NASA SBIR 2003 Solicitation

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/Zip, Phone)
Keith Forsyth
kforsyth@sensorsinc.com
3490 Route 1, Building 12
Princeton, NJ 08540-5914
(609)524-0234
U.S. Citizen or Legal Resident: Yes

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (LIMIT 200 WORDS)
Based on the prototype photon counter developed during Phase I, we will deliver a next-generation photon counting detector optimized for LIDAR applications within the near-infrared spectral band.

For maximum flexibility, the system will employ user-interchangeable plug-in detectors optimized for performance in specific spectral bands commonly used in LIDAR applications. One such detector will be optimized for the 0.9 to 1.7 micron band for use with 1.55 micron eye-safe lasers, and another will be optimized for the 0.9 to 1.1 micron band for use with neodymium lasers. By optimizing the bandgap of the InGaAsP APD for operation near 1 micron, we expect to obtain much higher QE than commercial silicon APDs simultaneously with dark count rates comparable to those of commercial silicon photon counters.

The entire system will be packaged in a compact and rugged modular unit requiring only 110 VAC power and passive ambient air cooling. An entirely solid-state miniature refrigeration system based upon the system developed in Phase I will enable operation of the APD detectors at temperatures below 200 K without the need for cryogenic liquids or external liquid chillers. This miniaturization will be a significant step towards construction of near-infrared photon-counting systems suitable for spaceborne platforms.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS (LIMIT 100 WORDS)
Potential commercial LIDAR applications include wind profiling and pollution monitoring. Other commercial applications include silicon microprocessor failure analysis based on the time-resolved emission technique, quantum information security, singlet oxygen detection in biomedical research, stand-off molecular spectroscopy of suspected toxic clouds, semiconductor photoluminescence mapping, and Raman spectroscopy.

Sensors Unlimited is currently delivering photon-counting detectors to commercial customers in the semiconductor failure analysis and quantum information security markets.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS (LIMIT 100 WORDS)
Applications encompass all types of direct-detection LIDAR operating in the near infrared, including wind, aerosol, trace gas, and high-resolution altimetry measurements.

Operating in the optional linear mode, the detector module can also be used for analog-mode photon counting and for high-sensitivity free-space communication experiments over great distances.