Optics and Electronics
A principal area of Nanohmics’ expertise is in optics and electronics, and in systems that employ optical transduction or detection. A specialty is low-noise optical detection – Nanohmics has experience in engineering optimal architectures for low-signal-level optical detection in fluorescence, laser-radar, and remote-sensing applications.
Nanohmics engineers have experience in classical imaging optical system design and optimization, but specialize in novel whole-system designs that may include illumination from lasers and/or LED’s, advanced detectors and imagers, coherent imaging optics, interferometry, holography, or spectroscopy. A strong emphasis on physical-optics design principles, coupled with capable analysis tools from ray-tracing to wave propagation, ensures a successful project from concept to final test.
A successful electro-optic system design often depends critically upon the electronic post-processing of the optical signals. Nanohmics engineering staff are specialists with low-noise analog amplification of detector outputs and the subsequent digitization and signal-processing algorithms that are used to extract meaningful results. We have designed and constructed many systems with embedded microcontrollers to direct the acquisition of data and perform simple digital processing. More complex problems might require a dedicated digital signal processor (DSP), and we have extensive experience with both the hardware and software engineering required to use these devices. At the end of the signal processing chain, a user must interact with the hardware and embedded software to achieve the desired results, and Nanohmics engineers have direct and relevant experience with both laboratory-based and end-user-based graphical user interface design and implementation, either on mobile platforms (PDA) or on a desktop PC.
To support Nanohmics’ electrical and optical system design efforts, our laboratories have small and large optical breadboarding capabilities using off-the-shelf optical mounting methods to build up breadboard systems. Further refinement usually requires more customized packaging, and Nanohmics’ mechanical engineering and packaging expertise allows the creation of mechanical drawings and NC-machined articles for system realizations from prototype through full manufacturing. In-house electrical design, multi-layer printed circuit board (PCB) layout, PCB assembly, and testing round out our electrical capabilities. Our engineers have experience with PCB design for RF signals, high-voltage, and impedance control, as well as specific low-noise layout techniques and methodologies.