PFI-TT: Development of a Software-Reconfigurable, Ultrafast Spectroscopic Microscope

创新伙伴关系-技术转化（PFI-TT）项目的更广泛影响/商业潜力是开发一种多功能工具，用于光学表征和成像广泛的工业相关材料，包括化学品，生物系统，颜料和半导体。表征将使用一套超快光（光谱）方法来实现。光谱方法之间的切换将通过重新配置软件来实现，而不需要改变硬件。光学方法具有非接触式的优点，并且可以根据具体应用的需要在远程/隔离配置中实现。扩大目标材料的范围将通过增加该方法和工具适用的行业范围来增加该方法的社会影响。拟议的项目是基于展示更广泛的科学应用，单光束、光学、非线性光谱仪可以访问和扩展光谱仪的模式，以及实现成像能力。该光谱仪已应用于多种半导体样品和器件。如果能够与显微镜集成的非线性光谱仪被证明用于化学和生物系统，这项技术可能会对这些科学界以及相关行业产生影响。由于光与化学和生物系统的非线性相互作用比半导体弱得多，因此该演示具有高风险和高回报。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值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 Partnerships for Innovation - Technology Translation (PFI-TT) project is the development of a versatile tool for optically characterizing and imaging a broad range of industrially relevant materials including chemicals, biological systems, pigments and semiconductors. The characterization will be achieved using a suite of ultrafast light-based (spectroscopic) methods. Switching between spectroscopic methods will be realized by reconfiguration of the software alone, no changes to the hardware will be necessary. Optical methods have the advantage of being non-contact and potentially can be implemented in a remote/stand-off configuration, depending on the needs of the specific application. Broadening the range of target materials will increase the societal impact of this methodology by increasing the scope of industries to which the method and tool are applicable.The proposed project is based on demonstrating a broader range of scientific applications that a single-beam, optical, nonlinear spectrometer can access and extending the modalities of the spectrometer as well as implementing imaging capabilities. The spectrometer has been applied to several semiconductor samples and devices. If the nonlinear spectrometer, which is uniquely capable of being integrated with a microscope, is demonstrated for use with chemical and biological systems, the technology may have impact on those scientific communities as well as related industries. Because the nonlinear interaction of light with chemical and biological systems is much weaker than in semiconductors, this demonstration is high risk and high reward.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.