Alpes Lasers S.A. is a Swiss engineering company and manufacturer of Infrared lasers and electrical drivers based in St-Blaise, Canton of Neuchâtel. The company was the first to commercialize the quantum-cascade laser (QCL) for scientific,[2][3] industrial[4] and medical[5] use.[6] The company has also developed QCLs for defensive countermeasure applications for the United States Air Force.[7]

Alpes Lasers S.A.
Company typePublic
IndustryPhotonics
Founded(August 22, 1998; 26 years ago (1998-08-22))
FoundersJérôme Faist, Antoine Muller, Matthias Beck
HeadquartersAvenue des Pâquiers 1, 2072 St. Blaise, Switzerland
Key people
Antoine Muller
(CEO)
Products
WebsiteOfficial website
Footnotes / references
[1]

The company was founded in 1998 by physicists Jérôme Faist), Antoine Muller and Matthias Beck as a spin-off from the University of Neuchâtel. The company became involved in the design, manufacture and distribution of QCLs, which were first developed by Jerome Faist, Federico Capasso, Deborah Sivco, Carlo Sirtori, Albert Hutchinson, and Alfred Cho at Bell Laboratories in 1994.[8] Prior to founding Alpes Lasers, Faist co-authored the US patent for the quantum cascade laser.[9] In Switzerland, the firm has worked on projects with the university of Neuchatel[10] and ETH Zurich[11] where Faist currently holds a professorship in the department of physics.[12]

In 2007, Alpes Lasers supplied NASA with lasers for gas analysis instruments on Mars rovers.[13]

In 2017, the firm introduced QCL frequency combs commercially.[14][15]

References

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  1. ^ "Corporate Profile". Alpes Lasers S.A. Retrieved April 29, 2020.
  2. ^ Walker, Richard (2011). Quantum Cascade Laser Spectroscopy: Applications and Developments (PhD). University of Oxford.
  3. ^ Bergin, Ann G.V. (2013). Applications of optical-feedback cavity-enhanced absorption spectroscopy (PhD). University of Oxford.
  4. ^ Moser, H.; Pölz, W.; Waclawek, J. P. (January 2017). "Implementation of a quantum cascade laser-based gas sensor prototype for sub-ppmv H2S measurements in a petrochemical process gas stream". Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry. 409 (3): 729–739. doi:10.1007/s00216-016-9923-z. PMC 5233737. PMID 27640208.
  5. ^ Rubin, T.; Von Haimberger, T.; Helmke, A. (May 2016). "Liver Status Assessment by Spectrally and Time Resolved IR Detection of Drug Induced Breath Gas Changes". Photonics. 3 (2): 31. doi:10.3390/photonics3020031.
  6. ^ "Alpes commercializes quantum-cascade laser". Laser Focus World. Retrieved April 30, 2020.
  7. ^ "Alpes Lasers to Supply QCLs to US Air Force Intelligence Project". Photonics Media. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
  8. ^ Faist, Jerome; Federico Capasso; Deborah L. Sivco; Carlo Sirtori; Albert L. Hutchinson; Alfred Y. Cho (April 1994). "Quantum Cascade Laser". Science. 264 (5158): 553–556. Bibcode:1994Sci...264..553F. doi:10.1126/science.264.5158.553. PMID 17732739.
  9. ^ US patent US5936989A, Federico Capasso; Alfred Yi Cho & Jerome Faist, "Quantum cascade laser", published 1999-08-10, issued 1999-08-10, assigned to Lucent Technologies Inc. 
  10. ^ "LONO-QCL (High reliability LOw-NOise Quantum Cascade Lasers for Earth observation)". Université de Neuchâtel. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  11. ^ "Spin-offs". qoe.ethz.ch. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  12. ^ "Faist, Jérôme, Prof. Dr. | ETH Zurich". qoe.ethz.ch. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  13. ^ "Swiss lasers light up Mars mission". Swissinfo. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  14. ^ "Product Focus: Alpes Lasers commercially introduces frequency-comb quantum-cascade lasers". Laser Focus World. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
  15. ^ "Alpes Lasers launches frequency comb quantum cascade lasers". Semiconductor Today. Retrieved May 4, 2020.