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SILICON PHOTONICS
Intel and UCSB team comes up with hybrid laser
Switchable lotuseffect creates self-cleaning surfaces
SURFACE TREATMENT
IN-SITU METHODENSURES PRECISEOPTICAL LAYERS
OPTICAL MONITORING
BEAM SHAPING
DOEs offer bigbenefits thanks tounique properties
October 2006 Issue 143 The European magazine for photonics professionals optics.org
OLEOct06COVERp01 25/9/06 14:28 Page 1
NEWS5 Business Intel and UCSB scientists claim hybrid silicon laser
revolution • Consortium wins funding to tackle LCD recycling
• Photonex focuses on interaction
9 Editorial New technology galore
TECHNOLOGY11 Applications Embedded LEDs light up clothing • Sommelier
robot helps choose wine • Laser-etched silicon delivers a response in the near-infrared
16 R&D Doubled VECSEL emits light in the ultraviolet
• ‘See-through’ silver boosts LEDs
17 Patents UK imaging firm AST receives US patent for its infrared camera • Kodak signs up Tohoku of Japan as licensee ofOLED technology
FEATURES19 Eye scan shows first sign of Alzheimer’s disease
Scanning the lens of a human eye with infrared laser light canreveal the earliest signs of Alzheimer’s disease in a matter ofseconds, according to US start-up Neuroptix.
23 Lasers meet fluids: an integrated approachAn optical manipulation and analysis platform that can fit ontoa fingernail could significantly change the field of microfluidics.
26 ZnO-based LEDs begin to show full-colourpotentialStart-up MOXtronics has recently produced the first colouredZnO-based LEDs. Although the efficiency of these LEDs is nothigh, the emitters have the potential to outperform GaN rivals.
29 In situ method drives up yields and reduces costsThere is a lot more to making an optical filter than meets the eye.Dominik Goessi looks at the role of in situ monitoring in theproduction process and reviews the technology.
33 Hybrid diffractive optics offer an elegant solutionThanks to a set of unique properties, diffractive optical elementshave the potential to transform light into almost any desireddistribution. Joshika Akhil gives the low-down on the technology.
PRODUCTS37 Oscilloscope• Chromatic confocal sensors • Colour CCD camera
REGUL ARS50 People/Sudoku
EDITORIALEditor Jacqueline HewettTel: +44 (0)117 930 [email protected]
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© 2006 IOP Publishing Ltd. The contents of OLE donot represent the views or policies of the Institute ofPhysics, its council or its officers unless so identified. Printed by Warners (Midlands) plc, The Maltings, West Street, Bourne, Lincolnshire PE10 9PH, UK.
I ssue 143 October 2006 Contents
IMEC installs ASML’s EUVAlpha Demo Tool. p5
UK researchers’ doubledVECSEL emits UV light. p16
Chip combines microfluidicsand integrated optics. p23
ZnO-based LEDs look set tochallenge GaN devices. p26
SILICON PHOTONICS
Intel and UCSB team comes up with hybrid laser
Switchable lotuseffect creates self-cleaning surfaces
SURFACE TREATMENT
IN-SITU METHODENSURES PRECISEOPTICAL LAYERS
OPTICAL MONITORING
BEAM SHAPING
DOEs offer bigbenefits thanks tounique properties
October 2006 Issue 143 The European magazine for photonics professionals optics.org
For the latest news on optics and photonics don’t forget to visit optics.org
Cover (Evatec) Opticalmonitoring systems givemanufacturers a high levelof process control. p29
OLEOct06CONTENTSp03 25/9/06 15:15 Page 3
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OLEOctAdElcan4 29/8/06 10:33 Page 1
Intel and UCSB scientists claimhybrid silicon laser revolution
NEWSBUSINESS 5 EDITORIAL 9
5OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
SILICON PHOTONICS
By Michael HatcherA huge increase in speed for high-end computing applications couldbe on the cards after a US teamannounced that it had created theworld’s first electrically pumped“hybrid” silicon laser. In makingthe device, researchers at Intel andthe University of California SantaBarbara (UCSB) claim to havecombined the light-emitting prop-erties of indium phosphide (InP)with the manufacturability of sili-con for the first time.
“This could bring low-cost, ter-abit-level optical ‘data pipes’ insidefuture computers and help makepossible a new era of high-perfor-mance computing applications,”said Mario Paniccia, director ofIntel’s Photonics Technology Lab.
In the hybrid structure, InP mat-erial generates and amplifies lightto create the laser, while the siliconstructure acts as a laser cavity andis used to route and control theemission. Light enters into the sili-con through a physical effectknown as evanescent coupling.The initial laser made by Intel emitsat 1.58 µm, although this wave-length can be adjusted by modify-ing the silicon waveguides used.
According to Intel, the key tomaking the device is the use of a
low-temperature oxygen plasma.This creates a thin oxide layer onthe surface of both materials.When heated and pressed together,this oxide layer acts like a glue andfuses the two different materialsinto a single chip. Intel claims thatunlike other methods that havebeen tried, this eliminates anyproblems due to lattice mismatch
between the two materials.UCSB’s Jon Bowers says that
this bonding method can be usedat the die, partial-wafer and full-wafer level, and could become asolution for large-scale opticalintegration on a silicon platform.
Intel’s chief technical officerJustin Rattner says that if the latestdevelopment can be scaled up for
mass production, it ought to solvethe cost issue with current photonicchip manufacturing. Presently, thecost of a laser chip for communica-tions can be up to 100 times that ofa silicon chip.
Infinera, the Sunnyvale, CA, US,company that has developed anintegrated approach for currenttelecommunications applications,says that Intel’s work is a “greatendorsement” of the photonicintegration concept.
However, it disagrees with Intel’sconjecture that InP is an “exotic”material that is inherently expen-sive. Infinera believes that the costof manufacturing devices is dic-tated more by the level of volumeproduction required.
Intel has previously claimed sili-con photonics breakthroughs,such as last year’s optically excitedRaman laser. However, this latestresearch is the first to detail a chipthat can be powered electrically.The company says that its vision isto produce chips containing hun-dreds of hybrid silicon lasers usingestablished high-volume, low-costmanufacturing methods.
Michael Hatcher is editor ofCompound Semiconductor(www.compoundsemiconductor.net).
IMEC of Leuven, Belgium, which isEurope’s leading independentnanoelectronics and nanotechnol-ogy research institute, has takendelivery of an extreme ultraviolet(EUV) Alpha Demo Tool, developedby Dutch firm ASML.
EUV is the most likely candidatetechnology for the 32 nm half-pitch node. Over the past twoyears, IMEC and its partners have
been busy building up the photore-sist know-how necessary for EUVlithography, which can now beexploited using the new tool.
“We are convinced that we willbe able to make EUV available forproduction at the 32 nm half-pitchnode,” said Luc van den Hove, vice-president of Silicon Process andDevice Technology at IMEC.
Along with more than 30 litho-
graphy programme partners,including nine of the world’s lead-ing IC manufacturers or foundries– Infineon, Intel, Matsushita/Panasonic, Micron, Philips Semi-conductor, Samsung, STMicro-electronics, Texas Instruments andTSMC – IMEC leads the world’slargest research and developmenteffort on lithography targeting the(sub-)32 nm node.
IMEC installs full-field EUV systemLITHOGRAPHY
Hybrid laser: when a voltage is applied to the bonded chip, light generated from InP-based material couples directly into a silicon waveguide. Intel hopes that thedevice will drive a new era of high-performance computing applications.
ASML’s Alpha Demo Tool will be putthrough its paces at IMEC.
ASML
Intel
OLEOct06NEWSp5-9 25/9/06 15:53 Page 5
Consortium wins fundingto tackle LCD recycling
NEWSBUSINESS
DISPLAYS
6 OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
Scientists from the University ofYork, UK, have won a competition,organized by the UK government’sDepartment of Trade and Industry(DTI), to investigate ways of extract-ing and recycling liquid crystalsfrom waste LCD devices.
Researchers estimate that thevalue of recycled LCD material fromthe UK alone could be as much as$60 m (747.3 m) per year.
Some 40 million LCD televisionsets were sold worldwide in 2005with expected sales likely to exceed100 million by 2009. However, thechemicals they contain are poten-tially hazardous, and technologi-cal advances are so rapid thatsociety is already discarding mil-lions of LCD screens each year.
The York team is part of a con-sortium of nine partners and issupported by both the ResourceEfficiency and the Displays and
Lighting Knowledge Transfer Net-works. The DTI is funding 50% ofthe total project development bidworth £1.7 m (72.5 m).
LCD screens usually comprisetwo glass sheets, with a thin film ofviscous liquid-crystal materialdeposited between them. The mat-erial is made up of a combinationof up to 20 different compounds,
typically polar organic compoundsthat are often fluorinated. EU legis-lation now prevents disposal ofelectronic materials in landfill.Incineration, the other disposalroute, has also been banned.
“We have developed a technologythat offers a clean, efficient way torecover the mixture of liquid crys-tals from waste LCDs,” said AvtarMatharu, of York’s Department ofChemistry. “Once recovered, theliquid-crystal mixture will be recy-cled into LCDs or separated into indi-vidual components for resale.”
So-called active disassembly, isan important feature of the project.To aid recycling, liquid-crystal mat-erial stuck between the glass layersneeds to be isolated easily. Forexample, this could be achieved byinserting intelligent polymers inbetween display panels to pop themapart for dismantling.
L A S E R S
nLight, US, a manufacturer of high-power semiconductor lasers, hasacquired the assets of FlextronicsPhotonics, a US subsidiary ofSingapore-based FlextronicsInternational. The acquisition addsan array of new fibre-coupled andhybrid microelectronics to nLight’sexisting range of products.
IM AG I N G
Infrared-camera developer CedipInfrared Systems, France, hasreported that its turnover for thefirst half of 2006 totalled 77.7 m,representing growth of 19% on thesame period last year. Exportsaccounted for 86% of sales, withstrong growth in Asia–Pacific. Thefirm has also announced thesigning of a new million-dollarcontract with the US Army.
L A S E R S
Sony has blamed delays in theproduction of GaN-based laserdiodes as it put back the Europeanlaunch of its PLAYSTATION 3console from autumn 2006 toMarch 2007.
SP E C T RO S C O P Y
PerkinElmer, a developer ofphotonics and health science testingsystems, has acquired AvalonInstruments, Belfast, UK. Theacquisition will add a range of bench-top dispersive Raman spectrometersto PerkinElmer’s portfolio.
For more business news from theworld of lasers, optics andphotonics, please visitoptics.org/optics/Business.do.
IN BRIEF
Fibre laser specialist IPG Photonicsis looking to float on the US stockmarket to raise cash that will bepartly used to fund its diode manu-facturing expansion. The firm hasfiled a registration statement withthe US government’s Securitiesand Exchange Commission (SEC)for a proposed initial public offer-ing (IPO) of its common stock.
Although the firm is yet to reveal
details of the anticipated timingand value of the IPO, its S-1 regis-tration statement with the SEC doescontain plenty of information.
IPG’s high-power, diodes are keycomponents in the company’sfibre laser systems, which are usedin materials processing applica-tions, and provide a much smaller,more convenient alternative to tra-ditional carbon dioxide and solid-state lasers.
Currently with 900 employeesand 300 customers, IPG posted
sales of $64.9 m (750.6 m)and anet profit of $6.1 m in the first halfof 2006. Its chief executive officerand founder Valentin Gapontsev isthe majority shareholder, owning62.6% of shares prior to the IPO.Valentin’s son Denis Gapontsevacts as vice-president of researchand development at the firm.
On its balance sheet, IPG liststotal assets worth $132 m, withcash and cash equivalentstotalling $11.3 m and long-termdebt of $22.7 m.
IPG Photonics filesfor public offering
FIBRE LASERS
LCD recycling know-how: (left to right)Avtar Matharu and his colleague JohnGoodby from the University of York’sDepartment of Chemistry, UK.
Uni
vers
ity o
f Yo
rk
OLEOct06NEWSp5-9 25/9/06 15:54 Page 6
Photonex focuses on interaction
NEWSBUSINESS
EXHIBITIONS
7OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
OPTICAL FILTERSUV Filters, NBP
LWP, SWP, BP, CustomFluorescence
Colour ImagingRaman Spectroscopy
Microscopy
www.lasercomponents.co.uk
The 15th annual Photonex exhibi-tion returns to Stoneleigh Parknear Coventry in the UK on 18–19October. With 125 exhibitors andmore than 1500 visitors expected,a dedicated demonstration areaand packed programme of sup-porting seminars, the event willcertainly offer something for every-one with an interest in photonics.
“This year’s Photonex will be aninteractive and educational oppor-tunity,” organizer Laurence Dev-ereux told OLE. “It is only face toface that you can truly have adynamic discussion, and by seeinglive demonstrations you can makea real evaluation of the technol-ogies available to you. We havearranged to bring more technol-ogies than ever to this year’s event.”
One of the new additions thisyear is the “Wonder of Photonics”demonstration area, which is beingmanaged by Photonics Cluster, UK.According to Devereux, visitorswill be able to see how users inareas such as healthcare, automo-tive and aerospace are applyingphotonics technologies.
“There will be 10 demonstrationsrunning throughout both days in aseparate area on the exhibitionfloor,” said Devereux. “PhotonicsCluster has invited people to demon-strate in areas such as laser scan-ning, optical sensing, thermalimaging and personal projection.All attendees can visit this area freeof charge.” Companies demonstra-ting their technologies include TRWConekt, Light Blue Optics, Faro,Rofin Baasel and FLIR Systems.
In addition, visitors can expect tosee a range of demonstrations atexhibitors’ booths. For example,Pro-Lite Technology will be showingoff the ProMetric imaging spheredeveloped by Radiant Imaging ofthe US. Pro-Lite says that the prod-uct is the only non-moving-partgoniophotometer on the market,measuring the luminous intensitydistribution from an LED over 2 srin a couple of seconds. Various spec-troscopic techniques will also be onshow, such as fluorescence imagingat LOT Oriel’s booth and single pho-ton counting at Alrad’s stand.
