. of the US Air
Force Research Laboratory. Panelists will
come from Interlink Systems and the US
Air Force Research Laboratory as well as
SA Technologies, California State Univer-
sity-East Bay and Rochester Institute of
Technology.
The discussion will focus on bringing
the human aspect into the fusion area,
particularly research and challenges in
bringing this information to the assess-
ment process. Information fusion involves
combining information from multiple
More than 6000 industry professionals are expected to attend SPIE Defense, Security & Sensing in Baltimore
this year. The exhibition will showcase more than 500 companies. Courtesy of SPIE.
DSS offers a chance for researchers, engineers and other industry professionals to connect, discuss issues
facing the community and spark new ideas. Courtesy of SPIE.
The plenary, industry and technical lectures will give attendees a clear picture of the current state
of photonics in the defense, security and sensing industry. Courtesy of SPIE.
sources to find a consensus, Kadar said.
Various methodologies, including but not
limited to optical and photonic techniques,
are used to gather that information.
Fusion models have focused mainly on
physical systems to try to forecast poten-
tial impacts or threats, but they have
largely overlooked the human side of the
equation but humans are the ones per-
forming the actions. The panels objective
is to bring social/cultural modeling, with
all its challenges and potential benefits, to
the attention of the fusion community.
Social networking is a big deal now,
Kadar said. And additional information
from social networking and other human
sources, although it would make up a
small percentage of the overall data,
could have a significant impact on an
assessment.
Where are you, where am I, am I a
threat to you its a very complicated
issue, he said.
The Infrared Materials Standards Work-
ing Group will bring together scientists
and engineers who manufacture, test and
use optical materials in the infrared to
develop standards for properties of these
materials. The working group will look at
updating technical literature and existing
databases on optical, mechanical, thermal
and thermo-optical characteristics. The
primary focus at first will be on optical
and thermo-optical properties used for the
design of infrared imaging systems.
Microscopy for educators
A special session, Microscopy for
STEM Educators, will be an open forum
for all meeting attendees and will feature
invited talks on successful implementation
of microscopy in STEM (science, technol-
ogy, engineering and math) education to
inspire student interest and excitement.
The event will include a hands-on session
with tabletop scanning electron micro-
DSS in Baltimore
Flir high-resolution core cameras such as the Tau, which was used to capture video from which this
640 512-pixel resolution image originates as well as laser rangefinders, readout integrated circuits
and pan-tilt mounts will be on display at the DSS exhibition. Courtesy of Flir Commercial Systems Inc.
scopes, and attendees can bring their own
objects to examine with the instruments.
The session will be chaired by Michael T.
Postek and Mary Satterfield, both of the
National Institute of Standards and Tech-
nology.
We held a test run at NIST a few
months ago with 12 educators from the
local vicinity, Postek said. It was very
successful, and the teachers indicated that
they were willing to take a personal day
to attend the Baltimore meeting. The in-
strument used at NIST has been traveling
to schools in the area.
The goal is simple but profound: We
need to rekindle excitement for STEM
in the students, Postek said. These days,
with desktop instruments, accessibility
is enhanced, and thus microscopy is one
window into the unseen world. Just look
at the eyes of the students when they are
looking at images of common items such
as a dime or a spider enlarged several
hundreds of times.
The session is open to all DSS atten-
dees, and SPIE has established special
registration rates for STEM teachers.
DSS also will include more than 55
short courses on infrared systems, sensing,
imaging, security, laser systems, optoelec-
tronics and optical engineering. This
years new course topics include night
vision, high-dynamic-range imaging and
energy harvesting. Professional develop-
ment offerings will feature topics such as
product innovation, ITAR/international
trade and project management.
The Women in Optics presentation and
reception will allow industry professionals
to network and even gain a little inspira-
tion. Alison Flatau of the University of
Maryland will discuss her experiences in
the NSF Rotator program, in which en-
gineers, scientists and educators become
temporary program directors known as
rotators. They recommend proposals to
fund, support cutting-edge interdiscipli-
nary research, mentor junior research
members and influence new directions
in their fields and beyond.
Flatau has been involved in the SPIE
Smart Structures and Materials conference
for a long time as a conference, sympo-
sium and session chair, Cline said, and her
work overlaps with defense and security.
In particular, her work in magnetostric-
tive materials, sensors and actuator dy-
namics, and noise and vibration control,
connects with topics such as unmanned
aerial vehicles, she said. In addition, her
experience as a National Science Founda-
tion program manager and her history of
mentoring students and faculty as well as
working as a researcher will be of interest
to the audience.
Industry events
DSS will feature several industry
events, including vendor presentations
with a special vendor reception, a panel
on government funding and a panel on
early-stage technology commercialization.
At the government funding session,
speakers in government positions will
inform the industry of their organizations
anticipated future needs, allowing the in-
dustry to determine potentially profitable
areas where they can invest and develop
technologies.
Contractors interested in where gov-
ernment funding organizations are going
should not miss this session, said Dr.
Paul McManamon of Exciting Technology
LLC, who will moderate the panel.
This is not about immediate procure-
ment opportunities, he added. It is about
longer-term organization interests and
strategies.
The industry-focused panel discussions
and workshops on early-stage technology
commercialization and government fund-
ing will feature representatives from the
US Army Night Vision and Electronic
Sensors Directorate, the US Missile
Defense Agency, and the Department of
Defense ISR programs as well as DARPA,
Cline said.
Exhibition
The free exhibition will be held April
24-26 and will give contractors, suppliers
and startups alike a place to showcase
their latest lasers, sensors, optics and opto-
electronics components as well as systems
for image processing, spectroscopy and
infrared imaging, and more. More than
500 companies are scheduled to partici-
pate. Several companies will offer hands-
412_SocInfoDisplay_Pg73_Layout 1 3/22/12 11:04 AM Page 73
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on demos of new technologies on the
show floor. SPIE also will host the sec-
ond annual Imaging Gallery Showcase as
well as a job fair in the exhibition hall.
We have seen a recent growth trend in
the numbers of companies and positions
at our job fairs, and expect this to continue
next month in Baltimore, Cline said.
Some exhibitors said they are looking
forward to the change of location. We
anticipate that the new location will in-
crease Flirs exposure to agencies of the
US government as well as customers in
Washington area, looking forward to see-
ing our existing customers and meeting
new ones.
Student events
SPIE has planned some special events
just for students, including an introduction
session called Getting the Most Out of
Your Conference Experience, which will
help new student attendees maximize their
experience at the conference, among other
events.
Topics range from professional devel-
opment skills from succeeding in a grad-
uate program to getting hired and beyond
as well as networking opportunities in-
cluding a social event at Camden Yards,
Cline said. We are reaching out to stu-
dents at the many optics and photonics
related programs in the area and do expect
an increase in the number of students at-
tending this event.
DSS in Baltimore
Laura S. Marshall
laura.marshall@photonics.com
Camden Yards is one of the famous names
associated with Baltimore and now DSS will be
as well. Photonics Media photo by Lynn Savage.
the mid-Atlantic and northeastern US,
said Jay James, vice president of OEM
and ODM sales at Flir Commercial
Systems Inc.
The mix will be similar to recent
years: The leading organizations in the
industry will be joined by energetic start-
ups and others new to the event, bringing
their newest products and applications in
cutting-edge technologies in optics, lasers,
sensors, image processing, spectroscopy,
infrared systems, optoelectronic compo-
nents and related topics, Cline said.
A number of companies will bring
technology displays, she added: Flir will
showcase its camera integrated with an
unmanned aerial vehicle and helmet dis-
play; Intelligent Optics will show its non-
lethal personal security device; Mantaro
will demonstrate its telepresence robot;
and Princetel will show its robotic vehicle
with cameras, among others.
We are working hard to prepare our
exhibit experience and contributions to
the technical conference, said Katie
MacIntyre, marketing and public relations
manager at Schott Defense. We are work-
ing to maximize the proximity of govern-
ment and DoD contacts in the Baltimore/
Optics & Optics Fabrication
Patterned Dichroic Filters for Multispectral Imaging
DSIs multispectral filters provide superior performance from the near-
ultraviolet to the infrared and can be applied to a variety of substrates
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High-Speed Uncooled Infrared Sensors
New Infrared Technologies, the leading company in high-speed uncooled
imaging detectors, presents the MATRIX 1024 SERIES, the first uncooled
sensor for the mid-IR (3 to 5 m) with many defense and security
applications: muzzle flash detection, explosion characterization, final
guidance, countermeasures, fuses, etc. The MATRIX 1024 CAMERA allows
a frame rate of 2000 fps in real uncooled operation an affordable solution
when requiring multiple and autonomous IR sensors for fast event
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CCD Imaging Lenses
Westech Optical offers a full line of lenses for linear and area arrays, including
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Automatic Centering Machine with Robot
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Depending upon lens size, up to 600 lenses can be loaded for automatic
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Complete Turnkey Solutions for Avionics Optics
PG&O supplies turnkey optics solutions for aviation, defense and military
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412_Spotlight_Layout 1 3/22/12 1:13 PM Page 75
Full Power Across the Spectrum
Optical filters from Chroma provide precise color separation, signal purity
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Dynamic Optical Profiler
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New iXon Ultra EMCCD Camera
The iXon Ultra platform takes the popular back-illuminated
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MTF Test Station
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Precision Polymer Optics
G-S Plastic Optics manufactures precision polymer optics for imaging, scan-
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log offering of plastic optics, the company has in-house capability to provide
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Mid-IR Optical Isolator
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The Leader in Optical Filter Solutions IR Filter Supplier
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Manufacture of Low-Loss Optical Filters in the UV
The Leybold Optics HELIOS has demonstrated its ability to manufacture
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Custom Optics
Swift Glass specializes in providing short lead times for high-volume
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Nonmagnetic Actuators & Motors
PI PiezoWalk
positioners come in many forms: small enough to align

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Smallest Thermal GigE Camera
Xenics Gobi-640 uncooled thermal camera with GigE-Vision interface and
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www.xenics.com
2012 Laser Measurement Catalog
Ophir Photonics, global leader in precision laser measurement equipment and
a Newport Corporation brand, has announced the release of its 2012 Laser
Measurement Catalog. The catalog covers a wide range of laser power and
energy sensors and meters, and laser beam profiling systems for medical,
industrial, defense and research applications.
