Building Better Warfighters
Radiation Effects Testing
What we've done...
The Penn State Electro-Optics Center has been working on the forefront in radiation hardness testing and assessment of various electro-optical devices. This work has involved supporting many diverse projects from x-ray testing at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory to proton irradiation of devices at the cyclotron at the University of California, Davis. This testing has involved both the pre- and post-exposure optical characterization of the parts, modeling the radiation and comparing the models to the actual results. We have developed a state-of-the-art femtosecond spectroscopy lab, designed to research and measure the displacement damage in crystalline structures due to radiation exposure.
Femtosecond spectroscopy laboratory where we measure carrier cooling times as a method of evaluating the displacement damage in MWIR focal plane arrays.
Where we're going...
The EOC will continue expanding our expertise in radiation hardness testing. We will continue our efforts in supporting the proton irradiation testing of a new generation of digital focal plane arrays.
EOC Research Engineer providing elemental analysis of a mirror surface after it has been exposed to x-rays at the NIF.
We will work to develop the capability to expose and optically characterize the focal plane array in situ since any warming of the focal plane array from cryogenic temperatures will cause the damage to self-anneal (the device will repair itself.) We will continue our research into measuring the displacement damage caused by proton, neutron, or heavy ion irradiation. Finally, we will continue supporting materials research by evaluating mirror quality degradation due to exposure in the space environment. This requires evaluating the radiation hardness of different mirror substrate materials that have been exposed to x-rays in order to minimize risk of failure when the mirrors are used in space missions.
How to engage...
To find out how our laser diode experts can help improve your product development process, contact us here.