Area of Research
Infra-red imaging without infra-red detection. Infra-red detectors are noisy and inefficient and IR sources can be expensive and inaccessible. However, the infra-red spectrum is extremely useful for gas sensing, agricultural applications, food quality control and especially important in biomedical imaging.
The team at The UK Quantum Technology Hub in Quantum Enhanced Imaging (QuantIC) at Imperial College London are using non-linear interference so that infra-red light can probe an object, but the information is carried by visible light. That means an inexpensive, visible source and a standard silicon CMOS camera can be used for detection. This in turn results in an affordable system that is compact, robust, portable and can output phase and transmission information in real time.
"We built the demonstrator to take to the UK National Quantum Technologies Showcase in London. Quantic (our funders, UK quantum imaging hub) were really impressed so they invited us to bring it out to San Francisco for the exhibition at Photonics West.”
Ms Emma Pearce, PhD Student
The Use of Covesion PPLN Technology
The research at QuantIC is creating visible and infrared light using Covesion’s non-linear, PPLN crystals to provide a cost effective and compact quantum solution that can be retrofitted to existing equipment.
Central to all conventional imaging is the idea that the light illuminating an object is the light detected, but quantum imaging can change this, and the results offer exciting new applications. Many organic and inorganic compounds are more easily detected in the infrared wavelength range, however detectors and light sources in the visible range benefit from far better-developed technology. The research from the team at Imperial College uses the advantages of visible technologies while imaging in the infrared, utilising the best characteristics of both wavelengths.
The device ultimately allows operation with infrared light, while visible light ‘carries’ information to the camera. This means that end-users can reduce their equipment cost by requiring only conventional cameras while gaining access to the information available in the infrared. By utilising Covesion’s propriety PPLN technology, research continues to develop systems to reach longer infrared wavelengths, and higher efficiency creation of visible and infrared light.
This is an exciting area of research as there are many potential markets that could benefit from this approach. The research team at QuantIC would like to develop the technology in the future to target infrared spectroscopy for cancer detection.
Why Covesion?
“Covesion are part of the QuantIC Group and for this research, we utilised their bulk PPLN crystal and the oven that accompanies it.
One of the main reasons we purchased PPLN products from Covesion is that they provided all the information we needed for understanding the crystal, and the sales team at Covesion made the purchase and the subsequent use of the product very simple. The company stands out because their poling technique is so good. With the crystals that we currently have, we still have room to manoeuvre using the different poling periods that we already have in the crystal. There is a huge wavelength range just from buying one crystal.
The ordering process is also very simple, we placed the order and two weeks later we received it. It is very well packaged - there is no risk that the crystals are going to be damaged.”
Dr Jefferson Florez Gutierrez, Research Assistant, Imperial College London
References
- https://arxiv.org/abs/2205.08832
- https://opg.optica.org/optcon/fulltext.cfm?uri=optcon-2-11-2386&id=541465
