PFI-TT: Development of a novel infrared light source for the identification and study of the chemical constituents of materials

这个PFI项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力是，在不需要大型和昂贵的红外光源的情况下，大大提高了高灵敏度化学识别的能力和可行性。该项目的目的是开发一种商业上可行的、紧凑的桌面光源，提供适当的强度和波长，以提高灵敏度来表征材料和化学品。这将补充半导体和生物医疗行业在纳米技术和生物技术方面的创新能力，使他们能够以具有成本效益的方式彻底了解他们的材料和系统。该项目还将使对倾向于物理学研究的应用和商业方面的研究生和本科生的教育和培训成为可能。与红外光源组件供应商和潜在客户的接触是该项目的进一步广泛影响。该项目有望通过建立一家初创公司，为弗吉尼亚州和美国的经济做出贡献，该公司将创造就业机会、收入和知识产权。拟议中的项目将解决缺乏商业可用光源的问题，这些光源在远至近红外光谱范围内具有超宽带和高亮度。其目的是通过将稳定光输出的寿命提高到数百小时来优化Ar等离子体光源原型。优化后的产品将提高光谱学应用中的数据采集效率，特别是在工业上。该计划是通过优化热性能、内腔设计和部件更换工艺来改进从上一次迭代中学到的东西，从而使日常操作和维护变得简单、高效和可重复。在100 cm~2500 cm~(-1)的频率范围内，高温等离子体的红外辐射特性尚未被研究过。这是因为商用氙气等离子体灯中的石英灯泡在上述频率范围内对红外辐射是不透明的。建议光源在100厘米-1到2500厘米-1甚至更高频率之间的红外发射特性将使用与工业中广泛使用的类似的光谱仪和显微镜进行测量，从而证明该光源与现有光谱设备的兼容性。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this PFI project is the significant increase in the capability and viability of high sensitivity chemical identification without the need for large and expensive infrared light sources. The aim of this project is to develop a commercially viable, compact, table-top light source that provides suitable intensities and wavelengths to characterize materials and chemicals with increased sensitivity. This will complement the capabilities of the semiconductor and bio-medical industries to innovate in nanotechnology and biotechnology by allowing them to obtain a thorough understanding of their materials and systems in a cost-effective manner. This project will also enable the education and training of graduate and undergraduate students who are inclined towards the applied and commercial aspects of physics research. Contacts with suppliers of components for the infrared light source and with potential customers are further broad impacts of this project. This project has the potential to contribute to the economy of Virginia and the USA via the expected establishment of a start-up company that will create jobs, revenue, and intellectual property.The proposed project will tackle the lack of commercially available light sources that are ultra-broadband and highly brilliant in the far- to near-infrared spectral range. The objective is to optimize the argon plasma light source prototype by increasing its lifetime of stable light output to hundreds of hours. The optimized product will improve data acquisition efficiency in spectroscopy applications especially in industry. The plan is to redesign this device improving on what has been learned from the previous iteration by optimizing the thermal properties, inner chamber design, and component replacement process allowing routine operation and maintenance to be simple, efficient, and reproducible. The characteristics of infrared radiation from a high temperature plasma in the frequency range between 100 cm-1 and 2500 cm-1 have not been studied in the past. This is because the quartz bulb in commercial xenon plasma lamps is opaque to infrared radiation in the above frequency range. The infrared emission characteristics of the proposed light source between 100 cm-1 and 2500 cm-1 and even higher frequencies will be measured using spectrometers and microscopes similar to the ones used extensively in industry, thus demonstrating the source's compatibility with existing spectroscopy equipment.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.