ALPhANOV Selected As A Technology Partner In Several Major Industrial Projects
ALPhANOV, the Technology center of the Aquitaine Route des Lasers cluster, has just been granted several research and development contracts in industrial projects. These projects involve very diverse business sectors: aerospace, industrial control, analysis of works of art, timber management, and scientific instrumentation. These contracts will allow ALPhANOV to put its scientific and technological skills in fiber optics, laser processing, terahertz imaging, laser and optical components design and systems to support SMEs.
LNP KEY: Marking wood with nanoparticles
The objective of this project is to develop a new system to ensure traceability of wood while remaining economically viable. The method uses nanoparticles to enter a code inside timber. This code is designed to be waterproof and to be resistant to various environmental constraints: cold, steaming, etc. A laser, which will be developed by ALPhANOV, is used to read the code, thanks to the light scattered by the nanoparticles. This addresses economic and quality needs of the wood industry.
The final product, is scheduled to come out in 2014, and is expected to find its way to200 sawmills.
Contact: bruno.chassagne@alphanov.com
TERAVISION : Design and prototyping of an all-optical TeraHertz vision system using TeraHertz thermal converters
Infrared imaging is already widely used in many areas to take measurements and nondestructive testing: scientific metrology, machine vision systems for civilian and military security, quality control on production lines, analysis of works of art.
This type of imaging, for wavelengths between 3 and 12 microns, is insufficient in some cases and engineers, researchers and technicians, then need to resort to longer wavelengths, typically 30 to 3 000 microns, that of terahertz waves.
The project TeraVision, for which ALPhANOV will develop the optical heart of the camera, will industrialize thermo-electro-thermal converters in order to use them in a compact, low cost, terahertz system.
Contact: sebastien.ermeneux@alphanov.com
Perceval: A lightweight blower module for aerospace
The PERCEVAL project should help to reduce the environmental impact of single-aisle aircraft propulsion. This will be achieved by a decrease in energy consumption and CO2 emissions, obtained by a reduction in weight and an improvement in the aerodynamic profile of the module, and by reduced engine noise during operation thanks to an optimized design.
The project also aims to validate the structural integrity of composite structures of the fan module.
ALPhANOV will be in charge of the development of laser surface pre-processing of composite. Several laser technologies will be tested and compared to identify processes that offer the best compromise between productivity, selectivity and low damage of the substrate.
Contact: john.lopez@alphanov.com
ORTO: Optical and electrical signal analyzer with very high bandwidth
The MULO research project, conducted between 2006 and 2009, has developed and patented a new type of oscilloscope with very high bandwidth. The ORTO industrial project aims to transfer this new technology into a commercial device, allowing measurements of optical signals at any wavelength, or of electrical signals.
This versatility, combined with a bandwidth of 60 GHz for optical signals to 90 GHz for electrical signals, will address many markets, such as the telecom industry, metrology of large physics instruments, laboratories and more widely R & D.
Contact: bruno.chassagne@alphanov.com
SOURCE: ALPhANOV