Highly Directional Terahertz Laser Rays Created

[n2doc]

ScienceDaily (Aug. 9, 2010) — A collaborative team of applied scientists from Harvard University and the University of Leeds have demonstrated a new terahertz (THz) semiconductor laser that emits beams with a much smaller divergence than conventional THz laser sources. The advance, published in the August 8th issue of Nature Materials, opens the door to a wide range of applications in terahertz science and technology. Harvard has filed a broad patent on the invention.

The finding was spearheaded by postdoctoral fellow Nanfang Yu and Federico Capasso, Robert L. Wallace Professor of Applied Physics and Vinton Hayes Senior Research Fellow in Electrical Engineering, both of Harvard's School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), and by a team led by Edmund Linfield at the School of Electronic and Electrical Engineering, University of Leeds.

Terahertz rays (T-rays) can penetrate efficiently through paper, clothing, plastic, and many other materials, making them ideal for detecting concealed weapons and biological agents, imaging tumors without harmful side effects, and spotting defects, such as cracks, within materials. THz radiation is also used for high-sensitivity detection of tiny concentrations of interstellar chemicals.

"Unfortunately, present THz semiconductor lasers are not suitable for many of these applications because their beam is widely divergent -- similar to how light is emitted from a lamp" says Capasso. "By creating an artificial optical structure on the facet of the laser, we were able to generate highly collimated (i.e., tightly bound) rays from the device. This leads to the efficient collection and high concentration of power without the need for conventional, expensive, and bulky lenses."


more


http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/08/100808212756.htm