Stand-Off Portable Chemical Analyzer

To address the U.S. Navy need of a portable device for remote identification of unknown chemicals, Physical Optics Corporation (POC) proposes to develop a new Stand-off Portable Chemical Analyzer (SOPCA). This device is based on differential tunable remote sensing Raman spectrometry, Raman holographic edge filters, and spectral adaptive light filtering with an acousto-optic tunable filter. It will perform safe, convenient, efficient, and near-real-time detection and analysis of suspect chemicals, including chemical warfare agents. In Phase I POC will demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed SOPCA by performing a series of tests on common laboratory chemicals in the laboratory. In Phase I POC also will begin to identify sources of financial and other support for successful commercialization of products based on SOPCA technology in Phase III. In Phase II, POC plans to optimize the design and complete the development of a portable SOPCA for field testing. The Raman spectral database of materials of interest to the Navy will be assembled at the same time.