Tunable compound semiconductor lasers for mid-infrared trace gas-sensing

Cascade Lasers, such as quantum cascade lasers (QCLs) are becoming increasingly important in many applications such as environmental monitoring and gas sensing. The advent of the ‘Intenet of Things’ and ‘Industry 4.0’ will drive both technical and cost challenges as manufacturers develop increasingly sophisiticated technology for a mass market. The global market for CL based sensing systems is predicted to increase from $148m in 2015 to ~ $1.7b by 2024 (optic.org 2015). This project aims to disrupt the global CL market by taking a completely new approach to the packaging of cascade lasers, simulatenously driving down costs and reducing manufacturing complexity whilst meeting the increasing spectral purity requirements of sensing system manufacturers. The project will result in the UK’s supply chain for sensing devices becoming significantly more competitive on the world stage allowing it to capture a larger share of this high growth sector.