According to Devereux, twoother opportunities that delegatesshould take advantage of at Pho-tonex are speaking to the newlylaunched UK photonics knowledgetransfer network (KTN) and meet-ing representatives of delegationsfrom Singapore and Switzerland.
“The KTN will have a stand atPhotonex and they are very keenfor people to come and talk and be
involved,” said Devereux. “TheSingapore delegation has expertisein silicon photonics and wants tobuild links with UK companies.”
Running alongside Photonex is acomprehensive programme of sem-inars, all of which are free to attend(see box). Just one of the events onoffer is the one-day “Innovations inImaging” seminar, which has beenput together by SPIE Europe.
Delegates attending the seminarwill be treated to a mixture of speak-ers working in diverse applications.Richard Duddley from NPL, UK, forexample, will share his thoughts onoptical coherence tomography.Nigel Allinson from the University ofSheffield, UK, will discuss the futureimaging need in academia. BillProud from the University of Cam-bridge, UK, will present work onhigh-speed photography of explo-sives and ballistics. Finally, GrantHall from Wide Blue will round offthe day by offering advice on how tocommercialize imaging systems.
Wednesday only � Photonics in Medicine,Healthcare and Life Sciences –Making Light WorkOrganized by Photonics Cluster,UK, this one-day seminar willfeature a series of talks focusingon biophotonics.� Innovations in Imaging –Analysis, Insights and Ideas forImaging ApplicationsThis one-day event has been puttogether by SPIE Europe andlooks at high-speed imaging inindustries such as medicine,automotive and defence.
Wednesday and Thursday� Imaging for Science andIndustryThis one-day seminar, organizedby UKIVA, is free to attend,although advance booking isrequested. Topics will range fromextracting 3D information from 2Dimages to the use of infraredimages for machine vision.
Thursday only� Applied Photonics in High-technology EngineeringThis one-day seminar is organizedby Photonics Cluster, UK.
For more information on allaspects of Photonex, includingthe series of seminars runningalongside the main event, pleasesee www.photonex.org.
Photonex events
Jam packed: the 2006 show features a demonstration area and a seminar programme.
OLEOct06NEWSp5-9 25/9/06 15:55 Page 7
New technology galore
NEWSEDITORIAL
OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
Welcome to the October issue of OLE. Lookingthrough the contents page of this issue, it isclear that a lot has happened in the world ofoptics and photonics this month. New tech-nologies, applications and milestones all high-light the benefits that optics can bring to societytoday and in the future.
Take Intel’s announcement of the firstelectrically pumped indium phosphide–silicon laser, for example. According to thedevelopment team, a huge increase in speedfor high-end computing applications could beon the cards, all thanks to this hybrid laser.
Mario Paniccia, the director of Intel’sPhotonics Technology Lab, is upbeat in sayingthat “this [device] could bring low-cost,terabit-level optical ‘data pipes’ inside futurecomputers and help to make possible a newera of high-performance computingapplications”. For more information, see p5.
From one success to another, details of a USstart-up pioneering an optics-based systemthat probes for early signs of Alzheimer’sdisease can be found on p19. With ageingpopulations, Neuroptix says that the ability tocatch this degenerative illness early and begintreatment is enormously significant.
The Neuroptix system combines infraredexcitation, fluorescence imaging and light-scattering analysis. It uses infrared light todetect any build-up of “amyloid protein” inthe lens of the eye – a sign that the patientcould be at increased risk of developingAlzheimer’s.
On p23, researchers from the University ofSt Andrews in Scotland, UK, present details ofa device that monolithically integrates lasersand microfluidic channels. “We believe thatany research group with access tosemiconductor processing facilities couldreplicate the device at a cost of just a fewpounds in materials,” says the team. “We hopethat this technology can be spread rapidlyamongst the biophotonics community.”
The technology section, starting on p11,also offers our regular round-up ofapplications and R&D news. This time, wefeature fabrics with integrated LED displays,a material that emulates the lotus effect toproduce self-cleaning surfaces and a robotthat uses infrared spectroscopy to help you tochoose a bottle of wine. I wonder how long itwill be before we see all three of these ideasin everyday society?
Jacqueline Hewett, editorE-mail: [email protected]
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OLEOct06NEWSp5-9 25/9/06 15:55 Page 9
Embedded LEDs light up clothing
TECHNOLOGYAPPLICATIONS 11 R&D 16 PATENTS 17
11OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
DISPLAYS
Last month, Philips Research of theNetherlands impressed visitors atthe Internationale Funkausstellung(IFA) show in Germany by demon-strating promotional jackets andfurniture featuring the company’sLumalive technology.
Lumalive textiles allow fabrics tocarry dynamic advertisements andgraphics and feature constantlychanging colour surfaces. Sinceexhibiting early prototypes at IFA2005, Philips Research has man-aged to fully integrate Lumalive fab-rics into garments. First-generationjackets are now ready for commer-cialization by companies partner-ing with Philips Research. Thetextiles are of particular interest tothose in the promotions industrylooking for a high-impact medium.
“Taking the Lumalive fabricsfrom prototypes to integratedproducts has been a major chal-lenge,” said Bas Zeper, managing
director of Photonic Textiles atPhilips Research. “The light-emit-ting textiles have to be flexible,durable and operated by reason-
ably compact batteries. Fitting allthat into a comfortable, light-weight garment is a considerableengineering success.”
“Last year Philips Research dis-played its research prototypes. Thisyear the jackets and furniture rep-resent versions that are ready to gointo commercial production andthey include integrated powersources and control electronics,”added Zeper.
Lumalive fabrics use flexiblearrays of coloured LEDs that areintegrated into the fabric withoutcompromising the softness andflexibility of the cloth. The light-emitting textiles can then carrydynamic messages and graphics.According to Philips Research, fab-rics such as curtains, cushions andsofa coverings can even containthe light-emitting technology.
Philips Research says that thejackets are comfortable to wear
and that the electronics, batteriesand LED arrays are fully integratedand invisible to the observer andwearer. The Lumalive fabrics aresaid to become obvious only whenthey light up to display variousvivid coloured patterns, logos,short text messages or even full-colour animations.
The jackets feature panels of upto 200×200 mm2, although theactive sections can be scaled up tocover larger areas such as a sofa.
The products include featuresthat make them practical for dailyuse. For example, when integratingthe Lumalive fabrics into a gar-ment, Philips Research has madethe parts that cannot be easilywashed – such as the batteries andcontrol electronics – simple to dis-connect and reconnect after thegarment has been cleaned. Even thelight-emitting layer can be easilyremoved and refitted into the jacket.
A solar-grade (SoG) silicon derivedby metallurgical silicon purifi-cation will increase the availabilityof feedstock to the ever-hungryphotovoltaic (PV) industry, accord-ing to its developer Dow CorningSolar Solutions (DCSS). When theSoG silicon is blended with tradi-tional polysilicon feedstock, theresulting material is said to exhibitperformance characteristics sim-ilar to polycrystalline silicon.
The new silicon feedstock mat-erial is called PV 1101 SoG Silicon.Its production method from quartz(sand) can be likened to the refin-ing process of iron ore into steel. Akey advantage of the novel (andconfidential) process is that itenables economical, volume pro-duction of high-quality silicon.
PV 1101 can then be blendedwith lower-grade polysilicon toproduce material of sufficient qual-ity for photovoltaic cells. DCSS says
that this is the first commerciallyavailable feedstock produced fromsuch technology using large-scalemanufacturing processes.
A major obstacle facing thegrowth of solar energy in recentyears has been the availability ofsilicon. To date, the solar industryhas relied on the supply of poly-crystalline silicon, a high-gradepurity product, originally devel-oped for the semiconductor indus-try. However, this has meant thatthe industry has in turn been sub-ject to resource restraint.
DCSS believes that PV 1101,produced by a different route, willalleviate this restraint and willoffer a new source and new techni-cal and business options for thesolar industry.
“PV 1101 is certainly one of themost innovative technologies tocome along in the solar-energyindustry since the manufacture of
the first silicon solar cells,” said Gae-tan Borgers, director of DCSS. “Foryears now, the solar industry hashoped to be supplied by new sourcesof silicon designed and dedicated tothem. PV 1101 is a step in thatdirection, which gives a means ofgrowth for the solar industry.”
The PV 1101 blend material hasalready been tested in independent
institutes and at several of DCSS’customer production sites world-wide. The testing showed that theblended feedstock exhibits perfor-mance characteristics on a parwith polysilicon in terms of solar-cell manufacturing and efficiency.The typical power conversion effi-ciency of a silicon photovoltaic cellremains just 15–16%.
“Dow Corning has workedclosely with several customers totest and qualify our material,” saidRudy Miller, marketing manager ofDCSS. “The results are very posi-tive and we have recorded a highinterest in our product. Ordershave already been placed.”
DCSS began production ofPV 1101 earlier this summer andbulk customer shipments began inAugust. The company is now pro-gressively ramping up its PV 1101SoG silicon production facility inSantos Dumont, Brazil.
Purified silicon eases solar-grade supply issuesSOLAR CELLS
Lumalive jackets contain panels up to200×200 mm2 that can display logosand messages. Philips Research saysthat it is now ready to be commercialized.
Phili
ps R
esea
rch
Bags more: high-quality silicon in bulk.
Dow
Cor
ning
Sol
ar S
olut
ions
OLEOct06TECHNOLOGYp11-17 25/9/06 16:18 Page 11
Sommelier robot helps choose wine
TECHNOLOGYAPPLICATIONS
SPECTROSCOPY
12 OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
Choosing a bottle of wine is often atough task revolving around ques-tions such as price, grape varietyand the product’s origin. Now,thanks to a sommelier robot devel-oped by NEC System Technologiesand Mie University in Japan, helpcould be at hand to take the uncer-tainty out of the decision.
“The robot contains a wine data-base,” Yukie Endo of NEC SystemTechnologies told OLE. “The data-base includes various attributes,such as country, winery, colour,taste and price. The robot automati-cally generates questions using theattributes of the database.”
The wine-tasting robot builds onresearch by NEC and Mie Univer-sity. The team’s first robot usedinfrared spectroscopy to analyse
food and estimate the quantities ofcomponents such as sugar and fat.
“The robot can identify the foodby referring to characteristics in thedatabase,” said Endo. “It uses con-tinuous-wave infrared light and pro-duces almost a real-time response.
Some foods are easy to distinguish;others are difficult. Wine is a typicalexample of the latter.”
Keen to take up the challenge,Endo and his colleagues modifiedtheir food-tasting robot to create asommelier robot. One of the key
modifications was extending thespectroscopy system.
“The sommelier robot uses mid-infrared spectroscopic informa-tion,” said Endo. “Red or white wineis simply poured onto the sensor.The robot is also equipped with theability to ask questions to determinea customer’s wine preference.”
The team is now developing thespectroscopic “tasting” technol-ogy. “We plan to improve the tast-ing technology and wish tocommercialize it as a component,”concluded Endo. “It may be usedfor various applications, such asquality-control, games, dietingand health applications. We hopethat the wine robot or wine-tastingmachine will be commercializedby someone in the near future.”
Scientists in Japan have developed amaterial that becomes water repel-lent when it is illuminated withultraviolet (UV) light. The proper-ties of the material mimic those ofthe lotus blossom – a flower that isrenowned for being immaculatelyclean. What’s more, the effect isreversible because the material canbe switched back to its originalstate using visible light (Ange-wandte Chemie International Edition10.1002/anie.200602126).
The secret behind the lotus effectis a special microstructure on the
plant’s leaves. This forces waterdroplets to form beads that roll offthe surface, picking up any dirt par-ticles that they encounter.
To date, scientists have not beenable to duplicate this natural phe-nomenon, but now this synthe-sized material could find useswherever a self-cleaning surface isrequired. Windows and car body-work are just two examples.
Kingo Uchida and ShinichiroNakamura from Ryukoku Univer-sity synthesized their material froma family of compounds known as
diarylethenes. “The thickness ofthe film is between 20 and 40 µm,”Uchida told OLE. “When we illu-minate the surface with UV light at254 nm from a mercury lamp, fib-rils start to grow within five min-utes, but one day later is enough to
observe superhydrophoboicity.”Uchida and his colleagues switch
the material back to its originalform by illuminating it with light inthe 450–600 nm range. “It takesonly 10 minutes for the material toreturn,” commented Uchida.
The infrared sommelier uses spectroscopic analysis to taste red or white wine.
Switchable lotus effectcreates clean surfaces
MATERIALS
The starting point is a 20–40 µm thick film synthesized from a family of compoundsknown as diarylethenes (left). When the researchers shine UV light on the surface,small fibres approximately 1 µm in diameter begin to grow. This creates a super-water-repellent surface exhibiting the same properties as the lotus blossom (right).
NEC
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OLEOct06TECHNOLOGYp11-17 25/9/06 16:19 Page 12
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Laser-etched silicon delivers aresponse in the near-infrared
TECHNOLOGYAPPLICATIONS
DETECTORS
14 OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
www.ophiropt.comB E S T S E R V I C E , B E S T Q U A L I T YINFRA RED BUILD TO PRINT
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Researchers are using the samemicrostructuring approach thatenhances the efficiency of siliconsolar cells to widen the spectralresponse of photodetectors (Appl.Phys. Lett. 89 033506).
“The challenges lay in under-standing the material’s physicalproperties and how they can becontrolled and used to improvedevice performance,” Jim Carey ofHarvard University, US, told OLE.
Conventionally, silicon is trans-parent to wavelengths longer than1µm, which makes it unsuitable foruse in many near-infrared appli-cations. However, the researchershave found a way of modifying thematerial’s bandgap to make itabsorb at longer wavelengths.
Using a Ti:sapphire laser, Carey
and colleagues irradiated an n-doped silicon wafer with a 1 kHztrain of 100 fs pulses in a sulphur-rich atmosphere to generate a sur-face covered with 2–3 µm-sizedstructures. According to the team,
the laser causes ablation and melt-ing of the silicon surface, whichevolves and interacts with the gasbefore re-solidifying with analtered morphology.