(866) 755-5499
sales@us.ophiropt.com
www.ophiropt.com/photonics
Wavelength Meters Covering from 192 to 11,000 nm!
Extending capabilities into the mid-IR range (up to 11 m), TOPTICAs
wavelength meters can measure single-pulse, pulse, quasi-continuous-wave
and continuous-wave lasers. The unique instrumental design features no
moving parts, ensuring greater stability with no downtime. Our Fizeau-based
wavelength meters provide the user with better accuracy, greater stability,
faster measurement speeds, terrific reliability and coverage from hard-UV
to mid-IR. The effective high-speed measurement (up to 500 Hz) enables
simultaneous measurement of up to eight lasers. The system features
standard options such as linewidth, multichannels, laser feedback PID
controller, TTL trigger, diffraction grating and double-pulse trigger.
TOPTICAs wavelength meters give you everything you need and more!
(585) 657-6663
sales@toptica-usa.com
www.toptica.com
See more new products at Photonics.com
Its easy to find the latest products on our website Photonics.com.
Just click on the menu marked PRODUCTS on the navigation bar
(under the logo) to find new products almost every day.
When people ask, Whats new? tell them to go to:
Photonics.com/Products.
(413) 499-0514
photonics.com
HD LCD Digital Cameras
Bestscope International Ltd.s BLC-200 high-definition
(HD) LCD digital cameras for microscopy include a tablet
PC. They preview, take snapshots and videos, and save
them. Offering wireless transmission and 3-G Internet
surfing, they have an aluminum C-mount that connects
to monocular, binocular, trinocular, stereo and dissecting
microscopes and telescopes. The cameras
1
3-in. CMOS
sensor delivers 1600 1200-pixel resolution and oper-
ates at 15 fps at full resolution. Operating temperature
is from 30 to 70 C. Accessories include a 5-VDC
2500-mA power adapter and a USB cable. The 7-in.
LED backlight HD LCD screen has a four-point capaci-
tance touch screen and a gravity sensor. Applications
include precision electronic assembly and quality control;
research and development; academic demonstration;
industrial optical inspection; and biological, medical,
pharmaceutical, geologic, mineral, metallurgical and
chemical research.
Bestscope International Ltd.
info@bestscope.net
IDEAS
BRIGHT
Sapphire Optics
For use in blood gas monitors and other medical instru-
ments, custom fabricated sapphire optics that are chemically
inert and that transmit from the ultraviolet to 4.7 m are
available from Meller Optics Inc. Second only to diamond in
terms of hardness, they transmit up to 85% uncoated and
can be coated for >99%, depending upon thickness. They
can be fabricated in diameter sizes ranging from 6.35 to
254 mm and in thicknesses from 0.5 to 25.4 mm, with a
variety of custom surface and edge treatments. Impervious
to low-temperature chlorine and fluorine gas, blood and
most chemicals, they can be supplied as windows, flat and
stepped, concave or convex, and round or square, with
holes and slots. Exhibiting flatness to /10, parallelism to
2 arcsec and surface finishes to <0.5 nm, they are suited
for glass-to-metal sealing or brazing into Kovar sleeves.
Meller Optics Inc.
steve@melleroptics.com
Scientific-Grade Lasers
Coherent Inc. has released higher-power versions of
its Verdi G 532-nm scientific-grade lasers. The Verdi
G12, G15 and G18 offer a choice of 12, 15 and
18 W in a laser head that measures 68 98
214 mm. They deliver a vertically (>100:1) polarized
output beam with M
2
<1.1 and <0.02% noise
measured over a frequency range of 10 Hz to
100 MHz. Mean time to failure is >50,000 h.
Because of the proprietary thin optically pumped
semiconductor laser technology gain medium and
its rear surface cooling, the devices do not suffer
from thermal lensing, allowing the power to be
varied between 10% and 100% of maximum output,
with no effect on output beam parameters. They are intended for pumping Ti:sapphire
oscillators, where their increased power enables tunable, mode-locked output of >4 W.
Coherent Inc.
tech.sales@coherent.com
CO
2
Laser Mirrors
Laser Research Optics, a
division of Meller Optics
Inc., has introduced a
line of CO
2
laser mirrors
made from pure vacuum
arc-cast low-carbon
molybdenum and suited
for the low- and high-
power lasers used in
harsh, dirty industrial
environments. They are
made from intrinsically
hard material that does
not require coatings,
which can degrade.
They achieve >98.1%
average reflectance at 10.6 m at a 45 area of interest,
with <1.9% absorption and scatter. They are offered in
1
4- to 1-in.-diameter sizes for low-power lasers and 1-
to 3-in.-diameter sizes for high-power ones, with thick-
nesses from 3 to 10 mm. Suitable for lasers from 20 W
to kilowatts of power, their applications include hole
drilling and laser engraving, marking and welding.
Laser Research Optics
scott@laserresearch.net
Diode Laser Bars onMicrochannel Coolers
Dilas is continuing its expansion of wavelengths for its high-power diode laser bars by extending its offerings
to water-cooled laser diodes for alkali laser pumping at 766, 780 and 852 nm on microchannel heat sinks at
continuous-wave power levels of 40, 60 and 100 W, respectively. The laser bar geometry is based on the industry
standard of 1-cm bar width, with 19 emitters on a 500-m pitch and fill factor options of 20% and 30%. Typical
power conversion efficiency is in the range of 56% at rated power for all three wavelengths. Suitable for research
and development, defense and other diode-pumped alkali laser applications, the diodes are assembled in water-
cooled stacks to power scale up to kilowatt levels. Diode laser stack arrays also can be offered with volume
Bragg gratings, with standard or low-reflectivity coatings, and with both optical axes collimated.
Dilas
sales@dilas.com
High-Resolution Camera
Photron USA Inc. has launched the Fastcam
IS-1M, a 10-bit monochrome camera. Highly
light-sensitive, the 312 260-pixel resolu-
tion in situ image storage CCD sensor
captures ultrahigh-speed phenomena at a
rate of up to 1 million fps, even in low-light
conditions. The signal storage areas for the
recorded images are incorporated within the
sensor chip. Two or more cameras can be used for synchronous recording, which supports
phenomenological analysis from a variety of angles. It also offers a 100-frame buffer,
flexible triggering and high spatial resolution. Applications include ink-jet printing/droplet
measurements and other fluid dynamics, hypervelocity impact observation and testing,
materials failure, electric discharge, combustion evaluation and product faultfinding.
The camera features a Nikon F-mount lens and includes intuitive camera control and
image download software via the USB 2.0 interface. Recorded images can be saved as
an AVI video or as jpeg, tiff or AVI image sequences.
Photron USA Inc.
image@photron.com
412_Bright Idea Leads_Layout 1 3/22/12 1:16 PM Page 79
Visible SWIR Camera
Raptor Photonics Ltd. has released the OW1.7-
VS-CL-320 visible short-wavelength infrared
(SWIR) camera. It features a Thales Alcatel
320 256-pixel, 30 30-m pixel pitch and
high-sensitivity InGaAs sensor with visible exten-
sion. Peltier-cooled, it uses a 14-bit analog-to-
digital converter and offers standard Camera
Link output. Automatic gain control, image en-
hancement and built-in three-point nonunifor-
mity correction facilitate ease of use. It captures
images from 0.4 to 1.7 m and is suitable for
pulsed or continuous-wave laser beam profiling,
semiconductor inspection, airborne hyperspec-
tral imaging, active imaging and 1.55-m laser
line detection. It is supplied with XCAP image
analysis software and a standard Epix Camera
Link frame grabber. Features include operation
to 60 Hz, 500-ns minimum exposure, and an
ultracompact and rugged package measuring
50 50 82 mm.
