RPMC Lasers Blog

Micro-welding is a high-precision welding method employed to fuse minuscule metal parts or features together. Traditionally, this requires a highly skilled specialist, utilizing a variety of skill sets and knowledge of various materials’ properties, taking into account all of the particular considerations involved in such a precise, delicate process. The Ford company first developed micro-welding to solve the problem of welding materials in a vacuum tube with a high melt… Read More

Single-frequency lasers have long been the cornerstone of standoff gas detection applications, particularly in traditional LIDAR (Light Detection And Ranging), DIAL (Differential Absorption LIDAR), and TDLAS (Tunable Diode Laser Absorption Spectroscopy) applications, where the sample needs to be accurately measured.  More recently, as single-frequency laser diodes have become more common and less expensive, with a larger measurement range and compact size, they are being utilized in more localized and industrial gas sensing app… Read More

Flow cytometry is a method for simultaneously analyzing multiple physical properties of an individual cell as it flows through a beam of light in a fluid stream, including the cells size and fluorescence.  In practice, flow cytometry is essentially a combination of particle counting and fluorescence spectroscopy. By combining these two techniques flow cytometry can be employed in cell counting, cell sorting, biomarker detection, and protein engineering analyzing thousands of cells per second as they pass through the liqu… Read More

Driving a vehicle at night or during foggy conditions can be tricky and dangerous, where poor visibility can cause undue stress or even an accident. These conditions make it more difficult to see upcoming potential obstacles, especially if that obstacle is a deer in a field or a pedestrian in dark clothing at night. However, thanks to newer, more efficient, and cost-effective advancements, we could see more widespread deployment of LIDAR-based automotive detection and warning… Read More

Microchip laser technology is a perfect option for various LIDAR-based applications, as well as LIBS, spectroscopy, micromachining, and more. Microchip lasers are typically compact and lightweight, allowing for easier and more efficient integration in airborne and portable, handheld applications, and the laser characteristics are in line with LIDAR requirements for collecting … Read More

Combat zones can be extremely chaotic. With a massive influx of sensory input, implementing clear communication, rugged tools, and reliable instrumentation is key to a successful mission. One of the most challenging tasks in any aerial combat situation is determining which assets on the ground to target and which ones to avoid. This determination is particularly challenging when enemy assets are camouflaged or hidden amongst civili… Read More

With the discontinuation of the Coherent Helios laser, some people find themselves having to source a replacement laser before production is stalled. RPMC is here to help alleviate your frustration when trying to source a suitable replacement… Read More

In this case study, we explore how Johan Petit, a research engineer at ONERA, overcame the challenges of material characterization in the mid-wave to long-wave infrared spectrum. Faced with budget constraints and the need for specific laser wavelengths, Johan turned to Quantum Cascade Lasers (QCLs) from mirSense. This cost-effective solution not only met his project requirements but also offered room temperature operation and compact, turnkey usability, proving QCLs to be an ideal laser source for such app… Read More

Quantum Light Instruments’ (QLI’s) main product line is the Quantas Family.  This family of lasers offers compact, air-cooled, high-energy, low rep rate, DPSS lasers at the fundamental wavelengths of 1064 and 1053nm, as well as the less common 1163, 1177, 1300, 1317, 1551 and 1571nm options. They offer standard harmonic wavelengths, through the 5th harmonic (211 and 213nm), with the addition of an external harmonics module. The Quantas Family was designed for a wide range of applications that require high peak power / high ener… Read More

The program includes the development of a sixth-generation stealthy crewed combat jet and advanced drones called Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA). The budget documents outline the central goal of “dominating” future aerial warfare defined by infrared search and track systems and missiles with multi-mode seekers, advanced radars, and electronic warfar… Read More

Check out this amazing mission, in which the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft is traveling to Bennu, a carbonaceous asteroid whose regolith may record the earliest history of our solar system. Bennu may contain the molecular precursors to the origin of life and the Earth’s oceans. This craft is equipped with many instruments, including a Microchip Laser offered by RPMC Lasers with over 1 billion shots and counting!  Click here to read all about the OSIRIS-REx Mission! This same Microchip Laser is available from RP… Read More

Traditionally, long-wave infrared detectors have been costly, gallium arsenide- or indium phosphide-based detectors found in night vision cameras. While cheaper and easier to produce in volume, CMOS technology suffered from the so-called ‘THz gap’ or ‘far-infrared gap’ of the electromagnetic spectrum, unable to detect these long wavelengths. Today, an intriguing solution is becoming available in the form of a THz range CMOS detector for cost-effective, long-wave infrared … Read More