The detector’s microstructuredsurface encourages multiple reflec-tions, which promote the absorp-tion of light. However, this is onlypart of the picture. “It is a combi-nation of increased absorption inthe infrared [region] and large gainthat leads to the extension of theoperating wavelength,” said Carey.“The incorporation of largeamounts of sulphur during laserirradiation is responsible for signifi-cant absorption beyond 1100nm.”
Photodetectors made from thetextured silicon were found to havea responsivity of 92A/W at 850nm
and 119 A/W at 960 nm (3 Vreverse bias in both cases). What’smore, the devices continued toexhibit a photoresponse at 1.31and 1.55 µm.
The group, which also includesscientists from the University ofTexas and the University of Vir-ginia, both US, is now looking tocommercialize its new technology.Carey expects that the first bigmarket will be in specialized ima-ging applications such as securityand surveillance. He thinks that itis unlikely that devices will maketheir way into consumer itemssuch as camera phones.
“Margins are too low and theend customer doesn’t care enoughabout the infrared to drive a pre-mium,” he commented.
Scientists at Rensselaer PolytechnicInstitute (RPI), US, will develophigh-brightness LEDs based onnative GaN substrates from mater-ials firm Kyma Technologies in a bidto plug the so-called “green gap”.
While highly efficient blue andred emitters based on GaN or AlIn-GaP are routinely made using sap-phire, SiC or GaAs substrates, thedevelopment of green LEDs hasnot been quite so successful.
Now, under the US Departmentof Energy’s solid-state lighting core
technologies programme, RPI andKyma will work together to produceimproved materials and developbetter processes that should lead tohigher-performance green emit-ters. The improvement shouldresult from the use of Kyma’s low-defect-density native GaN sub-strates. Both polar and cutting-edgenon-polar materials will feature inthe development programme.
Because they do not suffer fromelectric fields in the crystal latticethat can degrade device perfor-
mance, non-polar LEDs shouldhave much better performancecharacteristics than the conven-tional polar GaN devices that arethe mainstay of today’s high-brightness LED industry.
However, initial results withdevices grown on r-plane sapphiresubstrates have suffered from a rel-atively low power output that isthought to result from high defectdensities in the crystal lattice.
“The use of Kyma’s native GaNsubstrates should enable a reduc-
tion of such defects by a factor ofover 10 000 compared with suchnon-native approaches,” claimedthe US-based firm.
Kyma’s CTO and co-founderDrew Hanser will work closely withChristian Wetzel and Fred Schubertfrom RPI’s Future Chips Constella-tion on the new programme. Theywill focus on developing improved,commercially viable green emittersthat should help to fulfil the promiseof solid-state lighting for generallighting applications.
Kyma aims to plug ‘green gap’ through DoE projectLEDS
Textured silicon: this scanning electronmicrograph shows the photodetector’slaser etched surface. The micro-structures are 2–3 µm in height and arespaced at intervals of roughly 2–3 µm.
Har
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OLEOct06TECHNOLOGYp11-17 25/9/06 16:19 Page 14
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OLEOctAdverts15 19/9/06 11:08 Page 1
Doubled VECSEL emitslight in the ultraviolet
TECHNOLOGYR&D
SOURCES
16 OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
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Researchers in the UK have intra-cavity frequency doubled a 675nmvertical external-cavity surface-emitting laser (VECSEL) to produce120 mW of ultraviolet (UV) lightat 338 nm. Also boasting a tuningrange of 5 nm, the team believesthat its all-solid-state system showspromise as a continuous-wave(CW) rival to nitrogen lasers emit-ting at 337 nm (Applied Physics Let-ters 89 061114).
“The advantage of the VECSELover conventional solid-state lasersis that the gain region can bedesigned for a specific wavelengthwithin the constraints of the semi-conductor material,” researcherJennifer Hastie from StrathclydeUniversity explained to OLE. “UsingAlGaInP quantum wells, it shouldbe possible to demonstrate redVESCELs in the 640–690 nmrange, translating to 320–345 nmvia frequency doubling.”
Hastie says that the UV VECSELhas been made possible thanks tothe availability of watt-level CWpower at 675 nm.
The initial red-emitting VECSELstructure was grown by MOCVDon a GaAs substrate. It consisted ofa gain region of 20 compressivelystrained GaInP quantum wells
separated by AlInGaP pump-absorbing barriers all grown ontop of an AlGaAs-based distrib-uted Bragg reflector.
Hastie and colleagues used theirVESCEL structure as the end mirrorin a three-mirror cavity alongside aspherical folding mirror and a planeoutput coupler. The structure wasoptically pumped with up to 7 W ofgreen light at 532 nm yielding1.1 W of output power at 675 nm.Inserting a BBO crystal into the cav-ity produced a maximum UV out-
put power of 120 mW at 338 nm.Rotating a birefringent filter
within the cavity tuned this outputwavelength over 5 nm centred on338 nm. “Here we have an all-solid-state laser with the advantageof broad gain from the semicon-ductor gain region,” said Hastie.“Our 5 nm tuning range is at leastan order of magnitude larger thanthat of a trebled Nd:YAG. Also,most practical UV lasers, includingall-solid-state lasers, are by neces-sity, pulsed.”
According to Hastie, the currentset-up measures approximately400×150 mm excluding the com-mercial pump laser. “There is noreason why it couldn’t be more com-pact,” she commented. “It should bepossible to diode-pump the VECSELonce high-power GaN diode lasersare more readily available.”
The Strathclyde team and itscollaborators are now looking toimprove the efficiency of the secondharmonic generation. “We have noplans for commercialization at pre-sent,” concluded Hastie. “This tech-nology will lead to very practicalsources in application-rich areas sothere are likely to be real opportun-ities for commercialization as thetechnology matures.”
SP E C T RO S C O P Y
Using Fourier transform infrared(FTIR) spectroscopy in tandem withpattern-recognition techniques is anideal way to obtain thegeographical origin of the Chinesemedicine danshen, according toNing Li, Yan Wang and Kexin Xu atTianjin University in China (OpticsExpress 14 7630).
In Chinese medicine, danshen isused to promote coronary circulation.The problem is that the quality ofdanshen varies with the growingconditions in different geographicalregions.“Infrared spectroscopy canbe an excellent candidate for thedetermination of danshen originsbecause it is fast, accurate, non-destructive and completelydependable,” said the authors.
Li and colleagues collected 53samples from four regions in China.The samples were pressed into atablet, scanned 16 times andspectra were collected between 400and 4000 cm–1.
“The results showed that it isfeasible to discriminate [betweensamples] using FTIR spectroscopyascertained by principal componentsanalysis [PCA],” concluded theauthors. “An effective model wasbuilt by employing the SoftIndependent Modeling of ClassAnalogy and PCA, and 82% of thesamples were discriminatedcorrectly. Through the use of anartificial neural network, the origins ofdanshen were completely classified.”
JOURNAL WATCH
The intracavity frequency-doubledVECSEL produces 120 mW at 338 nmand has a tuning range of 5 nm. Theteam believes that the source showspromise as a CW rival to nitrogen lasers.
Jenn
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TECHNOLOGYR&D/PATENTS
17OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
INFRINGEMENTToyoda Gosei issues warning overits blue and white LED portfolioToyoda Gosei, the Japanese LED manufacturer,has advised its competitors to exercise caution toavoid infringement of its patents covering GaN-based LEDs. To date, Toyoda Gosei has signedagreements with its rivals Nichia and PhilipsLumileds that allow the parties to use each other’sLED-related patents.
The press release goes on to say that “becausethe manufacture, sale or use of GaN-basedsemiconductor LEDs by any entity other than thesemay constitute infringement of Toyoda Gosei’spatents, Toyoda Gosei advises the fullest cautionto avoid infringement.” The firm says that it hasfiled more than 2000 patent applications relatedto GaN-based semiconductor LEDs and hasacquired patent rights on 600 of these.
In the same press release, Toyoda Gosei alsoissued a warning regarding white-light emittersthat use blue LEDs in tandem with yellow silicatephosphors. “Toyoda Gosei has recently receivedinformation that companies other than licenseeshave been manufacturing and selling white LEDsusing silicate phosphors,” said the firm.
Toyoda Gosei says that there are roughly 20licensees of this technology worldwide. Again thefirm advised “fullest caution” as non-licensedentities producing white LEDs using silicatephosphors may constitute infringement.
APPLICATIONUS firm Finisar unveils integratedsource and detector in applicationFinisar of the US has integrated a light source(either a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser or aresonant-cavity LED) and a photodiode into a singledevice. The invention is detailed in internationalpatent application WO 2006/073958.
AWARDUK imaging firm AST receives USpatent for its infrared cameraUK-based Applied Scintillation Technologies (AST)has been granted US patent number 7075576 forits compact, low-cost infrared cameraCamIR1550. The product is now protected by bothEuropean and US patents.
“The CamIR1550 uses our specializedknowledge of phosphor selection and coatingtechniques to offer a highly cost-effective
alternative to infrared cameras with speciallyprocessed detectors,” said Stuart Quinn of AST.“This lightweight portable system has highsensitivity to 0.2 µJ/cm2 and is optimized between1500 and 1600 nm.”
Typical applications are listed by the firm asbeing on- and off-site beam-finding fromcommunications band emitters; laser alignment ofpositioning machines; imaging optical outputs ofhigh-speed fibre-optics; and device alignment.
LICENSINGKodak signs up Tohoku of Japanas licensee of OLED technologyKodak of the US has signed a licensingagreement with Tohoku Device of Japan. Thedeal will allow Tohoku to incorporate Kodak’sorganic display technology into white OLEDmodules for use as backlights in flat-panel-display applications.
The royalty-bearing licence also includes across-licence to Tohoku’s patent portfolio. It alsogives Tohoku the opportunity to purchase Kodak’spatented OLED materials. Tohoku joins more than15 companies that have licensed this organictechnology from Kodak.
PATENTS
To search for recently published applications, visit http://www.wipo.int/pct/en/ and http://ep.espacenet.com.
Scientists have discovered that thinfilms of silver – a normally opaquematerial – can be made highlytransparent by sandwiching thembetween zinc-sulphide-coated glassblocks. Ian Hooper and colleaguesat the University of Exeter, UK,said that light passes through thesilver in a way that is similar tohow particles tunnel through bar-riers. The work could help toimprove the efficiency of OLEDsand enable a new generation ofsemiconductor devices (Phys. Rev.Lett. 97 053902).
It is well known that light travel-ing through a solid block willundergo total internal reflection ifit strikes the surface at a very shal-low angle. Some of the electromag-netic field, however, strays into theair – a so-called evanescent wave.
This can form a beam of lower
intensity if it passes into anothersolid block placed nearby. Hooperand colleagues then wonderedwhat would happen if each blockwas coated with another material.According to their calculations,light would be transmitted withperfect efficiency.
In practice, the researcherscoated the surface of a silica prismwith a film of zinc sulphide just200 nm thick. They then clampedtwo such prisms together, leaving avery thin air gap sandwichedbetween them. When light at thecorrect wavelength was used, itpassed through the sandwich withabout 85% efficiency.
The physicists then replaced theair gap with a 40 nm thick layer ofsilver. On its own, silver of thisthickness is almost opaque to light.But when sandwiched betweenthe two coated prisms in this way,the silver was found to transmitlight with an efficiency as high as35% at certain wavelengths.
According to the researchers,the light is transmitted because thereflections from the silica/zinc sul-phide and the zinc sulphide/silver
interfaces are 180º out of phasewith each other and of equalamplitude. Therefore they cancelout to give no net reflection – thatis, all the light is transmitted.
“The reflection from the frontinterface combined with the multi-ple reflections from the subsequentinterfaces also interfere such thatthey cancel,” said Hooper. “Withno net reflection and with a non-absorbing system all the light mustbe transmitted.”
The researchers say that theirtechnique could be used toimprove the efficiency of a newgeneration of top-emitting OLEDs,whose performance is limited bythe light passing through a metalcathode. It could also be used toimprove semiconductor devices,where an analogous quantumeffect should be seen.
‘See-through’ silver boosts LEDsLEDS
Silver lining: light can penetrate silvermetal that is sandwiched between thin,transparent layers of zinc sulphide anda pair of prisms (left and right with thevertical boundary in the centre).
Ian
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OLEOct06TECHNOLOGYp11-17 25/9/06 16:20 Page 17
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OLEOctAdverts18 26/9/06 08:51 Page 1
Scanning the lens of a human eye with infrared laser light can reveal the earliest signs ofAlzheimer’s disease in a matter of seconds, according to US start-up Neuroptix. Matthew
Peach speaks to the firm’s chief executive officer, Paul Hartung, about the technology.
Eye scan shows first signof Alzheimer’s disease
INTERVIEW
19OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
Neuroptix has developed an optical techniquefor early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD)– the degenerative illness that is becoming agrowing problem as the population is alwaysgetting older as people are living longer.Instead of having to wait until a patient showssigns of mental degeneration, Neuroptix’soptical technique can indicate the likely onsetof the disease many years earlier, giving apatient time to make adjustments to lifestyle,diet and exercise, which could improve theirchances of avoiding the worst aspects of thiscurrently incurable disease.
The Neuroptix system, known as the QEL2400, measures the presence of telltaleamyloids in the lens of the eye with a combi-nation of dye treatment and scanning by aninfrared laser. OLE interviews Paul Hartung,president and chief executive officer of Neu-roptix, about the technology.
OLE: What are the origins andobjectives of Neuroptix’s work intoearly diagnosis of AD?PH: Neuroptix was founded in 2001 follow-ing the breakthrough discovery by our com-pany founder Lee Goldstein at HarvardMedical School. He discovered that betaamyloid proteins, which create plaque in thebrain of patients suffering from AD, can alsobe identified in the lens of the eye. Our objec-tive is to develop and commercialize a non-invasive eye test for early diagnosis of AD.
Why are you focusing on AD?AD is now the eighth most common cause ofdeath (in the US). But this does not representthe true scale of the problem because AD suf-ferers often die from other causes. It is alsobelieved that as we get older the likelihood ofgetting this disease increases. It is a devastat-ing illness not only for the victims, but also fortheir families. There is a great need for diag-nostics to detect the disease at an early stageand to enable effective treatment. Pharma-ceutical companies need more sensitive diag-nostics to striate subjects in clinical trials andto measure the efficacy of their new therapies.
