NASA SBIR 2006 Solicitation

SMALL BUSINESS CONCERN (Firm Name, Mail Address, City/State/Zip, Phone)
PolarOnyx, Inc.
470 Lakeside Drive, Suite F
Sunnyvale, CA 94085 - 4720
(408) 245-9588

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/PROJECT MANAGER (Name, E-mail, Mail Address, City/State/Zip, Phone)
Jian Liu
jianliu@polaronyx.com
470 Lakeside Drive, Suite F
Sunnyvale, CA 94085 - 4720
(408) 245-9588

TECHNICAL ABSTRACT (Limit 2000 characters, approximately 200 words)
This SBIR phase II project proposes a single frequency high energy fiber laser system for coherent Lidar systems for remote sensing. Current state-of-art technologies can not provide all features of high energy and efficiency, compactness, narrow linewidth, super frequency and power stability, low noise, and high extinction ratio at the same time. PolarOnyx proposes, for the first time, a high energy (1 mJ) single frequency (< 1 KHz) fiber laser transmitter to meet with the requirement of solicitation. It is a specialty fiber based MOPA operating at 1550 nm. PolarOnyx proposes a revolutionary approach to fundamentally resolve the issues of nonlinear effects by employing our patent pending proprietary technologies in fiber lasers. Our unique spectral shaping techniques enable us to reduce the SBS and ASE noise significantly in the amplifier for commercially available EYDFs and to reuse the residual pump to further increase the efficiency. These will make the fiber laser transmitter system superior in terms of wall plug efficiency (over 30%), energy(1 mJ), noise, size, and cost. In Phase I, we have demonstrated all major functions of the proposed idea and shown a practical energy scaling capability in proof of the concept. A prototype of 1 mJ level fiber laser will be delivered at the end of Phase II.

POTENTIAL NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS (Limit 1500 characters, approximately 150 words)
There are a number of potential applications for the proposed high power fiber laser transmitter system: • Medical equipment and biomedical instrumentation. The high power laser can be applied to ophthalmology, refractive surgery, photocoagulation, general surgery, therapeutic, imaging, and cosmetic applications. • Military / aerospace. The proposed fiber laser can be directly used in military applications, and space, aircraft, and satellite applications such as LIDAR systems, remote sensing system, illuminator system, and phase array antenna system. • Optical fiber communications.

POTENTIAL NON-NASA COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS (Limit 1500 characters, approximately 150 words)
Immediate applications include coherent lidars applications for atmospheric parameters measurement. Other NASA applications include coherent laser communications, remote sensing, windshear detection, et al..

NASA's technology taxonomy has been developed by the SBIR-STTR program to disseminate awareness of proposed and awarded R/R&D in the agency. It is a listing of over 100 technologies, sorted into broad categories, of interest to NASA.

TECHNOLOGY TAXONOMY MAPPING

Biomedical and Life Support Biomolecular Sensors High-Energy Laser Optical