89
Compact Reflector Telescope--Optra, Inc., 461 Boston Street, Topsfield, MA 01983-1290; 978-887-6600
Dr. Michael Hercher, Principal Investigator
Mr. James R. Engel, Business Official
DOE Grant No. DE-FG02-99ER82848
Amount: $528,110
A Raman Spectrometer for the remote detection and identification of containments, hazardous materials, forensic evidence, etc., has been developed by a group at the Brookhaven National Laboratory. In order for it to be a valuable field instrument for use by Government agencies and industry, its radiometric efficiency must be significantly improved so that its size and cost can be reduced. This project addresses this problem by: (1) designing a more efficient collection telescope tailored to work at the short stand off ranges for which the system is intended, (2) designing a focusing transmitter telescope to reduce the size of the excitation beam at the target surface, and (3) developing a fiber-optic image transformer to convert the circular image formed by the collection telescope into a slit-shaped image to match the entrance pupil of the spectrometer. In Phase I, a prototype fiber-optic image transformer was made that provided a 25 percent to 40 percent increase in the signal at the detector compared to the system currently in use. Phase II will review the design of the new optical system, build the redesigned optical system, integrate it into the Mini-Raman Lidar System at Brookhaven, fully evaluate the performance of the up-graded system, and complete the manufacturing engineering necessary to reduce the cost and weight of the overall system to make it a commercially viable product.
Commercial Applications and Other Benefits as described by the awardee: The commercial applications for a complete Min-Raman Lidar System include remote identification of potentially hazardous spills, stand-off detection and identification of chemical and biological warfare agents, industry process control, quality control in the food-processing industry, and non-intrusive forensic applications.