Picometrix® finds its new home as the TeraMetrix™ division of Luna

http://lunainc.com/picometrix-finds-home-terametrix-division-luna/

Picometrix^® is a name synonymous with state of the art terahertz systems.  With release of the first commercially available terahertz system in 2000, Picometrix established itself as the world leader in fiber coupled terahertz.  Now with a 4^th generation product on the market, and our world leading position in industrial process control, we are changing our name.  Under the same leadership and technical team, we are now TeraMetrix^TM in recognition of increased focus on our terahertz product line.

Through the merger of Advanced Photonix, Inc. with Luna Innovations, Inc., TeraMetrix is now a division of Luna Innovations (NASDAQ: LUNA).  The T-Ray 5000 product line of TeraMetrix fits perfectly into the suite of fiber optic test and sensing products of Luna.

With strong support from Luna, we have a full schedule of exhibits and demonstrations covering a variety of applications including industrial process control, non-destructive testing, aerospace, and research.

Keep your eye on this blog for updates on the advanced features of our products and the opportunities to see them in action.

Terahertz is Making Waves in the Plastics Sector

By Jan H. Schut

http://read.nxtbook.com/wiley/plastics_engineering/november_december_2017/index.html#terahertz_is_making_waves_in

iNOEX’s Quantum 360 terahertz device controls pipe wall and layer thickness in foam core PVC and corrugated pipe, which can’t be measured by ultrasound gauges in water because of air in the pipe walls. Terahertz is noncontact, so devices don’t need to be sized for each pipe diameter. Photo courtesy of iNOEX

Terahertz waves have been exciting researchers in the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and teaching hospitals for 50 years. NASA uses them to measure remnants of energy from the Big Bang and to test materials in the space program. Hospital labs are trying to use them to identify skin cancer cells in minutes instead of days. But practical industrial applications were nearly non-existent until six years ago. 

One of the first industrial uses of pulsed terahertz waves was in plastics, so used because of the wave’s unique ability to penetrate opaque, shiny, even black plastic, and “see” multiple layers. 

The first plastics application was for in-line control of layer thickness in co-extruded polyolefin roofing, installed in November 2011. Later applications include wall thickness measuring in PVC foam core pipe; diameter and thickness measuring in dual-wall corrugated pipe; and control of two densities in coextruded polystyrene foam sheet. 

None of these could be measured and controlled by existing devices like nuclear, X-ray, infrared, or ultrasound measurements. Nuclear and X-ray gauges are widely used to calculate total wall thickness but have worker safety issues. Infrared spectroscopy can identify polymers and verify the presence of a barrier layer in co-extrusion but can’t measure opaque plastic or differentiate layers of the same material. Ultrasonic waves can verify total pipe wall thickness in a water tank but not if walls have air in them like foam core PVC pipe or dual-wall corrugated. Foam density can be measured by combining nuclear and “laser shadow” gauges but not as precisely as with a single terahertz gauge. 

Terahertz ––and similar millimeter ––wave systems to control thickness, density, and dimensions in plastic extrusion have been a well-kept secret. There are now nearly 60 commercial installations in plastic sheet, film, pipe, and lamination, mostly in the U.S. and Europe. All but one, however, are confidential. The application of the technology for plastics has only been briefly mentioned at major plastics trade shows over the past five years. The technology itself has been written up almost exclusively in photonics and electronics journals. 

Meet Teraherz Waves

Electromagnetic waves are measured in length and frequency. Wavelengths are reported in meters, millimeters, micrometers, and nanometers. Frequency is given in hertz where one hertz is one cycle per second. The electromagnetic wave scale goes from radio waves, which can be as long as a kilometer, through micro, millimeter, terahertz, infrared, visible, and ultraviolet light waves to X- and gamma rays, which are the shortest. Millimeter and terahertz waves fall comfortably in the middle between microwave and infrared. In Europe and Japan, terahertz refers to the whole millimeter/terahertz range, while in North America millimeter and terahertz are classified separately. 

As electromagnetic waves become shorter, their frequency increases. The spectrum is continuous, so there are no precise beginnings and endings of ranges. They’re often defined somewhere in the middle. Microwaves range roughly from 1 meter to 100 mm long with frequencies of 300 megahertz up to 3 gigahertz (300 million to 3 billion cycles per second). Millimeter waves range roughly from 7.5 mm to 3 mm long with frequencies of 40 gigahertz up to 100 gigahertz (40 billion to 100 billion cycles per second). Terahertz waves range roughly from 3 mm to 0.1 mm (or 100 micrometers) long with frequencies of 0.1 to 10 terahertz (100 billion to 10 trillion cycles per second), though most terahertz equipment stops at 3 terahertz. X-rays at the short end of the spectrum are from 10 to 0.01 nanometers long with frequencies of 30 petahertz to 30 exahertz, and gamma rays are even shorter. Terahertz waves don’t damage human cells like UV, X-, and gamma rays, though research done nearly a decade ago at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico suggests terahertz can alter DNA if the energy is powerful enough. 

Terahertz waves can be directed like light to produce visual images and transmitted short distances like radio waves. Most significant to plastic applications, terahertz waves reflect, pass through, or are absorbed differently by various substances,
so they can be used to identify materials and measure wall and layer thickness without contact. Noncontact measuring means terahertz devices don’t have to be sized for a particular pipe diameter like ultrasound. Until six years ago, terahertz devices were commercial only for aerospace, medical, and R&D applications because the sensors were so expensive. 

