Miniature Optical Isolator

To address NASA's need for compact optical isolators, Physical Optics Corporation (POC) proposes to continue the development of a new Miniature Optical Isolator (MOI). The novel optical isolator design is based on enhanced magneto-optical (MO) effects in magnetic photonic crystals. The innovation in the technology is its capacity to engineer MO effects not only by choosing the right material but also by adjusting the lattice parameters of 1 dimensional photonic crystals. While occupying a very small volume (~0.1 cm^3), a MOI device will achieve high optical transmission (2 dB or less forward loss) and excellent optical isolation (40 dB) at target wavelengths at a low cost. Therefore, the MOI technology directly addresses NASA's requirements for a compact, robust optical isolator for applications in cold atom systems. In Phase I, POC demonstrated the feasibility of the MOI technology through modeling and analysis, as well as fabrication of a proof-of-concept prototype with basic performance parameters characterized. In Phase II, POC will further optimize the device and fabricate prototypes for validation of key performance metrics, as well as evaluate life cycle and environmental performance.

The primary NASA applications of the proposed MOI system are in metrology, magnetometry, and inertial navigation. NASA applications inherently require miniaturization of all system components. Frequency stabilized lasers are currently used in atomic clocks. Next-generation magnetometers and inertial navigation sensors also need optical isolation of the laser sources. In any NASA application that requires frequency stabilized lasers, MOI devices can replace bulky optical isolators to reduce the volume by a factor of >100.

Metrology and inertial navigation are important in various military and civilian applications. Laboratory demonstrations already have shown that cold-atom systems are superior to any other technologies for navigation and timing applications. However, the biggest hurdle in transitioning this technology into field-deployable units is quite often the sheer volume and weight of the system. To take full advantage of the extraordinary performance of cold atom systems, miniaturization of individual components is necessary. Other than metrology and navigation, optical isolators also have significant commercial applications in diverse fields, such as optical telecommunication, magneto-optic imaging, and gas sensing.

This is a mature technology (TRL 7) — the realistic path in is usually NASA's Technology Transfer Program: licensing an existing NASA patent, or a Space Act Agreement to use NASA facilities/expertise directly. NASA also runs a startup licensing program with no upfront fee for companies formed to commercialize a specific NASA technology.

None of these are guaranteed paths for this specific project — TechPort itself doesn't have an "apply" button. Reaching out to the contact(s) above with a specific question is usually the fastest way to find out what's actually open.