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NIST GCR 05-879 —Photonics Technologies: Applications in Petroleum Refining, Building Controls, Emergency Medicine, and Industrial Materials Analysis 5. PHOTONICS PROJECT MINI-STUDIESThis section reviews the technical challenges and accomplishments of three additional photonics projects with multi-industry applications. Together with the two case study projects, these three projects comprise the cluster of five ATP-funded photonics projects covered in this study. The ATP-funded technical tasks for the three projects have been successfully completed and were selected to be part of the cluster study based on their substantial technical accomplishment and commercialization progress. While collectively these projects represent significant potential future benefits, the screening process conducted for this study indicates economic benefits to be somewhat longer term and less quantifiable at this time than for the two case study projects. INFRARED CAVITY RING-DOWN SPECTROSCOPYThe objective of this project (99-01-2039) was to develop new electro-optical technology (using cavity ring-down spectroscopy (CRDS)) for highly sensitive detection of trace-level contaminants for a variety of industrial applications. In 1999, Picarro (formerly Blue Leaf, Inc., and Informed Diagnostics, Inc.) of Sunnyvale, CA, submitted a proposal to the ATP for the development of mid-infrared (mid-IR) CRDS to improve detection sensitivity at reduced cost. The ATP agreed to fund the project, but soon it was apparent that owing to a lack of commercially available laser sources, the scope of the project had to be changed from development of mid-IR to development of near-IR CRDS technology. The ATP-funded project, re-scoped to near-IR CRDS, was successfully completed in 2001 and, along with DOE-funded research (subsequent to ATP funding), led to two orders of magnitude improvement in sensitivity levels relative to prior near-IR CRDS. The ATP-funded project also resulted in a sixfold size reduction of large and cumbersome laboratory instrumentation. To date, Picarro has realized prototype sales to potential industrial consumers in the semiconductor, petrochemical, and automotive industries. Applications include the detection of:
Given that technical advances accomplished with ATP and DOE funding and Picarro's financial resources are sufficient to support proactive marketing and subsequent manufacturing ramp-up, it is expected that customer acceptance will be achieved in the next year or two and that prototype production at fewer than 10 units per year can be ramped up to fully commercial production levels in excess of 100 units per year. ATP-funded technology development has also led to in-house development of laser sources, which will facilitate potential future development of mid-IR CRDS technologies for homeland security and other applications that require even higher levels of sensitivity. Mid-IR applications are estimated to be four to five years from commercialization. In 1999, Picarro had approximately 15 employees. The company was then able to raise several rounds of private financing, even during the difficult environments of 2003 and 2004, and is now operating with a staff of 80, underlining investor confidence in the ATP-funded near-IR CRDS technology as well as in Picarro's technical capabilities and management. Picarro management made it clear that without ATP funding the technology advances and associated market opportunities would not have been realized or would have been realized at a much slower rate. OPTICAL MAXIMUM ENTROPY VERIFICATIONThe objective of this project (97-01-0244) was to develop a low-cost optical authentication technology for counterfeit-resistant labels and identification documents. In 1996, Physical Optics Corporation of Torrance, CA, submitted a proposal to the ATP to develop a laser-based system to randomly generate patterns to be embedded in phase masks and used as templates for product labels. The authenticity of product labels would then be verified by comparing labels with a reference mask in the optical maximum entropy verification (OMEV) optical reader/correlator, utilizing a joint Fourier transform to verify the randomized optical signature in real time without the need for human interaction or a centralized database. The project was successfully completed in 2001. In 2004, Physical Optics licensed the OMEV technology to OptiKey LLC, which is currently marketing the technology under the brand name of OptiKey Optical Authenticity Verification System. It is expected that OptiKey will complete commercial proof of concept in 2006. Physical Optics realized licensing fees from this transaction and, going forward, expects to maintain a relationship with OptiKey as a provider of design and manufacturing services for the OptiKey authentication system. Target markets include:
According to Physical Optics, the optical maximum entropy verification technology was unlikely to have been developed without ATP funding. INTEGRATED MICRO-OPTICAL SYSTEMSThe objective of this project (98-02-0034) was to emulate the approach used in the micro-electronics industry in making very small and inexpensive integrated circuits with both optical and electronic components (e.g., lenses, laser diodes, and detectors). In 1998, Digital Optics Corporation of Charlotte, NC, submitted a proposal to the ATP to develop manufacturing processes for wafer-scale integration of miniaturized micro-optical systems (IMOS). IMOS would consist of lasers, optics, detectors, and electronics that are aligned and assembled on a wafer into complex, three-dimensional systems. New simulation and design tools as well as new processes for aligning and bonding wafers, mounting fixtures, heat management, packaging, and coating needed to be developed and demonstrated. The ATP-funded IMOS technology project was successfully completed in 2001. Prototype IMOS were fabricated to demonstrate acceptable front-to-back alignment of laser, detector, and optics components and wafer-scale integration of three-dimensional optical systems on a photonic chip. As intended, the ATP-funded project resulted in positioning the IMOS technology to move toward becoming an optical counterpart of integrated circuits, shrinking down from expensive macroscopic optical systems to inexpensive and compact photonic chips. Owing to the ATP-funded project, IMOS can potentially evolve toward becoming an infrastructure technology for low-cost photonics manufacturing. Near-term commercial applications of IMOS chips are expected to be in telecommunications, digital cameras, and optical data storage. Digital Optics is currently in the process of developing IMOS-based products under the OSA or Optical System Assembly brand name. In addition to generalized OSA product applications that will reach cost-effective production levels through mass production, Digital Optics has also concluded some initial sales of customized IMOS or OSA units on a standalone basis. In 2000, subsequent to the ATP award, Digital Optics received two venture capital equity infusions totaling $45 million, some of which was used to build a 100,000 square foot manufacturing facility. In 2002, Digital Optics was included in Deloitte & Touche's list of 50 fastest-growing technology companies in North Carolina. Return to Table of Contents or go to next section of report. Date created: July 12, 2006 |
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