There are two types of millimeter and terahertz wave devices: those that emit a steady continuous energy stream with narrow frequency in the millimeter or terahertz range, used primarily for imaging, and those that emit a continuous stream of ultra-short pulses, used for both imaging and thickness measuring. Pulsed signals for thickness control measure time intervals as signals pass through or reflect off surfaces or layer interfaces. Pulsed millimeter and terahertz devices include “photoconductive switches” driven by an ultra-short pulse laser and “Cherenkov sources” driven by a much higher power, ultra-short-pulse laser, shining through a nonlinear crystal (lithium niobate). Both operate at room temperature. 

Pulsed terahertz waves can measure plastic walls up to 6 inches thick, depending on polymer and filler, but they can’t measure very thin layers. “In a monolayer sheet we can measure down to 12 microns, but in a multi-layer stack the thinnest layer we can measure is approximately 50 microns,” notes Irl Duling, director of business development at TeraMetrix LLC of Ann Arbor, Mich. 

TeraMetrix, formerly Picometrix, is the oldest maker of pulsed industrial terahertz devices. It was founded in 1992. Millimeter waves, which are longer than terahertz, can penetrate even thicker walls because of a longer wavelength. However, they are lower bandwidth, so they are less precise than terahertz. Both wavelengths can also check concentricity and diameter in pipe, but terahertz measures smaller pipe diameters, while millimeter waves measure larger diameters. 

First Industrial Teraherz Sensors in Plastics

 At least five makers of control instruments offer pulsed terahertz devices for plastic thickness measuring, some for sheet and film, some for pipe. Some build the sensors, some specialize in installations and develop software. TeraMetrix, a division of LUNA Innovations Inc., uses technology designed by Bell Labs with a proprietary semiconductor and patented fiber coupling. The company makes its low-temperature-grown indium gallium arsenide (InGaAs) semiconductor material in-house and shines a short-pulse laser into the semiconductor, which has a small antenna on top to produce terahertz waves. 

TeraMetrix (formerly Picometrix) claims to have built the world’s first commercial terahertz wave system in 1999 for

Sikora offers a new millimeter wave thickness measuring device called Centerwave 6000 in five sizes for pipe from 90 mm to 3.2 meters in diameter. Its first millimeter device was sold in May to control wall thickness of monolayer sheet; the second will control monolayer pipe. Photo courtesy of Sikora

university research and development. It was called the T-Ray 2000. The company developed the QA-1000 in 2004 for NASA to control the adherence of foam insulation sprayed onto liquid hydrogen fuel tanks for space shuttles. In 2007, Picometrix introduced its T-Ray 4000 control unit, the first industrial terahertz device with a short pulse fiber laser, which was used by NASA to measure things like corrosion, delamination, and coating thickness in the space program. 

In November 2011, Automation and Control Technology Inc. (ACT) of Dublin, Ohio, integrated a T-Ray 4000 terahertz sensor from Picometrix into a coextruded sheet line in the U.S. making 10- to12-foot wide thermoplastic polyolefin roofing in 100-foot rolls. This is believed to be the first mainstream industrial application of terahertz in plastics and possibly the first anywhere. The sensor scans back and forth to measure and control the thickness of a top virgin white layer coextruded over a fabric scrim while a gray regrind layer is extruded on the back. Both layers are measured by one terahertz sensor, but only the top layer is automatically controlled by ACT’s software with die control of 1-inch zones. The bottom layer is controlled manually. ACT’s system reportedly reduces overall thickness deviation to less than +/- 0.6 mils.

 In 2012, Picometrix introduced a hand-held thickness measuring device called single-point gauge,which measures one point on a plastic wall at a time, and a T-Ray 5000 solid-state, photoconductive switch type terahertz sensor. T-Ray 5000 is the first terahertz system that is CE UL qualified for an industrial environment. ACT also installed the first T-Ray 5000 that year on a co-ex EPDM sheet line measuring layer thickness and density with a single sensor. 

Recently, ACT installed terahertz sensors on coextruded polystyrene foam sheet lines for cups in Michigan and Pennsylvania to control two foam layers of different density. The sheet is formed as a horizontal bubble and slit in two, so two sensors are needed. Foam sheet is then cut into strips the height of the cup, the lip is rolled, and the bottom welded on. In February 2017 Indev Gauging Systems Inc. (indevsystems.com), a unit of Jasch Industries Ltd. in India, acquired the assets of ACT, and the combined company now does business as Indev-ACT (www.indev-ACT.com). David Pond, president of Indev-ACT, says it has installed 20 Envision Terahertz thickness measuring systems on plastic sheet, film, foam, and coating lines, all in the U.S.

