BOZEMAN , Mont. – AdvR Inc., of Bozeman , established a partnership with NASA to qualify the company's low-cost, energy efficient, lightweight seed laser for space flight. This laser will be used in instruments to help scientists measure the atmosphere and solar system to address global warming and weather prediction.

Qualification of AdvR’s laser for use in space involves rigorous testing at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. The results of the tests will help AdvR further develop their commercial technology, including making modifications to miniaturize its seed laser.

Laser-based, light detection and ranging (LIDAR) instruments for use on satellite missions provide valuable data to resource scientists worldwide. “The improved instruments NASA is developing incorporating our seed laser will lead to a new generation of LIDAR instruments that enable greater coverage and lower cost for measuring fire and fuel loading, land use patterns, floodplain determinations, and initial conditions for weather prediction,” said AdvR’s chief project scientist, Gregg Switzer. The LIDAR instruments that are used for high resolution topographical mapping, remote sensing of atmospheric winds, and profiling of atmospheric molecules and aerosols using high power lasers can be improved with AdvR’s seed laser, Switzer said. The tests at Goddard so far have shown that incorporating AdvR’s seed laser in NASA’s instruments eliminates fluctuations in intensity under high-power operation, thereby reducing damage to the instrument’s internal optics and extending its lifetime, a critical requirement for operation in the space environment.NASA and AdvR entered into a cooperative research agreement for the testing, a partnership initiated by the MSU TechLink center, a Bozeman-based technology transfer organization. This agreement assisted in the smooth transfer of technology between NASA and AdvR. It is making the space flight qualified seed laser a reality. “This joint effort with NASA attests to a growing partnership to develop next-generation LIDAR instruments rugged enough for solar system missions,” said Ron Cooper, Director of Program Development for AdvR.

Seed lasers can be used to “tickle” the wavelength generation occurring within a high power solid state laser. This tickle stimulates the laser to emit an identical wavelength as the seed. As a result, seeding greatly improves the lifetime of the high power solid state laser, a critical requirement for long duration space missions. Seeding also improves the pulse shape and wavelength stability of the laser allowing higher resolution LIDAR measurements.

AdvR’s seed laser stabilizes the wavelength emitted from a semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) using precisely defined optical feedback from a Bragg grating in a KTP (potassium titanyl phosphate) waveguide. This configuration results in a compact, highly-stable external cavity laser with single frequency output in the range of 1047-1064 nm in either continuous wave or pulsed mode. A version of this laser has been laboratory tested by NASA researchers at Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD and has achieved over 300 billion pulses without failure. “The technology developed for the seed laser can be used to create additional narrow bandwidth ultra stable lasers for use in spectroscopy, sensing, and communication,” said Philip Battle, Vice President Technology, AdvR.

“The production scale-up of the seed laser technology will significantly expand AdvR operations here in Bozeman ,” added Cooper.

About AdvR, Inc.

AdvR, Inc. is devoted to the development and commercialization of photonics technologies. The core area of expertise of the company is in the fabrication of engineered materials for a wide variety of research and commercial applications. The staff at AdvR includes Ph.D. scientists, engineers, technicians, and business specialists. Development teams take advantage of this diversity to insure that all skills needed to commercialize a technology are incorporated at an early stage. To extend its capabilities further, AdvR has formed strategic alliances with several universities and businesses.

CONTACTS:

Chandra Morris

TechLink

(406) 994-7702

cmorris@montana.edu

Ron Cooper

AdvR, Inc.

(406) 522-0388

cooper@advr-inc.com

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