1. Compositionally Tuned Solid-State Laser Materials
This project is aimed at developing new solid-state laser materials where the absorption and emission spectra are compositionally tuned to allow free-run lasing at the desired wavelength. This is accomplished by precisely varying the lattice constant of a given material thereby shifting the energy levels of the active dopant ion. This research project is also exploring the potential of this concept for systematic control of energy levels for optimization or quenching of upconversion processes.

2. Optical Power Limiters
This project is directed toward developing new materials and optical power limiter designs for the protection of sensors and the human eye from laser radiation in the visible and near infrared portions of the electromagnetic spectrum. Rapid advances in laser technology have resulted in new and improved performance laser systems that are compact, efficient and operate at a variety of wavelengths. The use of lasers has also become widespread in a variety of applications including remote sensing, ranging, and guidance systems. As a result, there is a need for methods to protect both human eyes and optical sensors from intense laser radiation while providing near normal visual transmission.

3. Optical Memories and Optical Signal Processing
This project is aimed at advancing the capabilities of materials for use in persistent spectral holeburning (PSHB) applications and on developing key components required for the construction of devices that will demonstrate real world application of this technology. Optical storage and processing based on PSHB is one of the few technologies capable of meeting current and future computing and data storage demands. This technology is sufficiently mature that it is now possible to construct first generation prototype devices that meet or exceed the capabilities of state of the art technologies. These devices currently employ rare earth doped insulating crystals as the storage or processing media and have the potential for data bandwidths of 100’s of gigahertz to terahertz (THz) combined with demonstrated storage densities exceeding a gigabit/cm2 and raw bit error rates of < 10-6.

4. New Dopant/Host Compositions
This project is focused on the development of new materials based on SMC's high-perfection crystal growth systems. These materials are aimed at expanding the application arena of doped inorganic crystals as well as for application in existing opto-electronic technologies.