Effect of CuI on the formation and properties of Te-based far infrared transmitting chalcogenide glasses

A series of Ge–Te–CuI far infrared transmitting chalcohalide glasses were prepared by traditional melt-quenching method and the glass-forming region was determined. Properties measurements include density, DTA, XRD, SEM, Vis–NIR and infrared (IR) transmission spectra. The results show that with the addition of CuI, the glass-forming ability is improved and nearly 30 mol% CuI can be dissolved into the Ge₂₀Te_80?x(CuI)_x glass system. The density and glass transition temperature of Ge–Te–CuI chalcohalide glasses are within the range 5.459–5.960 g cm^?3 and 150–184 °C, respectively. These glasses all have wide optical transmission window from 1.8 to 25 μm and offer an alternative solution for far infrared transmitting materials.     

Multichannel fiber laser Doppler vibrometer studies of low momentum and hypervelocity impacts

A multichannel optical fiber laser Doppler vibrometer was demonstrated with the capability of making simultaneous non-contact measurements of impacts at 3 different locations. Two sets of measurements were performed, firstly using small ball bearings (1 mm–5.5 mm) falling under gravity and secondly using small projectiles (1 mm) fired from an extremely high velocity light gas gun (LGG) with speeds in the range 1 km/s–8 km/s. Determination of impact damage is important for industries such as aerospace, military and rail, where the effect of an impact on the structure can result in a major structural damage. To our knowledge the research reported here demonstrates the first trials of a multichannel fiber laser Doppler vibrometer being used to detect hypervelocity impacts.     

QWIP focal plane arrays on InP substrates for single and dual band thermal imagers

Alternative material systems on InP substrate provide certain advantages for mid-wavelength infrared (MWIR), long-wavelength infrared (LWIR) and dual band MWIR/LWIR quantum well infrared photodetector (QWIP) focal plane arrays (FPAs). While InP/InGaAs and InP/InGaAsP LWIR QWIPs provide much higher responsivity when compared to the AlGaAs/GaAs QWIPs, AlInAs/InGaAs system facilitates completely lattice matched single band MWIR and dual band MWIR/LWIR FPAs.We present an extensive review of the studies on InP based single and dual band QWIPs. While reviewing the characteristics of InP/InGaAs and InP/InGaAsP LWIR QWIPs at large format FPA level, we experimentally demonstrate that the cut-off wavelength of AlInAs/InGaAs QWIPs can be tuned in a sufficiently large range in the MWIR atmospheric window by only changing the quantum well (QW) width at the lattice matched composition. The cut-off wavelength can be shifted up to ～5.0 μm with a QW width of 22 Å in which case very broad spectral response (Δλ/λ_p = ～30%) and a reasonably high peak detectivity are achievable leading to a noise equivalent temperature difference as low as 14 mK (f/2) with 25 μm pitch in a 640 × 512 FPA. We also present the characteristics of InP based two-stack QWIPs with wavelengths properly tuned in the MWIR and LWIR bands for dual color detection. The results clearly demonstrate that InP based material systems display high potential for dual band MWIR/LWIR QWIP FPAs needed by third generation thermal imagers.     

Effect of erbium concentration on optical properties of Er:YLF laser crystals

Four Er-doped LiYF₄ crystals with different Er-concentrations were grown by Czochralski method. The laser crystals were characterized by measurements of ICP-AES, XRD, absorption spectra, up-conversion fluorescence spectra, near-infrared (NIR) and mid-infrared (Mid-IR) fluorescence spectra, as well as luminescence decays. It was found that the heavily 15 at% Er-doped YLF crystal is more proper in up-conversion or ∼3 μm laser applications; while the 5 at% Er-doped YLF is a better candidate for ∼1.5 μm lasers within these four crystals.     

