Focus on Photonics

The descriptions of the new products listed in this section are based on information supplied to us by the manufacturers. Physics Today can assume no responsibility for their accuracy. To facilitate inquiries about a particular product, a Reader Service Card is attached inside the back cover of the magazine.

Light spot position detector

Hamamatsu Corp has introduced the S9132 profile sensor that features improved output linearity, the ability to detect multiple light spots, and simplified external circuitry. The new device acquires a projection profile in the x and y axes to provide high-speed position and moving object detection, even from very small amounts of information. It has a 256 × 256 pixel array with a 1.9968-square millimeter active area. Images can be produced at 1.2 ms per channel when in an 8-bit mode, or 2.4 ms/channel in a 10-bit mode. The S9132 covers a spectral range of 350 to approximately 1150 nm, and achieves a peak sensitivity of 40 V/nJ (high gain) or 8 V/nJ (low gain) at 780 nm. The device chip incorporates a timing generator, bias-voltage generator, and an 8-bit/10-bit switchable A/D converter. Hamamatsu Corporation, 360 Foothill Road, Bridgewater, New Jersey 08807, http://usa.hamamatsu.com

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Electrooptic modulator

The model 3363 electrooptic modulator driver from New Focus is designed to operate with the company’s resonant phase and amplitude electrooptic modulators (EOMs). The standard model (3363-A) incorporates an adjustable voltage-controlled-oscillator (VCO) frequency source available from 25 MHz to 1 GHz. The VCO source can be manually tuned over one octave (typically) or the VCO frequency can be set to track the resonant peak of the EOM. In the models 3363-B and -C, a synthesized frequency source stabilized to a crystal oscillator can be furnished for the frequency range 50 kHz to 2 GHz. The instrument’s RF amplifier provides approximately 30 dbm of power, sufficient to drive any of the resonant EOMs to a modulation depth beyond three radians or to achieve three radians of phase modulation. New Focus, 2584 Junction Avenue, San Jose, California 95134-1902, http://www.newfocus.com

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Digital IR cameras

Indigo Systems’ Phoenix digital IR camera line features a 14-bit extended dynamic range, snapshot exposure mode, a high frame rate capability, and a high resolution, available at 320 × 256 or 640 × 512 pixels. The Phoenix NIR large format camera is equipped with an indium gallium arsenide detector for the 0.9- to 1.7-µm spectral range; the MWIR camera covers the 1.5- to 5.0-µm range and features an indium antimonide detector; the LWIR model incorporates a gallium arsenide quantum-well detector for use in the 8.0- to 9.2-µm range. All sensor types support windowing to allow high-speed readout of subarrays. The Phoenix camera heads are compatible with the company’s RTools software suite, which is designed to acquire, radiometrically calibrate, process, analyze, and archive data from advanced digital IR imaging systems. Indigo Systems Corporation, 50 Castilian Drive, Goleta, California 93117-3027, http://www.indigosystems.com

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Laser diode modules

Photonic Products has announced the 300-0600-00 series of thermoelectrically-cooled (TEC) laser diode modules. Circular output beam devices are available with output powers from 0.9 to 32 mW at 635 nm (red), 55 mW at 785 nm (IR), and 24 to 120 mW at 830 nm (IR). Elliptical output beam lasers can be supplied with an output of 1.5 mW at 375 nm (UV), 4 to 25 mW at 405 nm (violet), and 4 mW at 440 nm (blue), as well as several red and IR versions. The TEC system enables the laser diode temperature to be adjusted to a user-controlled set point temperature of 15–25°C, and with a stability of ±0.05°C. Accurate temperature control produces improved wavelength and power stability, and along with proper adjustment of the laser diode drive current, allows lower noise operation. Photonic Products USA Ltd, 400 Continental Boulevard, 6th Floor, El Segundo, California 90245, http://www.photonic-products.com

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IR viewers

Power Technology offers three models of IR viewers for applications requiring observation of light emitted by IR sources. The model IRVC is a hybrid-intensified CCD camera that features an IR image converter and a thin-film transistor-LCD display. This pistol-grip unit is designed for viewing and recording in the 350- to 1700-nm spectral range. IRV1 viewers are compact devices available with a spectral response of 350-1700 nm or 350-2000 nm and a magnification of 1.4×. IRV2 viewers are designed for observing radiation in the 350- to 1700-nm, 350-to 1300-nm, or 270- to 1700-nm spectral ranges; they can provide either 1× or 2.5× magnification. The IRV1 and IRV2 devices may be hand-held, post-mounted, or attached to a facemask for hands-free operation. Power Technology Inc, P.O. Box 191117, Little Rock, Arkansas 72219-1117, http://www.powertechnology.com