What is Neuroptix’s test set-up?Eye drops are applied that contain a fluor-escent ligand (dye), which is temporarilyabsorbed by the lens and binds to amyloid pro-teins. A low-power class I laser scans the lens,exciting the fluorescent dye and scattering offthe protein aggregates. The fluorescent dyeprovides the biochemical specificity, identify-ing the type of protein. Using a techniquecalled quasi-elastic light scattering, we are ableto quantify the size of the protein aggregates.We can make a judgment on the likelihood ofthe patient becoming an AD sufferer based onthe light measurements and post-processingthat data using our software.
In the late stages of the disease, the aggre-gates in the lens become so dense that they
are visible in the supranucleus of the lens.Our technique is essentially a moleculardiagnostic technique, with the ability to takemeasurements on a clear lens. Pre-clinicaltesting has shown that it is sensitive enoughto pick up amyloids in the eye before plaqueforms in the brain.
What is the test timescale?The test takes a matter of seconds; it is donewithin the timeframe of a normal physicalexam. It is similar to, but much less invasivethan, a retinal scan and the equipment issimilar to a laser-scanning ophthalmoscope.
How do you differentiate AD fromother diseases detected this way?Our dye agent provides the biochemicalspecificity of indication for AD. In addition,there is anatomical specificity based on thelocation of the aggregates in the supranu-cleus of the lens. We are focused on AD butwe believe that it could be applied to priondiseases. For example, the US Department ofAgriculture is testing this technique to assessprion-affected deer, sheep etc, using Neur-optix’s dyes to achieve rapid screening.
What are the limitations of other ADdiagnosis methods?Clinical diagnosis generally occurs in thelater stages of the disease, based on psycho-analysis and other factors. The new tests thatare in development include:� Cerebrospinal fluid tests. This requires aninvasive and complication-prone spinal tapand is not sensitive enough to detect AD;� Brain scans (MRI and PET). These areexpensive and are only of use in the laterstages of the disease. Neuroptix’s techniquewill be a feeder technology for these moreexpensive tests;� Blood tests. These can only determinegenetic predisposition in some cases;� Urine tests. These have been rejected bythe Food and Drug Administration. They arenot sensitive enough and have highly vari-able results.
Above: the test, which could be part of a medicalexam, takes a few seconds. Bottom: Paul Hartung,Neuroptix’s chief executive officer.
Neuroptix
Neuroptix
�
OLEOct06INTERVIEWp19-21 25/9/06 15:48 Page 19
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Project1 22/9/06 14:08 Page 1
How is the Neuroptix’s technique animprovement on existing methods?To date there has been no in vivo commercialbiomarker for AD. The “gold standard” so farhas been the mental analysis of a patient, butby the time that diagnosis is made, the patienthas typically lost 50% neural function – anirreversible state of brain damage. We canidentify the disease prior to any cognitivesigns developing. Therefore, our aim is todiagnose the condition prior to any braindamage occurring.
The potential applications of our tech-nique will be as an early confirmation test forAD in those who present with mental prob-lems and eventually as a preventative ADcheck-up technique.
How can an optics-basedassessment help in this endeavour?Optics-based techniques are suitable fornon-invasive measurement of biophysicalchanges to the eye. The methods that we aredeveloping are non-contact, sensitive, fastand relatively inexpensive.
What have you achieved in terms ofdeveloping this method?Initial work has been done using humancadavers. A preclinical version of the systemhas been developed and results show thatthe technology is sensitive and can identifyamyloid pathology in the eye at a very earlystage in the disease. Clinical prototypes havebeen developed, which are safe for humanuse, and it has been proven that in vivo meas-urements can be performed.
How is this a significant medicalbreakthrough and will it save lives?This is a major medical breakthrough.Around 4.5 million people in the US arealready diagnosed with AD, with care costsalone estimated to be $100 bn per year. Thenumber of sufferers is growing as people areliving longer. The opportunity to catch thedisease prior to cognitive loss, and to enableearly treatment, is enormously significant.
Are there any existing medicaltechniques to counter AD?There are drugs available today that work forsome patients but they are prescribed at amuch later stage in the disease than thatwhich we are identifying. There are also rec-ommended lifestyle changes, including bet-ter diet and physical and intellectual exercise.
On the drug development front, I have tosay that AD therapeutic development is ahigh priority for large pharmaceutical com-panies. There are more than 500 possiblesolutions currently under development thatare expected to be fundamentally different
from what is available today. At Neuroptix,we believe that in the next three years or sothere will be better drugs available.
What are the next stages ofdevelopment and are there anytechnical or financial barriers?The next stage of development will be the cre-ation of instruments for clinical trials and thesafety testing of the fluorescent ligands forhuman use. Neuroptix has already raised $1mthrough non-exclusive big pharmaceutical
R&D funds and “angel” investors. We are seek-ing to raise series A equity financing in 2006.We are developing partnerships with largepharmaceutical companies interested in usingthe technology as a drug-development tool.We are also developing partnerships withmedical-equipment and diagnostics compan-ies to support development, manufacturingand worldwide commercialization.
Matthew Peach is a contributing editor to OLE andoptics.org.
INTERVIEW
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OLEOct06INTERVIEWp19-21 25/9/06 15:49 Page 21
An optical manipulation and analysis platform that can fit onto a fingernail could signal asignificant change in the field of microfluidics. Simon Cran-McGreehin, Thomas Kraussand Kishan Dholakia from the University of St Andrews reveal what’s on offer.
Lasers meet fluids: anintegrated approach
OPTICAL TRAPPING
23OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
The 21st century could herald a revolutionin the way we perform biological science. Ouraim is to produce microfluidic systems thatanalogously provide scientists with the abil-ity to perform large-scale and parallel auto-mated studies in the physical sciences –notably in biology.
Light is the cornerstone for such studies. Itoffers a powerful, non-invasive and recon-figurable way in which to image cellularsamples; induce fluorescence and scatter-ing; and move and manipulate objects at thecellular level and below. For lab-on-a-chipand microfluidic applications, we need toexplore ways to actuate, move and studysmall volumes of analyte in extremely smalland confined volumes.
The motivation behind our approach issimple. To date, physicists have relied onexternal macroscopic laser systems and dis-crete optical components to couple light intomicrofluidic platforms to manipulate andsense micro- and nanoparticles. This intro-duces problems of alignment and couplinglosses, as well as placing a lower limit on thesize of the apparatus – typically a bench topis needed for a conventional system.
However, recent work between the OpticalTrapping and Photonic Crystal groups at theUniversity of St Andrews, UK, bypasses theseissues by combining microfluidics and integ-rated optics. In our monolithic optical micro-manipulation and particle sensors, the lasersare integrated right next to the microfluidicflows in channels that are less than the widthof a strand of human hair.
Chip layoutEach laser is defined, lithographically, in asingle piece of GaAs-based laser material giv-ing perfect intrinsic alignment. Microfluidicchannels are then fabricated directly on topof the laser material, allowing the light tocouple directly into the sample without theneed for additional optics. This drasticallyreduces the size of the system, making itportable and simple to incorporate into exist-ing microscope systems.
Both the concept and device design arefairly simple. We believe that any researchgroup with access to semiconductor pro-cessing facilities could replicate the deviceusing materials costing just a few pounds.Indeed, we hope that this technology can bespread rapidly among the biophotonicscommunity, giving access to the advantagesof optical methods without the need for spe-cific optics knowledge.
The aim is to make the device as user-friendly and robust as possible. Care has alsobeen taken to avoid any problems arisingfrom sending lasers in and out of the ports ofa microscope system. To this end, the device ismounted onto a circuit board and the lasersare wire-bonded to copper tracks, which inturn are connected to a power supply.
The optical power of each laser is controlledby varying the applied voltage (and hence cur-rent), up to a maximum of around 20 mW atabout 3 V (approximately 200 mA). Such
electrical powers can be provided by a com-puter interface board, opening up the way forautomated operation.
Fabricating the deviceThe starting point is a GaAs chip, typically6×6 mm. The actual device is dominated by2 mm-long lasers that determine the surfacearea of the chip.
At the heart of each laser is an AlGaAs/GaAs singlemode heterostructure, centred1 µm beneath the chip’s surface. Grown epi-taxially by German firm Nanosemiconductorof Dortmund, the structure provides verticalwaveguiding and contains InAs quantumdots that emit at 1290 nm.
Horizontal waveguiding is provided byetching away the GaAs to leave a ridge 3 µmwide and 750 nm deep that supports only asingle vertical transverse mode. An electri-cal current is injected into the ridges via goldcontact pads and SU8-2000 polymer insu-
Miniature manipulator: the entire system, including fluid injection and electrical connections can fit intothe palm of a hand. At the heart of the device is a GaAs chip (inset) that measures only 6×6 mm.
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24 OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
lation on the etched GaAs confines the cur-rent to the ridges where a useful opticalmode is generated.
The length of the laser cavity is defined byfacets that are etched to a depth of at least2 µm. The tight vertical confinement of theheterostructure leads to large vertical diver-gence of the output beam, up to as much as40˚, so the optical power density falls offquickly with distance from the facet.
Of greatest interest is the interface betweenthe lasers and the fluids. The microfluidicchannel is etched into the GaAs at rightangles to the lasers and passes between pairsof facing lasers. This allows the laser beams toenter from both sides of the channel to give adual-beam trap configuration.
The electrical activity of the lasers is insu-lated from the fluid by lining the microfluidicchannels with SU8-2000 polymer. A thinlayer covers the base and a thicker layer linesthe walls, essentially determining the depth ofthe channel. A glass lid is then adhered to thetop of the chip and sealed with adhesive to cre-ate a watertight microfluidic channel that canbe fabricated in any desired configuration.
The size and position of the features can betailored to the application. The facet spacingdetermines the optical power at the centre ofthe microfluidic channel where facingbeams overlap. Closer facet spacings givehigher power densities resulting in strongertrapping and larger detection signals.
Meaningful optical forces are exerted up toaround 200 µm from the facets, placing anupper limit on their spacing. The lower limiton the facet spacing is determined by theresolution of the current photolithographictechniques that define the SU8-2000 liningon the walls. This places a lower limit of
about 20 µm on the facet spacing. Typical microfluidic channels measuring
30 µm high and 40 µm wide, with a facetspacing of 75 µm, allow the passage of biolo-gical cells. The channels can be arranged invarious configurations, ranging from straightchannels to junctions for sorting and cham-bers for mixing. Using water or biologicalbuffer solutions in the microfluidic channelsprovides a medium in which particles canflow into the paths of the laser beams.
ApplicationsUsing a single laser, we have guided particlesover ranges of around 200 µm. Essentially,the gradient force draws objects onto the
optical axis and the radiation pressurepushes them away from the facet.
Pairs of facing lasers have been used to cre-ate dual-beam traps, in which the objects areheld at the equilibrium point between thetwo facets. Once trapped, particles can beinterrogated. We have demonstrated fluor-escence spectroscopy in this configurationand Raman spectroscopy is an obvious can-didate for future studies.
Useful operations are possible even whenthe optical powers are insufficient to trapparticles. This has led to the development oftwo detection methods, both of which makeuse of the fact that facing lasers feed lightinto one another.
Trapping trio: (from left to right) Kishan Dholakia, Simon Cran-McGreehin and Thomas Kraussdemonstrate their versatile optical manipulation and analysis platform. The integrated module’s 50 µm-wide trapping channel can be seen on the monitor as a bright stripe running across the middle of thescreen. Lasers located at either side of the channel are used to push and trap particles.
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In the first method, the output power ofone laser is found to decrease when a particlepasses between the facets. In the second, onelaser is reverse-biased to create a photo-detector whose photocurrent decreaseswhen a particle passes by.
These methods use the intrinsic propertiesof the semiconductor lasers and require noexternal light source – the second methodrequires no external optics whatsoever. Wenow plan to combine these operations intomore complex arrangements in which theparticles are moved around a device, either byoptical forces or by an externally generatedfluid flow, to different interrogation sites.
A look to the futureAs a first step, this new technology makes thepower and versatility of optical manipula-tion more widely available by simplifying theoperation and reducing the cost. We believethat this technology lends itself to the worldof lab-on-a-chip, in which miniaturized testand measurement systems are integratedinto microfluidic circuits.
By configuring the lasers and channels inorder to usefully combine the functions ofguiding, trapping and detection, a wide varietyof multiplexed processes could be conducted,in parallel, on a single chip. This range could beextended further by using external analysistechniques such as Raman spectroscopy.
A more compact approach would modifythe laser material to allow the direct, on-chipexcitation and detection of fluorescence inparticles, such as violet-emitting GaN-basedmaterial in conjunction with green fluor-escent protein. The technology could alsohave a use in the realm of atom optics, cre-ating dipole traps that could hold Bose–Ein-stein condensates.
Thomas Krauss heads the Microphotonics andPhotonic Crystals group and Kishan Dholakialeads the Optical Trapping group at St AndrewsUniversity, UK. Simon Cran-McGreehin is aresearch assistant working in both groups. Formore information, including links to opticaltrapping groups worldwide, please see www.st-andrews.ac.uk/~atomtrap/.
OPTICAL TRAPPING
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25OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
guide laser
trapping lasers
trapping lasers
Concept diagram showing particles being pushedand trapped by integrated lasers.
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The attractiveness of zinc oxide (ZnO) LEDsstems from the potential for phosphor-freespectral coverage from the deep ultraviolet(UV) to the red, coupled with a quantum effi-ciency that could approach 90% and a com-patibility with high-yield low-cost volumeproduction. One day these LEDs could evenoutperform their GaN-based cousins (whichoffer a narrower spectral range) thanks tothree key characteristics – superior materialquality, an effective dopant and the availabil-ity of better alloys.
The superior material quality is seen in thelow defect densities of ZnO layers. At MOX-tronics, our development of a viable p-typedopant has provided hole-conducting layersfor ZnO-based devices. And our growth ofBeZnO layers has shown that it is possible tofabricate ZnO-based high-quality hetero-structures (see box “The advantages of ZnOover GaN” p27).