Terahertz waves reflect, pass through, or are absorbed differently by different plastics, so they can measure layers inside a plastic wall without contact. A pulsed terahertz signal returns from layered surfaces, is reflected onto a sensor, and interpreted by software to measure layer thickness. Image courtesy of SKZ

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. partnered with Picometrix in 2012 to incorporate its terahertz device into Thermo Scientific’s web gauging and measurement control platforms. Thermo Fisher, headquartered in Erlangen, Germany, first showed the technology at the K Show in 2013 and has 15 installations in extruded plastics, foam, and laminated building products. Its Thermo Scientific Terahertz Sensor provides noncontact single layer or multilayer thickness measurement of calendered, laminated, or coextruded material and can “simultaneously measure total thickness, basis weight, and density, and detect delamination with one sensor,” Thermo Fisher says. 

iNOEX GmbH of Melle, Germany, developed the first terahertz system for pipe, called Quantum 360, using commercially available pulsed terahertz sensors and proprietary software to control wall thickness in foam core PVC and corrugated polyethylene and polypropylene pipe. Quantum 360 was developed with SKZ, formerly Sud-Deutsche Kunststoff-Zentrum, Germany’s largest plastics institute, and also introduced at K 2013 in Germany.

 iNOEX’s patent application WO 201574642 claims a preferable frequency range from 0.1 to 10 terahertz with a high energy efficiency/wave output ratio of 1/100 with no cooling needed. A temperature change of 10˚C in the terahertz device reportedly makes a deviation of only 0.001 mm in measured wall thickness.

 Quantum 360 comes in four sizes for pipe diameters of 10 to 250 mm; 63 to 400 mm; 250 to 1,000 mm, and 250 to 1,200 mm, all for wall thicknesses from 100 microns to 60 mm. iNOEX says 10 systems are installed commercially to control smooth and foam-core pipe, mostly in Europe. The first Quantum 360 pipe system for corrugated pipe was installed in the U.S. in 2015. 

“The difficulty is that we have to reverse around the pipe and also move at line speed with the pipe to measure the circumference of one crown and valley,” says iNOEX marketing director Arno Neumeister. 

One corrugated pipe client previously took a destructive test sample every hour to be sure the pipe was in spec, but now only does a destructive test once a day, iNOEX says.

 Two German laser makers also build pulsed terahertz sensors, which are used by research institutes and universities: Menlo Systems GmbH in Planegg and Toptica Photonics AG in Graefelfing. Toptica offers an industrial pulsed terahertz
device intended for plastic thickness control, which Toptica says can resolve plastic layers down to 10 to 20 microns depending on polymer. But there are no known industrial installations in plastics.  

Picometrix built the first commercial terahertz device, T-Ray 2000, in 1999 for university R&D and the first industrial terahertz device with CE UL certification, T-Ray 5000, in 2012. The T-Ray 5000 is shown here controlling layer thickness on co-ex TPO roofing. Photo courtesy of Picometrix

First Millimeter Sensors for Plastics

 At the K 2016 show in Germany last October, four companies introduced what are believed to be the first commercial millimeter wave thickness gauges for plastics. iNOEX launched its WARP 100 and WARP Portable millimeter wave sensors to control large diameter pipe, using solid-state, chip-like transceivers built in-house. WARP 100 uses 19 fixed transceivers distributed around the pipe circumference to measure 100 percent wall and layer thickness with a minimum wall thickness of 5 mm. It also controls diameter, ovality, and eccentricity. WARP 100 can measure up to 150 mm diameter multilayer polyethylene pressure pipes and 100 mm diameter PVC pipe, depending on the compound and level of filler, which absorbs energy. iNOEX has installed 10 WARP 100s, and sold 50 WARP Portable handheld thickness measuring devices in three months since they began shipping in June.

 Sikora AG of Bremen, Germany, introduced its Centerwave 6000 millimeter wave device to measure wall thickness, diameter, and ovality of plastic pipes with a frequency range of 80 to 300 gigahertz. The technology, for which the company has applied for a patent (WO Pat. # 2016139155), was developed with the Fraunhofer Institut fur Hochfrequenzphysik und Radartechnik in Wachtberg, Germany, and the SKZ. Sikora sold its first system in May 2017 for 2.5 meter-wide, monolayer sheet with thickness of 3.8 to 25 mm. The first pipe system was installed in the second half of 2017 for mono-layer pipe with an outer diameter of 630 mm. Sikora offers five systems for smooth monolayer pipe from 90 mm to 3.2 meters in diameter. They use either one or two constantly rotating transceivers for 360-degree thickness measuring or two static transceivers measuring four points of the pipe circumference. Sikora also says it’s developing a terahertz system to measure thinner walls, as well as software to measure layers in multilayer pipe. 

Sysmetric Ltd. of Afula, Israel, a maker of material handling and feeding systems for plastics, introduced a millimeter wave device to control total wall thickness for plastic pipe using a commercial millimeter device with a frequency of around 60 gigahertz. Sysmetric, founded in 2003, has installed “less than a half dozen” millimeter sensors for pipe thickness control, all in Israel, and expects to offer them outside of Israel late this year. 

Paint and Other Layer Control in R&D

IMD Ltd. of Bruegg, Switzerland, introduced an off-line terahertz
test device at K 2016 to check layer thickness in coex
bottles and preforms. The first generation used a photoconductive
switch device built by TeTechS Inc. of Waterloo,
Ont., but was taken off the market. IMD’s second-generation
test device uses an industrial terahertz sensor from
another supplier and can reportedly analyze layers in more
complex bottle shapes. IMD plans to relaunch the device in
2018.
Three companies are developing pulsed terahertz devices
to control the thickness of automotive paint layers, but none
are believed close to commercial. Helmut Fischer GmbH,
headquartered in Sindelfingen, Germany, and the Fraunhofer-
Institut fur Technno- und Wirtschaftsmathematik in
Kaiserslautern, Germany, are integrating terahertz for automotive
paint control, and presented the technology at a