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Temperature measurement detectors

UDT Sensors has announced a new series of three dual-sandwich detectors that operate in the 400- to 1800-nm spectral range. Using these two-color photodiodes, unknown temperatures are measured by taking the ratio of radiation intensities of two adjacent wavelengths and comparing them with the standard blackbody radiation curves. The sandwich detectors are independent of emissivity and are unaffected by moving targets or contaminants in the field of view. The dual-sandwich detector types include a silicon-stacked-on-silicon; a silicon-indium gallium arsenide version that extends the wavelength range; and a Si-InGaAs device that incorporates a thermoelectric cooler for improved accuracy. Applications include flame temperature-sensing, spectrophotometry, and IR temperature monitoring. UDT Sensors Inc, 12525 Chadron Avenue, Hawthorne, California 90250, http://www.udt.com

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Digital CCD camera

The PixelFlyQE from Cooke Corp is a digital CCD camera with improved quantum efficiency and a pixel array of 1390 × 1024. It incorporates digital temperature compensation that enables the PixelFly to maintain the same noise performance regardless of any ambient temperature. The 12-bit camera provides exposure times of 10 µs to 10 s and is available in five color or monochrome CCD sensor types, including VGA, SVGA, HiRes, UV, and QE. The PixelFlyQE can capture two images with short interframing time; because all of its functions are remotely controlled via a digital interface, it is usable in both Internet and Intranet environments. Options available for the camera include customization for OEM applications, RGB filters, ability to harden against magnetic fields, and an integrated photometer. The Cooke Corporation, 1091 Centre Road, Suite 100, Auburn Hills, Michigan 48326-2670, http://www.cookecorp.com

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Cathodoluminescence system

Gatan has developed the MonoCL SP, a high-performance cathodoluminescence (CL) system that provides a parallel spectroscopy function with its attendant high speed. MonoCL SP can be configured for almost all scanning electron microscopes, microprobes, and analytical transmission electron microscopes. It features a new design of spectrometer that has a fixed-position grating to disperse the collected CL over a wide CCD array; the 20-µm CCD pixel size enables high spectral resolution. The cooled CCD camera allows fast acquisition of a CL spectrum to minimize charging of or beam-induced changes to the specimen. MonoCL SP includes panchromatic CL imaging to provide imaging with high spatial resolution and is supplied with the company’s Digital Micrograph software with CL plug-in. Gatan Inc, Corporate Office, 5933 Coronado Lane, Pleasanton, California 94588, http://www.gatan.com

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Mobile photometer-colorimeter

Instrument Systems has exploited FireWire technology to make possible a portable version of its LumiCam 1300 imaging photometer and colorimeter. Incorporating a battery pack capable of providing field operation of up to six hours, the instrument provides measuring accuracies of ±4% for luminance and ±0.003 for color coordinates. Using a multiple exposure feature, the LumiCam 1300, with its CCD sensor of 1.3 million pixels, records complex luminance and color distributions within a few seconds. The photometric range of the system covers 0.01 to 200 000 cd/m²; pixel resolutions of 50 µm are possible using the standard 50-µm objective lens. The sum total of measuring points captured with the CCD sensor is outputted as a 2D image, and a range of software tools is available for analysis. Instrument Systems GmbH, Neumarkter Strasse 83, D-81673 Munich, Germany, http://www.instrumentsystems.de

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Low-light CCD camera

Roper Scientific has added the model 512B to its line of Photometrics Cascade 16-bit CCD cameras. The new camera, designed for low-light-level microscopy, offers a low-noise, impact-ionization process multiplication of photon-generated charge right on the back-illuminated CCD. Model 512B thereby provides an effective alternative to traditional image intensifiers for many nongated, low-light applications. The Photometrics Cascade 512B incorporates thermoelectric cooling and features square, 16-µm pixels in a 512 × 512, frametransfer format; it can be operated at 10 MHz for high-speed visualization or more slowly for high-precision photometry. The company’s PVCAM application programming interface facilitates integration with shutters, filter wheels, and other devices. Roper Scientific Inc, 3440 East Britannia Drive, Tucson, Arizona 85706-5006, http://www.roperscientific.com

