California Institute of Technology

Taeyoon Jeon

Axel Scherer

Amirhossein Nateghi

Frank Thomas Hartley

Jieun Myung

The teachings of the present disclosure enable a reduction of the refractive index of a material by incorporating an additive selected from air, vacuum, or an inert gas in the material to turn the material into a material foam that is suitable for use in optical systems. A material foam in accordance with the present disclosure is characterized by a porosity that reduces its refractive index from that of the same material as found in nature. The higher porosity also decreases the density of the material from that of the same material as found in nature. Material foams in accordance with the present disclosure are suitable for use in the low-refractive-index layers of a Bragg mirror.

Optical layer having a low refractive index and methods of fabrication

An infrared spectrometer for operation in the mid-infrared spectral range is presented, where the spectrometer includes a Bragg-mirror-based spectral filter that is operative for providing an interrogation signal whose spectral content is dispersed along a first direction at a filter aperture. The filter aperture is imaged through a sample by a thermal-imaging camera to create a focused image that is based on the interrogation signal and the absorption characteristics of the sample. As a result, embodiments in accordance with the present disclosure can be smaller, less complex, and less expensive than infrared spectrometers known in the prior art.

Compact hyperspectral mid-infrared spectrometer

The present disclosure is directed toward a measurement system capable of rapid spectroscopic and calorimetric analysis of the chemical makeup of a test sample. Systems in accordance with the present disclosure include a low-thermal-mass sample holder having a substrate whose surface has been engineered to create a large-area sample-collection surface. The sample holder includes an integrated temperature controller that can rapidly heat or cool the test sample. As a result, the sample holder enables differential scanning calorimetry Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (DSC-FTIR) that can be performed in minutes rather than hours, as required in the prior art.

System for analyzing a test sample and method therefor

The present disclosure is directed toward optical elements, such as sample cuvettes, lenses, prisms, and the like, whose transmissivity is increased by the addition of a geometric anti-reflection layer disposed on at least one surface of the optical element, where the geometric anti-reflection layer includes a plurality of geometric features that collectively reduce the reflectivity of the interface between the surface and another medium. As a result, more of an optical signal incident on the surface passes through the interface. In some embodiments, every surface through which an optical signal passes includes a geometric anti-reflection layer. Due to the increased transmissivity of the optical element, in some embodiments, the use of low-cost, high-refractive-index materials, such as conventional silicon, is enabled.

Cuvette having high optical transmissivity and method of forming

An infrared spectrometer for operation in the mid-infrared spectral range is disclosed, where the spectrometer includes a Bragg-mirror-based spectral filter that is operative for providing an output optical signal whose spectral content is spatially dispersed along a first direction, where the Bragg mirrors include low-refractive-index layers comprising a polymer material that is transmissive across the mid-infrared spectral range and is characterized by less than ten absorption peaks with the operating spectral range of the spectrometer.

Infrared spectrometer having dielectric-polymer-based spectral filter

The present disclosure is directed toward a cuvette for holding a test sample during optical interrogation with a light signal. The transmissivity of the cuvette is increased by a geometric anti-reflection layer disposed on at least one surface of the cuvette, where the geometric anti-reflection layer includes a plurality of geometric features that collectively reduce the reflectivity of the interface between the surface and another medium. As a result, more of the interrogation signal passes through the interface. In some embodiments, every surface through which the interrogation signal passes includes a geometric anti-reflection layer. Due to the increased transmissivity of the cuvette, light detected after passing through it can have an improved signal-to-noise ratio and/or the light signal used to interrogate the sample can have lower intensity. In addition, the reduction of the reflectivity of each surface enables the use of low-cost, high-refractive-index materials, such as conventional silicon.

A Fabry-Perot cavity-based spectral notch filter is disclosed, where the filter is operative for providing an output optical signal whose spectral content is spatially dispersed along at least one direction, while also controlling the spectral position and spectral range of the output light. In some embodiments, the spectral filter is integrated with a detector arrays to realize a compact, high-resolution spectrometer that can rapidly acquire the absorption spectrum of a sample with high sensitivity.

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Pasadena, CA, United States of America

Taeyoon Jeon