Grant: Engage Grants Program

The aim of the project is to explore the possibility of developing large scale, narrow band and single or multiple wavelength thin film optical filters for application in the aviation industry. This work will be undertaken in collaboration with LamdaGuard Canada Inc., a New Brunswick advanced materials and systems engineering company, which has applied for a patent in this regard. One of the major problems in the aviation industry is recent years has been laser interference, whereby individuals intentionally shine lasers towards airplanes while airborne, especially during landings (90%). With the proliferation of high-power handheld lasers (up to 1W) and their sharp drop in price, over 5,000 incidents have been reported in 2011, which are expected to increase to over 80,000 incidents per year worldwide by 2015, if current trends continue. Such laser interference distracts, temporarily blinds or even damages the eyes of the pilots, putting at risk at the same time the lives of the passengers. Hence, the proposed project seeks a solution that filters out the known and popular laser wavelengths, such as green and blue. Optical filters are well known and have found many applications. Goggles for researchers and operators working with lasers and special windows for laser laboratories exist for single wavelength lasers. These traditional Laser Protection Systems cannot be adapted for the protection of pilots and airplanes because they provide broadband filtering, with a tinted / coloured optical effect which significantly impairs the pilot's vision. Thus, new solutions are sought to address the specific need for this application i.e. an optically transparent / colourless filter. The current project will focus on the development of interference filters based on the Sol-gel method, capable of high and narrow band reflection for at least one wavelength. This is because Sol-gel allows the fabrication of large-scale films, which are required for the aviation application. Sol-gel will be carried out using existing materials and/or refractive index adjusted materials in thin film forms. Fabrication, optimization and testing of these mirrors under high power laser illumination in our laboratory will be the experimental verification of the proposed project.