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Refractive beam shaper

A Refractive Beam Shaper from the Newport Corp converts Gaussian laser beam input to produce a collimated, flattop beam that can propagate over large distances without change in power and intensity or loss of uniformity. Its energy conversion efficiency is 99.7% (within the Fermi–Dirac profile) and 75% within the flattop, with 10% rms power variation. The Refractive Beam Shaper functions over a large spectral bandwidth, from 250 to 1600 nm (depending on coating depth), and produces no hard edges, speckles, or diffraction effects. The device incorporates a unique refractive optical design and technology, patented by IBM Research, that has enabled applications in illumination, laser processing, and nonlinear optics, and when light-focusing requirements are necessary, such as in microscopy and printing. Newport Corporation, 1791 Deere Avenue, Irvine, California 92606, http://www.newport.com

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Adaptive optics system

Intellite has released Clarifi, a system that, based on feedback from a video camera, provides closed-loop control of the company’s deformable mirror (DM) shape at rates up to 30 Hz. The company’s line of MEMS DMs is based on thin-film silicon membrane technology. DMs are adaptive optics that have the ability to compensate for poor optical quality of the light reflecting from them. The Clarifi system includes a 16-mm-diameter, a 37-actuator silicon DM; a CCD video camera; a video frame grabber, a 32-channel mirror driver and interface box; a PC with a Microsoft Windows XP operating system; and software that offers the choice of eight feedback metrics and five convergence algorithms. The control loop can be set to run a single convergence or to continuously update the DM surface for dynamic applications. Intellite Inc, 1717 Louisiana NE, Suite 202, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87110, http://www.intellite.com

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Fiber bragg grating monitor

EXFO has announced the WA-5900 Wavemeter Fiber Bragg Grating Monitor (FBG Monitor) that incorporates the company’s scanning Michelson interferometer-based technology to measure the absolute wavelength of the optical signal reflected from FBG-based sensors. Because the information of interest is encoded with the wavelength of that signal, that measurement is critical. In the FBG monitor, the interference fringe pattern of the reflected signal—at a wavelength within the 1520- to 1620-nm band—is compared to that of a built-in wavelength standard; the accuracy of the measurement is ±1.5 pm.

The sensors measure environmental conditions such as temperature, pressure, and strain, and possess advantages for remote sensing because they are environmentally stable, offer higher-accuracy measurements, and have a longer lifetime. EXFO America, 1201 Richardson Drive, Suite 260, Richardson, Texas 75080, http://www.exfo.com

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Data acquisition for handhelds and laptops

Analog & Digital Peripherals has released the DATAQ-CF2, said to be the first virtual instrument package and data-acquisition system designed for Microsoft Windows handhelds, Tablet PCs, and laptops with Windows CE/Pocket PC/Winx test-panel software. The useful features of handhelds—high-resolution, touch screens, PC docking stations, and local area network connectivity—are imported into a data-acquisition and analysis system. The DATAQ-CF2 consists of a 24-bit compact, flash-data-acquisition card with 32 kilobytes of RAM. Six software-reconfigurable channels allow combinations of up to four 24-bit analog inputs, two 12-bit analog outputs, and four digital I/Os. The system has low power consumption (34 mA at 5 V, 6 mA in sleep mode). Analog & Digital Peripherals Inc, P.O. Box 499, Troy, Ohio 45373, http://www.adpi.com

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Thin-film metrology system

Scientific Computing International (SCI) has announced the FilmTek 4000EM-DUV thin-film metrology system. It combines SCI’s multi-angle differential polarimetry and differential power-spectral-density technologies to provide spectroscopic reflection of polarized light at multiple angles to measure film thickness and index of refraction. The instrument can also simultaneously determine extinction coefficients, surface roughness and damage, porosity, crystallinity, birefringence and stress, and energy band gap. The FilmTek 4000EM-DUV can accurately monitor advanced thin films such as high-k (dielectric constant) film stacks, oxide-nitride-oxide low-k films, 193-nm photoresist, and silicon-germanium and amorphous carbon films. Scientific Computing International, 6355 Corte Del Abeto, Building C105, Carlsbad, California 92009, http://www.sci-soft.com

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New literature

Rolyn Optics has published its latest catalog, Optics for Industry, that comprises 140 pages of product data, photos, and performance graphs. Included in the product categories are lenses, prisms, flat and concave mirrors, absorption and thin-film filters, beam splitters, and many others. Rolyn Optics Company, 706 Arrowgrand Circle, Covina, California 91722, http://www.rolyn.com

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