International Collaboration in Chemistry: Next Generation of Compact Infrared Laser based sensor for environmental monitoring (NexCILAS)

赖斯大学化学系的化学测量与成像项目和国际科学与工程办公室将支持Tittel教授和他的同事进行这项国际合作研究项目。这项工作将与法国蒙彼利埃大学的Aurore Vicet教授合作进行。国家科学基金会的法国同行国家研究机构（ANR）将支持Vicet教授及其同事的研究。该联盟将致力于开发基于新型中红外激光器（量子阱、量子级联和带间级联）集成的光学传感器系统，该系统工作在3-4微米波长区域，并将其集成到基于石英增强光声光谱（QEPAS）的传感器平台中，该平台具有微型和鲁棒性。这种集成光学传感平台有望显著提高甲烷和其他碳氢化合物温室气体在环境重要监测应用中的检测灵敏度。灵敏地探测大气微量气体的能力将影响对大气化学的认识，并使减缓温室气体积聚造成的污染和全球变暖的战略成为可能。该项目促进的国际合作将为参与研究的学生提供宝贵的研究经验，并培养一支更具全球意识的科学队伍。

The Chemical Measurement and Imaging Program in the Division of Chemistry and the Office of International Science and Engineering will support Professor Tittel and his coworkers at Rice University in this International Collaborative research program. The work will be conducted in collaboration with Professor Aurore Vicet of the University of Montpellier, France. NSF's French counterpart, Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR) will support the research of Professor Vicet and his coworkers. The consortium will work to develop optical sensor systems based on the integration of novel mid-infrared lasers, (quantum well, quantum cascade, and interband cascade) operating in the 3-4 micron wavelength region, into a sensor platform based on quartz enhanced photoacoustic spectroscopy (QEPAS) which is miniature and robust. This integrated optical sensing platform promises significant improvements in sensitivity for detection of methane and other hydrocarbon greenhouse gases in environmentally important monitoring applications. The ability to sensitively detect atmospheric trace gases will impact understanding of atmospheric chemistry, and enable strategies for mitigation of pollution and global warming by greenhouse gas build up. The international collaboration facilitated by this project will provide the students involved with a valuable research experience and lead to a more globally aware scientific workforce.