{"id":26419,"date":"2016-01-28T15:20:17","date_gmt":"2016-01-28T21:20:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/?p=26419"},"modified":"2016-01-28T15:21:38","modified_gmt":"2016-01-28T21:21:38","slug":"thumbnail-sized-chip-delivers-powerful-laser-northwestern-researchers-report","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/thumbnail-sized-chip-delivers-powerful-laser-northwestern-researchers-report\/","title":{"rendered":"Thumbnail-sized chip delivers powerful laser, Northwestern researchers report"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Chencheng Zhao<\/strong><\/p>\n

Smaller can be better.<\/p>\n

A new laser developed by Northwestern University researchers can pack a lot of punch into a single thumbnail-sized chip.<\/p>\n

Unlike a laser used for a laser pointer, the compact laser developed at Northwestern emits in the mid-infrared spectral region. One of the primary appeals of mid-infrared lasers is for chemical and biomedical spectroscopy. This technique is fast and accurate, but is often limited by the size and cost of mid-infrared laser systems, according to\u00a0Manijeh Razeghi, professor of electrical engineering and computer science at McCormick School of Engineering, who led the study.<\/p>\n

Razeghi and her team presented their findings in the Dec. 21 issue of Applied Physics Letters\u00a0(High power continuous operation of a widely tunable quantum cascade laser with an integrated amplifier)<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne application of this kind of laser is to detect hazardous chemicals in an industrial environment. Rather than using many point sensors, a single tunable laser could monitor the entire site for a contaminant by continuous scanning of the area,\u201d said Razeghi.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the mid-infrared, the laser power does not need to be very high to achieve this, so the method can also be eye-safe,\u201d she added, speaking of the possibility of adopting the technology for on-site monitoring.<\/p>\n

The new device incorporates\u00a0an on-chip amplifier, enabling an enhanced tuning range and demonstrating an order of magnitude with higher output power than in the past. \u201cA wide tuning range is desirable for detecting a large number of chemicals simultaneously. Higher output power leads to a stronger signal or longer range,\u201d said Razeghi.<\/p>\n

The higher output and the wider tuning range makes it possible to search for all types of hazardous chemicals, such as industrial pollution, explosives, or even chemical warfare agents.<\/p>\n

Razeghi and her colleagues at the Center for Quantum Devices aim to push the limits of technology. \u201cWe take inspiration from nature by making devices that are compact, multifunctional, and power efficient, just like your eyes or brain,\u201d said Razeghi. The single chip laser requires no external optics or motors for tuning, which makes them much smaller than competing technologies.<\/p>\n

Razeghi and her colleagues at the Center for Quantum Devices aim to push the limits of technology. \u201cWe take inspiration from nature by making devices that are compact, multifunctional, and power efficient, just like your eyes or brain,\u201d said Razeghi. The single chip laser requires no external optics or motors for tuning, making them much smaller than competing technologies.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are developing lasers which are smaller, more robust, and potentially lower cost,\u201d said Razeghi. \u201cI say \u2018potentially\u2019 because they are not yet for sale.\u201d<\/p>\n

A single component source leads to simple assembly and straightforward mass production.<\/p>\n

\u201cCosts on the order of $5,000 or less per laser are feasible, which will be a game changer for users of this technology,\u201d said Razeghi. \u201cTraditional systems can be several feet square, depending on the power level. Costs can range from $50,000-$100,000 for these systems.\u201d<\/p>\n

Semiconductor lasers play a significant role in many different applications, including optical communications, DVD players, printers, laser-based 3-D scanners, range finders, automatic tracking devices, and bar code readers.<\/p>\n

Romanian researcher Dan Sporea praised the Northwestern researchers’ work. He said, \u201cMost of the achievements in what we call today photonics are based on the tremendous tool we have \u2014 the laser.\u201d heads the Laser Metrology and Standardization Laboratory, at the National Institute for Laser, Plasma and Radiation Physics in Magurele, Romania. Semiconductor lasers play a significant role in many different applications,<\/p>\n

Sporea heads the Laser Metrology and Standardization Laboratory, at the National Institute for Laser, Plasma and Radiation Physics in Magurele, Romania.<\/p>\n

Using mid-infrared laser diodes for spectroscopy is not a new idea. A special class of semiconductor lasers dedicated to spectroscopic applications in the mid-infrared range (3.5 \u03bcm to 12 \u03bcm) was reported 20 years ago, Sporea\u00a0said. However, these lasers historically suffered from low power and narrow tuning, and they often required cryogenic cooling. The new single chip laser developed by Razeghi\u2019s group has none of these shortcomings.<\/p>\n

\u201cWithin this context, the newly reported achievement of professor Manijeh Razeghi … \u00a0on the design of single-mode operated, wide tuning and high output power represents an important contribution in promoting [quantum cascade laser] in standoff applications,\u201d said Sporea, coordinator of several international and national research projects and co-author of several book chapters in the field.<\/p>\n

Photo at top: Scanning electron microscope image of a compact, high-power, tunable laser chip bonded to a diamond surmount.
\n(Center for Quantum Devices, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Northwestern University)<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Chencheng Zhao Smaller can be better. A new laser developed by Northwestern University researchers can pack a lot of punch into a single thumbnail-sized chip. Unlike a laser used for a laser pointer, the compact laser developed at Northwestern emits in the mid-infrared spectral region. One of the primary appeals of mid-infrared lasers is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":274,"featured_media":26465,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29,585],"tags":[1034,192],"class_list":["post-26419","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health-and-science","category-winter-2016","tag-gee-whiz","tag-promo"],"yoast_head":"\nThumbnail-sized chip delivers powerful laser, Northwestern researchers report - Medill Reports Chicago<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/thumbnail-sized-chip-delivers-powerful-laser-northwestern-researchers-report\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Thumbnail-sized chip delivers powerful laser, Northwestern researchers report - Medill Reports Chicago\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Chencheng Zhao Smaller can be better. A new laser developed by Northwestern University researchers can pack a lot of punch into a single thumbnail-sized chip. Unlike a laser used for a laser pointer, the compact laser developed at Northwestern emits in the mid-infrared spectral region. 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