Sensitivity of stratospheric ozone lidar measurements to a change in ozone absorption cross-sections

The effect of a change in ozone absorption cross-section data is evaluated for stratospheric ozone lidar measurements, which are regularly performed for the monitoring of the ozone layer. The change is analysed for the measurements based on both the elastic and Raman scattering of the laser light by the atmosphere. The latter technique is essentially used for measurements performed in the presence of volcanic aerosol layers in the stratosphere. The discrepancy in ozone number densities is evaluated for various ozone cross-section data sets, using an atmospheric model for the evaluation of ozone cross-section temperature dependence. Results show that the difference in both elastic and Raman DIAL retrievals is below 1.5% in absolute values from 10 to 30 km. Above 30 km, the difference, estimated for the elastic DIAL retrieval only, is maximum around 45 km, with largest differences reaching 1.8% in the tropics.     

Quick response PZT/P(VDF-TrFE) composite film pyroelectric infrared sensor with patterned polyimide thermal isolation layer

The fabrication method and the pyroelectric response of a single element infrared sensor based lead zirconate titanate (PZT) particles and polyvinylidene fluoride P(VDF-TrFE) copolymer composite thick film is reported in this paper. A special thermal insulation structure, including polyimide (PI) thermal insulation layer and thermal insulation tanks, was used in this device. The thermal insulation tanks were fabricated by laser micro-etching technique. Voltage responsivity (R_V), noise voltage (V_noise), noise equivalent power (NEP), and detectivity (D^*) of the PZT/P(VDF-TrFE) based infrared sensor are 1.2 × 10³ V/W, 1.25 × 10⁻⁶ V Hz^1/2, 1.1 × 10⁻⁹ W and 1.9 × 10⁸ cm Hz^1/2 W⁻¹ at 137.3 Hz modulation frequency, respectively. The thermal time constant of the infrared sensor τ_T was about 15 ms. The results demonstrate that the composite infrared sensor show a high detectivity at high chopper frequency, which is an essential advantage in infrared detectors and some other devices.     

Realization of compatible stealth material for infrared,laser and radar based on one-dimensional doping-structure photonic crystals

To inhibit the radiant infrared energy between 8 and 14 μm, which is the infrared atmospheric window, and decrease the echo power of detecting laser and radar, to achieve compatible stealth, a doping structural one-dimensional photonic crystal (1-D PC) with Ge, ZnSe and Si was fabricated; and then combine it with radar absorbing material (RAM) to make a compound. After that, the reflection spectra of this compound was tested, and the result shows a high average reflectance (89.5%) in 8–14 μm waveband, and a reflective valley (39.8%) in the wavelength of 10.6 μm, which is the wavelength of CO₂ laser; and the reflectance in radar band shows that at high frequency, especially between 7.8 and 18 GHz, the radar power is strongly absorbed by this material and the reflected energy attenuate over 10 dB within the range from 11.1 GHz to 18.3 GHz, even 24.5 dB to the most in the frequency of 14.6 GHz.     

Influence of the p-type doping on the radiometric performances of MWIR InAs/GaSb superlattice photodiodes

In this paper, quantum efficiency (QE) measurements performed on type-II InAs/GaSb superlattice (T2SL) photodiodes operating in the mid-wavelength infrared domain, are reported. Several comparisons were made in order to determine the SL structure showing optimum radiometric performances: same InAs-rich SL structure with different active zone thicknesses (from 0.5 μm to 4 μm) and different active zone doping (n-type versus p-type), same 1 μm thick p-type active zone doping with different SL designs (InAs-rich versus GaSb-rich and symmetric SL structures). Best result was obtained for the p-type doped InAs-rich SL photodiode, with a 4 μm active zone thickness, showing a QE that reaches 61% at λ = 2 μm and 0 V bias voltage.     

Design and construction of Q-switched Nd:YAG laser system for LIBS measurements

A passive, Q-switched pulsed, Nd:YAG laser system was designed and built, which can provide a potential compact robust laser source for portable laser induced breakdown spectroscopy systems.The developed laser system operates at 1064 nm. Each laser shot contains a train of pulses having maximum total output energy of 170 mJ. The number of pulses varies from 1–6 pulses in each laser shot depending on the pump energy. The pulse width of each pulse ranges from 20 to 30 ns. The total duration of the output pulse train is within 300 μs. The multi-pulse nature of the laser shots was employed to enhance the LIBS signal. To validate the system, LIBS measurements and analysis were performed on ancient ceramic samples collected from Al-Fustat excavation in Old Cairo. The samples belong to different Islamic periods in Egypt history. The results obtained are highly indicative that useful information can be provided to archeologists for use in restoring and repairing of precious archeological objects.     