Raptor Photonics Ltd.
info@raptorphotonics.com
Ultrafast Amplifier
Spectra-Physics, a Newport Corp. brand, has
unveiled a compact industrial-grade ultrafast
amplifier with software-adjustable repetition
rates up to 1 MHz. Developed at High Q Laser
(recently acquired by Newport), the Spirit laser
delivers the adjustable high repetition rates
needed for femtosecond micromachining of
medical devices and other materials, nanostruc-
turing, pump-probe experiments and selected
time-resolved science applications. The ultrafast
laser provides high average power of >4 W and
fully automated adjustability over a wide range
of repetition rates from 50 kHz to 1 MHz. Fea-
80
b
Up to 8 synchronized but
independent channels and
common sync
Versatile measurement modes
High throughput
HydraHarp 400
AppIications
Coincidence correlation
Event timing in LDAR
Time-resolved fuorescence
spectroscopy
FLM, FRET, FCS
...
Leading in 8ingle Photon

Counting Applications
PicoQuant GmbH
www.picoquant.com
Meet us at
SPE DSS
April 23-27, 2012
booth #2517
Multichannel
Picosecond Timing
start
stop
t [ps]
t1
t2
stop
BRIGHT IDEAS
412_Bright Ideas_Layout 1 3/22/12 1:17 PM Page 80
turing a rugged one-box design, the laser delivers ultrashort 400-fs pulse
widths with high energy of 20 J per pulse. It offers good beam character-
istics in diffraction-limited TEM
00
mode.
Spectra-Physics
herman.chui@newport.com
NIR Line-Scan Camera
Teledyne Dalsas Piranha HS
(high sensitivity) near-infrared
8k line-scan camera features
enhanced quantum efficiency
and time delay and integration
(TDI) technology. It is designed
for low-light applications such as
solar cell, printed circuit board
and electronics inspection; large
web applications; and food and
drug inspection. TDI technology
enables multiple exposures for
increased sensitivity in the near-
infrared while maintaining low-
noise performance. The camera
images from 700 to 1050 nm,
uses selectable TDI stages up
to a maximum of 256, and has
an area mode of operation for
alignment. It can be programmed with up to four sets of coefficients and
provides mirroring and forward/reverse control; flat field correction; bidi-
rectional operation; 100 antiblooming; a Camera Link interface; and
320-megapixel-per-second throughput and a 34.3-kHz line rate that
enable fast inspection times and high productivity.
Teledyne Dalsa
sales.americas@teledynedalsa.com
LASYS is clearly focused on machines, processes
and services, including laser-specic machine sub-
systems. Attracting buyers from various industry
sectors whilst covering a diverse range of materials,
this is our unique trademark.
Present your applications for laser material proces-
sing at this unique industry show.
Absolutely focused:
The trade fair for laser users
12 14 JUNE 2012
MESSE STUTTGART
www.lasys-fair.com
Promotional supporter: Accompanying congress:
BMWi
sponsorship
of new
companies
International trade fair for
laser material processing
b BRIGHT IDEAS
Machine Vision System
Cognex Corp. has launched the In-Sight 500
machine vision system for inspecting parts on
fast production lines. The fixed-mount system is
packaged in a rugged IP65-rated housing and
powered by proprietary VSoC (vision system on
a chip) technology, which enables it to process
images at up to 500 fps with windowed acquisi-
tion. It includes the standard In-Sight program-
ming interface, an expansive tool set and vari-
ous communication methods, and it achieves
speeds of 100 fps at full 1024 768-pixel res-
olution and of 200 fps at 640 480. Available
tools and communication methods include
Cognex Connect, which supports EtherNet/IP
and PROFINET, among other protocols. The sys-
tem is suitable for users requiring sub-7-ms
cycle time, and it performs inspections employ-
ing blob, edge and histogram. Applications
include the medical device, packaging and
pharmaceutical industries.
Cognex Corp.
john.lewis@cognex.com
Triple Isotope Analyzer
Los Gatos Research has introduced a triple iso-
tope analyzer for simultaneous measurement of
17
O,
18
O and
2
H ratios in water and water
vapor samples. The IWA-46EP incorporates pro-
prietary thermal control, enabling measurement
over ambient temperatures from 0 to 45 C.
With its rugged, compact packaging, it is suit-
able for remote and airborne operation, and for
laboratory use. The device measures all three
isotopes simultaneously, directly from water-
based samples, including seawater and bodily
fluids. The measurement process is automated,
requiring minimal operator skill. Applications
include atmospheric chemistry, hydrology, water
cycle studies and medical diagnostics, where
water isotopes can be used to determine meta-
bolic efficiency and energy expenditure. The
device is based on proprietary and patented
off-axis integrated cavity output spectroscopy
technology.
Los Gatos Research
sales@lgrinc.com
ArF Excimer Laser
Gigaphoton Inc.s GT63A deep-UV ArF excimer
laser for multipatterning immersion lithography
scanners incorporates sMPL (spectrum multi-
positioning LNM)*1, a spectrum control (focus
drilling) technology that produces a wide depth
of focus; sGRYCOS (60-gigaphoton recycled
chamber operation system), a chamber technol-
ogy that lowers operating costs; sTGM (supreme
total gas manager), a gas management system
that enables longer uptime with less process
gas use; and sMonitoring (smart monitoring),
real-time information management that tracks
laser stability. Focus drilling enables expansion
of the lithography process window for contact
holes, trenches and vias, while avoiding nega-
tive effects on critical dimension uniformity,
overlay and productivity. The sGRYCOS extends
the life of a laser chamber. The sTGM imple-
ments a wavelength calibration method to elim-
inate the need to routinely replace the laser
82
b BRIGHT IDEAS
chambers gas. The sMonitoring can be con-
nected with the end users fault detection and
classification system to monitor operation.
Gigaphoton Inc.
sales@gigaphoton.com
Pro-VIS-NIR Spectrometer
The Maya2000 Pro-VIS-NIR from Ocean Optics
is a back-thinned 2-D fast Fourier transform-
CCD spectrometer with high sensitivity, 80%
peak quantum efficiency and good VIS-NIR re-
sponse. It is suitable for low-light-level Raman
applications, analysis of gases used in semicon-
ductor processing, and measurement of biologi-
cal samples in the life sciences. It has a low-
etalon, scientific-grade detector that provides
high quantum efficiency from about 400 to
1100 nm. Triggering functions provide accurate
timing and synchronization between the spec-
trometer and other devices. Three low-jitter trig-
ger modes and normal free-running spectral ac-
quisition operating modes are possible.
Applications include pulsing a light source when
acquiring a spectrum and synchronizing spectral
acquisition to coordinate with samples moving
through a process stream or sensors reaching a
certain temperature level. The instrument sup-
ports RS-232 communications and has a 30-pin
connector and 10 user-programmable digital
input/outputs. Its onboard high-speed field-
programmable gate array controller enables
triggering.
Ocean Optics
info@oceanoptics.com
Medium-Emission-Angle IR LEDs
Opto Diode Corp. has introduced the third in
a series of infrared LEDs, the OD-850L. Manu-
factured using liquid-phase epitaxially grown
GaAlAs, the high-optical-output IR emitters fea-
ture a medium-emission angle for optimum
coverage with good power density. The OD-
850L replaces the OD-880L medium-emission-
angle LED. It features nearly 50% greater output
power with less degradation and higher stabil-
ity, and the 850-nm wavelength is better
matched to phototransistors and optointegrated
circuits. Suitable for industrial control tasks, the
hermetically sealed standard TO-46 can is de-
signed with gold-plated surfaces and window
caps that are welded to the case for durability.
The LEDs can be stored or operated at tempera-
tures from 40 to 100 C. The package is suit-
able for use in optical encoders and photoelec-
tric controls. Total power output ranges from a
minimum of 25 mW,
with 35 mW typical, and peak forward current
is 300 mA.
Opto Diode Corp.
russdahl@optodiode.com
Lithography System
The Archetto 3 from Parian Technologies is an
interference lithography system for use in mate-
rials science and biology. Using blue laser
diodes and a patent-pending spatial filtering
approach, the optical system enables users to
produce controlled 1- and 2-D periodic nanos-
tructures with pitches ranging from 230 nm to 1
m over a 1-cm
2
area. The tabletop system
measures 30.48 60.96 30.48 cm and
weighs 9.07 kg. It does not require a vibration
isolation table and can produce periodic nanos-
tructures within minutes of assembly. It uses in-
terfering light beams to expose a standing wave
in photoresist. Output power is approximately 1
mW, required line voltage is from 90 to 264
VAC, and frequency is from 50 to 60 Hz.
Parian Technologies
sales@pariantech.com
Measurement System
Nanolanes Sarfus Mapping Lite measurement
system accommodates any optical microscope
functioning with reflected light. It images nano-
tubes, nanowires, DNA strands and nanoparti-
cles. It enables measurement of thin films and
surface treatment of nanometric thickness. It
comprises a set of Surf slides onto which users
deposit their samples. Users can see nano ob-
jects in the shape of films, tubes or particles.
Data conversion software takes a 2-D color
image and provides a 3-D thickness map of a
nanometric sample. Real-time image acquisition
makes it possible to record fast dynamic phe-
nomena, while a selectable field of view en-
ables users to study their samples globally and
locally. The technique is noncontact and nonde-
structive. Applications include thin-film charac-
terization, biological systems, nanopatterns and
Langmuir-Blodgett layers.
