The QCL-based sensor will serve as a platform for a suite of compact and low cost gas sensors that can address a variety of applications ranging from air quality monitoring and other atmospheric research tools to combustion emissions monitoring, carbon sequestration monitoring and verification, biomedical diagnostics (specifically breath analysis and operating room health monitoring), home or mobile toxic gas alarms, smart HVAC control, and as a total hydrocarbon sensor for environmental and process control applications. Maxion and PSI anticipate working with several strategic marketing partners to address the large range of potential commercial applications. Maxion Technologies will make the single mode Quantum Cascade Laser developed in Phase 1 commercially available for insertion into other laser-based chemical sensors by NASA developers and/or other government and commercial concerns. Development of the single-mode QCL described in the proposal will generate high performance, room temperature laser material suitable for other laser-based chemical sensing applications within the technologically important hydrocarbon, CO and CO2 spectral regions.
The QCL-based sensor will serve as a platform for a suite of compact and low cost gas sensors that can measure a variety of species ranging from carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and other air components that are important for many air quality monitoring missions. This sensor platform will provide a compact, low power consumption, low cost tool that is particularly suited for deployment in spacecraft cabins and on small aircraft such as UAVs. Maxion Technologies will make the single mode Quantum Cascade Laser developed in Phase 1 commercially available for insertion into other laser-based chemical sensors by NASA developers and/or other government and commercial concerns that work with NASA. Development of the single-mode QCL described in the proposal will generate high performance, room temperature laser material suitable for other laser-based chemical sensing applications in the technologically important 4.55-4.75 micron wavelength region.
More »