ZnO also promises very high quantum effi-ciencies, and UV detectors based on this mat-erial have produced external quantumefficiencies (EQE) of 90%, three times that ofequivalent GaN-based detectors. The physicalprocesses associated with detection suggestthat similarly high efficiency values should bepossible for the conversion of electrical carri-ers to photons. So it is plausible that ZnO LEDswill have an EQE upper limit that is threetimes higher than that of GaN-based devices.
Finding the right dopantHowever, ZnO is yet to fulfill all of its promisebecause of the delay in developing p-dopedmaterial. Early progress throughout thecommunity was hampered by focusingefforts on using nitrogen as a p-type dopant.Nitrogen was the first choice because it wasan effective dopant in ZnSe, and also becauseit was deemed, erroneously, to be of a suit-able size to sit on an oxygen lattice site.Although we also tried to obtain p-typedoping using nitrogen, a switch to arsenicenabled us to report the first successfulp-type doping of ZnO in 1997. By 2000 wecould produce hole concentrations into the1017 cm–3 range with this approach.
Later in 2000 we reported our hybrid
beam deposition (HBD) process that offers aviable approach to growing doped andundoped ZnO films, alloys and devices. TheHBD process is comparable to MBE. However,it uses a ZnO plasma source, which is pro-duced by illuminating a polycrystalline ZnOtarget with either a pulsed laser or an elec-tron beam, and a high-pressure oxygenplasma created by a radio-frequency oxygengenerator. Additional sources for either dop-ing or ZnO-based alloy growth can be addedto the growth chamber by conventionalevaporation or injection methods.
We used the HBD process to fabricate thefirst ZnO-based UV detectors (see box “Highlyefficient detectors” p27), UV LEDs, FETs, andred, green, blue and white phosphor-coatedLEDs. Our LEDs incorporate BeZnO, an alloythat allows bandgap engineering into the UVand the formation of multiple quantumwells and other heterostructures.
Why BeZnO beats MgZnOBeZnO alloys of varying composition havesignificantly boosted the development of ourdeep UV high-power LEDs. These alloys donot phase-segregate, because BeO and ZnOhave the same hexagonal crystal structures,and the extremely high-energy bandgap ofBeO could potentially lead to devices emittingat just 117 nm. UV LEDs containing BeZnOalloys produce a narrow spectral profile, withvery little emission in the visible, suggestingthat the alloy is of high crystal quality.
Until we had produced BeZnO films, the pri-mary choice for a compatible higher bandgapalloy was ZnMgO, a material developed by agroup at Tohoku University, Toyo University,Tokyo Institute of Technology and Japan’sInstitute of Physical and Chemical Research.In 1997 this team reported that crystal phaseseparation occurs between MgO and ZnOwhen the atomic fraction of magnesiumexceeds 0.33, which corresponds to a bandgapof 3.99 eV. The separation is driven by differ-ent crystalline structures; MgO is a cubicstructure with a lattice spacing of 0.422 nm,while ZnO is a hexagonal wurtzite structurewith a lattice spacing of 0.325 nm.
We recently produced and characterized the
first UV LEDs made from ZnO and BeZnO. Thedevice’s emission can be tuned from the deepUV to around 380nm, the wavelength associ-ated with ZnO. Our devices have been builtwith several different active layer structures,including double heterostructures and singleor multiple quantum wells, to try to improveefficiencies and optical output powers.
Our latest UV LEDs have a typical wall-plug efficiency of 0.1%, which would equateto an efficacy of 0.6 lm/W if the emissionwere in the visible spectrum. Although theefficiency is far lower than that of GaN LEDs,we are making rapid progress by addressingthe various phenomena that degrade deviceperformance. If progress continues at thesame rate we will produce LEDs with a 1%wall-plug efficiency within one year, 1–5%within two years and about 10% or morewithin three years.
Our ZnO LED development programmehas used various substrates manufacturedby several vendors and has shown that theLED’s performance is directly dependent onthe substrate’s material type and crystallinequality. Single-crystal ZnO produces the bestdevices. This material has been available for
Start-up company MOXtronics has recently produced thefirst coloured ZnO-based LEDs. Although the efficiency ofthese LEDs is not high, improvements are rapid and theemitters have the potential to outperform their GaN rivals,say Henry White and Yungryel Ryu from MOXtronics.
ZnO-based LEDs begin to sOPTOELECTRONICS
26 OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
MOXtronics has recently produced the first-ever ZnO-based LEDs emitto its devices. Further development of ZnO-based materials could lea
MOXtronics
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many years and interest is rapidly increasingfor the growth of high-quality single-crystalZnO with a diameter of 50 mm or more orZnO-based LEDs and other devices.
What’s neededMajor improvements in the efficiency andpower output of ZnO UV and visible LEDs arestill needed to enable these devices to competein the market-place. Advances will depend onthe availability of higher-quality single-crys-tal substrates and improved processes for pro-ducing reliable and highly ohmic electricalcontacts to various different layers. Addi-tional bandgap engineering development isneeded for the UV C-band (100–280nm) andvisible region, along with optimization of themultiple quantum well and related structuresin the device’s active region.
Looking aheadWith the output power of our ZnO LEDsincreasing rapidly, these devices appear tohave a promising future. We expect them tofirst be deployed in white-light lamps andreplace incandescent sources in applicationssuch as liquid-crystal display backlights. The
promise of emission from the UV throughthe visible will then allow ZnO LEDs to targetapplications where no other single semicon-ductor material can operate today. At thistime, for example, red–green–blue sourcesthat are fabricated on a single wafer will offerunique advantages for the development ofbright, compact displays and projectors.Laser diodes built from ZnO-based materialscould also be produced that emit in the vis-ible and UV and offer compact alternativesfor larger tube-type laser sources, usheringin a new era for colour printing.
Yungryel Ryu ([email protected]) ispresident and CEO of MOXtronics. Henry White(whiteh@ moxtronics.com) is chair of theMOXtronics board and a professor at the Universityof Missouri, MO, US. Both were members of thecompany’s original start-up team. MOXtronics Incwas formed in December 2000 as a spin-outcompany of the University of Missouri. The firmhas obtained funding from both the Office of NavalResearch and NASA, and also through equity sales.
This article originally appeared in the August issue ofCompound Semiconductor magazine.
27OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
show full-colour potentialThe three major benefits of ZnO over GaN are:� superior material quality, which has beendemonstrated by the growth of high-purity ZnOwith defect densities below 105 cm–2, a valuetypically associated with the best GaN films; � improved doping performance, which resultsfrom the arsenic p-type dopant that has anactivation energy of 119 meV in ZnO films, farless than the 215 meV for magnesium-dopedp-type GaN. This lower activation energyproduces a 10-fold increase in the proportionof activated acceptor atoms that are needed forelectrical conduction (assuming the sameatomic dopant concentrations are used) andalso reduces the number of defects for a givenhole carrier density;
� the availability of better alloys, due to ourrecent development of high-quality BeZnO films.These layers have driven the fabrication of LEDs,lasers and transistors that have less disorderthan the structures produced using theAlGaN/GaN material system. The reduceddisorder is a consequence of the largedifference in bandgap between ZnO and BeO,and enables only small changes in the alloy’scomposition to produce relatively large changesin bandgap. In comparison, a much larger shiftin aluminium composition is required toproduce the equivalent changes in AlGaN andthis leads to greater disorder. The ZnO-basedmaterial system could also be extended into thevisible using alloys such as CdO, CdSe and CdS.
The advantages of ZnO over GaN
MOXtronics has also developed the first UVdetectors based on ZnO. The sensitivity ofthese devices is three times higher than thatof any other UV solid-state detector and theyhave a responsivity of 0.27 A/W at 372 nm(see figure, right). The detector’s noise floor atvisible wavelengths is four orders ofmagnitude lower than its response in the UV,making it an attractive option for visible-blindapplications. The device’s temporal responseis typically 50 µs, but it can be shortenedconsiderably and approach the theoreticallimit of 10 ns by optimizing the structure andthe electrodes’ dimensions.
MOXtronics expects to develop high-speedfocal-plane arrays, with pixel dimensions oftypically 128×128, by the end of next year.These arrays, and single-element detectors,should become important components in both
portable UV spectrometers and in the ultrafastUV spectrometers designed for the analysis andtemporal de-convolution of fluorescence spectra.
Highly efficient detectors
s emitting in the white, red, blue and green, by attaching phosphorsld lead to phosphor-free ZnO LEDs serving all these colours.
wavelength (nm)
resp
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200 300 400 500 600 700
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MOXtronics’ highly sensitive UV detectors have avery fast response time and can analyse the changein fluorescence spectra over very short timescales.
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There is a lot more to making an optical filter than meets the eye. Dominik Goessi looksat the role of in situ monitoring in the production process and reviews the technology.
In situ method drives upyields and reduces costs
OPTICAL MONITORING
29OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
The humble interference filter often plays acritical role in optical experiments. Made up oftens of layers, each one precisely deposited andmonitored, there is certainly a lot more to thisstandard component than meets the eye. Itsmanufacture typically involves in situ mon-itoring and control systems to minimize pro-duction time and cost, and to maximize yields.
Enhanced electron-beam deposition pro-cesses such as reactive low-voltage ion plating(RLVIP) are ideal for producing complex opti-cal filters with 50 layers or more. These tech-niques can generate thin films with highdensity, high-temperature stability and a min-imum of absorption. However, expensive coat-ing materials, long process times and costlysubstrates, that cannot always be reworked inthe event of an error in the coating process,mean that monitoring is essential.
Monitoring techniquesThin-film deposition processes are typicallycontrolled by one of two techniques: quartzor optical monitoring.
Quartz crystal is the most commonly usedmonitoring system. Here, an oscillatorexcites a quartz crystal to high frequencies ofaround 5 MHz. When the crystal is coated, itsfrequency decreases and this change gives ameasure of the film’s thickness.
On the plus side, the hardware is relativelyinexpensive and easy to operate, and is usedsuccessfully in many semiconductor and opti-cal applications. However, the monitoring sys-tem is not optimal for complex optical coatingsbecause the layer thickness on the substrate oron a test glass is not measured directly.
Optical film-thickness measurements relyon the fact that the intensity of a mono-chromatic light beam reflected by a filmchanges periodically with increasing filmthickness. The technique has the advantagethat a film’s optical properties are measureddirectly using test glasses, which can thenbe kept and checked for process and qualitycontrol. However, the initial hardwareinvestment and set-up costs are higher thanthat of crystal monitoring.
To compare quartz crystal and optical mon-
itoring systems, 15 samples, each having anidentical two-layer sequence of high and lowrefractive index materials, were coated in anEvatec BAP800 evaporating system.
The reproducibility of the layer densityusing RLVIP on a BAP800 system is verygood, so one would expect the quartz crystalto give the same thickness result for eachsample. However, results varied between24.1 and 25.2 nm for the first layer andbetween 54.0 and 56.2 nm for the secondlayer. This highlights the reduced control ofquartz monitoring.
In practice, it is possible to correct coatingerrors with crystal monitoring for designswith approximately 10 layers. However, forcoatings with 20, 30 and 50 layers or more,the error within each layer is unacceptablylarge with insufficient reproducibility toachieve the highest yields. A more precisemonitoring system is required.
Optical approachDeposition processes such as RLVIP in com-bination with optical monitoring systems aretherefore ideal for manufacturing complexinterference filters with high accuracy andreproducibility. The theory and practice arewell matched. The actual spectral curvesachieved are identical to the calculated ones,proving that optical monitoring systems jus-
tify their higher initial investment and set-upcosts through better process control andhigher yields.
An optical monitoring system has twosenders: one for transmission and another forreflection measurements. The receiver is thesame for both modes of operation. Whitelight reflected from, or transmitted through,a test glass passes through a monochromatorbefore being focused onto a detector. The sig-nal from the detector is then fed into a lock-inamplifier where it is processed and digitized.
Consider a test glass with a refractive indexof nG that has already been coated with a filmof thickness d and refractive index nL. Inreflection mode, for example, a light beamfrom the sender (R) hits the coated test glassand is refracted and partially reflected (R1)when it enters the optically thicker medium.
The refracted light reaches the interfacebetween the film and the test glass after it haspassed through the optical film thickness nLd.One part of the light is reflected (R2) and theother part penetrates the test glass. Thereflected light passes back through the filmagain and multiple reflections occur at theinterfaces. The intensity of the reflected lightdecreases continuously but the intensity ofthe individual reflected light beams addtogether to give the total intensity.
When monochromatic light with the wave-
Production benefits: optical monitoring systems give manufacturers a high level of process control.
Evatec
OLEOct06EVATECp29-30 25/9/06 14:39 Page 29
length crosses the interface from opticallythinner to thicker material, the reflection isalso accompanied by a phase shift of /2. Thephase difference of reflected or transmittedlight is determined by the difference in opticalpath lengths 2nLd and the phase shift thatoccurs at the interfaces. We can therefore seea turning point in the total intensity curve ofsuperimposed, reflected monochromatic lightbeams depending on the light wavelength, therefractive index and the instantaneous thick-ness of the coated material.
In practice, as the film thickness increasescontinuously during the coating processitself, the turning point condition is fulfilledat regular intervals and the intensity of thereflected light beam detected at the receiverreaches various maxima and minima with aperiodic structure. The distance between theturning points depends on standard vari-ables including evaporation rate r. If theevaporation rate and the refractive index ofthe film material are known, then it is poss-ible to monitor film thickness using the
intensity curve measured at the receiver. Aspecial cut-off algorithm is used to controlthe coater and terminate evaporation whenthe desired film thickness is reached.
Successive manufacturing runs for a typ-ical edge filter consisting of 24 optimized lay-ers in an Evatec BAK760 with the opticalmonitoring system GSM1100 demonstratethe level of production control that can beachieved with optical monitoring. The spec-tral transmission curves for three batcheswith 50% transmission values of 653.5,651.5 and 652.8 nm respectively show anexcellent reproducibility of ±1nm.