Nanolane
nanolane@eolane.com
b BRIGHT IDEAS
PCI Express Frame Grabber
BitFlow Inc. has unveiled the Karbon-CL4-F
frame grabber featuring interfaces for two inde-
pendent base, medium or full Camera Link digi-
tal video cameras. Two independent channels
with separate trigger signals allow it to acquire
from two monochrome or RGB area- or line-
scan cameras asynchronously, or it can be con-
figured with a single trigger to simultaneously
control both cameras. It provides camera con-
trol signals and sync inputs for each camera,
and acquires data up to 160 bits at an 85-MHz
pixel clock rate, and direct memory access
(DMA) at data rates up to 2 GB/s. It uses an x8
PCI Express bus interface and standard Camera
Link cabling. The CamEd graphical user inter-
face enables acquisition of fixed- or variable-
size images and features programmable region-
of-interest subwindowing. The CL4-F leverages
proprietary FlowThru technology, providing zero
latency access to data, low CPU usage and un-
limited DMA destination size.
Bitflow Inc.
sales@bitflow.com
Lock-in Amplifier
BNC Scientific is offering a fast commercial
lock-in amplifier produced by Zurich Instru-
ments. The UHFLI (ultrahigh-frequency lock-in
amplifier) performs measurements as high as
600 MHz and extends Zurichs scientific support
and BNCs instruments for high-end research
into the fields of quantum and nanophysics,
laser spectroscopy and bioengineering. Its de-
sign enables high-quality signal analysis. The
all-in-one box instrument demodulates signals
up to 600 MHz and provides 100-dB dynamic
reserve over the entire frequency range. It per-
forms domain signal analysis and uses several
instruments combined in a single device. The
time/frequency toolbox includes an oscilloscope,
a frequency response analyzer and a fast
Fourier transform spectrum analyzer, simplify-
ing many laboratory steps.
BNC Scientific
info@bncscientific.com
84
b BRIGHT IDEAS
w w w. o p t a t e c - m e s s e . d e
22 25 MAY 2012
FRANKFURT/ MAIN
11th Optatec
International Trade Fair
for Optical Technology,
Components and Systems
Schall makes trade fairs for markets
ORGANIZER
P. E. Schall GmbH & Co. KG
.
Gustav-Werner-Strae 6
.
D-72636 Frickenhausen
T +49 (0)7025 9206-0
.
F +49 (0)7025 9206-620
.
info@schall-messen.de
.
www.schall-messen.de
.

Optical components
.

Optomechanics / optoelectronics
.

Fibre optics / bre-optic cables
.

Laser components
.

Coating technologies
Laser Profiling Software
Ophir-Spiricon LLCs BeamGage
version 5.7 laser beam analysis
software features off-axis correc-
tion of distorted beam images. It
supports Ophirs Pulsar PC inter-
face, Nova II handheld, Vega color
display and Juno USB laser power
meters, and 32- and 64-bit Win-
dows Vista and Windows 7. It has
native language support for Eng-
lish, Japanese and Chinese, plus
compatibility with German Micro-
soft Windows environments. It ana-
lyzes beam size, shape, uniformity
and divergence, and adapts to
camera offset angles. A fixed mil-
limeter spatial unit option offers a
choice between scientific notation
and fixed decimal point millimeter
units. Supported functions include total power or energy, peak power/en-
ergy density, average pulse power and peak pulse power. Based on the
proprietary and patented UltraCal baseline correction algorithm, Beam-
Gage guarantees that the data baseline is accurate to
1
8 of a digital count
on a pixel-by-pixel basis. It is available in Standard, Professional and
Enterprise versions.
Ophir-Spiricon LLC
sales@ophir-spiricon.com
OS Gimbal Mirror Mounts
OS mounts from Optical Surfaces Ltd. support mirrors such as off-axis
parabola, spheres and flats in applications where stability is important.
Constructed in black anodized aluminum, four models provide a secure
b BRIGHT IDEAS
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platform for mirror diameters from 100 to 254
mm. Angular alignment can be made around
two axes via dual-action adjusters with fine-
screw and ultrafine differential micrometer
action. A mirror can be aligned within a few
arcsec. Each mirror mount is supplied with a
baseplate to facilitate rapid mounting onto an
optical table or other support. For larger mirrors
in applications where pointing stability is impor-
tant, the robust OS 260-600 series mounts are
available in four standard sizes with optical
apertures from 260 to 550 mm. All mirror
mounts provide precise micrometer screw ad-
justment around the vertical and horizontal
axes. Various motorized mount options are
available to suit applications in hostile environ-
ments or in places with limited space.
Optical Surfaces Ltd.
sales@optisurf.com
GaAsP Nondescanned Photodetector
Olympus Europa Holding GmbH has announced
the FV10MP-BXD-GAP photodetector for multi-
photon fluorescence imaging. The nondes-
canned detector captures faint fluorescence
signals and minimizes the laser power required
to generate a detectable signal, making it suit-
able for life sciences research. High sensitivity is
achieved by coating the photoelectric surface
with GaAsP, and Peltier cooling keeps noise to
a minimum, boosting the signal-to-noise ratio.
Standard photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) identify
regions of interest, which are then scanned
using the GaAsP PMTs. The photodetector
makes use of every photon emitted by a sam-
ple. A variety of biological processes can be in-
vestigated using fluorescently tagged molecules
expressed at physiologically relevant concentra-
tions. Reducing the laser power minimizes the
effects of photobleaching and phototoxicity and
increases the accuracy and biological relevance
of results. The device is equipped with two mul-
tialkali PMTs for routine browsing of samples
and with two GaAsP PMTs for analysis of a spe-
cific region of interest.
Olympus Europa Holding GmbH
microscopy@olympus-europa.com
Optical Fibers for CO
2
, Er:YAG Lasers
Pigtails for pump modules and medical laser
systems are in demand and, for these applica-
tions, Laser Components GmbH is offering Hol-
low Silica Waveguides (HSW) from Polymicro
Technologies. The fibers are for IR applications,
primarily for use with CO
2
(10.6 m) and
Er:YAG (2.94 m) lasers. They replace expensive
and complex articulated arms, can be used in
harsh environmental conditions, and can ac-
commodate fast-changing laser geometry. The
design of the fiber geometry and the properties
of the buffer allow up to 100 W of power to be
transmitted without additional cooling. HSW
fibers are available in the following standard
inner diameter/outer diameter/buffer sizes:
300/400/750, 500/650/850, 750/950/1200
and 1000/1300/1600. They are assembled with
SMA (905 and 906), ST and FC connectors.
Customer-specific core and buffer sizes are
available, as are connectors and optically bro-
ken, free-fiber ends.
Laser Components GmbH
info@lasercomponents.com
Laser Pump Modules
Intense Inc. has released another version of
its Series 8000 793-nm high-brightness laser
pump modules. The medium-power pump deliv-
ers 10 W of output from a 105-m core fiber
with a 0.22 numerical aperture. The compact
modules are used as pump sources for thulium
and holmium pulsed laser systems in defense
and medical applications. Also available are
fiber-coupled single emitters at 4.5 W as well
as compact, multiemitter, high-brightness, fiber-
coupled 20-W modules. The series is based
on proprietary 793-nm single-emitter chips that
incorporate narrow beam divergence and
patented Quantum Well Intermixing technology
to maximize power, brightness and reliability.
The same chip technology is offered in a variety
of free-space configurations. The modules are
available in custom packaging to match OEM
system requirements.
Intense Inc.
sales@intenseco.com
Spectrometer
Resolution Spectra Systems has introduced the
high-resolution, compact Zoom Spectra spec-
trometer. The handheld instrument, based on
proprietary SWIFTS core technology, produces
resolution that the company says is 100 times
better than that of existing mini spectrometers.
It provides high spectral resolution on a simulta-
neous bandwidth of a few nanometers. It is suit-
86
b
Breakthrough, practical,
energy-saving solutions for
OEM customers worldwide!
(/(&752237,&$/352'8&76&253
TEL: (718) 456-6000 FAX: (718) 456-6050 www.EOPC.com
Sub-Miniature Scanners:
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Tuning Fork
Choppers
OpticaI, X-ray
Low Cost Laser
Safety Shutters
Motorized FiIter
SeIectors
Products are suitable for long life dedicated applications, OEM,
built into an instrument or portable systems.
Scanners & Deectors
Resonant Scanners
Beam Deectors
Scanning Systems
X,Y Raster Scanners
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Tuning Fork Choppers
Low Frequency Choppers
Rotating Choppers
AO & EO ModuIators
AOTF
Chopping Systems
ModuIating Systems
Products You Trust ... Performance You Deserve ... Prices You Expect
BRIGHT IDEAS
able for monitoring laser emission, continuous
or pulsed, and for discriminating modes or
physical phenomena that conventional spec-
trometers do not resolve. Wavelength range
is from 630 to 1070 nm, corrected linearity is
>99.6%, signal-to-noise ratio is 340:1, dynamic
range is 4300:1, input power range is from 10
nW to 200 W, and integration time is from
320 ns to 137 s. Maximum measurement rate is
30 kHz. SWIFTS is a combination of nanotech-
nology, integrated optics, microelectronics and
embedded software.
