SBIR Phase I: Universal Nanoparticle Taggants

这个小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目建议开发基于一种全新类型的光学编码纳米粒子的攻击和防伪/物体认证系统，该系统可以唯一地标记几乎任何物理物体，并将其与数百万其他类似物体区分开来。该系统是基于稀土基上转换荧光粉（RUP）材料在单一不可见红外波长下的激发样品，该样品发射到400-800 nm的许多窄的，分辨率高的发射带。所编码的信息包含在与存在于荧光粉中的发射体的相对比率成比例的多个发射带的相对比率内。由于实验证明，在两种颜色系统中可以解决超过330个比例，因此预测在提出的四种颜色系统中可以唯一标记多达3000万个样品。在文件和光学媒体认证、目标跟踪应用和药物篡改等领域提出了原理证明实验。这项技术在许多不同领域的应用，如文件和其他媒体认证、个人健康或安全（食品供应和药品篡改）、产品认证以及用于高通量筛选的大量生物样品的标签，可以带来商业上重大的、直接的和近期的效益。由于可以生成和读取的大量独特标签，情报领域可能会出现前所未有的机会，可以秘密跟踪和验证物体、个人、文件、车辆、金钱、爆炸物和武器。易于应用的标签，硬件读取标签的简单性，与现有技术的高度兼容性以及标签的稳定，无毒的性质将促进快速的商业接受

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project proposes to develop ataggant and anticounterfeiting/object authentication system based on a totally new type of optically encoded nanoparticle which can uniquely label almost any physical object and distinguish it from millions of other similar objects. The system is based on exciting samples of rare earth-based upconverting phosphor (RUP) materials at a single invisible infrared wavelength which emit into many narrow, well resolved emission bands from 400-800 nm. The encoded information is contained within the relative ratios of the multiple emission bands which are proportional to the relative ratios of emitters present in the phosphor. Since it has been experimentally demonstrated that over 330 ratios can be resolved in a two color system, it is predicted that up to 30 million samples could be uniquely labeled in the proposed four color system. Proof of principle experiments are proposed in the areas of document and optical media authentication, object tracking applications and pharmaceutical tampering.Commercially substantial, direct and near term benefits can be derived from the application of this technology across many diverse areas such as document and other media authentication, personal health or safety (food supply and pharmaceutical tampering), product authentication and the labeling of large numbers of biological samples for high throughput screening. By virtue of the extremely large number of unique labels that can be generated and read, there could be unprecedented opportunities in the intelligence field to surreptitiously track and authenticate objects, individuals, documents, vehicles, money, explosives and weapons. The ease of applying the labels, the simplicity of hardware to read the labels, the high compatibility with existing techniques and the stable, nontoxic nature of the labels will facilitate rapid commercial acceptance