I-Corps: 6Sensing: Chip-scale Raman sensors

这个i-Corps项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是提供芯片上的光学传感器，使药品和化学品的生产更快、更便宜。制药研发和生产严重依赖化学分析来洞察过程，然而，分析仪器并不跟随最新的制造趋势，转向一次性技术和小批量，甚至是连续生产。集成(片上)光子学是一种有吸引力的传感平台，这要归功于其小巧的外形、坚固耐用、大的多路复用能力以及可增强光与物质相互作用的严格光学限制。该项目将开创从化学传感开始大规模使用集成光子传感器的先河，为其他应用铺平道路。通过更好地了解制造过程中的反应，拟议的技术有望影响制药市场并帮助改善公众健康。这个i-Corps项目旨在开发第一个实际实施的微芯片规模的光学光谱仪。由于制造和封装层面的几个障碍，集成的光子产品仍然很少。该项目将缓解这些问题，以更小的外形尺寸提供与大型台式光学光谱仪同等的灵敏度和性能。这将通过结合集成光子元件设计、光子芯片架构和光学封装方面的最新进展来实现。建议的传感器将实现新的化学传感应用，并有助于了解电池制造和连续流动化学制造等领域的过程。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 I-Corps project is to provide on-chip optical sensors that enable faster and cheaper production of drugs and chemicals. Pharmaceutical R&D and production rely heavily on chemical analysis to provide insight into the processes at play, however analytical instruments do not follow the latest manufacturing trends towards single-use technologies and smaller batches, or even continuous production. Integrated (on-chip) photonics is an attractive sensing platform thanks to its small form factor, robustness, large multiplexing capability, and tight optical confinement that enhances light-matter interactions. This project will pioneer the large-scale use of integrated photonic sensors starting with chemical sensing, paving the way to other applications. By enabling a better understanding of the reactions at play in manufacturing processes, the proposed technology is poised to impact the pharmaceutical market and help improving public health.This I-Corps project aims to develop the first practical implementation of a microchip-scale optical spectrometer. Integrated photonic product remain scarce due to several barriers at the fabrication and packaging levels. This project will mitigate these issues to offer equivalent sensitivity and performance to large benchtop optical spectrometers in a dramatically smaller form factor. This will be realized by combining recent advances in integrated photonic component design, photonic chip architecture, and optical packaging. The proposed sensor will enable novel chemical sensing applications and help with the understanding of processes at play in areas such as cell-based manufacturing and continuous-flow chemical manufacturing.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.