Resolution Spectra Systems
info@resolutionspectra.com
Tab4Lab
An integrated tablet image recording system for
microscopes has been unveiled by Carl Zeiss
MicroImaging GmbH. Tab4Lab comprises a
touch pad and software and works with the
AxioCam ERc 5s camera. The software has been
adapted to tablet PCs and can be operated via
touch screen. Work flows are modeled on those
used in clinical labs and in industrial quality as-
surance. The user interface is available in vari-
ous languages. Tab4Lab is not dependent upon
a specific site of use and is therefore suitable
for labs where space is at a premium. Easy
transfer of image data via SD (secure digital)
card or other carriers makes the image record-
ing system suitable for use in training. Groups
can discuss microscope photos live and use
them for presentations. Users can provide the
microscope photos with a scaling bar and anno-
tate them with markings and text. Regions of in-
terest can be highlighted and documented for
detailed analysis.
Carl Zeiss MicroImaging GmbH
ksalerno@zeiss.com
Microscopy Cameras
Finger Lakes Instrumentation has announced
the MicroLine LS series cameras for microscopy
and life sciences applications. Incorporating fast
image capture and an expanded library of driv-
ers for support of popular imaging programs
such as Image Pro and Metamorph, the instru-
ments are supplied with basic operating soft-
ware and a powerful software development
kit. Features include cooling down to 65 C
(model-dependent), high-speed throughput and
high quantum efficiency for good low-light im-
aging results. Users can select from a wide vari-
b BRIGHT IDEAS
ety of sensors for monochrome, color, back or
front sensor illumination, and specific band-
width sensitivity.
Finger Lakes Instrumentation
info@flicamera.com
Radiometers/Photometers
The AccuMax digital radiometers/photometers
from Spectronics Corp. provide accurate read-
out for UV irradiance, visible illuminance and
other light readings. The devices are calibrated
for use with a full line of interchangeable sensor
detectors and are suitable for laboratory and
life sciences applications, including fluorescence
inspection and UV dosing. Single-wavelength
sensor detectors are available in standard and
extended ranges. The standard range provides
UV readings from microwatts to milliwatts, and
the extended, from milliwatts to watts. All are
suitable for checking the intensities of fluores-
cent UV tubes and high-intensity-discharge UV
bulbs. They are microprocessor-controlled with
software-driven functions. All detectors can be
connected directly to the readout unit or by a
standard USB cable. Powered by two included
9-V alkaline batteries, the readout unit is light-
weight and portable with a large, easy-to-read
LCD screen.
Spectronics Corp.
customerservice@spectroline.com
Uncooled InGaAs SWIR Camera
Xenics is introducing the Bobcat-320-Gated
shortwave infrared (SWIR) camera with integra-
tion times down to 80 ns for scientific R&D ap-
plications. It operates in the 0.9- to 1.7-m
spectral band and uses a sensitive uncooled
InGaAs detector with a 20-m pixel pitch. The
compact camera includes real-time onboard
image processing and image correction, and
features programmable trigger-out delay be-
tween the internally generated trigger-out pulse
and the start of integration. It is configurable
from 80 ns up to 1 ms in steps of 80 ns, and it
operates at a frame rate tunable around 28 fps.
It is suited for inspection of hot and fast-moving
objects or for measurement systems requiring
synchronization of the camera with a pulsed
laser.
Xenics
sales@xenics.com
Raman Fiber Probe
FiberTech Optica has released a line of compact
fiber optic Raman probes. Leveraging the com-
panys expertise in optics, spectroscopy and
manufacturing of precision fiber assemblies,
the probes feature an optical configuration de-
signed to enhance the throughput and quality
of the collected Raman signal. The design fea-
tures high-collection-efficiency f/2 optics, inter-
nal filtering (bandpass filter for the laser and
long-pass filter for the collected signal), a work-
ing distance of ~4 mm and a rugged assembly
with no moving parts. The probes are packaged
in a steel tube measuring ~4 mm in diameter.
The design allows for almost real-time collection
of data from solid and liquid samples.
FiberTech Optica
info@fto.ca
88
b BRIGHT IDEAS
Galvanometer
Cambridge Technol-
ogy Inc. has intro-
duced the Model
6250H galvanome-
ter for large-aper-
ture scanning appli-
cations. This addi-
tion to the com-
panys 62xxH line of
moving magnet gal-
vanometers is opti-
mized to provide
maximum perform-
ance for 30- to 50-
mm apertures.
Based on the 62xxH
actuator and posi-
tion detector inno-
vations, the device
is suitable for appli-
cations including re-
mote welding, cut-
ting, converting and
photovoltaic pro-
cessing, which re-
quire large aper-
tures to achieve the
desired small spot sizes. When coupled with the
companys large-aperture mirrors, the 6250H
operates at high processing speeds.
Cambridge Technology Inc.
davidf@camtech.com
Mask Alignment System
EV Group has announced the EVG620HBL, a
second-generation automated mask alignment
system for volume manufacturing of high-
brightness LEDs. Features include a microscope
that supports automated mask pattern search,
reducing mask setup and change time; an up-
dated robotic handling layout with wafer-map-
ping ability, which supports wafer traceability;
improved line alignment, which leverages the
grids that mark single LEDs for orientation in-
stead of requiring alignment marks that take up
space on the wafer; and a reduced system foot-
print. Built on a proprietary mask aligner plat-
form, the system features a high-intensity ultra-
violet light source and an optional filter fan to
maximize yield and deliver throughput of up to
165 6-in. wafers per hour (up to 220 wafers per
hour in first print mode). The system processes
2- to 6-in. wafers.
EV Group
info@evgroup.com
Image Sensor
BAE Systems Imaging Solutions offers the
Fairchild Imaging CIS1021 scientific CMOS
image sensor. A high-definition camera compo-
nent designed for collecting images through a
microscope, the sensor chip captures single
molecules with high sensitivity, along with
speed at high-definition TV resolution. Scientists
can capture faint and bright data in a scene. It
is suitable for live-cell microscopy, drug discov-
b BRIGHT IDEAS
ery and real-time polymerase chain reaction.
During live-cell or DNA sample examination,
the high dynamic range allows scientists to
collect weak and strong signals from the same
image, providing greater detail from bright or
dim areas and capturing data without damag-
ing the sample. In cell biology and drug discov-
ery, scientists can identify ways to prevent or
treat medical conditions. The image sensor is
available in monochrome and color versions.
Other applications include border security,
surveillance, astronomy, aerospace, defense
and medical imaging.
BAE Systems Imaging Solutions
mark.christenson@baesystems.com
Ultranarrow 4-GHZ Tunable Filter
Yenista Optics has released an ultrafine option
for its flattop optical tunable filters, the XTM-50
and XTA-50. It reduces the minimum bandwidth
to 32 pm, or 4 GHz at 1550 nm. In the devel-
opment of next-generation 100-Gb/s transmis-
sion systems, extremely narrow tunable filters
are needed to investigate new modulation for-
mats and their subbands. The ultrafine option
meets this requirement by providing a higher
selectivity to the XT line of filters. It offers band-
width adjustability from 32 pm (4 GHz) to 650
pm (80 GHz) and edges of 800 dB/nm. In the
standard version, these values are 50 to 800
pm and 500 dB/nm, respectively. The filters
operate in the 1480- to 1620-nm-wavelength
range and have very low dispersion and loss
characteristics. They will meet the needs of en-
gineers developing new transmission technolo-
gies and modulation formats, such as orthogo-
nal frequency division multiplexing.
Yenista Optics
sales@yenista.com
Expanded Integrating Sphere
Product Line
International Light Technologies has expanded
its integrating sphere products from two to five
models. They are used for measuring light
sources from miniature halogen lamps, LEDs
and small neon lamps up to larger sources such
as high-power LEDs and automotive lamps. Five
diameters are available: 12, 10, 6, 4 and 2 in.
All spheres have a spectral range of 225 to
1400 nm and are internally baffled to eliminate
direct detector exposure and first-bounce mea-
surements. They are supplied in a variety of port
sizes and configurations. Applications include
measurement of LED intensity/beam flux, laser
power, beam candela and mean spherical can-
dle power. The devices perform direct measure-
ment in optical units, including candela,
watts/steradian, watts, lumens, watts/cm
2
,
lux and joules.
International Light Technologies
ilsales@intl-lighttech.com
TO-Can Laser Diode Test System
Yelo Ltd. has designed a burn-in system to test
the reliability of TO-can laser diodes. The com-
panys research and development engineers
90
b BRIGHT IDEAS
412_SEMI_Pg91_Layout 1 3/22/12 11:30 AM Page 91
have reduced the time taken to stabilize devices
at test temperature and to provide even temper-
ature control across all devices. The systems re-
duce test time by 25%, and they automatically
take LIV measurements on the lasers during test
and save the data. Extensive graphing is built
into the graphical user interface software, so
time-consuming post data analysis is unneces-
sary. Secure remote access allows test engineers
to see the data without leaving their desks.