coating conference in Germany this year. ABB Switzerland
Ltd. of Baden-Daettwil, Switzerland, is adapting terahertz to
robotics for automotive painting. ABB presented its findings
in Cancun at IRMMW-THz 2017, a 40-plus year-old conference
on infrared, millimeter and terahertz research. IMRA America
Inc. of Ann Arbor, Mich., a laser company, supplied pulsed
lasers for “Cherenkov” crystal devices to control automotive
paint layer thickness in Japan based on technology from
Nagoya University.
In other non-plastic thickness measuring applications,
Tokyo-based Advantest Corp. developed a pulsed TS 9000
MTA terahertz system for thickness measuring in semi-conductor
chip production, which Advantest says is the only
commercial system in chip production. Advantest. TeraView
Ltd. of Cambridge, U.K., and TeraSense Group Inc. of San
Jose, Calif., also offer pulsed terahertz devices for medical
imaging. There are also pulsed terahertz research groups
at the Fraunhofer Heinrich-Hertz Institute in Berlin and at
Osaka University in Japan.
Continuous terahertz and millimeter wave devices, used
only for imaging, are very different––and less expensive––
than pulsed devices. Continuous waves are generated
by electronic devices like radar, vacuum devices like “backward
wave oscillators,” “quantum cascade” lasers, which are
specialized semiconductors that need cryogenic cooling,
and “photo mixing,” which combines different laser lengths
on an antenna.
Makers of continuous terahertz imaging devices include
Huebner GmbH of Kassel, Germany, TeraView, and
TeraSense. These types of devices are used for scanning
packages and envelopes for dangerous contents. Makers of
continuous millimeter devices for imaging include L3 Technologies
in New York City, which makes airport security
scanning booths for passengers.

24 |

Email from Irl Duling Director of Terahertz Business Development- F-35 and other news

(My note: Out of the blue I just got this email from Dr. Irl Duling Director of Terahertz Business Development at Picometrix, which he gave me permission to share with readers here. Thank you Dr. Duling for the update!).

Hi Randy,

Steve asked me to contact you.

As you have probably heard there are big tidal shifts here as:

1. API was purchased by Luna

2. Rick Kurtz left the company

3. Rob Risser took over and then passed away

4. Luna sold the HSOR business (and the Picometrix name) to MACOM

We are currently working on settling the THz portion of the company within Luna without the rest of what was Picometrix.

In spite of all that turmoil we have been making good progress on the THz product line.

All sales volumes are on an upward trajectory.

I hope that as things settle you will start seeing a steady flow of information, since some of the impediments to that have now been removed.

Concerning our work with the F-35, we have continued working with Lockheed Martin (LM) and Northrop Grumman Corp (NGC).

With NGC we have been measuring the external coating as it is applied in the paint booth.  That required a CID1 certification, which we have obtained (for the measurement head).

At LM, our SPG (Single Point Gauge), which is a handheld THz measurement tool is being used on the production floor to verify the coating thickness as the plane is being assembled, and before it goes into final test.

The SPG is also being tested on other airframes.

The third application that is being developed is our LSG (Line Scan Gauge) which runs a Step-Chek software package to measure the step and gap between panels as the plane is assembled.  We have delivered the first items to LM and they are going through the testing process.  The LSG is also being used by NASA on the Orion spacecraft.

As with any government program, the pace is slow, but steady, and we expect to see increased traction in the coming years.

Best regards,

Irl

Irl Duling, PhD
Director of Terahertz Business Development
Picometrix, a division of Luna Innovations
2925 Boardwalk
Ann Arbor, MI 48104

SBIR Award Phase I to Picometrix-NASA Differential Terahertz Imaging Methods for Enhanced Detection of Subsurface Features, Flaws, and Damage

Name: David Zimdars
Title: Mgr. of THz Development
Phone: (734) 864-5639
Email: dzimdars@picometrix.com


https://www.sbir.gov/sbirsearch/detail/1217323

Picometrix proposes to demonstrate the feasibility of using differential time domain terahertz imaging methods to enhance the contrast and detectability of features such as kissing disbonds and cracks that in conventional THz imaging only weakly reflect or scatter the THz pulses. The goal of the project is to develop methods of shearographic loading of the samples, and use the penetrating THz pulses to detect the subsurface deformation of the defects in the differential THz images with better contrast than traditional THz imaging. In a "kissing" disbond there is a region where the two sides of the material are not adhered, but the space between the two sides are essentially in perfect optical contact. When the space between the two interfaces is so optically "thin," the reflections of the THz pulses from the top and bottom surfaces cancel each other out. The defect signature is only weakly detectable compared to when the spacing is greater than the minimum THz wavelength (approx. 50-150 microns), the shearographic loading will microscopically deform defects, changing the small THz reflections in the loaded vs. unloaded state. The differential images should subtract all background clutter and highlight the microscopic subsurface distortion of the defects under loading.

