PFI-RP: High-Throughput Scanner for Non-Destructive Manufacturing Inspection

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The broader impact/commercial potential of this Partnerships for Innovation - Research Partnerships (PFI-RP) project is the advancement of non-destructive, industrial-quality instruments for quality control in advanced manufacturing. There is a demand for high-throughput quality control systems in manufacturing plants to further increase production efficiencies and reduce production costs. In addition, valuable feedback provided by in-line quality control systems may enable optimization of the manufacturing processes to minimize defects and provide high-quality products. Terahertz imaging offers unique functionalities for non-destructive evaluation of various industrial products. Teraherz frequencies also offer higher resolution imaging than radio frequencies and they can penetrate through many opaque materials at visible and infrared frequencies. Compared to ultrasound imaging, terahertz imaging does not require any coupler and can enable a non-contact evaluation. Terahertz waves also do not pose health hazards, unlike X-rays. Although these unique capabilities have been known for a long time, terahertz quality control systems are not yet widely utilized in manufacturing plants due to the absence of high-performance terahertz cameras capable of producing large-pixel-count three-dimensional (3D) images with a high frame rate.The proposed project aims to address the technological limitations of using terehertz cameras in high throughput manufacturing through a cross-disciplinary research, education, development, and commercialization partnership between the university, industry, and federal laboratories. This university-industry partnership seeks to develop and assess a terahertz camera for high-speed and high-sensitivity quality control in industrial production settings. The proposed camera utilizes plasmonic nanoantenna arrays to address the main challenges of conventional terahertz detectors for use in a multi-pixel terahertz imaging systems: low signal-to-noise ratio operation and small device active area, which requires complex optics to be scaled to large arrays. The proposed work may extend the scope and potential uses of terahertz technology for non-destructive quality control of various products in industrial manufacturing settings, which were not possible before due to the low throughput, low sensitivity, and the bulky nature of conventional terahertz scanner systems. While the developed hardware and data analysis software provide a high-performance, compact scanner for non-invasive material characterization and inspection, field tests and partnerships provide a deep understanding of the critical customer needs in real-world field settings.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.