Del Mar Photonics - Business Development - Markets
In the past 10 years femtosecond lasers have emerged from a technology wonder to an indispensable tool in many research fields. Despite the high cost, the enormous demand for femtosecond lasers has supported the growth of over 20 global companies commercializing this technology. The technology has not only become the foundation of ultrafast pump-and-probe experiments and leading-edge nonlinear optics, it also finds exciting applications such as soliton communication, sub-millimeter-wave optoelectronics, microstructure fabrication, multiphoton microscopy, self-guided remote sensing, etc. Recently femtosecond lasers have even been utilized as frequency rulers to calibrate the most precise atomic transition. Furthermore, the potential of femtosecond technology is not only in its ultrashort time scale, but also in its ultrahigh peak power. The development of wide-band solid-state laser gain media and a technique called chirped-pulse amplification have made possible the generation of laser pulses with a peak power reaching several tens of terawatt (TW). When focused, the intensity can exceed 1020 W/cm2. Such light source is not for conventional applications, as nothing in the atomic and molecular level survives under such a strong field. However, exactly because of this capability, femtosecond technology is creating new frontiers of physics research that were once beyond imagination.
Major markets for ultrafast lasers
| Imaging and microscopy | Micromachining | Ultrafast dynamics | High power lasers for physical research |
Security and defence |
| multiphoton microscopy harmonic microscopy CARS OCT FRET/FLIM multiphoton endoscopy |
waveguides microfluidics subsurface modifications all-femtosecond eye surgery laser ablation laser deposition |
photosynthesis vision process chemical dynamic ion channels dynamic optical memory design of new molecules photodynamic therapy |
attosecond physics laser X-ray - promise of molecular microscope laser plasma/microfusion laser electron accelerators Femtosecond Laser-Plasma Particle Accelerator |
filamentation - nonlethal weapon THz mobile radar quantum cryptography |
| future electronics will explore not only ultrasmall, but also ultrafast processes |
||||
| Mavericks - deep tissue Trestles Finesse - low cost CARS on all platforms |
Teahupoo low cost TiSa Mavericks |
Teahupoo Beacon up-conversion Hatteras transient spectra 2-photon echo |
JAWS - multiterawatt Seed laser for PW femto |
|
IMAGING STATION demo/R&D
|
MICROMACHINING STATION demo/tests |
ULTRAFAST DYNAMICS demo/R&D |
HIGH POWER SYSTEMS |
* multibillion dollar market
New projects under development with multibillion dollar markets:
1) Atomic Lithography - Next Generation after Next Generation Lithography. Atom beams will be used to create masks instead of VUV lasers or Extreme Ultraviolet sources
2) Adaptive optics for high power industrial lasers. As low cost kilowatt and multikilowatt fiber lasers revolutionize industry we expect a strong demand for adaptive optics and wavefront sensors that will allow high power beams to achive ultimate material processing performance.
A key challenge is to grow and remain flexible.
We want be able to continue to offer the great variation in system specifications required by the
research community.
At the same time we must achieve repeatability and reliability required by the
analytical and industrial community for demanding volume applications.
Del Mar Photonics - Business Development - Markets