R.I.P. Rob Risser

My Note: This is old news to many, but I wanted to include a permanent memorial post on this blog, relating to the untimely loss in April of Rob Risser. I spoke to Rob frequently on the telephone about THz, and learned a great deal relating to the basics from him. Over the years, he helped me better understand some of the issues surrounding the progress, pitfalls, and realities related to the commercialization of terahertz. Rob was a great guy, and his knowledge, and kindness in speaking to me always impressed me!
 Rest in Peace Rob!

http://obits.mlive.com/obituaries/annarbor/obituary.aspx?pid=185136976

Risser, Robin F. "Rob" 10/7/1950 - 4/16/2017 Ann Arbor Robin Frank "Rob" Risser left this world April 16, 2017, at age 66, after a brave battle with cancer. He grew up in Dayton Ohio and was a graduate of Belmont High School in 1969. As a youth, he was an outstanding student and athlete lettering in several sports. He graduated from Mount Union College, where he played college basketball as a member of the "Raiders". Later he went on to earn his MBA from the University of Michigan. He so loved the university town of Ann Arbor and the University of Michigan that he spent his entire adult life thereafter living and working in the community. He began his professional life with Bendix Corporation and quickly rose to an executive position but then broke away to start his own businesses. Over his life, he has been a CPA accountant, a registered stockbroker, a real estate developer, and an entrepreneur and executive involved in high tech industries. He was a co-founder and the guiding force of Picometrix, a company that develops and manufactures high-speed optical receivers for use in optical communication networks and ultra-high-speed microwave imaging instrumentation for non-invasive inspection of systems like the NASA Space Shuttle. Picometrix is now a subsidiary of Luna Corporation. In the 1990's, Robin sat on the Board of Mount Union College and worked to get high tech networks installed into the new dorms being constructed. Rob's business dealings took him all around the world for many years. He relished his company and its hard-working loyal employees. For those whose lives were devoted to the business, Rob's ultimate professional concern was to retire and leave a business legacy that would not only endure, but also succeed. Rob was a "Go Getter" in business, yet always put those he loved above all else, making sure to truly "be there" for them when he was needed. Rob cared about and took a genuine interest in people and treated everyone with kindness and respect. He would selflessly act in ways to help others without ever expecting anything in return. Rob could banter with anyone, gifted for finding common ground to strike up a conversation. He was a brilliant person with an unbelievable near "photographic" memory. Known for his intense curiosity, Rob never stopped learning and loved knowledge for the sake of knowledge. Among things for which Rob discovered passion was fine art, music, sports, travel, skiing, basketball, football and competitive games of any sort. Most of all he loved to spend time with family, friends and all those he held precious. With his bright eyes and even brighter smile, he reveled in laughing with and teasing others, especially his bride Sally. Rob is survived by his wife, Sally Ann Risser; his son, Logan Burk Risser; brother Daniel Thomas (Lynn) Risser; niece, Tara Ashley (Steve) Risser-Ulm; nephew, Douglas Daniel (Michelle) Risser. To Sally's children, Michael (Nikoly Santana) Street, David (Carrie) Street, Dana Street and the grandchildren Kyle, Maddie and Ben, to whom he was lovingly known as "Papa Rob". His parents Thomas W. and Eileen G. Risser and his first wife Cheryl Ann Risser, preceded him in death. The funeral service will be at 4:00 p.m. Saturday, April 22, 2017 at Muehlig Funeral Chapel, 403 South Fourth Avenue, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48104. Friends may visit Friday from 6:00 9:00 p.m. and on Saturday from Noon until the time of service at 4:00 p.m. Memorial donations in memory of Robin F. Risser may be made to: Rackham Impact Fund 364240 Gifts in this area support the academic scholarship, research, and creative work of Rackham graduate students at the master's or doctoral level and help them prepare for careers of quality and impact. The University of Michigan Office of University Development, 3003 South State Street, Suite 9000, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1288 | 1-888-518-7888 https://leadersandbest.umich.edu/ Please share a memory of Rob with his family at: www.muehligannarbor.com

My questions on the LUNA INNOVATIONS 1st Quarter conference call

My note:The Picometrix division of Luna contines to make improvements in it's THz division. I also thought the discussion of the ODiSi, platform is very interesting, and shows huge promise. (You can read the entire CC on the link below).

https://seekingalpha.com/article/4072498-luna-innovations-luna-ceo-chung-q1-2017-results-earnings-call-transcript?part=single

Operator

Our next question is from Randy Knudson. Your line is now open.

Unidentified Analyst

Good afternoon.

My Chung

Hi, Randy.

Unidentified Analyst

I wanted to first ask you about your $2 million stock repurchase, which was announced about a year ago and see if that's all been concluded or is there still money left to buy stock?

My Chung

So, we have not consumed the entire amount. In fact, there was not any repurchase activity that was done in Q1 just because we set this up in a 10b5-1 plan. So, there were specific parameters that were established for it. And with the increase in the stock price that we had end of last year and in Q1, we went outside of those repurchase parameters.

So, we’ve not spent the entire amount. It was established as a one-year plan. So, it’s something that was approved at our board meeting in May of last year and it will be another topic of discussion at the May board meeting this year as to whether or not we want to extend that or under what parameters we would.

Unidentified Analyst

Okay, thank you. I was glad to hear you at least mention your terahertz division. I know in the last couple of phone conferences, I don't think the word terahertz was even mentioned, which kind of surprises all of us old-time API investors.

And so, I just want to see what the trend is there. What are your thoughts on terahertz in Ann Arbor. Is it coming along? Or are we going to – is it going to be one of your drivers in the future?

My Chung

It’s actually coming along rather well. The focus that we put them on was really improving the quality of the system and the dependability of the measurement. We had one value-added reseller that was one of the first ones we signed up. And their feedback to me when I came on board was they couldn’t depend upon the quality and reliability of the system.