Constant current and constant power modes are
standard in the software. Two models are avail-
able, each unique in its testing environment and
functionality. The Laboratory Tester model can
be used to life-test devices and improve test
recipes. The Production Tester is used as a
simple pass/fail system in manufacturing
environments.
Yelo Ltd.
sales@yelo.co.uk
Laser-Line Bandpass Filters
Edmund Optics has unveiled its TechSpec OD 6
laser-line bandpass filters, which provide the
high transmission and deep rejection necessary
to isolate narrow spectral regions. Featuring a
bandwidth as low as 2 nm, they offer maximum
transmission of stimulated emission and are
fabricated using hard ion-beam sputtering
technology, ensuring good performance and
durability. They achieve >90% transmission at
their specified design laser wavelength and
offer blocking of >6 optical density at 1.5% of
the laser wavelength. Designed to eliminate
noisy spontaneous emission, they provide a full
width half maximum as narrow as 2 nm. They
can be used in laser-based fluorescence instru-
mentation and Raman spectroscopy as well as
in analytical and medical laser systems. They
are available with center wavelengths of 532,
785 and 1064 nm, and with diameters of 12.5
and 25 mm.
Edmund Optics
sales@edmundoptics.com
Programmable Optical Filters
Finisar Corp. has introduced two single-polar-
ization programmable optical filters. The Wave-
Shaper 1000S/SP and 1000M/SP are polariza-
tion-maintaining filters that provide full control
of the amplitude and phase spectra across the
C-band. They are designed for pulsed laser ap-
plications in medical and materials processing
as well as for testing of optical communications
systems. They precisely control the shape and
timing of a laser pulse, enabling shorter and
more stable pulses and increasing manufactur-
ing accuracy and throughput. Optical communi-
cations systems incorporating polarization multi-
plexing or coherent technologies benefit from
the WaveShaper 1000/SP because it enables
independent setting of the signal characteristics
in each polarization. The instruments are suit-
able for use in applications where polarization
control is critical, such as polarization-multi-
plexed communications systems and seed lasers
for high-power pulsed fiber lasers.
Finisar Corp.
sales@finisar.com
Thermal Imaging Cameras
Flir Systems Inc.s SC8400/SC6500 thermal im-
aging cameras have a cooled InSb detector that
produces crisp 1280 1024-pixel images. They
detect temperature differences <25 mK. A pro-
prietary lock-in facility reveals process tempera-
ture differences as small as 1 mK. Temperatures
92
b BRIGHT IDEAS
up to 3000 C are measured with 1 C accu-
racy. The cameras offer an adjustable rate of
up to 125 full frames and deliver images at up
to 3000 Hz. Windowing allows a subset of an
image to be selectively read out with adjustable
window size. A choice of lenses is available.
Connectivity options include Gigabit Ethernet,
Camera Link medium and DVI output compati-
ble with 1080p and Wi-Fi. BNC connectors are
included for detector synchronization, acquisi-
tion triggering, analog lock-in input and com-
posite video output. The LCD touch screen can
be removed, allowing camera installation in a
hard-to-reach position. An integral LED ensures
clear visual images that can be used as a refer-
ence against the thermal image.
Flir Systems Inc.
sales@flir.com
Cameras with GigE Vision
JAI Inc. has launched four GigE Vision indus-
trial-grade CCD cameras built around quad-tap
sensors from Kodak. The AM-201GE mono-
chrome and AB-201GE color models provide
1920 1080-pixel resolution at 38.3 fps for
8-bit monochrome or raw Bayer color output.
The AM-200GE monochrome and AB-200GE
color versions provide 1600 1200-pixel reso-
lution at 40.6 fps. All of the models offer selec-
table 10- and 12-bit output. The free software
development kit and Control Tool software pro-
vide access to the cameras features, as well
as library functions and samples for application
b BRIGHT IDEAS
development. Channel balancing adjusts the
video levels to ensure uniformity across the
image. User-configurable area-of-interest scan-
ning, multiple binning modes and a variety of
acquisition modes are supported. Automatic
Level Control integrates auto-shutter, auto-gain
and auto-iris for exposure control under chang-
ing lighting conditions. Other features include
auto-white balancing, pixel blemish compensa-
tion, flat-field compensation, C-mount lens
mounts and a 512-point look-up table.
JAI Inc.
camerasales.americas@jai.com
Fiber Optic Modules
Avago Technologies has announced fiber optic
modules that enable more efficient switching
and greater bandwidth in data centers. The
pluggable, parallel optical QSFP+ eSR4 trans-
ceiver addresses 40- and 10-Gb Ethernet appli-
cations with a link distance of 400 m. Data cen-
ter operators can reuse the current 10-G wired
infrastructure when upgrading to 40 G. The
module integrates four 10-G lanes in each di-
rection to increase bandwidth within a line card
by more than three times, while using 50 per-
cent less power than that of a one-lane SFP+
module. To accommodate the need for more
bandwidth, customers can use the modules
to develop top-of-rack, blade and modular
switches with up to 44 QSFP+ ports/line card,
providing 176 10-G channels with QSFP+.
QSFP+ eSR4 modules can be used for high-
density 10- and 40-G aggregated Ethernet
applications, providing flexibility to connect to
different levels of switches, reducing latency and
increasing port density with lower power con-
sumption per lane.
Avago Technologies
support@avagotech.com
b
MAY 8-10, 2012
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where you can see advanced solutions for applications in
aerospace, defense (including arms), medical, and energy.
Produced in partnership with leading OEMs and the Society of
Manufacturing Engineers (SME), Mfg4 unlocks the new possibilities
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Photonics Showcase or in the
Spotlight section of Photonics Spectra.
Reach all of our readers in these
low-cost, lead-generating features.
Call Kristina Laurin at (413) 499-0514,
or e-mail advertising@Photonics.com.
MAY
CLEO: 2012 Laser Science to Photonic
Applications (May 6-11) San Jose, Calif.
Conference on Lasers and Electro-optics.
Contact Optical Society of America Customer
Service CLEO Management, +1 (202)
416-1907; custserv@osa.org; www.cleo
conference.org.
The Vision Show (May 8-10) Boston.
Contact Automated Imaging Association,
+1 (734) 994-6088; www.visiononline.org.
Mfg4 (Manufacturing 4 the Future)
Conference & Exposition (May 8-10)
Hartford, Conn. Contact Society of Manufactur-
ing Engineers, +1 (800) 733-4763; service@
sme.org; www.mfg4event.com.
AKL International Laser Technology
Congress (May 9-11) Aachen, Germany.
Contact Silke Boehr, Fraunhofer Institute for
Laser Technology ILT, +49 241 8906 288;
silke.boehr@ilt.fraunhofer.de; www.laser
congress.org.
Fifth International Workshop on Plasma
Spectroscopy (May 13-16) Presqule de
Giens, France. Contact Franck Andral,
Erudicio Sarl, ips2012@erudicio.com;
ips2012.erudicio.com.
Quantum Interfaces: Integrating Light,
Atoms and Solid-State Devices (May 14-15)
Milton Keynes, UK. Contact Jon Mackew,
Institute of Physics, +44 20 7470 4800;
jon.mackew@iop.org; www.iop.org.
Third International Topical Meeting on
Optical Sensing and Artificial Vision
(OSAV 2012) (May 14-17) St. Petersburg,
Russia. Contact Igor Gurov, conference
chairman, +7 812 571 6532; gurov@mail.
ifmo.ru; osav.spb.ru.
International Conference on Informatics,
Electronics & Vision (May 18-19) Dhaka,
Bangladesh. Contact ICIEV12, icievision@
gmail.com; iciev.org.
Sensor + Test 2012 (May 22-24) Nuremberg,
Germany. Contact AMA Service GmbH,
+49 50 33 96 39 0; info@sensorfairs.de;
www.sensor-test.com.
ANGEL 2012 Second Conference on Laser
Ablation and Nanoparticle Generation in
Liquids (May 22-24) Taormina, Italy.
Contact Silke Kramprich, EOS Events &
Services GmbH, +49 511 2788 117; angel
2012@myeos.org; www.myeos.org/events/
angel2012.
OPTATEC 2012 (May 22-25) Frankfurt,
Germany. Contact P.E. Schall GmbH & Co. KG,
+49 7025 9206 0; info@schall-messen.de;
www.optatec-messe.com.
XXII International Scientific and
Engineering Conference on Photoelectronics
and Night Vision Devices (May 22-25)
Moscow. Contact Alexander I. Dirochka,
State Scientific Center of Russian Federation,
+7 499 374 81 20; conf@orion-ir.ru;
www.orion-ir.ru.
BioMedOptTex Symposium (May 23-25)
College Station, Texas. Contact Kristen
Maitland, kmaitland@tamu.edu;
biomed.tamu.edu.
Sixth International Conference on
Nanophotonics (ICNP) (May 27-30) Beijing.
Contact Optical Society of America, +1 (202)
223-8130; info@osa.org; icnp2012.pku.edu.cn.
OPTINET China 2012 (May 30-31) Beijing.
Contact Peter Lee, +852 2865 1118; peter.lee
@infoexws.com; www.optinetchina.com.
