QCL based detection of hazardous substances

Past several years have witnessed significant advances in the performance of mid wave infrared (MWIR) and long wave infrared (LWIR) QCLs. Both output power levels and wall plug efficiencies (WPE) have improved using new designs for QCL superlattice structures (the non-resonant extraction design). Continuous wave (CW) room temperature (RT) performance has now reached a level of >4 W, with WPE of ~16%, from a fully packaged device that produces a collimated beam of laser radiation at ~4.6 μm. The NRE design has permitted similar performance improvements at other wavelengths. For example, it is now possible to obtain: 2.5 W of CW/RT power at wavelengths in the 3.8 μm-4.2 μm range and >2 W of CW/RT power in the 7.0 μm-9.5 μm range. We are confident that if needed, similar or better performance can be obtained at all wavelengths in the 5.0 μm-7.0 μm range.