Redfern Integrated Optics (RIO) declared the accomplishment of the first phase of a reliability testing program based on its PLANEX lasers, which includes planar external cavity of narrow width with reduced noise, suitable for space applications. The program is based on environmental stress tests executed by RIO along with LGS Innovations, a part of Alcatel-Lucent and a NASA prime contractor.
RIO’s intrinsic external-cavity semiconductor lasers are enclosed in the standard 14-pin ‘butterfly’ package. The lasers, in the 1550 nm spectral region generate a single-frequency output of line width less than 2 kHz, over a broad variety of surrounding temperatures yield low relative intensity noise (RIN), high immunity to vibrations, and low phase noise. RIO’s lasers are eligible, satisfying the standards of Telcordia optical communications and are being deployed extensively in LIDAR and fiber optic sensing applications. The intrinsic stability and reliability of the PLANEX lasers makes them perfect for aerospace applications.
The Technical Manger at LGS, Alfonso Piccirilli said that RIO’s PLANEX lasers have been opted by NASA due to the integration of the lasers’ powerful and compact design with the mission critical performance. LGS, through the environmental stress testing concluded that the PLANEX laser is well-built and optimized to standardize with the qualification requirements of NASA missions.
According to RIO’s Director of Operations, Quality and Reliability, Dr. Georgios Margaritis, the environmental testing of RIO PLANEX lasers for NASA included improved hermeticity testing, and an extensive temperature range cycles at different conditions that was challenging. All lasers were manufactured on RIO’s production line without selective choices and succeeded. The results demonstrate that RIO’s products are reliable, benefiting current OEM customers besides facilitating future aerospace applications.
Source: http://www.rio-inc.com/