JUNE
Principles of Fluorescence Techniques
Course (June 4-6) Urbana, Ill. Contact Saman-
tha Redes, +1 (217) 359-8681; coordinator@
fluorescence-foundation.org; www.fluorescence-
foundation.org.
Display Week 2012 (June 4-8) Boston.
Contact Society for Information Display, +1
(408) 879-3901; office@sid.org; www.sid.org.
Laser Safety Officer Training Course
(June 5-8) San Diego. Contact Rockwell
Laser Industries, +1 (513) 272-9900;
training@rli.com; www.rli.com.
3D Microscopy of Living Cells Course
(June 9-21) and 3D Image Processing
Postcourse Workshop (June 23-25)
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Contact
James Pawley, University of Wisconsin-Madison,
+1 (608) 238-3953; jbpawley@wisc.edu;
www.3dcourse.ubc.ca/2012.
QIRT 2012: 11th Quantitative Infrared
Thermography Conference (June 11-14)
Naples, Italy. Contact Secretariat, +39 081
7685 184; qirt2012@unina.it; www.qirt2012.
unina.it.
Advanced High Power Lasers 2012
(June 11-15) Broomfield, Colo. Contact
Cynnamon Spain, Directed Energy Professional
Society, +1 (505) 998-4910; cynnamon@
deps.org; www.deps.org.
Lasys 2012: International Trade Fair
for System Solutions in Laser Material
Processing (June 12-14) Stuttgart, Germany.
Contact Meike Mayer, +49 711 18560,
Ext. 2374; meike.mayer@messe-stuttgart.de;
www.messe-stuttgart.de.
euroLED 2012 (June 13-14) Birmingham, UK.
Contact Michelle Cleaver, +44 121 250 3515;
info@euroled.org.uk; www.euroled.org.uk.
Third EOS Topical Meeting on Terahertz
Science & Technology (TST 2012)
(June 17-20) Prague, Czech Republic.
A European Optical Society Event. Contact Silke
Kramprich, EOS Events & Services GmbH,
+49 511 277 2674; tst2012@myeos.org;
www.myeos.org/events/tst2012.
Advanced Photonics Congress (June 17-21)
Colorado Springs, Colo. Includes Access
Networks and In-house Communications; Bragg
Gratings, Photosensitivity and Poling in Glass
Waveguides; Integrated Photonics Research,
Silicon and Nano-Photonics; Photonic Metama-
terials and Plasmonics; Nonlinear Photonics;
HAPPENINGS
PAPERS
LIBS 2012 (September 29-October 4) Luxor, Egypt
Deadline: abstracts, May 15
Organizers of the Seventh International Conference on Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy
(LIBS 2012) invite papers for oral and poster presentation. Topics to be considered include LIBS
fundamentals, techniques and instrumentation, modeling and data analysis, and industrial,
biomedical, environmental and homeland security applications. The conference will emphasize
the interdisciplinary aspects of the technology. Contact Applied Laser Spectroscopy (ALS) group,
National Institute of Laser Enhanced Sciences (NILES), Cairo University, tel./fax: +202 356 75335;
info@libs2012-niles.org; www.libs2012-niles.org.
SPIE Optical Systems Design 2012 (November 26-29) Barcelona, Spain
Researchers are encouraged to submit their latest findings to the SPIE Optical Systems Design
conference, which will focus on the design and manufacture of optical technology for applications
such as imaging, defense, space research and laser fusion. Among areas to be addressed are
metrology, optical engineering, advances in optical thin films, detectors and associated signal
processing, and illumination and physical optics. Contact SPIE, +1 (360) 676-3290; customer
service@spie.org; spie.org.
ISQE 2012 (September 24-28) Nessebar, Bulgaria
Contributions for oral and poster presentation are sought for the 17th International School on
Quantum Electronics (ISQE): Laser Physics and Applications. Topics to be discussed include
laser-matter interaction, laser spectroscopy and metrology, laser remote sensing and ecology,
lasers in biology and medicine, and laser systems and nonlinear optics. Contact Irina Bliznakova,
Institute of Electronics, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, tel./fax: +359 2 974 5742; isqe.2012@
gmail.com; www.isqe2012.dir.bg.
412Happenings_Layout 1 3/23/12 9:17 AM Page 95
Specialty Optical Fibers & Applications; and
Signal Processing in Photonic Communications.
Contact Optical Society of America, +1 (202)
223-8130; info@osa.org; www.osa.org.
TechConnect World 2012 (June 18-21)
Santa Clara, Calif. Contact Sarah Wenning,
+1 (925) 353-5004; wenning@techconnect.
org; www.techconnectworld.com.
BIO International Convention (June 18-21)
Boston. Contact Biotechnology Industry
Organization, +1 (202) 962-9200; reg2012@
bio.org; www.convention.bio.org.
Imaging and Applied Optics: OSA Optics
& Photonics Congress (June 24-28)
Monterey, Calif. Includes Applied Industrial
Optics: Spectroscopy, Imaging, and Metrology;
Computational Optical Imaging and Sensing;
Imaging Systems Applications; Optical
Fabrication and Testing; Optical Remote
Sensing of the Environment; and Optical
Sensors. Contact Optical Society of America,
+1 (202) 223-8130; info@osa.org; www.
osa.org.
International Workshop on Laser-Matter
Interaction (WLMI-2012) (June 25-29)
Porquerolles, France. Contact Luc Berg,
CEA France, luc.berge@cea.fr; www.pks.
mpg.de/~wlmi12.
JULY
2012 Astronomical Telescopes +
Instrumentation (July 1-6) Amsterdam.
Contact SPIE, +1 (360) 676-3290;
help@spie.org; www.spie.org.
Eighth International Conference on
Optics-Photonics Design and Fabrication
(ODF 12) (July 2-5) Saint Petersburg, Russia.
Contact Eugenia Brui, +7 911 998 21 81;
odf12org@gmail.com; www.odf2012.ru.
17th Optoelectronics and Communications
Conference (July 2-6) Busan, South Korea.
Contact OECC 2012 Secretariat, +82 42 472
7461; oecc@oecc-2012.org; www.oecc-
2012.org.
XVIIIth International Conference on
Ultrafast Phenomena (July 8-13) Lausanne,
Switzerland. Contact European Physical Society,
+33 3 89 32 94 48; secretariat@eps.org;
www.up2012.org.
39th COSPAR Scientific Assembly
(July 14-22) Mysore, India. Contact COSPAR
(Committee on Space Research) Secretariat,
+33 1 44 76 75 10; cospar@cosparhq.cnes.fr;
www.cospar-assembly.org.
Lasers in Medicine & Biology Conference
(July 22-27) Holderness, N.H. Contact Holly
Tobin, Gordon Research Conferences, Fax: +1
(401) 783-7644; htobin@grc.org; www.grc.org.
M&M 2012: Microscopy & Microanalysis
(July 29-Aug. 2) Phoenix. Contact Microscopy
Society of America, +1 (703) 234-4115;
registration@microscopy.org; www.microscopy.
org.
AUGUST
SPIE Optics + Photonics (Aug. 12-16)
San Diego. Includes NanoScience + Engineer-
ing; Solar Energy + Technology; Organic Pho-
tonics + Electronics; and Optical Engineering +
Applications. Contact SPIE, +1 (360) 676-3290;
customerservice@spie.org; spie.org.
Sixth EOS Topical Meeting on Visual
and Physiological Optics (EMVPO 2012)
(Aug. 20-22) Dublin. A European Optical
Society event. Contact Julia Dalichow, EOS
Events & Services GmbH, +49 511 277 2673;
emvpo2012@myeos.org; www.myeos.org.
Fifth EPS-QEOD Europhoton Conference:
Solid State, Fibre and Waveguide Coherent
Light Sources (Aug. 26-31) Stockholm.
A European Physical Society Quantum
Electronics and Optics Division event. Contact
EPS, +33 389 32 9448; conferences@eps.org;
www.europhoton.org.
96
h HAPPENINGS
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tracy.reynolds@photonics.com
Eastern Canada
Maureen Riley Moriarty
Regional Manager
Voice: +1 (413) 499-0514, Ext. 229
Fax: +1 (413) 443-0472
riley.moriarty@photonics.com
Europe, Israel & South Central US
Owen Broch
Regional Manager
Voice: +1 (413) 499-0514, Ext. 108
Fax: +1 (413) 443-0472
owen.broch@photonics.com
Austria, Germany & Liechtenstein
Olaf Kortenhoff
Voice: +49 2241 1684777
Fax: +49 2241 1684776
olaf.kortenhoff@photonics.com
Asia (except Japan)
Hans Zhong
Voice: +86 755 2872 6973
Fax: +86 755 8474 4362
hans.zhong@yahoo.com.cn
Japan
Scott Shibasaki
Voice: +81 3 5225 6614
Fax: +81 3 5229 7253
s_shiba@optronics.co.jp
Reprint Services
Voice: +1 (413) 499-0514
Fax: +1 (413) 443-0472
editorial@photonics.com
Mailing addresses:
Send all contracts, insertion orders
and advertising copy to:
Laurin Publishing
PO Box 4949
Street address:
Laurin Publishing
Berkshire Common, 2 South St.
