Washington, D.C. - U.S. Rep. Brian Baird announced today that the House Committee on Appropriations has approved $3 million for the research and development of Wafer Integrated Semiconductor Lasers for the U.S. Air Force. The lasers will be built by nLight Photonics Corporation, of Vancouver, Washington.

"nLight is a world leader in laser technology development,” said Rep. Baird.  “Their innovations help keep our soldiers safe in the field and have important applications for homeland defense.  In addition, this contract helps nLight continue their commitment to employing high-skill, high-paying jobs in the Vancouver and Clark County Area."

High power laser systems have played a critical role in our national defense over the past decade. Unfortunately, due to the high cost of semiconductor laser diodes, these systems have not been widely deployed. The funding Rep. Baird helped secure will result in cost reductions to  enable broader deployment of high power laser technology.

“Wafer scale integration will play a crucial role in lowering the cost and improving the performance of future high power laser systems,” said Jason Farmer, Vice President of Advanced Technology at nLight. “This technology will open new markets and expand existing markets.”

Currently, high power semiconductor laser diodes are manufactured one laser at a time, and then individually assembled into large arrays that consist of thousands of lasers. To reduce cost, semiconductor lasers need to be integrated at the wafer level, similar to the integration of thousands of transistors on a computer chip.

The bill, which will provide defense appropriations for fiscal year 2005, is expected to be approved by the full House prior to the July 4th Congressional recess.

###