Mid-infrared photoconductive properties of heavily Bi-doped PbTe p–n homojunction diode grown by liquid-phase epitaxy

We fabricated a heavily Bi-doped (x_Bi ≈ 2 × 10¹⁹ cm⁻³) PbTe p–n homojunction diode that detects mid-infrared wavelengths by the temperature difference method (TDM) under controlled vapor pressure (CVP) liquid phase epitaxy (LPE). The photocurrent density produced by the heavily Bi-doped diode sample is approximately 20 times and 3 times greater than that produced by an undoped and heavily In-doped sample, respectively. By varying the ambient temperature from 15 K to 225 K, the detectable wavelength is tunable from 6.18 μm to 4.20 μm. The peak shift of the detectable wavelength is shorter in the heavily Bi-doped sample than in the undoped sample, consistent with our previously proposed model, in which Bi–Bi nearest donor–acceptor pairs are formed in the heavily Bi-doped PbTe liquid phase epitaxial layer. Current–voltage (I–V) measurements of the heavily Bi-doped diode sample under infrared exposure at 77 K indicated a likely leak in the dark current, arising from the deeper levels. From the dark I–V measurements, the activation energy of the deep level was estimated as 0.067 eV, close to the energy of the deep Tl-doped PbTe acceptor layer. We conclude that the deep level originates from the Tl-doped p-type epitaxial layer.     

Growth evolution of Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ thin films deposited by infrared (1064 nm) pulsed laser deposition

Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O_8+δ (Bi-2212) thin films were grown on MgO (1 0 0) using 1064 nm infrared pulsed laser deposition with post heat treatment. The material arrives at the substrate surface with characteristic spheroidal morphology. Smooth, homogeneous and highly c-axis oriented films were obtained after heat treatment. Using infrared laser as excitation, the stoichiometry of the target is preserved on the film. However, the films were apparently under-doped.     

Stability of widely tuneable,continuous wave external-cavity quantum cascade laser for absorption spectroscopy

The performance of widely tuneable, continuous wave (cw) external-cavity quantum cascade laser (EC-QCL) has been evaluated for direct absorption spectroscopy measurements of nitric oxide (NO) in the wavenumber range 1872–1958 cm^?1 and with a 13.5 cm long optical cell. In order to reduce the absorption measurement errors due to the large variations of laser intensity, normalisation with a reference channel was used. Wavelength stability within the scans was analysed using the Allan plot technique for the reduced wavenumber range of 1892.4–1914.5 cm^?1. The Allan variances of the NO absorption peak centres and areas were observed to increase with successive scan averaging for all absorption peaks across the wavelength scan, thus revealing short- and long-term drifts of the cw EC-QCL wavelength between successive scans. As an example application, the cw EC-QCL was used for NO measurements in the exhaust of an atmospheric pressure packed-bed plasma reactor applied to the decomposition of dichloromethane in waste gas streams. Etalon noise was reduced by subtracting a reference spectrum recorded when the plasma was off. The NO limit of detection (SNR = 1) was estimated to be ～2 ppm at atmospheric pressure in a 20.5 cm long optical cell with a double pass and a single 7 s scan over 1892.4–1914.5 cm^?1.     

Defect related luminescence in Hg0.2Cd0.8Te nano- and micro-crystals grown by the solvothermal method

The photoluminescence (PL) properties of nano- and micro-crystalline Hg_1?xCd_xTe (x≈0.8) grown by the solvothermal method have been studied over the temperature range 10–300 K. The emission spectra of the samples excited with 514.5 nm Ar⁺ laser consist of five prominent bands around 0.56, 0.60, 0.69, 0.78 and 0.92 eV. The entire PL band in this NIR region is attributed to the luminescence from defect centers. The features like temperature independent peak energy and quite sensitive PL intensity, which has a maximum around 50 K is illustrated by the configuration coordinate model. After 50 K, the luminescence shows a thermal quenching behavior that is usually exhibited by amorphous semiconductors, indicating that the defects are related to the compositional disorder.     