The future of optical monitoringA new generation of fast CCD image sensorsspecifically designed for low-light-level detec-tion in combination with an imaging spec-trograph enables the precise monitoring of awhole spectral range (broadband monitor-ing). The coating process can be controlled bydirect measurement on the substrate and thewhole optical spectrum of each layer isknown and can be controlled. This meansthat even in the event of a coating error mid-process, the remaining layers can be recalcu-lated in situ to give the correct end result.
Currently, the sampling frequency of theseset-ups is lower than those used in mono-chromatic monitoring. As a result, specialalgorithms are required to terminate a coat-ing process precisely between two measure-ments. However, given the rapid progress inthe quality and speed of CCD sensors, thefuture of optical monitoring systems looksset to become broadband.
Dominik Goessi is a physicist with a specialinterest in the development of optical monitoringsystems. He works in Evatec’s developmentlaboratory at the company’s manufacturing facilityin Flums, Switzerland. See: www.evatecnet.com.
OPTICAL MONITORING
30 OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
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Principle of operation: a light beam from thesender (R) hits the coated test glass and isrefracted and partially reflected (R1). Multiplereflections occur at the interfaces. The intensity ofindividual, reflected light beams add together togive the total intensity (Rtotal = R1 + R2 + R3 = ...).
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Thanks to a set of unique properties, diffractive optical elements have the potential totransform light into almost any desired distribution. Joshika Akhil gives the low-down onthe technology that can benefit laser marking, material processing, heat treatment,sensing, non-contact testing and optical metrology, to name just a few applications.
Hybrid diffractive opticsoffer an elegant solution
PRODUCT GUIDE
33OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
Diffractive optical elements (DOEs) can mod-ify laser beams in almost all of the same waysas conventional refractive optics, but withthe added attraction of beam manipulation.Elements such as beam homogenizers, dif-fusers, beam samplers, diffractive focallenses, beam splitters and various gratingstructures can transform light into almostany desired distribution. Furthermore, themodulation of light is not limited to laserbeams – DOEs can be used to modulate par-tially and non-coherent light sources as well.
User benefitsDOEs have the unique ability to transformthe original beam into a variety of shapes,distributions and numbered spots withoutunduly affecting the output intensity of theentire system. One of their greatest advant-ages is that a single optical element can oftenreplace multiple optical systems to customizethe beam profile to the desired shape andintensity distribution.
Recent developments in design and processcontrol now allow DOEs to be manufacturedin a compact, reliable and cost-effective way.Using lithographic techniques, a microreliefdiffraction grating can be etched into the opti-cal element to create a single optical device.
Diffractive optics redistribute the energy
between the centre and the periphery of alaser beam, making them ideal for beamshaping (figure 1). Beam homogenizerssmooth out the intensity profile of an inci-dent beam and suit applications such as laserablation and heat treatment, where hot spotswithin the beam are undesirable.
Traditionally, beam homogenizers havebeen restricted to operation within the focalplane of a lens (spot operation) or have a min-imum working distance. If operated outside ofthese conditions, undesired peaks can appearin the distribution. However, there is a newdevice on the market that is less sensitive topositioning, called an HM-type homogenizer.
Beam shapers create specific energy-distri-bution patterns with sharp edges. The basictechnique involves remapping the intensity-distribution profile of the incident beam into auniform spot distribution of a specific size andshape, and at a specific distance. In principle,any transverse spot shape can be obtained,although the most useful geometries are typ-ically round, rectangular and square. Addinga lens to the diffractive element shifts the loca-tion and changes the scale of the distribution,tailoring it to specific applications.
One great advantage of the so-called dif-fractive top-hat beam shaper over other uni-form illumination systems is that it eliminates
the trade-off between efficiency and spot uni-formity by diffractively redistributing thebeam energy. Other techniques can simplyblock out a significant part of the energy.
Users should remember that to achieve out-standing results, the incident beam must havea collimated Gaussian profile and be centredon the element. Beam expanders and spatialfilters can be used to optimize the input beam.
Important roleTop-hat intensity distributions suit appli-cations where a controlled transfer of energyat the spot is essential, particularly in pro-cesses that have an exposure level and dam-age threshold for a given power density.Examples include raster-scan-picture gener-ators and high-power laser treatments in mat-erial processing and medical applications.
As a result, DOEs are proving to be anessential component in industry sectors suchas laser ablation; welding and drilling; med-ical and aesthetic lasers; and laser displays.The uniform-intensity spot, steep transitionregion and sharp profile offer unmatchedmanageability and accuracy.
However, beam shaping is not limited tosimply a top-hat output intensity profile. Cus-tom optical elements can be manufactured togive various spot shapes and intensity distri-
collimated Gaussianincident beam fromlaser and expander
plano-convex lens
diffractive patterntop-hat spot
L
Dout
Dinc, 1/e2
incident beam intensity distribution output profile – after transformation
Fig. 1: top-hat beam shapers can deliver outstanding results, transforming a near-Gaussian incident laser beam into a uniform-intensity spot.
OLEOct06PRODUCTGUIDEp33-35 25/9/06 16:06 Page 33
butions while maintaining high efficiencies.Conventional lenses generate focused
spots, whereas a diffractive focusing ele-ment can provide the required caustic linein the focal plane (figure 2). Using a plano-convex lens as the focusing element with adiffractive microrelief pattern on its planosurface, the DOE directs laser light towardsthe line contour (straight line, ring, poly-gons etc) instead of at a single focal spot.Thus, a line-contour focal image is achievedfrom the collimated laser beam without anyscanning system.
The line-contour focusing element providesnovel opportunities in laser marking, drillingand in the welding of plastics and metalsusing high-power lasers. Applications also
exist in machinery and microelectronics; theoptical heads of scanning laser writers; opti-cal information processing; and laser surgery.
Splitting and multiplicationRecent advances in diffractive optics theoryand technology have made beam splitting/multiplication a valuable resource for opticaldesigners. Applications range from spot-arraygeneration and fibre-optic coupling through tolaser heat treatment of material surfaces andlaser ablation. Other promising opportunitiesfor the technique include multiple and multi-focal imaging, laser-beam mode selection andsimultaneous contour shaping.
Diffractive beam splitters have been widelyused in laser perforation as they allow high
throughput and accurate positioning, with-out leaving any working residual materials(figure 3, p35). By integrating diffractivebeam splitters into these systems, several per-forations can be achieved simultaneouslywith extremely accurate distances betweenthe spots, removing the need for a movingx–y table and improving performance.
Multiple-spot (including double-spot) DOEsprovide a line or an array of identical focalspots located in the focal plane and can bearranged in a one or two-dimensional pat-tern. DOE beam splitters offer advantagesincluding uniformity in power between thespots (±1% can be achieved for standard 1×2 and 2×2 splitters and significantly morefor other designs). The positional predictabil-ity of each beam/spot is also enhanced.
Beam samplingAnother DOE closely related to the beam split-ter is the beam sampler, which enables inlinemeasurements of high-power laser beams tobe made. The device produces two exactcopies (samples) of the input beam with onlya small fraction of the total power, while themain part of the master beam continues inthe optical train. This allows the samplebeams to be measured and analysed while themain beam remains unaffected and opera-tional. Beam samplers can be produced tosuit custom angles, wavelengths and variouspower fractions of the main beam.
Diffractive beam samplers are being usedin place of conventional optics more andmore, because they offer a clean, non-inva-sive analytical solution. For example, theyare replacing burn-off modal measurementsfor CO2 lasers. Since there are no burning ele-ments in the system, no by-products are pro-duced. Also, the diffractive beam samplersare not polarization dependent and so meas-urements can be taken while the laser isoperating online.
Diffractive beam samplers can be used tomonitor high-power CO2, Nd:YAG and otherlasers in materials processing, medical appli-cations and in laser radar systems.
A single diffractive corrected focusing lenscan equal the high performance of a complexmultiple-optical-element objective lens. The
Leister ProcessTechnologiesAxetris Microsystems DivisionSwitzerlandPhone +41 41 662 74 [email protected]
Laser diode collimation
Beam homogenization
Wavefront sensor optics
Fibre collimation
Custom micro-optics
ISO 9001:2000
Micro-Optics Solutions
Visit us at the
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Stoneleigh Park /
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PRODUCT GUIDE
34 OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
u x
AS
L0 L
z0
I0 I
I0, 0 I0,
Fig. 2: Schematic view of a line contour set-up (left) and the corresponding output pattern (right).
“DOEs canmodulate partiallyand non-coherentlight sources aswell .”
OLEOct06PRODUCTGUIDEp33-35 25/9/06 16:07 Page 34
diffractive microrelief pattern on the planeside of the lens gives a diffraction-limited spotsize that demonstrates a sharp focusing effectand a dramatic increase in power densities,even for long focal length DOEs.
Diffractive corrected focusing lenses offerunique properties not matched by conven-tional optics. “Special effects” include off-axissharp focusing; control of the focal spotshape; controlled introduction of sphericalaberration; longer depth of focus; chromaticcorrection; and double (multiple) spot focus.
Combining two beamsMany medical CO2 (10.6 µm) laser systemsuse a red He:Ne (632.8 nm) laser or laserdiode (635 nm) module (LDM) to generatean aiming or pilot beam. It is essential thatthe visible He:Ne/LDM beam coincides withthe invisible CO2 beam so that the CO2 focalspot can be easily identified. Conventionalmethods often use lens doublets and crys-talline optics such as potassium bromide ele-ments, which are hygroscopic and relativelyinconvenient to work with.
An elegant solution to this problem is a sin-gle hybrid diffractive element called a dual-wavelength beam combiner. This is a zincselenide lens with a microrelief diffractionpattern etched into the plane side. The dif-fractive pattern can be designed to controljust one wavelength. When placed in the pathof the 10.6 µm and 633 nm laser beams theDOE superimposes both wavelengths at thesame focal spot, without the need of doublets.
The durability of the diffractive beamcombiner far exceeds the two-lens systemalternative. Also, the integral light trans-mittance of the diffractive dual wavelengthelement outperforms any on-axis reflectivesystems, with figures exceeding 98%.
Joshika Akhil is technical sales engineer at LaserComponents (UK) Ltd. For more information, seewww.lasercomponents.co.uk.
PRODUCT GUIDE
35OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
The naturalselection forti:sapphirepumping.
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DOE
Fig. 3: the beam splitter DOE accepts a collimatedbeam and produces a number of beams with thesame characteristics as the incident beam exceptfor angle of propagation and power. By placing afocusing lens close to the element, all beams canbe focused into spots. A mask is recommended forblocking higher order diffraction fringes.
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• Scintillation crystals • Linear & two dimensional arrays
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OLEOctAdverts36 22/9/06 13:29 Page 1
OscilloscopeTektronix
Test and measurementspecialist Tektronix hasreleased theDPO70000 digitalphosphor oscilloscopeand the DSA70000digital serial analyser.
According to the firm, these new 4, 6 and 8 GHzbandwidth instruments provide industry-besthardware and software for data-acquisition,debug, validation and compliance testing.
With a sample rate of 25 GS/s on all fourchannels simultaneously, the new models aresaid to provide the fastest four-channel sample-rate performance of any oscilloscope available.For example, the 8 GHz DPO70804 andDSA70804 have a typical rise time of 35 ps andprovide a jitter noise floor down to 400 fs rms(typical) for critical jitter measurements. TheDPO70000 offers 10 million data points asstandard per channel while the DSA70000offers 20 million as standard per channel.www.tektronix.com
Tunable filterYenista OpticsYenista Optics of France has unveiled a low-losstunable filter. The device is said to tune over120 nm from 1510 to 1630 nm with a fullspectral sweep time of 200 ms, anautopositioning wavelength accuracy of 2 pm,PDL of maximum 0.2 dB and insertion loss of3 dB. Yensita adds that the 3 dB bandwidth ofthe filter is 0.35 nm although other bandwidthsare available on request. The product is offeredin rack-mount and benchtop versions for testand measurement applications in the laboratoryas well as in the field.www.yenista.com
Laser welding systemROFIN Laser Micro
The StarWeld Selectfrom ROFIN Laser Microcan be operated as anergonomicallyoptimized manualwelding laser, as adeposit welding laserwith joystick and as ahigh-precision CNCsystem. All processsteps are controlled via
a multifunctional joystick and a largemulticolour touch-screen display enabling semi-automatic laser welding, CNC teach-in orjogging of heavy workpieces.
The system can cope with workpieces
weighing up to 50 kg, which it can position withan accuracy of 10 µm.
ROFIN adds that the TrackMode allows directstorage of manually controlled paths and canbe used for deposit welding along curvedcontours and for semi automatic operations.The AreaFill option allows several parallel offsetwelding seams to be generated for 3D surfacedeposit welding.www.rofin.com
DC current sourceOptronic Laboratories
Optronic Laboratorieshas introduced theOL400-C controller,which it has designedfor use with its OLseries 426 and 455
integrating sphere calibration standards.According to the firm, the precision-constant
DC current source features microprocessorcontrol, a lamp-hours monitor, a wide viewingangle two-line display, USB 2.0 interface and anadjustable tilt handle. An optional softwaredevelopment kit is also available.www.olinet.com
488 nm laserCoherent
The latest Sapphirelaser from Coherent is asmall-footprint OEMsource delivering50 mW of continuous-wave output power at488 nm. Primarilyintended for biomedicalinstrumentation such
as flow cytometry and drug discovery, the50 mW power level will deliver increasedsensitivity leading to faster throughput and/orhigher signal-to-noise for these applications,according to Coherent.
The Sapphire 50 mW is based on the sameoptically pumped semiconductor lasertechnology as its 10 and 20 mW counterpartsand also shares the same form factor, powerrequirements and beam characteristics.Coherent says that, compared with air-cooledargon lasers, its all-solid-state Sapphire offersthe advantages of smaller size, greater electricalefficiency, lower heat dissipation andsubstantially longer lifetime.www.coherent.com
PRODUCTSIf you would like your company’s products to be featured in this section,
please send press releases and images to James Tyrrell ([email protected]).
37OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
Pulsed TunableDye Laser
[email protected] - +33 1 69 29 17 00 / [email protected](406) 586 0131
Quantel & Big Sky Laser
Quantel’s TDL90 offers researchers an extremely versatilenanosecond tunable laser source.• 200nm to 4.5µm tuning using wavelength extension options• High Efficiency • Compact Design• User-Friendly• Low ASE Oscillator DesignQuantel provides you with a complete Nd:YAG pump / dyelaser system, for an optimal mechanical stability.Contact Quantel, Big Sky Laser or your local representativefor more details.
OLEOct06PRODUCTSp37-49 25/9/06 16:09 Page 37
Pulsed UV laserNewport
The Explorer Scientificfrom Newport is a low-power, intracavity,frequency-tripled andactively Q-switcheddiode-pumped solid-
state laser that delivers pulse energies of up to120 µJ at 349 nm. The source is said to be anideal research tool for applications requiringhigh pulse energies and peak powers at lowkilohertz repetition rates.
The Explorer can be operated from single shotup to a 5kHz pulse repetition rate at variablepulse energies. Pulse widths are typically less than5ns and, with a pulse-to-pulse stability of lessthan 3%rms, the company says that applicationswill benefit from an extremely low signal-to-noiseratio. A LabView-based GUI allows customers tointerface with the laser via a USB port.www.newport.com
Chromatic confocal sensorsArmstrong Optical
The latest line ofconfocal chromaticoptical pens
manufactured by STIL of France is now availablethrough Armstrong Optical of the UK. Typical
applications are listed as profilometry,microtopography, roughness, autofocusvibrometry, in-line inspection quality control andthickness measurements.
A modular design allows up to 30 differentconfigurations for specific depth-of-field, spotsize, working distance, object slope andphotometric efficiency. Five magnifiers with focallengths ranging from 3.3 to 29.0 mm and sixchromatic lenses with depths of fields from130 µm to 27 mm are available. The pens aresaid to achieve a maximum axial resolution of5 nm, an accuracy of 20 nm and a maximumslope of 87° for diffusive objects.www.armstrongoptical.co.uk
Fibre-coupled diode laserPoint Source
Point Source haslaunched a higher-power version of itsiFLEX2000 fibre-coupled laser. Thelatest addition delivers30 mW at 405 nm in aTEM00 Gaussian beam.Laser beamconditioning isperformed using asinglemode fibre, which
acts as a spatial filter while also providing aflexible beam-delivery mechanism.
The company also claims that the laser isunique in employing forward, closed-loop powercontrol that is immune to optical feedback, whichin turn provides a long-term ultra-stable outputand low short-term amplitude noise. Targetbiomedical applications include flow cytometryand fluorescence imaging, although the laser issaid to be ideal for optical media applicationswhere spot size and resolution are critical.www.point-source.com
Laser barriersLaserVision
LaserVision says that itsnew Laserbarrierproduct is a modularsystem that meets thechanging needs andrequirements of laserusers. Based on apatent-pending materialsystem, the barrier
offers protection from CO2 and Nd:YAG lasers upto a power density of 10 MW/cm2. LaserVisionsays that this equates to protection levels of AL4at 10600 nm and AL6 at 1064 nm at 100 s ofdirect illumination.
The barrier has a specially designed surface,which is said to make it suitable for applicationsin industry, research and even cleanroom andmedical environments. LaserVision adds that theproduct can contain different or full segmentedprotection modules such as cabin windows.www.lvg.com
Fizeau interferometer4D Technology
4D Technology, US,has introduced theFizCam 2000. “This isthe first-of-its-kind ‘on-axis’ vibration Fizeaufeaturing a short
coherence length source that enablesmeasurement of transparent samples andassemblies that are difficult or impossible tomeasure with traditional laserinterferometers,” said James Millerd, 4D’schief technical officer.
According to 4D, the short coherence featureeliminates the need for extraneous coatings tocontrol interfering fringes by isolating andmeasuring only the desired surface. In additionto measuring parallel optical grade surfaces, theFizCam 2000 is said to be well suited toseparating and measuring surfaces within anoptical assembly, making remote cavitymeasurements, testing index homogeneity,measuring thin optics and environmentalchamber testing.www.4DTechnology.com
PRODUCTS
38 OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
OLEOct06PRODUCTSp37-49 25/9/06 16:10 Page 38
NASDAQ: STKRCopyright ©2006 StockerYale Inc. All rights reserved.
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Fusion splicerSumitomo Electric Industries
The T-39 single fibrecore aligning fusionsplicer from SumitomoElectric Industries hasbeen designed underthe company’s ECO-21/2 programme,
which considers the environmental effects of aproduct over its lifetime. As such, the companysays that this is the first in a new generation ofsplicers that comply with the European Union’sRoHS regulations.
Sumitomo says that the T-39 has dualindependent heat-shrink ovens that improvesplice throughput and productivity. The devicealso features “hands-free” operation, thanks tothe automatic starting of the splice and heat-shrink processes.www.sumielectric.com
Polarization-maintaining fibreLiekkiLiekki of Finland has added a highly doped,large-mode-area fibre with a very high claddingabsorption (Yb1200-20/125DC-PM) to itsytterbium-doped fibre product family. Typicalapplications are listed as materials processing(cutting, marking and drilling), laser ranging,remote chemical detection and nonlinearfrequency conversion.
The fibre has a highly doped 20 µm diametercore and a large core-to-cladding ratio. Thesefeatures result in a nominal cladding pumpabsorption of 7.1 dB/m at 920 nm, rising toaround 30 dB/m for absorption at 976 nm.According to Liekki, this enables very shortactive fibre lengths – less than 1 m for 976 nm pumping.www.liekki.com
Gigabit Ethernet cameraJAI PULNiX
JAI PULNiX has added anew member to its lineof gigabit Ethernetcameras. The TM-1327GE is a
compact progressive scan CCD camera featuringa 2/3 inch image sensor and a frame rate of 30 fpsat the full resolution of 1392×1040 pixels.
Contained in a 50.8×50.8×84.8 mmhousing, the camera is said to have a widedynamic range with sensitivity in both the visible-and near-infrared. Its interline transfer CCDpermits full vertical and horizontal resolution withshutter speeds of up to 1/21 000 s.Asynchronous reset combined with a no-delaypulse-width-controlled shutter provides flexibletriggering and the exposure control necessary formachine vision applications.www.jaipulnix.com
PRODUCTS
OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
OLEOct06PRODUCTSp37-49 25/9/06 16:11 Page 40
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OLEOctAdverts41 22/9/06 13:50 Page 1
561 nm DPSS laserLaser Lines
Laser Lines of the UK isnow distributing the561 nm Jive 75 laserfrom Cobolt. Emitting75 mW, the Jive 75 issaid to offer low noise,
excellent beam quality, long lifetime and singlelongitudinal mode operation, all in a compactpackage. The beam size and divergence matchthose of an air-cooled ion or HeNe laser, whichis said to make the Jive a direct drop-inreplacement in flow-cytometry and microscopyapplications. A narrow spectral bandwidth andlong coherence length also make the sourceuseful for applications such as spectroscopy,holography and interferometry.www.laserlines.co.uk
SLEDsExalos
Exalos of Switzerlandsays that its 750 nmline of superluminescentlight-emitting diodes isespecially suited to
optical coherence tomography (OCT) andbiomedical applications. The firm claims thatits devices, which combine the spatialcoherence of a laser diode with the temporalincoherence of an LED, provide highsuppression of second coherence peaks.Typical values for the EXS7505-1411 are 3 mWoptical output power in a singlemode fibre and21 nm 3 dB spectral bandwidth.
The EXS7510-1411 is said to achieve 5 mWoptical output power in a singlemode fibre and14 nm 3 dB spectral bandwidth. Featuring abuilt-in thermoelectric cooler and monitor diode,the standard product is delivered in a 14 PIN DILhousing. Uncooled devices in TOSA housings arealso available. The firm also offers devices at850 and 1300 nm, which may be of interest todevelopers of biomedical and OCT apparatus.www.exalos.com
VCSELsVertilasGerman VCSEL expert Vertilas says that its latestgeneration of 1310 and 1550 nm sourcesenables applications up to 10 Gbit/s, thanks toa benzocyclobutene-based optimized devicestructure. It says that this high performancecoupled with a low threshold current makes thecomponents valuable for the newest generationof small-form-factor optical modules, such asSFP+ and XFP.
The lasers are offered in standard TO-46packages and are being integrated intoapplication-specific assemblies, such as pigtailsand receptacles.www.vertilas.com
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42 OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
OLEOct06PRODUCTSp37-49 25/9/06 16:11 Page 42
LEDsOsram Opto Semiconductors
Osram OptoSemiconductors saysthat its new advancedpower TopLED devicesare 50% brighter thantheir predecessors,thanks to thin-film
technology. The company quotes an output of19 lm for green and amber, 15 lm for white andred, 14 lm for yellow and 5 lm for blue, all at140 mA. Osram says that this new range ispositioned between standard and high-powerLEDs and is ideal for area and effect lighting. AnSMT package ensures that the LEDs arecompatible with standard solder processes.www.osram-os.com
Microinspection systemMoritex
Moritex of the UK saysthat its MS804Scopeman is a powerfuland easy-to-usemicroinspection systemthat is able toundertake almost anyreal-time industrial
inspection or quality-assurance task. The systemis available with a range of zoom lenses(16–200×); x, y and z stages; camera mountsand a variety of imaging peripherals.
The company says that a combination ofmulti-exposure, high-intensity LED lighting andintuitive software for fast and simple acquisitionallows the system to deliver high-resolution,1280×960 pixel images. It adds that, bychanging the camera’s shutter speed andcombining “bright” and “dark” images, theMS804 provides an enlarged dynamic range.www.moritex.com
Photon-counting trainingSensLSensL of Ireland has launched twocomplementary training courses for academics,researchers and engineers who wish to learnmore about the technology and techniques usedin photon detection. The products are calledPCEdu-1: photon counting fundamentals andPCEdu-1T: photon timing upgrade.
PCEdu-1 is an entry level lecture andlaboratory series that SensL says is ideal foracademics looking to start a low-light sensing orsemiconductor device physics training module.It is also said to be ideal for OEMs looking tobring an R&D team up to speed quickly.
PCEdu-1T is an upgrade package that takesthe training to a higher level through a series oflectures and lab experiments dealing with realphoton-counting scenarios.www.sensl.com
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44 OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
OLEOct06PRODUCTSp37-49 25/9/06 16:12 Page 44
Colour CCD cameraToshiba
The IK-TF9C fromToshiba’s ImagingSystems Division is athree-chip, colour CCDcamera with a resolutionof 2048×1536 pixels.
Also incorporating Toshiba’s progressive scantechnology to eliminate image jitter, the camerais said to be ideal for high-speed industrialmachine vision applications.
Measuring 44×44×78.3 mm and weighing165 g, the camera has a frame rate of 20 fps(full frame) and 40 fps (partial scan). Otherspecifications include a C-mount for lenses, an8-bit RGB digital output and CameraLinkcompatibility for ease of operation.www.cameras.toshiba.com
Software-development kitProsilica
Industrial CCD cameramaker Prosilica hasreleased Linux and QNXsoftware-developmentkits (SDKs) for its rangeof GigE Vision cameras,complementing the
company’s existing Microsoft Windows SDK.According to Prosilica, the GigE Vision SDKsprovide programmers with the means to controland capture images from its gigabit Ethernetcameras. In addition the Linux SDK works onboth Intel ×86 and PowerPC hardware. The SDKalso includes sample code to helpprogrammers to use Prosilica’s cameras in theirLinux-based applications.www.prosilica.com
Deep-cooled CCDPrinceton Instruments/ActonPrinceton Instruments/Acton has added the2048 series of front- and back-illuminatedcameras to its PIXIS line of CCD cameras. Basedon e2v technologies’ 42-40-2048×2048format sensor with an imaging area of26.7×26.7 mm, PI/Acton says that thePIXIS:2048 offers deep cooling better than–70 °C (via a thermoelectric Peltier) with avacuum guaranteed for the life of the camera.
The new cameras come with the familiartraits of the PIXIS line, such as dual100 kHz/2 MHz digitizers, ultra-low read noiseof 3e– rms read noise (at 100 kHz), all-metalhermetic seals, USB 2.0 interface and singleoptical window design.
Other specifications include flexible binning,ROI capabilities and WinView software. Thecompany adds that a toolkit with LabViewexamples and its own PVCAM library of functioncalls is available.www.piacton.com
Raman workstationMcPherson
The McPherson Ramanworkstation is availablefor the popular laserlines between 325 and830 nm. Systemsinclude a solid-state
laser, speciality filters and a sample chamberwith laser focusing and signal-collection optics.Sample chambers compatible with cryogenicsample holders are also available forphotoluminescence work.
All elements in the workstation are mounted,aligned and integrated with a research grade350 nm, f4.8 spectrometer with CCD andsoftware. The user-friendly single-stageinstrument is said to ensure good signal to noiseand ease of use for detecting Raman-shiftedemission above 300 wavenumbers.www.mcphersoninc.com
Imaging spectrometerHORIBA Jobin Yvon
HORIBA Jobin Yvon hasreleased the iHR550imaging spectrometer.With a focal length of0.55 m, the device
offers the ability to perform multitrackexperiments with up to 20 fibre inputs. Incorrectand rediffracted spectra are eliminated using anasymmetric Czerny–Turner design in conjunctionwith an on-axis grating drive system.
The iHR550 has two entrance and two exitports. Each exit port can be configured for usewith either an array detector, such as a CCD, ora slit for use with a PMT. The company cansupply the iHR550 in a variety of configurationsfor all spectroscopic measurements, includingRaman, photoluminescence, emission andimaging or multitrack spectroscopy.www.jobinyvon.co.uk
Dual-wavelength laser diodeRohm
The RLD2WMUV2 fromRohm is a singlemode,dual-wavelength laserdiode that emits atboth 785 and 655 nm,
making it an ideal source for both DVD-ROMand DVD players. The firm says thatoptimization of a strained quantum well hasallowed a reduction in threshold current andgood temperature characteristics.
