The development of new instruments based on miniaturised room temperature MASERs: MASER in a Shoebox

基于小型化室温 MASER 的新仪器的开发：鞋盒中的 MASER

• 批准号: EP/Y00471X/1
• 负责人: Neil Alford
• 金额: $ 60.55万
• 依托单位: Imperial College London
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Research Grant
• 财政年份: 2024
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2024 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=EP%2FY00471X%2F1
• 关键词: development; new; instruments; based; miniaturised

The aim of this proposal is to develop equipment that can take advantage of the discovery of MASER action at room temperature. The MASER (Microwave Amplified Stimulated Emission of Radiation) was in fact discovered before the LASER (Light Amplified Stimulated Emission of Radiation) but required cryogenic cooling and magnetic fields. The associated infrastructure needed to operate the MASER meant that it was used in very few specialist applications such as deep space exploration. Maser research then produced lasers and around the same time, semiconductor amplifiers were developed, which brought further development to a halt. However, they were developed into very useful devices for timekeeping, radio astronomy and deep space communication (Ruby masers) because of their unparalleled low electronic noise as well as a very narrow linewidth of oscillation. The discovery of masing at room temperature is a step change that allows us to consider new instrumentation that would transform low-noise amplifiers, sensors, and clocks. If we can amplify tiny signals and increase signal to noise then we can use them as very low noise amplifiers - these are found in all manner of electronic equipment. The gamechanger is the noise floor of our maser when measured at room temperature. Our ambition therefore is to extend the astounding sensitivity and low noise of existing masers to room-temperature applications, there are two relevant comparators - existing non-ambient technologies and existing room-temperature technologies. For applications as low-noise amplifiers, a key figure of merit is the so-called "noise temperature" which should be as low as possible and for conventional electronic devices is approximately their thermodynamic temperature. The pentacene maser has an estimated noise temperature of 140 milliKelvin and the diamond maser has an estimated noise temperature of less than 2 Kelvin with theory suggesting the noise temperature could be lowered to around 300 milliKelvin, all at room temperature. Our noise floor is 1-2 orders of magnitude lower than the best semiconductor (high electron mobility transistors) available today. So for example we would get better images in a MRI machine or clearer communications. Already we can foresee additional applications for the re-engineered maser that include more sensitive medical scanners; chemical sensors for remotely detecting explosives; advanced quantum computer components; and better radio astronomy devices for potentially detecting life on other planets.Our next step is to provide a miniaturised benchtop demonstrator instrument capable of addressing these applications. This is important both to allow a transition from just studying room-temperature masers into actually using room-temperature masers, and as a step towards widespread use of these devices in other research labs and in industry. It is our experience and indeed that of colleagues engaging with industrial partners, that it is essential that we provide a proof of principle instrument.

该提案的目的是开发可以利用在室温下发现Maser动作的设备。实际上，在激光之前发现了maser（微波放大刺激的辐射发射）（光放大刺激的辐射发射），但需要低温冷却和磁场。经营MASER所需的相关基础设施意味着它在很少的专业应用程序（例如Deep Space Exploration）中使用。 Maser Research随后产生了激光，大约在同一时间，开发了半导体放大器，这使进一步的发展停止了。但是，由于其无与伦比的低电子噪声以及非常狭窄的振荡线，它们被开发为非常有用的设备，用于计时，射电天文学和深空通信（Ruby Masers）。在室温下发现MASING是一个步骤的变化，它使我们能够考虑将改变低噪声放大器，传感器和时钟的新仪器。如果我们可以扩增微小的信号并增加信号到噪声，那么我们可以将它们用作非常低的噪声放大器 - 这些都以各种电子设备的方式找到。在室温下测量时，Gamechanger是我们Maser的噪声底。因此，我们的野心是将现有MASER的惊人灵敏度和低噪声扩展到室温应用程序，有两个相关的比较器 - 现有的非镜头技术和现有的室温技术。对于作为低噪声放大器的应用，优点的关键数字是所谓的“噪声温度”，应尽可能低，对于传统的电子设备，大约是其热力学温度。五苯甲苯苯甲酸强估计的噪声温度为140 millikelvin，而钻石Maser的噪声温度低于2 kelvin，其理论表明噪声温度可以降低至室温下的噪声温度。我们的噪声底比当今可用的最佳半导体（高电子移动晶体管）低1-2个数量级。因此，例如，我们将在MRI机器或更清晰的通信中获得更好的图像。我们已经可以预见到包括更敏感的医疗扫描仪的重新设计的MASER的其他应用程序；用于远程检测炸药的化学传感器；高级量子计算机组件；以及更好的射电天文学设备，可在其他行星上检测生命。我们的下一步是提供能够解决这些应用的小型台式演示器仪器。这既要允许仅仅允许仅研究房间温度的masers到实际使用室温的masers的过渡，又要过渡到其他研究实验室和行业中广泛使用这些设备的一步。我们的经验，甚至是与工业伙伴互动的同事的经验，我们必须提供原则工具的证明。