And as a result, we had a lot of units sent back for repair and we decided, hey, let’s slow down a little bit, let’s fix the problems that we need to fix, so that customers can rely on the systems that we’re selling and the measurements. And that’s come a significantly long way. We’ve signed up new value-added resellers. We’re in discussions with quite a number. So, in fact, I think Q4 was a very strong quarter for us for terahertz. And I guess we should have mentioned it at the last earnings.

But it’s still active. The team is still intact. It’s the same team that's been there. It’s not growing quite as high-speed optical receivers, and so we downplayed a little bit, but by no means that we shut it down.

Unidentified Analyst

Right. And once again, what do you see in the future for the terahertz division? Is it something that's going to – I am assuming, by your mention of Q4, it's reached profitability?

My Chung

Yes, it did. It’s a very good quarter. Our focus is on manufacturing applications and we have a number of aircraft – military aircraft manufacturers talking to us about utilizing that technology as a means with which to find faults. They’ve funded a chunk of research for us in anticipation of that. So, I think that will be a big application for us. And likewise, our sales guy is actively involved with a number of customers from a process manufacturing to, in a number of cases, to replace beta gauges that are currently being used.

Unidentified Analyst

Got you. Primarily in the wood, plastic, those areas?

My Chung

Exactly. Yes, yeah.

Unidentified Analyst

And then the airline inspection that you talked about, is that something related to what you're already doing for the F-35 in terms of the paint application or is this something to do with inspection of the structure itself, relating to what we saw at Wright State University, in press release? 

My Chung

No, it’s the F-35.

Dale Messick

And there’s also some – we’re actually going to do a big demonstration on a submarine as well.

Unidentified Analyst

Okay, great. And I guess my kind of related question to that is with, it's really difficult to find any information about Lunar. I do applaud you on your blog that you have occasionally, and I read it and try to share that actively on the net, but it seems like there's a lot of things that you would have an opportunity to share with us that might encourage some shareholder buying…

My Chung

We recognize that and we are looking to make significant changes here in this year.

Unidentified Analyst

Great.

My Chung

All right? It’s been a challenge for our team to assimilate all the different technologies that we ended up with from the merger. They’ve been understaffed. In fact, I’m looking at the people in charge of that right now and they keep on telling, My, we need more, we need more.

So, it is on my list this year. All right? That we do need to improve dramatically information flow out, both from an investors’ perspective as well as from a technology.

Unidentified Analyst

And then, in terms of your Odyssey platform, which sounds like it’s really one of your primary focuses going forward in the future. That too is – other than your blog, it’s almost impossible to find any information out there. I was pleased to hear – and let me just see if I understood you correctly. You're really – you really have no direct competition in that particular area of composite or stress testing. Is it – did I understand that correctly?

My Chung

That is absolutely correct. Our competition is the traditional individualist strain gauges and people have to put on – quite a significant number of them trying to cover the entire structure. The most of the other fiber optic sensing technology that's out there is more – how do I say it? It’s more single sensor based. In other words, they add a sensor on to the fiber to test at that point whereas we use the bare fiber and we have the ability to look at reflections along that entire length of the fiber. We don’t need a grading put on the fiber in other words. So, it’s a very unique technology that we have. It’s a technology that we use on the medical space. So, the reason why Intuitive Surgical was very interested in us because we had that ability that we could track the bends of that fiber throughout the entire length.

Unidentified Analyst

Well, that’s great. And it’d be wonderful to have something – more information about that. And I know you mentioned that's one of your goals. So, I would sure appreciate seeing that because I think there would be a lot of people interested in knowing more about that and lots of potential investors that would be excited about that.

My Chung

No, I agree. And that indeed is something that we’ve tasked ourselves with doing. It was the best kept secret.

Unidentified Analyst

Yeah, got you. And lastly, I just want to applaud you also for mentioning Rob Risser because he was truly a great person from my many conversations with him and he’ll be sorely missed. And thank you.

My Chung

He’s an incredible individual with an incredible background and sad to see how quickly he passed on last month. So, it was a shocker to all of us.

Unidentified Analyst

Well, thank you again.

OT-Picometrix® Division of Luna Continues 100G Telecom Success

ROANOKE, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/picometrix-division-luna-continues-100g-193000322.html

Luna Innovations Incorporated (LUNA) today announced that its Picometrix® division has entered into a Vendor Managed Inventory (“VMI”) Agreement with a leading China provider of telecommunications equipment and network solutions. This agreement will integrate Picometrix more closely into the customer’s supply chain and manufacturing processes. Under the agreement, Picometrix will maintain in Hong Kong a dedicated inventory of 100G integrated coherent receivers and other future approved products, which its customer can draw into manufacturing on a “just in time” basis.

“We believe that being pulled closer into the sourcing and manufacturing processes of this significant customer demonstrates a strengthening strategic relationship between our two companies,” said My Chung, president and chief executive officer of Luna. “This relationship is a major success factor in our corporate key strategic initiative for growth in the high speed optical receiver markets.”

Following the execution of the VMI agreement, Picometrix received a new order for the supply of coherent receivers for 100G optical transport network equipment. The order totaled approximately $1.4 million to be delivered through June 2017.

The company expects to supply both its first generation CR-100D product and its next generation (Gen 2) CR-100F coherent receivers under the VMI agreement. The CR-100F is the company’s newest generation 100G coherent receiver and is compliant with the Optical Internetworking Forum standard "Implementation Agreement for Integrated Dual Polarization Micro-Intradyne Coherent Receivers”. The CR-100F is approximately one-fourth the size of the first generation CR-100D, with additional features including signal detect and a variable optical attenuator. The CR-100F will be deployed in both the long-haul and metro applications to support the continued increase in global bandwidth demand.