Rohm quotes a threshold current of 18 mA for785 nm and 20 mA at 655 nm, both at 25 °C.The emission pointing distance is specified at110 µm. The device can be combined withRohm’s high-frequency modulation IC(BU9369FVM) for reduced noise.www.rohmelectronics.com
PRODUCTS
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Beam profilerPhoton Inc
Photon Inc hasreleased a 12-bit beamprofiler with FireWire(IEEE 1394)connectivity and alarge dynamic range.Available in two
versions, model 2523 features a 2/3 inchformat (9.0 × 6.7 mm) CCD with 6.45 µmpixels, whereas model 2512 is based on a 1/2
inch format (6.5 × 4.8 mm) CCD with 8.3 µmpixels. Both profilers have a small form factor(49 × 62 × 62 mm), making them easy to insertinto optical paths. According to the firm, thebeam profiling system does not require aframe-grabber card so can be moved easilybetween different computers.
The device measures both continuous-waveand pulsed beams over the 190–1100 nmwavelength range. The firm claims that by usingextended range imaging, the unit can obtainprofiles with a dynamic range as high as 144 dB(24 bits of digitization). The company adds thatvery large dynamic range is important in manyapplications, especially lens characterization,where lens aberrations are apparent from faintfeatures around a strong central peak in thebeam profile.www.photon-inc.com
785 nm laserB&WTekB&WTek has introduced its Cleanlaze high-resolution and wavelength-stabilized lasertechnology for Raman spectroscopy. Emitting at785 nm, multimode models offer 0.2 nm FWHMwhile singlemode versions feature a typicallinewidth of 0.02 nm. Output power optionsrange from 25 mW to more than 1 W at 785 nm.
Sources emitting at 980 nm and othercustom wavelengths are available. The lasersare said to be ideal for OEM Ramaninstrumentation, process, portable and labapplications, thanks to their light weight, smallfootprint, high stability, narrow linewidth andlow maintenance cost.www.bwtek.com
Waveguide optics simulationOptiwave Systems
Optiwave Systems hasreleased OptiBPM8 –the latest version of itswaveguide opticsdesign suite. This hasadvanced LP and
vector-mode solvers for circular fibres. Optiwavesays that these meshless fibre-mode solvers findmodes using a transfer matrix method incylindrical co-ordinates.
Other new features in OptiBPM8 include
intelligent optimization engines, the ability toimport DXF and GDSII mask file formats and asimulation engine performance boost that thecompany says allows the software to run 50%faster than previous versions.www.optiwave.com
High-power diode laserLIMOLIMO has introduced a prototype 25W diode laserthat emits a 10×10 mm beam with a divergenceof 2×2mrad. The company says that the laser,called LIMO25-C10x10-DL980, has a beam-parameter-product of 5mmmrad and yieldspower densities of 5MW/cm2 in a 25µm spot. Ithopes to double the output power to 50W in thenear future.
LIMO also offers a fibre-coupled version ofthis source. The LIMO25-F50-DL980 delivers25 W via a 50 µm fibre core with a numericalaperture of 0.22.www.limo.de
Translation stagePI
PI’s P-652 piezoelectriclinear-motor-driventranslation stageconsists of four partsand, according to thefirm, can replaceclassical drive
elements, such as rotary motor/leadscrewassemblies or electromagnetic linear motors ina microsystem. Measuring only9.0×6.5×2.4 mm, the P-652 stage offers atravel range of 3.2 mm and can move atvelocities of up to 80 mm/s. Otherspecifications include a resolution of better than0.1 µm, a holding force of 20 g and an operatingcurrent of 55 mA. Highly integrated electronicsare available for 3 V control.www.pi.ws
EncapsulantNusil TechnologyNusil Technology has added the GEL-9617-30to its range of Lightspan materials for thephotonics industry. Designed as a protectiveencapsulant for LED or other photonicapplications, the gel has a high refractive indexof 1.54 to maximize optical efficiency. Nusilsays that the encapsulant resists opticaldegradation when exposed to ultravioletradiation or extreme temperatures. It adds thatthe gel also serves as an effective medium forphosphor incorporation. Formulated to cure atroom temperature, the gel can be cured rapidlywith heat to address issues of substrate andlens delamination. The GEL-9617-30 isavailable in 50 ml side-by-side kits forevaluation purposes.www.nusil.com
PRODUCTS
ALL FIBER BEAMCOMBINERA brand new singlemode fused fiber beam combiner for visible laser beams.
Blue/Red, Green/Red, Blue/Green versions available.
www.point-source.com/ole
47OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
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Power supplyPower-OneThe BLP30-3000G AC–DC power supply isnow available from Power-One. Measuring just2 × 4 inches, the 30 W unit is quoted asproducing 5 V at 3.5 A (5 A peak), 12 V DC at2 A and –12 V DC at 0.5 A. The supply is saidto be the ideal power source for space-constrained, 1U-high applications, such asdata networking, medical instrumentation andexternal disk storage. RoHS compliant, theunit operates over a wide 90–264 V AC inputrange and provides short-circuit andovervoltage protection.www.power-one.com
Shutters and machine visionMelles Griot
Melles Griot, a providerof photoniccomponents, has addedshutters and machinevision products to itsonline catalogue. The
firm’s IES series shutters include an adjustableiris diaphragm, x synchronization and a manualactuation lever that allows the device to operatewithout an electrical signal. The firm alsosupplies UltraThin versions designed to fit intorestricted spaces. Both IES and UltraThin designsfeature spring-steel blades with a Teflonimpregnated, matte-black finish and include amultiblade shutter mechanism that is said togive near 100% light extinction.
According to Melles Griot, its range of fourhigh-performance telecentric lenses suitmachine vision, metrology and precision-gauging applications. The firm claims that thelenses provide low optical distortion and a highdegree of telecentricity for accurate imagereproduction, particularly when viewing 3Dobjects. Lens accessories such asteleconverters, right-angle attachments, fibre-bundle collimators and anodized mountingbrackets are also available from the firm.www.mellesgriot.com
16×2 character PLEDOne Stop Displays
One Stop Displays hasreleased its 16×2character PLED in anew module size of84×44 mm. Dubbed
OSD1602M03-F, the RoHS compatible unitfeatures 160˚ viewing angles, over 100:1contrast ratios and a low 20 mA of current drawat 40 nits of uniform brightness. The displayuses the standard Hitachi HD44780 characterLCD interface and command set, and suitshand-held products, instrumentation andsecurity panels to name just a few applications.www.onestopdisplays.net
PRODUCTS
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48 OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
OLEOct06PRODUCTSp37-49 25/9/06 16:14 Page 48
Anti-reflective ball lensesDSI
Deposition Sciences Inc(DSI) is offeringantireflection (AR)coated ball lenses in avariety of glass indices
and in new larger sizes up to 10 mm diameter.Highly durable and scratch resistant, the firm’sIsoSphere range of AR coated lenses isavailable with transmission values > 99.5% inindices of up to nd 2.0 at 550 nm. DSI claimsthat its ball lenses are an affordable andmechanically compact way of collimating theoutput of an optical fibre or laser diode. Lensesare resistant to most chemicals and are said tosuit aerospace, oil-field exploration, oil refining,marine and undersea applications.www.depsci.com
Off-the-shelf aspheresAsphericonAsphericon of Germany has launched a range of“off the shelf” aspheres. Dubbed StandardPrecision Apsheres (SPAs), the lenses areavailable in a number of diameters from 6 to
100 mm and are made primarily from high-indexmaterial with low dispersion. The lenses aremanufactured by CNC grinding and polishingand can be supplied with a choice of threestandard coatings. According to the firm, allSPAs are available directly from stock.www.asphericon.com
UV radiometerDymax
Dymax has added theACCU-CAL 50radiometer to its rangeof technical adhesivesand ultraviolet (UV)curing systems. The unitallows users to monitorthe intensity of a UV
curing source and assess adhesionperformance. Compatible with all types ofDYMAX UV curing systems, such as spot lamps,flood lamps and conveyors, the device is said tobe simple to operate. It offers repeatablemeasurement in the UVA spectrum(320–395 nm) from 1 mW/cm2 to 40 W/cm2.www.dymax.com
PRODUCTS
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OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
B&W Tek www.bwtek.com 39BFI Optilas www.bfioptilas.com 21Breault Research Organizationwww.breault.com IFC, 8
Cambridge Technologywww.cambridgetechnology.com 25
Crystal Systems www.crystalsystems.com 18CVI Technical Optics www.cvilaser.com OBCDuma Optronics www.duma.co.il 35Edinburgh Instruments www.edinst.com 42Edmund Optics www.edmundoptics.co.uk 32EKSPLA www.ekspla.com 38ELCAN Optical Technologieswww.ELCAN.com/create 4
Electron Tubes www.electrontubes.com 41Electro-Optical Products www.EOPC.com 32Esco Products www.escoproducts.com 28Evatec Process Systems www.evatecnet.com 28Femto Messtechnik www.femto.de 40Fiberguide Industries www.fiberguide.com 44Fuji Magnetics www.polymer-optics.com 15GPD Optoelectronics www.gpd-ir.com 28GWU Lasertechnik www.gwu-group.de 24HC Photonics www.hcphotonics.com 39High Q Laser www.highqlaser.com 40Hilger Crystals www.hilger-crystals.co.uk 36Holo Or www.holoor.co.il 32IPOT 2007 www.ipot.co.uk 36Jenoptik Polymer Systems www.jenoptik-ps.de 15Kentek Corporation www.kentek.com 9Laser 2007 www.world-of-photonics.net 31Laser Components (UK) Ltdwww.lasercomponents.co.uk 7
Lasermet www.lasermet.com 39Laser Quantum www.laserquantum.com 35
Leister Process Technologies www.axetris.com 34Melles Griot www.mellesgriot.com 13Metrolux Optische www.metrolux.de 42Möller-Wedel Opticalwww.moeller-wedel-optical.com 18
Multiwave Photonicswww.multiwavephotonics.com 41
New Focus www.newfocus.com 22Newport Spectra-Physics www.newport.com 48Ophir Optronicswww.ophiropt.com 6, 14, 50, IBC
Optikos www.optikos.com 32Opto Taiwan 2007 www.optotaiwan.com 43PCO AG www.pco.de 45Photon Energy www.photon-energy.de 36Photonex 2006 www.photonex.org 12Photonic Productswww.photonic-products.com 28
Photonics West 2007www.spie.org/events/pw 46
Photon Lines www.photonlines.com 44Physik Instrumente www.pi.ws 16Point Source www.point-source.com 47Pyser-SGI www.pyser-sgi.com 41Quantel www.quantel.fr 37Quintessence Photonicswww.QPClasers.com 10
Scitec Instruments www.scitec.uk.com 32Spanoptic www.spanoptic.com 48Stanford Research Systemswww.thinkSRS.com 20
StockerYale Inc www.stockeryale.com 15, 39Tempo Plastic www.tempo-foam.com 18Toptica www.toptica.com 49XeniCs www.xenics.com 30
ADVERTISERS’ INDEX
The index is provided as a service and, while every effort is made to ensure its accuracy, Optics&LaserEurope accepts no liability for error.
OLEOct06PRODUCTSp37-49 25/9/06 16:14 Page 49
PEOPLETo advertise your job vacancies, contact Cadi Jones (tel: +44 (0)117 930 1090; e-mail: [email protected]).
50 OLE • October 2006 • optics.org/ole
SUDOKU PUZZLE
We hope you enjoyed September’s Sudokupuzzle. You can check your answers against lastmonth’s solution on the left.
If you are new to Sudoku, this is how it works:each puzzle consists of a 9×9 grid that issubdivided into 9 smaller grids of 3×3 squares.To complete the puzzle, you must ensure thateach row, column and 3×3 square contains thenumbers 1–9. All it takes is logic so try not toguess at the numbers.
GERMANY
Gretschel takes directorrole at QioptiQ GmbH
Ingo Gretschel hasbeen named as themanaging director atQioptiQ GmbH,which is based inAsslar, Germany.Formerly head of
optoelectronic sales at German firm DocterOptics, Gretschel has many years’ experiencein optomechanical design and in themanufacture of products and componentsfor both military and commercialapplications. Gretschel took up his new roleon 1 August and reports to QioptiQ groupchief executive officer Benoit Bazire.
FINLAND
Orsila continues as thechairman at ModulightModulight has announced that Seppo Orsilahas been re-elected to the position ofchairman of the board but has withdrawnfrom his operational role as chief financialofficer and vice-president of marketing at theFinnish firm. A founder of Modulight, Orsilawill continue to contribute to the strategicplanning of the firm in his role as chairman.Modulight was founded in 2000.
US
Optical software expertadds to developer team
BRO, US, hasappointed JianhuaJiang as acomputationaloptical scientist.Jiang joins the firmafter nearly 10 years
of optical training and research at theUniversity of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH),most recently as the leader of thesimulation group at the UAH Nano andMicro Devices Center.
The firm has also recently made additionsto its Technical Customer Service Groupthrough the appointment of WilliamDonnelly as senior optical engineer andRobert Shroder as optical engineer.
FRANCE/US
Liebowitz to lead TeemPhotonics in the US
Teem Photonics ofFrance, a specialistin passively Q-switchedmicrolasers and ion-exchange integratedoptics, has appointed
Jay Liebowitz as president of its whollyowned US subsidiary. Liebowitz hadpreviously been executive vice-president.
“Jay has helped to diversify our businessfrom telecoms and towards a wider breadthof industries, including biophotonics,instrumentation, remote sensing andmaterials processing,” said AntoineKevorkian, chief executive officer of TeemPhotonics SA. “We see a significant growthopportunity for our Q-switched microlaserbusiness in North America, so it makessense to elevate Jay’s position for leadingour expansion in this continent.”
US
Albe steps into a crucialsales role at BinOptics
US-based BinOptics, amaker of integratedmicrophotoniccomponents foropticalcommunications and data-storage
applications, has named Edward Albe as vice-president (VP) of sales and marketing. Mostrecently, as VP of sales and customer serviceat Picolight, Albe led the firm’s resurgence inthe fibre-optic transceiver market-place.Founded in 2000, BinOptics isheadquartered in Ithaca, New York.
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