UTA and ARL to Develop Longwave-IR Photonic Device Technology

A research team from the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) is working with the Army Research Laboratory (ARL) to develop nanophotonic devices that could have applications in thermal imaging and resonant filtering. The researchers’ objective is to develop devices that will work in the longwave-infrared (LWIR) spectral region, which is the range in which thermal radiation is emitted.

“There is a need to develop this technology because there is a shortage of optical components in longwave-infrared bands,” professor Robert Magnusson said. “Changing frequency or wavelength to this region requires that we completely change our fabrication methods.” For the new, longer wavelength devices, Magnusson and his team will create photonic lattices out of germanium, a metalloid element that has the properties of a semiconductor. The team also plans to adapt longer wavelength devices previously developed at UTA to make them tunable to specific wavelengths. In addition to thermal imaging technology, the new devices could be used in sensors for medical diagnostics, chemical analyses, and environmental monitoring.

Magnusson, the principal investigator for the $1.2 million agreement with the ARL, is collaborating with Neelam Gupta of the ARL and Mark Mirotznik of the University of Delaware on the research.