Pittsfield, MA 01201
Voice: +1 (413) 499-0514
Fax: +1 (413) 443-0472
AMA Service GmbH ..............89
www.sensor-test.com
Andor Technology .................76
www.andor.com
Applied Scientific
Instrumentation ....................40
www.asiimaging.com
Argyle International ...............89
www.argyleoptics.com
Avantes .................................68
www.avantes.com
Bayspec Inc. ..........................56
www.bayspec.com
Bristol Instruments Inc. ............16
www.bristol-inst.com
Cargille Laboratories ..............36
www.cargille.com
China International
Optoelectronic Exposition ....87
www.cioe.cn
Chroma Technology Corp. .....76
www.chroma.com
Coherent Inc. ...................35, 55
www.coherent.com
Cooke Corporation Ltd. ..........43
www.cookecorp.com
CVI Melles Griot ..............69, 74
Dataray Inc. ..........................29
www.dataray.com
Deposition Sciences Inc. ...17, 75
www.depsci.com
Directed Energy Inc. ...............82
www.ixyscolorado.com
DRS Technologies Inc. .......12-13
www.drs.com
Edmund Optics ......................33
www.edmundoptics.com
Electro-Optical
Products Corp. ....................86
www.eopc.com
Electro-Optics
Technology Inc. ...................88
www.eotech.com
Esco Products Inc. ..................14
www.escoproducts.com
FLIR Systems Inc. .................CV4
www.flir.com
4D Technology Corporation ....76
www.4dtechnology.com
Fresnel Technologies Inc. ........26
www.fresneltech.com
G-S Plastic Optics Inc. ......22, 77
www.gsoptics.com
GT Crystal Systems LLC ..........40
www.gtat.com
Hamamatsu ...........................37
www.sales.hamamatsu.com
Image Science Ltd. .................84
www.image-science.co.uk
Innovation Photonics ..............77
www.innpho.com
Iridian Spectral
Technologies .......................77
www.iridian.ca
ISP Optics .....................51, CV2
www.ispoptics.com
Jenoptik Optical Systems ........49
www.jenoptik.com
L-3 Communications
SSG-Tinsley ..........................9
www.asphere.com
La Croix Optical Co. ..............20
Lake Shore Cryotronics Inc. ....88
www.lakeshore.com
Laser Institute of America .......92
www.laserevent.org
Kurt J. Lesker Co. ...................50
www.lesker.com
Leybold Optics USA Inc. .........77
www.leyboldoptics.com
Lightmachinery Inc. ..........28, 36
www.lightmachinery.com
Lightworks Optics Inc. ............61
www.lwoptics.com
Mad City Labs .......................87
www.madcitylabs.com
Master Bond Inc. ...................28
www.masterbond.com
Meller Optics Inc. ..................93
www.melleroptics.com
Messe Stuttgart ......................81
www.lasys-fair.com
Mildex Inc. ............................75
www.mildex.com
New Infrared Technologies .....75
www.niteurope.com
Newport Corp. ......6, 21, 25, 30
www.newport.com
Nova Sensors, a Teledyne
Majority Owned Company ..23
www.novasensors.com
Novotech Inc. ........................80
www.novotech.net
Nufern ..................................39
www.nufern.com
Nusil Technology .................CV3
www.nusil.com
OPCO Laboratory Inc. ...........38
www.opcolab.com
Ophir-Spiricon Inc. ................78
www.ophiropt.com
Optimax Systems Inc. .............60
www.optimaxsi.com
PIDA .....................................93
www.optotaiwan.com
Photonics
Media ........44, 65, 78, 85, 96
www.photonics.com
PI (Physik Instrumente) L.P. ......78
www.pi.ws
Picoquant GmbH ...................80
www.picoquant.com
Precision Glass
& Optics .......................11, 75
www.pgo.com
Qioptiq Inc. .............................8
www.qioptiq.com
Research Electro-Optics ..........57
www.reoinc.com
Reynard Corporation .............42
www.reynardcorp.com
RSoft Design Group .................7
www.rsoftdesign.com
P.E. Schall GmbH ..................85
www.optatec-messe.de
Schott North America Inc.
Lighting and Imaging
Division ..............................31
www.us.schott.com/
lightingimaging
SEMI .....................................91
www.semiconwest.org
Sensors Unlimited Inc.
Goodrich ISR Systems ..........27
www.sensorsinc.com
Siskiyou Corporation ..............83
www.siskiyou.com
Society for Information
Display ...............................73
www.displayweek.org
Society of Manufacturing
Engineers ...........................94
www.mfg4event.com
Spectrogon US Inc. ................81
www.spectrogon.com
Stanford Research
Systems Inc. ..........................3
www.thinksrs.com
Sutter Instrument ....................96
www.sutter.com
Swift Glass Co. Inc. ................77
www.swiftglass.com
Sydor Optics Inc. ...................84
www.sydor.com
Synopsys Inc. ........................15
www.synopsys.com
Tohkai Sangyo Co. Ltd. ..........94
www.peak.co.jp
Toptica Photonics Inc. .......76, 78
www.toptica.com
Toshiba Imaging Systems
Division ..............................34
www.cameras.toshiba.com
Trioptics GmbH .....................76
www.trioptics.com
Westech Optical Corp. ...........75
www.westechoptical.com
Xenics NV .............................78
www.xenics.com
Z&Z Optoelectronics
Tech. Co. Ltd. ......................90
www.zzoptic.com
Zygo Corp. ...........................41
www.zygo.com
412AdIndex_Layout 1 3/23/12 10:04 AM Page 97
p PEREGRINATIONS
G
orgeous floral arrangements can
really brighten up a party partic-
ularly when theyre blooming in
champagne flutes.
These arent real flowers, of course;
theyre tiny structures created by the cham-
pagne bubbles as they rise from the glasses.
And only high-speed, close-up snapshots
reveal their floral appearance.
A recent paper delves into the physics
behind the fizz to explain the role that car-
bon dioxide plays in champagne in its brief
but lively existence from bottle to glass.
In the paper, Grard Liger-Belair at the
University of Reims in France focused
on the fermentation process.
The bubbles originate through a process
called nucleation, which is triggered by tiny
impurities in the glass or by intentional
etching inside champagne flutes, Liger-
Belair said.
His research included a visual study,
aided by a classic Minolta video camera
fitted with bellows, a microscope objective
and a high-speed flash, filming at rates of
1000 and 3000 fps, to freeze the short-lived
bubbles in time.
The work was published online in the
European Physical Journal Special Topics.
Such visual analysis of the dynamics in-
volved could lead to further enhancements
in champagne production, which has re-
mained much the same since its develop-
ment in the late 17th century.
Bubble nucleation, or forma-
tion, sites are shown on the
wall of a glass filled with
champagne. Alain Cornu.
Champagne scientist and photographer Grard Liger-Belair uses a high-speed video camera to reveal
the microscale dynamics of champagne bubble nucleation. Hubert Raguet.
This projection of a tiny champagne jet is shown
after the collapse of a bubble at the champagne
surface. The height of the jet is only 1 mm. The
photographer said that this stage in the bubbles
existence is one of the most technically difficult to
capture on camera. Grard Liger-Belair.
In a process invisible to the naked eye,
champagne bubbles take on a flowerlike structure
around bubbles collapsing on the
surface of the liquid poured into a glass.
Grard Liger-Belair.
The physics behind the fizz
Liger-Belair said he is particularly
attracted by the visually appealing but,
unfortunately, invisible to the naked eye
phenomena happening right under our
noses when we taste champagne.
From my point of view, the most impor-
tant findings are the collapsing-driven-bub-
ble phenomena, he said. Bursting bubbles
project high-speed champagne droplets
above the liquid surface, which carry
aromas.
There also is a fantastic zoology re-
vealed by the high-speed imaging the tiny
flower-shaped structures formed by bubbles
near a collapsing one, he added.
Caren B. Les
caren.les@photonics.com
412_Peregrinations_2_Layout 1 3/22/12 1:22 PM Page 98
USA +1 805
-
684
-
8780
Europe +33
(
0
)
4 92 96 9331
nusil.com/phosp
2012 NuSil Technology LLC. All rights reserved.
Building on our 30 years of experience providing custom silicone solutions, were expanding
our technological capabilities across the globe. At NuSil, weve dramatically increased the
size of our manufacturing and added global warehousing facilities; expanded the size of our
technical service center in Sophia Antipolis, France; and hired new scientists and chemists,
doubling the size of our R&D department. So, no matter what your need for silicone,
in small batches or large volume production, across the country or around the world,
NuSil is there for you in a big way.
412_Nusil_PgCVR3_Layout 1 3/22/12 11:05 AM Page CVR3
Of course it f ts.
But it

also

rocks.
Design in FLIR Quark to your
handheld device because its the
worlds smallest thermal camera.
Youll deliver thermal imaging
that rocks because Quark
comes from FLIR the industry
leader in innovation, performance,
reliability and price.
805.690.5097
for FLIR OEM
Quark:
Actual
Size
See Quark in 3D at
www.FLIR.com/QuarkPS
412_FLIR_PgCVR4_Layout 1 3/22/12 11:06 AM Page CVR4

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