Structural and luminescence properties of Nd3+-doped PbO–B2O3–TiO2–AlF3 glass for 1.07 μm laser applications

Trivalent neodymium doped multi-component lead borate titanate aluminumfluoride (LBTAFNd) glasses were prepared and characterized as a function of Nd³⁺ ions concentration through optical absorption, NIR luminescence and decay measurements. The intensity (Ω_2,4,6) and other radiative parameters were determined within the frame work of Judd–Ofelt theory. The intensities of absorption bands were expressed in terms of experimental oscillator strengths. Reasonably small root mean square deviation of ±0.384×10^?6 obtained between the experimental and calculated oscillator strengths indicates the validity of intensity parameters. Upon 805 nm laser excitation, the NIR emissions at 0.92 μm (⁴F_3/2→⁴I_9/2), 1.07 μm (⁴F_3/2→⁴I_11/2) and 1.35 μm (⁴F_3/2→⁴I_13/2) were observed. The spectroscopic quality factor has been determined from the Ω₄ and Ω₆ intensity parameters as well as the intensities of emission bands centered at 1.07 and 1.35 μm. The decay curves of the ⁴F_3/2 excited state were recorded by monitoring the emission and excitation wavelengths at 1.07 μm and 805 nm, respectively. The decay curves exhibit single exponential behavior for all the glasses. The laser characteristic parameters of ⁴F_3/2→⁴I_11/2 (1.07 μm) transition were determined and compared with other reported glasses.     

Birefraction of the LiNbO3 crystal in the infrared band

We proposed a spectrum method to determine birefraction of the sample. When the infrared incident light transmits in the birefraction direction of the cube crystal, because of the birefraction of the sample, the transmit spectrum appears interference fringes. The equation Δn = 1/[D(dυ/dm)] shows the relationship between the birefraction and the wave-number, with the interference-number of crystals in the infrared band at room temperature. Via the infrared transmitting along the x-axis of cube lithium niobate crystal, the interference fringes were found. By the fitted polynomial method, the relationship of the birefraction and the wave-number or wavelength of the lithium niobate crystal be educed, which is, Δn = 0.4149 ? 9.00174 × 10^?5υ + 5.64347 × 10^?9υ²,or n = 0.05366 ? 5.20334 × 10^?5λ + 3.99694 × 10^?8λ².     

Microhardness of a dental restorative composite resin containing nanoparticles polymerized with argon ion laser

The objective of this study was to compare the microhardness of two resin composites (microhybrid and nanoparticles). Light activation was performed with argon ion laser 1.56 J (L) and halogen light 2.6 J (H) was used as control. Measurements were taken on the irradiated surfaces and those opposite them, at thicknesses of 1, 2 and 3 mm. To evaluate the quality of polymerization, the percentages of maximum hardness were calculated (PMH). For statistical analysis the ANOVA and Tukey tests were used (p ≤ 0.05). To microhybrid was shown that the hardness with laser was inferior to the hardness achieved with halogen light, for both the 1 mm and 2 mm. The nanoparticles polymerized with laser, presented lower hardness even on the irradiated surface, than the same surface light activated with halogen light. The microhybrid attained a minimum PMH of 80% up to the thickness of 2 mm with halogen light, and with laser, only up to 1 mm. The nanoparticles attained a minimum PMH of 80% up to 3 mm thickness with halogen light and with laser this minimum was not obtained at any thickness. Based on these results, it could be concluded that light activation with argon ion laser is contra-indicated for the studied nanoparticles.     

