Public Funding for Gooch & Housego (Torquay) Limited

Graphene and 2D materials (2DM) have proven superior optoelectronic properties and performance in a plethora of applications with respect to conventional materials. Despite that, specific integration and processing challenges are impeding the industrial uptake of 2DM. In particular, the wafer-scale integration of high-quality and defect free 2DM layers, without disrupting the process-line Si foundries, has not been demonstrated. Next-2Digits will introduce the direct wafer-scale integration of 2DM in PICs using two additive technologies: i) semi dry transfer of Graphene layers for full wafer scale integration and direct die processing and ii) Laser Digital Transfer of pristine 2DM pixels directly on the stack without the need for post-processing. This will enable defect-free interfaces offering high carrier mobility and large bandwidth, paving the way for the next generation of on-chip Photodetectors (PDs) and Modulators which will be validated at TRL5 in three use cases: 1. A miniaturized LiDAR with integrated graphene PD offering high resolution (100nm), high resolution and responsivity >0.5A/W validated in a biomedical OCT imaging system. The project will foster the incorporation of 2DM in PICs and MEMS foundries, enabling future industrial uptake and significantly shorter time-to-market for 2DM-based devices. Companies will be able to offer PIC-based components with (up to 6x times) lower power consumption, lower size (in orders of magnitude) and more than 50% reduced cost. Widespread adoption of such devices will lead to almost €25M of yearly revenues associated with at least 80 new jobs by 2030 for the partners, as well as environmental and social impacts.

no public description

QT Assemble brings together a consortium of UK companies to develop highly-innovative assembly and integration processes for new markets in quantum technologies. Waveguide writing, nanoscale alignment and monolithic integration will be used to deliver new levels of performance in robust and reliable platforms. High-performance components and systems will be demonstrated including highly-integrated lases, photon sources, photon detectors and ultra-cold matter systems. New commercial opportunities have been identified that require reliable and robust operation in quantum sensing and quantum information processing markets.

A number of unique and disruptive quantum based technologies are emerging from the UK Quantum Technologies (QT) Programme hubs. The applications for these devices span a diverse range of sectors making it difficult to clearly definine product roadmaps and it is difficult for large companies wishing to commercialise QT to see where a start-up, spin out, SME or large company may fit into their supply chain. Gooch and Housego (GH) with the Quantum Technology Enterprise Centre (QTEC) and Milner Strategic Marketing (MSM) would like to perform a six-month market research study for photon sources currently utilised or under development within the UK programme. QTEC will catalogue the photon sources developed by the hub academics and coordinate with respective business development teams. MSM will conduct the primary market research study with industry input which will be used by GH to establish clear product roadmaps and categorize opportunities with regard to opportunity size and timescale. This approach will inform members of the UK programme on how and when supply chains can be established for photon sources. This approach may be applied to other aspects of the QT programme.

New developments in quantum technology have resulted in the ability to cool atoms close to absolute zero using lasers. At these temperatures, laboratory experiments have shown that these “cold atoms” can be used as ultra-sensitive sensors for measuring gravity. CASPA will translate leading UK science into commercial products for space and other markets. It will take the technology out of the laboratory and build it into a small satellite payload that is capable of producing “cold atoms” in space. Demonstrating this new technology in space is a vital first step towards realising real instruments that are capable of mapping tiny changes in the strength of gravity across the surface of the earth. The extreme sensitivity brought by “cold atom” sensors will provide the ability to finely monitor the movement of mass within Earth systems. This has multiple applications including more accurate monitoring of changes in polar ice mass, ocean currents and sea level. Higher resolution data will lead to the ability to monitor smaller water sources and discover new underground natural resources which are currently not detectable. Similar technology will also be used for deep space navigation and for providing higher precision timing sources in space.

The presence of sinkholes, mineshafts and other buried objects under construction sites is a huge problem in civil engineering. These underground openings are a risk to the health and safety of people working on the site. They are also a risk after construction work has been completed as they can move and increase in size over time and may open up causing a building; a road or a bridge to subside or collapse with devastating effect. The REVEAL project aims to develop a quantum gravimeter which can be used for subterranean surveying to identify these underground objects before construction takes place. This reduces the risk for people working on the site and allows remedial work to be carried out before building takes place, decreasing the risk of future structural problems. The project aims to produce an instrument with at least twice the sensitivity of competing classical gravimeters so that even smaller and deeper holes in the ground can be detected.

Quantum technology is usually seen as an academic science that sits in big experiments such as the Large Hadron Collider, but it is now coming much closer to home and within a couple of years will affect the life of man in the street. We all tire of roadworks and get frustrated when they cut through our phone lines or water supply. Quantum technology can provide an answer by enabling surveyors to see through the ground and map the hidden structure beneath our feet using gravimeters that precisely measure the small variations in gravity caused by pipes and voids under the ground. This project is focused on developing practical technology that can enable the large complex experiments in University laboratories to be package into portable instruments that can be carried out into the street. Two of the UK’s leading technology manufacturing companies, G&H and e2v Technologies are teaming up with the University of Birmingham, which heads up the UK quantum sensing hub, to develop lasers, vacuum systems and control electronics for these quantum based sensors.

This project aims to develop a new device that will change the way ophthalmic healthcare is delivered to people in the developing and developed world. It is a partnership that brings together the best technology in the U.K and fuses it with the best software and medical expertise in India to produce a world class collaboration. This collaborative research will take advantage of an emerging technology - Optical Coherence Tomography - to improve eye care for all.