The Nanophotonics Group at Columbia has developed a high-performance, chip-scale laser platform that is tunable and offers various performance metrics. This innovative platform opens up new opportunities for various applications, such as quantum optics, atomic clocks, biosensing, laser displays for augmented and virtual reality, and underwater Li-Fi. The group’s laser platform is based on the concept of self-injection locking and provides the possibility to shrink current technologies and make them accessible to the gener… Read More

This article presents a rugged, compact, high-quality, tunable ultrafast laser system designed for nonlinear spectroscopy and imaging such as CRS, SRS, and CARS. This system provides high beam quality, extremely narrow linewidth, and high-intensity ultrafast pulses in several wavelength regions, providing a unique solution in the field of laser spectroscopy an… Read More

Scientists at the Brookhaven National Laboratory have published a study in which they demonstrate a new color-shifting strategy for lasers that uses interactions between the laser and the chemical bonds of materials called “ionic liquids.” This new method is simple, efficient, and highly customizable, and can change the color of laser light while retaining other important properties of the laser beam. Learn more about this groundbreaking method, its applications and how it could change the world … Read More

Scientists have successfully demonstrated that laser-induced filaments in the sky can guide lightning discharges over long distances, potentially leading to progress in lightning protection and physics. The research, conducted on a mountain in Switzerland using a high-repetition-rate terawatt laser, recorded the guidance of an upward negative lightning leader over a distance of 50m and was corroborated by other measurements. This is the first field-result to experimentally demonstrate lightning guided by lasers, opening the possibility for new atmospheric applications of ultrasho… Read More

Light contains both energy and momentum that can be used for various types of optical manipulation such as levitation and rotation. Optical tweezers, for example, are commonly used scientific instruments that use laser light to hold and manipulate tiny objects such as atoms or cells. For the last ten years, scientists have been working on a new type of optical manipulation: using laser light to create an optical tractor beam that could pul… Read More

NASA is using tabletop exercises to test how electric air taxis will fit safely into the national airspace, allowing passengers to one day hop across town or to a neighboring city. The agency partnered with industry, academia, and other government agencies in a series of 10 expert-led tabletop exercises to examine technical, operational, and regulatory gaps and define the best use of combined resources to add… Read More

The breakthrough came in an impossibly small slice of time, less than it takes a beam of light to move an inch. In that tiny moment, nuclear fusion as an energy source went from far-away dream to reality. The world is now grappling with the implications of the historic milestone. For Arthur Pak and the countless other scientists who’ve spent decades getting to this point, the work is just beginning…
We found that a typical commercial toilet generates a strong upward jet of air with velocities exceeding 6.6 feet per second (2 meters per second), rapidly carrying these particles up to 5 feet (1.5 meters) above the bowl within eight seconds of the start of th… Read More

Toilets are designed to efficiently empty the contents inside the bowl through a downward motion into the drain pipe. In the flush cycle, water comes into forceful contact with the contents inside the bowl and creates a fine spray of particles suspended in air.

We found that a typical commercial toilet generates a strong upward jet of air with velocities exceeding 6.6 feet per second (2 meters per second), rapidly carrying these particles up to 5 feet (1.5 meters) above the bowl within eight seconds of the start of th… Read More

The AC-130 is one of the US military’s most capable aircraft. Ground troops love the gunship and the capabilities it brings to the fight, but it can be effective even without deploying its large arsenal. During the chaotic evacuation of Kabul, Afghanistan, in August 2021, two AC-130J Ghostrider crews used a little-known laser sensor on their planes to help control the situation around the airport and keep enemy forces at bay as friendly troops carried out the e… Read More

At a range in southern England, researchers tested a new laser, making it one step closer to military use. Developed for the Ministry of Defence, DragonFire is intended to be a long-range answer to incoming threats, a way to defeat projectiles in mid-air through the concentrated power of intense light. On November 8, the Ministry of Defence (MOD) announced it had conducted long-range laser trials at the Porton Down site. During the live fire test, the laser hit and neutralized a small drone at a range o… Read More

In an effort to learn more about the effects of drugs on the brain and develop treatments for neurodegenerative conditions like epilepsy and dementia, scientists have grown human and mouse brain cells on a microelectrode array in a Petri dish. This living model, layered with 800,000 living brain cells, is currently playing the classic Atari video game ‘Pong.’ Next, the scientists plan to get the… Read More

Scientists are breaking optical data transmission records at record pace (see what I did there). The newest transmission record is quite staggering. Average broadband download speeds in the US come in at around 167 megabits per second. This new optical data transfer record multiplies that rate by approximately… 10.8 million… Read More

Controlling insect pests still relies on the extensive usage of generic and established methods, such as pesticides, which utilize broad spectrum chemicals or toxins persisting in the environment and targeting non-pest insect species. Therefore, more effective and environmental friendly approaches are needed to counteract these damagin… Read More