Posted on 08/07/2005 5:13:40 PM PDT by DTAD
EVANSTON, Ill.: The difficulty of detecting the presence of explosives and chemical warfare agents (CWAs) is once again all too apparent in the news about the London bombings. In a significant breakthrough, researchers at Northwestern University's Center for Quantum Devices have demonstrated a specialized diode laser that holds promise as a weapon of defense in both civilian and military applications. Once optimized, the tiny laser could quickly detect explosives and CWAs early and warn against possible threats.
The Northwestern team, led by center director Manijeh Razeghi, became the first to create a quantum cascade laser (QCL) that can operate continuously at high power and at room temperature with an emission wavelength of 9.5 microns and a light output of greater than 100 milliwatts.
Existing standard diode lasers, such as those used to read compact discs or barcodes, do not operate effectively in the longer wavelengths that are required to detect CWAs. The challenge for researchers around the world has been to develop a portable laser that operates in the far-infrared (wavelengths of 8 to 12 microns). Every chemical has a unique "fingerprint" because it absorbs light of a specific frequency, and most CWAs fall in the 8 to 12 micron region.
(Excerpt) Read more at defencetalk.com ...
technology "ain't it kewl?" ping
LASER Bump.
Very cool!
I hope this won't interfere with my part-time job providing "Homeland Security" at the supermarket checkout lines.
I've gotten into trouble once or twice, but sometimes I even get tips.
Please add me to your ping list.
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