Following the Nobel Prize winning discovery that lasers can cool atoms to extremely low temperatures, where they can occupy a single quantum state, there has been a lot of research into potential applications. Laboratory experiments with cold atoms have shown a 1000 times improvement in inertial navigation accuracy and a 1000 times improvement in timing over conventional atomic clocks. For these breakthroughs to be exploited in real applications the laboratory experiments must be developed into practical devices that could be operated in a satellite, aircraft, ship or hospital The aim of the FreezeRay project is to develop a commercial “all-in-one” system for cooling atoms. This will be the core engine of a cold atom system and will consist of a compact sealed vacuum chamber and a highly stable laser source that will cool the atoms. The technical approach will draw on component technology such as lasers and amplifiers that have been developed for optical communications and are highly reliable with operating lifetime exceeding 25 years in harsh environments.

The consortium will develop and demonstrate an innovative, compact, low cost and eye-safe active laser-illuminated imaging sensor, capable of long-range operation. The active imaging application presents a significant technological challenge; hence the consortium brings together key technical expertise in photonics, material science, mass manufacturing and sensor systems integration, together with well established routes to market to ensure project outputs are exploited to the fullest extent.

Overview of project As fibre optic devices increase in sophistication, there is an increasing demand for better polarisation control and polarisation maintaining components. In many cases, polarisation control optimises performance, e.g. interferometric techniques such as optical coherence tomography (OCT). For many current applications, the existing PM couplers are of insufficient performance and an in-house "work-around" is required. The MUDPAC consortium aims to address the growing need for improved PM components by developing "coupler-friendly" fibre, a workstation and process for PM coupler manufacture using the fibre, and then test component performance for state of the art pulsed high power applications suitable for new market challenges. THE FIBRE: Led by Fibercore, who have recently developed a "coupler-friendly" fibre, various stress-rod materials and geometries will be investigated and tested to produce a new high quality product. THE WORKSTATION: Led by Gooch & Housego, using an in-house knowledge of PM fibre coupler manufacturing processes, a novel method will be devised for the new fibre, as well as a workstation optimised to implement such a process. THE TESTING: Led by Fianium, the components will be subjected to high power and long-term testing, with the results fed back to the other partners for the iterative process leading to improved fibres and components.

Awaiting Public Project Summary

As fibre optic devices increase in sophistication, there is an increasing demand for better polarisation control and polarisation maintaining components. In many cases, polarisation control optimises performance, e.g. interferometric techniques such as optical coherence tomography (OCT). For many current applications, the existing PM couplers are of insufficient performance and an in-house "work-around" is required. The MUDPAC consortium aims to address the growing need for improved PM components by developing "coupler-friendly" fibre, a workstation and process for PM coupler manufacture using the fibre, and then test component performance for state of the art pulsed high power applications suitable for new market challenges. THE FIBRE: Led by Fibercore, who have recently developed a "coupler-friendly" fibre, various stress-rod materials and geometries will be investigated and tested to produce a new high quality product. THE WORKSTATION: Led by Gooch & Housego, using an in-house knowledge of PM fibre coupler manufacturing processes, a novel method will be devised for the new fibre, as well as a workstation optimised to implement such a process. THE TESTING: Led by Fianium, the components will be subjected to high power and long-term testing, with the results fed back to the other partners for the iterative process leading to improved fibres and components.

Awaiting Public Project Summary

Awaiting Public Project Summary

Awaiting Public Project Summary

Awaiting Public Project Summary

Awaiting Public Project Summary

Awaiting Public Project Summary

Awaiting Public Project Summary

Awaiting Public Project Summary

Awaiting Public Project Summary

Awaiting Public Project Summary

Awaiting Public Project Summary

Awaiting Public Project Summary

Awaiting Public Project Summary

Awaiting Public Project Summary

Awaiting Public Project Summary

Awaiting Public Project Summary

The public description for this project has been requested but has not yet been received.

Awaiting Public Project Summary

In all of the studies carried out so far on the implementation of broadband optical internet access, few have carried the vision as far as the objective of the Photonics21 competition, “10Gigabit/s everywhere”. The partners in this project, who represent the majority of interested parties in the UK, will carry out a focused road-mapping study, with the aim of identifying promising routes forward in achieving the ambitious goals of Photonics21, while making best use of the existing knowledge that has been gained in earlier projects, which is not always in a form that is simple to apply in the present context. We will seek the solutions which show most promise of cost effectiveness, are future proof (i.e. allowing bandwidth evolution and infrastructure reuse) and allow simple interfaces which can be standardized. This task will demand a high degree of innovation, facilitated by the vertically integrated consortium structure. The results of the study will be made available to UK industry in order to maximize the opportunities for the UK in the next stage of development, which will be conducted under the FP7 and ERANET+ schemes, leading ultimately to commercial leadership in the world market for next-generation optical internet access systems.Amélie

The multi-billion dollar global market for high brightness light sources for the lighting and display sectors is presently dominated by inherently inefficient and short-lived ultra high pressure bulbs. This project seeks to develop a radically different light source based upon novel ways of frequency-doubling infra-red lasers to generate more than 3W of visible light, and to test the source in a representative demonstrator projection system. The envisaged light source will provide exceptional brightness, reliability and lifetime, and an order of magnitude improvement in energy efficiency. In the initial target market area of high performance light projection equipment the technology developed would be additionally commercially disruptive by virtue of its far superior colour rendering capabilities. A range of large and rapidly-growing related markets would be accessible to the new light source, offering excellent potential returns.

Awaiting Public Summary

Awaiting Public Summary

Awaiting Public Summary

Awaiting Public Summary