Picometrix and Luna will display their product lines later this month at the Optical Networking and Communication Conference and Exhibition (“OFC 2017”) http://www.ofcconference.org/en-us/home/ held in Los Angeles, CA March 21 to 23 in booth #2511.

About Luna

Luna Innovations Incorporated (www.lunainc.com) is a leader in optical technology, providing unique capabilities in high speed optoelectronics and high performance fiber optic test products for the telecommunications industry and distributed fiber optic sensing for the aerospace and automotive industries. Luna is organized into two business segments which work closely together to turn ideas into products: a Technology Development segment and a Products and Licensing segment. Luna’s business model is designed to accelerate the process of bringing new and innovative technologies to market.

Forward-Looking Statements

The statements in this release that are not historical facts constitute “forward-looking statements” made pursuant to the safe harbor provision of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that involve risks and uncertainties. These statements include the company's expectations regarding Luna’s future financial performance, operating results and future growth of Luna’s business, the future integration of Picometrix into its customer’s supply chain and manufacturing processes, the company’s growth in the high speed optical receiver markets, the extent and timing of future revenue from the new order of coherent receivers, and the company’s future deployment of coherent receivers. Management cautions the reader that these forward-looking statements are only predictions and are subject to a number of both known and unknown risks and uncertainties, and actual results, performance, and/or achievements of Luna may differ materially from the future results, performance, and/or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements as a result of a number of factors. These factors include, without limitation, failure of demand for Luna’s products and services to meet expectations, technological challenges and those risks and uncertainties set forth in Luna’s periodic reports and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). Such filings are available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov and on Luna’s website at www.lunainc.com. The statements made in this release are based on information available to Luna as of the date of this release and Luna undertakes no obligation to update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this release.

AFRL demonstrates improved measurement capabilities for aircraft engine inlets

AFRL completed a series of tests to enable the use of the Terahertz Coating Thickness tool, shown here mounted on a robotic arm along with a spray attachment, for F-35 inlet production. This tool is a non-contact, non-destructive device that allows users to measure coating thickness quickly and easily without risk of damage to coating surfaces. (Photo courtesy of Northrop Grumman Corp. and Picometrix, LLC)

http://www.wpafb.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/995429/afrl-demonstrates-improved-measurement-capabilities-for-aircraft-engine-inlets

WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio -- AFRL Materials and Manufacturing Directorate researchers recently completed a series of tests that are enabling the use of a new measurement tool and quality assurance process for F-35 inlet production.

Now users can measure for proper thickness of inlet material coatings quickly and easily without risk of damage to coating surfaces.

The Terahertz Coating Thickness probe is a non-contact, nondestructive approach that uses a high-frequency terahertz signal to penetrate materials and allow the measurement of material thickness. The change in refractive index between two adjacent layers causes some of the energy in the signal to reflect back toward the probe. Users can measure the time-of-flight and strength of the reflected signal to calculate the material thickness. The energy of the signal that is not absorbed by the medium and is not reflected by the boundary continues into the next material layer, and the process repeats.  Multiple layers generate multiple reflections across the received signal, allowing the user to calculate the thickness of each individual material layer in the stack-up.

This process can be automated using a simple, easy-to-use machine/human interface to provide quick and easily interpretable results in real time.  Additionally, because this measurement technique is not affected by subsurface features such as gaps and fasteners, it is a faster, more accurate, and more reliable approach than the currently-used eddy current Fischerscope tool. 

One disadvantage of traditional, manual thickness measurement tools such as the eddy current method is that they require at least four hours of cure time before any coating thickness measurement can be made, and 48 hours of cure time for a final coating thickness measurement. These methods are also comparatively slow and labor intensive, can potentially damage coating surfaces, and are poor at producing repeatable and reproducible results when used on complex curved surfaces.

Conversely, the Terahertz measurement technique does not require contact with the surface, and measurements can be made on wet coatings as the material is being applied. It produces high-resolution images, and accurately predicts the final, cured coating thickness within material tolerances.

To achieve this testing effort, AFRL conducted a thorough gauge reliability and reproducibility study of the Terahertz Coating Thickness probe capability to accurately measure the thickness of robotically-sprayed coatings in F-35 inlet ducts. The study was very successful, showing a drastic improvement in reliability and reproducibility over the baseline manual Fischerscope method. 

“These tests ensured that the terahertz coating thickness tool performed as expected, with repeatable and reliable results,” said Juan Calzada, AFRL project engineer. “This was essential in assuring the efficacy of this tool and its subsequent implementation in the manufacturing and quality assurance process.”

The completion of the AFRL testing effort led to the achievement of a formal Manufacturing Readiness Level 7 assessment. Following the publication of new quality assurance procedures, the Terahertz coating thickness measurement capability will be incorporated into the inlet production line.

Handheld terahertz tools for more private security inspections

David A. Zimdars and Irl N. Duling

http://spie.org/newsroom/6465-handheld-terahertz-tools-for-more-private-security-inspections

Single-point terahertz inspection and time-domain terahertz reflection tomography methods are used in a new anomaly detection system that has high detection probabilities and low false alarm rates.