A near-infrared acetylene detection system based on a 1.534 μm tunable diode laser and a miniature gas chamber

A near-infrared (NIR) dual-channel differential acetylene (C₂H₂) detection system was experimentally demonstrated based on tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy (TDLAS) technique and wavelength modulation spectroscopy (WMS) technique. A distributed feedback (DFB) laser modulated by a self-developed driver around 1.534 μm is used as light source. A miniature gas chamber with 15 cm path length is adopted as absorption pool, and an orthogonal lock-in amplifier is developed to extract the second harmonic (2f) signal. Sufficient standard C₂H₂ samples with different concentrations were prepared, and detailed measurements were carried out to study the detection performance. A good linear relationship is observed between the amplitude of the 2f signal and C₂H₂ concentration within the range of 200–10,000 ppm, and the relative measurement error is less than 5% within the whole range. A long-term monitoring lasting for 20 h on a 1000 ppm C₂H₂ sample was carried out, and the maximum concentration fluctuation is less than 2%. Due to the capability of using long-distance and low-loss optical fiber, the gas-cell can be placed in the filed for remote monitoring, which enables the system to have good prospects in industrial field.     

High-field magnetostriction in CeNiSn1−xGex (0≤x≤1) strongly correlated systems

Magnetization (down to 1.8 K and up to 9 T) and magnetostriction (down to 4.2 K and up to 30 T) measurements have been performed in the series of polycrystalline intermetallics CeNiSn_1?xGe_x (0≤x≤1), which show a crossover from Kondo-lattice to fluctuating valence behaviors with x increase. Magnetostriction observed can be denominated as “colossal” for a paramagnet (up to 0.68% at 150 K and 30 T), with no sign of saturation. Field, H, induced metamagnetic transitions associated to a change in Ce valence are observed. Three kinds of analysis of magnetostriction have been performed to ascertain the magnetostriction origin. At relatively low field and low temperatures these systems follow well the standard theory of magnetostriction (STM), revealing single-ion crystal field and exchange origins, and a determination of the α-symmetry microscopic magnetoelastic parameters have been performed. The valence transition is well explained in terms of the interconfigurational model, which needs an extension up to power H⁴. Application of the scaling (thermodynamics corresponding low states) allows the obtainment of the Grüneisen constant, which increases with x. Needed elastic constants measurements are also reported.     

100-mW linear polarization single-frequency all-fiber seed laser for coherent Doppler lidar application

A compact short-cavity fiber laser configured with Er³⁺/Yb³⁺ highly co-doped phosphate glass fiber with stable linear polarization and single frequency output is proposed and investigated experimentally. The fiber laser is composed of a high-reflectivity fiber Bragg grating (HRFBG) and a polarization-maintaining fiber Bragg grating (PMFBG) with the matched wavelengths at 1540.3 nm, which aims at one of the center wavelengths of the atmospheric transmission windows and may be used as the local oscillator (LO) of the coherent Doppler lidar (CDL). The output power of the laser reaches more than 114-mW, the signal-to-noise ratio is larger than 70 dB and the laser linewidth is about 4.1-kHz. Moreover, the linear polarization with 40.5 dB extinction ratio, the power fluctuation of less than ± 0.25% and the frequency fluctuation of less than ± 80 MHz are also obtained. Compared with the DFB fiber laser, the proposed fiber laser is more suitable for the CDL applications.     

Thermal imaging during infrared final cooking of semi-processed cylindrical meat product

The temperature measurements during the infrared cooking of the semi-cooked cylindrical minced beef product (koefte) were taken by both contact (thermocouples) and non-contact (thermal imaging) techniques. The meat product was semi-cooked till its core temperature reached up to 75 °C by ohmic heating applied at 15.26 V/cm voltage gradient. Then, infrared cooking was applied as a final cooking method at different combinations of heat fluxes (3.7, 5.7 and 8.5 kW/m²), applied distances (10.5, 13.5 and 16.5 cm) and applied durations (4, 8 and 12 min). The average surface temperature increased as the heat flux and the applied duration increased but the applied distance decreased. The temperature distribution of the surface during infrared cooking was determined successfully by non-contact measurements. The temperature homogeneity varied between 0.77 and 0.86. The process condition of 8.5 kW/m² for 8 min resulted in core temperature greater than 75 °C, which was essential for safe production of ready-to-eat (RTE) meat products. Thermal imaging was much more convenient method for minimizing the point measurement mistakes and determining temperature distribution images more clear and visual.