SBIR-STTR Award

nanoPrecision Products (nPP) proposes development of a new family of hermetic multi-fiber feedthrough subassemblies, for Navy and commercial applications by utilizing a proprietary nano-scale metal stamping process which can achieve nanometer scale tolerances with high repeatability and very low cost. This process can manufacture revolutionary low cost, high density metal termini transmission solutions for fiber optic signals. nanoPrecision Products is pioneering the development of a nano-precision stamping process for metal components with a goal of 100 nm form tolerances by combining deterministic micro-grinding (DMG) with computerized modeling, metrology, and optimization of fundamental process materials and mechanics no such capability exists today

Benefit:
The commercial application of this technology can be utilized for severe environments such as off-shore oil drilling and fiber-to-the-home now being widely deployed throughout the United States. The application base can also be expanded to include automotive data transmission and optical sensors providing lower cost and ease of installation and repair. Additionally, EMI-proof hermetic micro-electronic and optoelectronic packages and sensors in general will benefit. With respect to the manufacturing process, there is a need to develop a deterministic manufacturing capability to fabricate metal products with the tolerances now only achievable with semi-conductor processing based technologies. The final goal is to develop the technologies leading to an integrated science of machining, stamping, tool and die formation and the related computer aided design methodology to produce low cost and highly repeatable metallic products and components. In addition to the Fiber Optic Connectors and Military Safe and Arm Fuze applications, other potential defense applications include precision tolerance gimbals and slip rings, precision disk memory drives, precision cavities for microwave, millimeter wave and terahertz components, precision robotics, and bio-medical devices.

Keywords:
Nanometer tolerance, Nanometer tolerance, Finite Element Analysis, optical termini, Nanometer machining, Hermetic Connector, stamping, optical feedthrough, Optical Connector

nanoPrecision Products (nPP) proposes the development of a new family of hermetic multi-fiber optic feed-through sub-assemblies and the related optoelectronics packaging attachment processes for avionics fiber optic transceivers. A low-cost manufacturing process will be developed to produce the feed-through components. New hermetic sealing techniques will enable high yield, high coupling efficiency assembly of 250 micrometer pitch free-space and fiber optic feed-through. The feed-through will be able to interface with commercial multi-terminus fiber optic ferrules and optoelectronic device arrays.

Benefit:
The commercial application of this technology can be utilized for severe environments such as off-shore oil drilling and fiber-to-the-home now being widely deployed throughout the United States and ROW. The application base can also be expanded to automotive data transmission and optical sensors providing lower-cost and ease of installation and repair. Additionally, EMI-proof hermetic micro-electronic and optoelectronic packages and sensors in general will benefit. With respect to the manufacturing process, there is a need to develop a deterministic manufacturing capability to fabricate metal products with the tolerances now only achievable with semi-conductor processing based technologies. The final goal is to develop the technologies leading to an integrated science of machining, stamping, tool and die formation and the related computer aided design methodology to produce low-cost and highly repeatable metallic products and components. In addition to the Fiber Optic Connectors and Military Safe and Arm Fuze applications, other potential defense applications include precision tolerance gimbals and slip rings, precision disk memory drives, precision cavities for microwave, millimeter wave and terahertz components, precision robotics, and bio-medical devices.

Keywords:
Low-cost, detachable, optoelectronics-packaging, Rugged, Hermetic, Multi-fiber optical interface