NSF Award
0450470
This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II research project addresses the device and market opportunity for thick magnetooptic garnet Faraday rotator films with planar anisotropy to be operated in the near infrared. Magnetic and electromagnetic field sensors could be developed at a variety of near-infrared wavelengths including the 800 nm, 1310 nm and 1550 nm bands. These sensors can be made much less expensively, in much smaller sizes and with much less weight than current technologies such as current transformers. They have a potential for immediate impact in reliability of electric power distribution through failure anticipation and prevention and conservation of electric power through monitoring and control. Planar materials have much higher switching speeds than conventional perpendicular Faraday rotators and as such would permit a magnetooptical approach to packet switching. Such films are an innovative solution to device problems that require high-speed, continuously-varying polarization rotation with applied field. The project will work on improving properties and performance of such thick planar films and incorporate them into devices. Specific materials tasks are directed to improving sensitivity, linearity and temperature range of operation.<br/><br/>If successful these sensors will have applications such as wheel and turbine rotation, electric power distribution, monitoring, metering and control, and battlefield sensors. The electric power application in particular has potential to revolutionize catastrophic failure prevention in the power grid and reduce power costs at a variety of levels by enabling autonomous reconfiguration. The lack of electrical connectors in fiber optic sensors for explosive, flammable and high-voltage environments represent a significant improvement in safety. New photonic devices not currently realizable will be enabled for telecommunications and military applications such as variable optical attenuators, polarization controllers and increased speed magnetooptic switches. Photonic devices include polarization controllers, variable optical attenuators, switches and new innovative devices. Smart ships and buildings would find utility both for conservation and efficiency.
