SBIR-STTR Award

Functionalized by Atomic Layer Deposition Thin Films Efficient manufacture of extreme surface area Microchannel plate devices functionalized by atomic layer deposition thin films is an essential component of next generation high energy physics detector designs as well as novel detection applications in medical discovery and diagnostics and homeland security applications. The work proposed in this SBIR proposal is intended to follow the basic R&D effort of a consortium of national laboratories, universities, and industry, led by Argonne National Laboratory and the University of Chicago for the development of new, large area, photo-detector devices. This project proposes to address the commercialization gap that exists between the proof-of-principle large area photo-detector (LAPD) program and the efficient manufacture of large area Microchannel plate devices using atomic layer deposition (ALD). For programs such as the Deep Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory (DUSEL) project and other applications in high energy physics, medical discovery and diagnostics and homeland security applications this will be transformational. Arradiance, as the key commercial ALD component of the Argonne LAPD collaboration, will develop productive recipes, without sacrificing MCP performance, for the LAPD device. In parallel, Arradiance will develop production equipment that can effectively and efficiently produce the large area MCP devices, in which a single 8.

The work proposed in this SBIR proposal is is synergistic with the, DOE funded, basic R & amp;D effort of a consortium of national laboratories, universities, and industry, led by Argonne National Laboratory and the University of Chicago for the development of new, large area, photodetector devices. This project proposes to address the commercialization gap that exists between the proofofprinciple large area photodetector (LAPD) program and the efficient manufacture of large area Microchannel plate (MCP) devices using atomic layer deposition (ALD). For programs such as the Deep Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory (DUSEL) project and other applications in high energy physics, medical discovery and diagnostics and homeland security applications this will be transformational. Arradiance, as the key commercial ALD contributor to the Argonne LAPD collaboration, has developed nanofilm based MCP devices that exceed commercial microchannel plate (MCP) performance, for the small test samples that mimic the LAPD MCP device. In Phase I, Arradiance was able to demonstrate the feasibility of producing the large area LAPD MCP device through an innovative set of surface area experiments that simulated the LAPD MCP device using existing ALD process equipment. The MCPs produced in this experiment performed identically to MCPs produced in small batch environments. Arradiance has also developed a conceptual large area ALD system design that has improved upon many of the gaps in the existing, small sample process equipment. Phase II will enable Arradiance to fully produce and provide to the Argonne collaboration the large area LAPD MCP for process development and device optimization. Phase II will also afford Arradiance the opportunity to optimize the process and equipment to support economical LAPD MCP production for applications in high energy physics. The techniques, developed in this proposal required for largescale commercial ALD production of the LAPD a family of largearea robust detectors with the capability to be tailored for a wide variety of applications for which largearea economical photon detection will be transformational. Success of this program has the potential to impact many other applications where ALD is used to coat extremely high surface area materials in technology areas such as: catalysis, fuel cell, energy storage and filtration.