02-27421. Inventions, Government-Owned; Availability for Licensing

AGENCY:

National Institute of Standards and Technology, Commerce.

ACTION:

Notice of Government-owned inventions available for licensing.

SUMMARY:

The inventions listed below are owned in whole by the U.S. Government, as represented by the Department of Commerce. The inventions are available for licensing in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 207 and 37 CFR part 404 to achieve expeditious commercialization of results of federally funded research and development.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Technical and licensing information on these inventions may be obtained by writing to: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Office of Technology Partnerships, Attn: Mary Clague, Building 820, Room 213, Gaithersburg, MD 20899. Information is also available via telephone: [phone], e-mail: [e-mail], or fax: [phone]. Any request for information should include the NIST Docket number and title for the relevant invention as indicated below.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

NIST may enter into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (“CRADA”) with the licensee to perform further research on the inventions for purposes of commercialization. The inventions available for licensing are:

[Docket No.: 96-012US]

Title: A Device for Spatially-Resolved, High-Sensitivity Measurement of Optical Absorption Based on Intra-Cavity Total Reflection.

Abstract: An optical cavity resonator device is provided for conducting sensitive measurement of optical absorption by matter in any state with diffraction-limited spatial resolution through utilization of total internal reflection within a high-Q (high quality, low loss) optical cavity. Intracavity total reflection generates an evanescent wave that decays exponentially in space at a point external to the cavity, thereby providing a localized region where absorbing materials can be sensitively probed through alteration of the Q-factor of the otherwise isolated cavity. When a laser pulse is injected into the cavity and passes through the evanescent state, an amplitude loss resulting from absorption is incurred that reduces the lifetime of the pulse in the cavity. By monitoring the decay of the injected pulse, the absorption coefficient of manner within the evanescent wave region is accurately obtained from the decay time measurement.

[Docket No.: 96-025CIP]

Title: Intra-Cavity Total Reflection For High Sensitivity Measurement Of Optical Properties.

Abstract: An optical cavity resonator device is provided for conducting sensitive measurement of optical absorption by matter in any state with diffraction-limited spatial resolution through utilization of total internal reflection within a high-Q (high quality, low loss) optical cavity. Intracavity total reflection generates an evanescent wave that decays exponentially in space at a point external to the cavity, thereby providing a localized region where absorbing materials can be sensitively probed through alteration of the Q-factor of the otherwise isolated cavity. When a laser pulse is injected into the cavity and passes through the evanescent state, an amplitude loss resulting from absorption is incurred that reduces the lifetime of the pulse in the cavity. By monitoring the decay of the injected pulse, the absorption coefficient of manner within the evanescent wave region is accurately obtained from the decay time measurement.

[Docket No.: 96-025US]

Title: Broadband, Ultrahigh-Sensitivity Chemical Sensor Based on Intra-Cavity Total Reflection.

Abstract: A broadband, ultrahigh-sensitivity chemical sensor is provided that allows detection through utilization of a small, extremely low-loss, monolithic optical cavity. The cavity is fabricated from highly transparent optical material in the shape of a regular polygon with one or more convex facets to form a stable resonator for ray trajectories sustained by total internal reflection. Optical radiation enters and exits the monolithic cavity by photon tunneling in which two totally reflecting surfaces are brought into close proximity. In the presence of absorbing material, the loss per pass in increased since the evanescent waves that exist exterior to the cavity at points where the circulating pulse is totally reflected, are absorbed. The decay rate of an injected pulse is determined by coupling out an infinitesimal fraction of the pulse to produce an intensity-versus-time decay curve. Since the change in the decay rate resulting from absorption is inversely proportional to the magnitude of absorption, a quantitative sensor of concentration or absorption cross-section with 1 part-per-million/pass or better sensitivity is obtained. The broadband nature of total internal reflection permits a single device to be used over a broad wavelength range. The absorption spectrum of the surrounding medium can thereby be obtained as a measurement of inverse decay time as a function of wavelength.

Dated: October 21, 2002.

Karen H. Brown,

Deputy Director.