28 May 2016, SPIE Newsroom. DOI: 10.1117/2.1201605.006465

The use of whole-body imagers for enhanced security screening measures has created a number of privacy concerns and involves a high rate of false alarms.1 For instance, even benign objects (e.g., handkerchiefs or boarding passes) that are left in a pocket can trigger false alarms. Although the privacy concerns can be reduced somewhat through the use of automated algorithms,1 the false alarm rate—and the resultant physical pat downs—cannot easily be eliminated.

It has previously been demonstrated that a single-point terahertz inspection tool (also known as a line scan imager) can be used to identify the presence of anomalies during whole-body security imaging.2 Based on their terahertz signature, it is also possible to determine whether such anomalies are benign or whether they pose a threat. Furthermore, time-domain terahertz reflection tomography—a non-contact electromagnetic analog to ultrasound—can be used to generate cross sections of a target structure.2

In this work,2 we have focused on the results of the automated algorithm used in the single-point terahertz inspection method, and on the power of reflection time-domain terahertz reflection tomography, for security applications. As part of these efforts, we have developed a single-point inspection capability into our Picometrix Saf-T-ChekTM terahertz anomaly detection system (ADS). The operation of this system is based on the method of time-domain terahertz reflection tomography. The initial purposes of our ADS have been for security screening of personnel (by domestic or international governments and businesses) and for detection of anomalous items in the head region that may be concealed by religious headgear, wigs, hats, caps, or scarves.3 Our ADS has a minimal equipment footprint, exceptional ease of use, and it is sufficiently lightweight to be portable.

To accomplish this type of inspection, a number of characteristics are required in our terahertz system design. First, the waveform must be collected quickly enough to allow handheld operation. In this study, we thus used a waveform acquisition rate of 100Hz for the single-point inspection tool and 1000Hz for the line scan imaging tool. Our terahertz ADS system (see Figure 1) consists of a handheld inspection wand that is attached—with a lightweight cable—to a portable control unit. In addition, the lens characteristics must be optimized to provide suitable collection efficiency and angular tolerance for handheld operation. It is also necessary for the time delay window to be long enough to accommodate thick head coverings. We use an integrated computer to run a sophisticated artificial intelligence pattern-matching algorithm that automatically judges whether a reflected terahertz pulse sequence is consistent with an anomaly (alarm) or not (clear).

 

Figure 1. Photograph of the Picometrix Saf-T-ChekTMterahertz anomaly detection system (ADS). The control unit is shown on the left, and the handheld inspection tool and storage cradle are shown on the right.

During operation, our terahertz ADS collects and analyzes data that is representative of the cross-sectional dielectric layer structure and dimensions of the targeted area. Permitted materials (e.g., thin cloth layers and skin) in the target have very different patterns than metal objects (e.g., guns or knives) or thicker dielectric objects (which could be a sheet or block of explosives, or a ceramic knife). A list of example anomalies and potential concealments that can be inspected with our system are given in Table 1. At Picometrix, we have performed a series of thorough tests to detect these types of hidden objects and assess the performance of our single-point terahertz ADS. With the use of our automated algorithm, we achieved a probability of detection of more than 90% and a 0% false alarm rate.

Table 1.List of example anomalies and potential concealments that can be detected using the terahertz ADS. C4: Variety of plastic explosive.

Anomalies	Concealments
Sheet explosive	Up to 19 cloth layers
C4	Ski hat
Ceramic knife	Wig
Gun	Baseball hat
Lighter	Turban

To use our ADS, the operator positions the handheld scanner at distance of 1–4 inches from the region that is to be inspected. The ADS handheld scanner is shown in Figure 2, where it is being used to inspect a region of headgear. Once the ADS is correctly positioned, the operator presses the inspection trigger. The system then automatically reports whether the region inspected is clear (green indicators) or is judged to contain an anomaly (red indicators with audible and tactile alarms). The result of the inspection is also indicated on the control unit screen (see Figure 1). This inspection process lasts only a few seconds for each measured point.

 

Figure 2. The ADS handheld scanner being used to inspect headgear.

In summary, we have demonstrated that time-domain terahertz reflection tomography (which can be used to detect the layer structure of non-conducting objects)—when coupled with a suitable detection algorithm—can provide an excellent security detection method. This approach can provide a high probability of detection and low rate of false alarms for screening of headgear at a security checkpoint. It can also be used for secondary screening of anomalies previously detected with a whole-body imager. Our future work will involve the expansion of our automated algorithm to include an expanded list of anomalies. We are also working to continuously improve the ease of use of our terahertz ADS.

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David A. Zimdars, Irl N. Duling

Picometrix, Luna Innovations

Ann Arbor, MI

David Zimdars has been the manager of terahertz research and development since 2001. In this role he is responsible for all terahertz scientific, industrial, and homeland security product development contracts, the commercial T-RayTM2000 analytical/imaging system development, and terahertz manufacturing quality control applications development.

Irl Duling has served as the director of terahertz business development since 2006 and has spearheaded the development of market strategy for Picometrix's terahertz system. He has more than 20 years of experience in the development of products and businesses in high-speed optoelectronics.

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References:

1. M. Grabell, C. Salewski, Sweating bullets: body scanners can see perspiration as a potential weapon, ProPublica, 2011. https://www.propublica.org/article/sweating-bullets-body-scanners-can-see-perspiration-as-a-potential-weapon Accessed 2 May 2016.

2. I. Duling, Handheld THz security imaging. Presented at SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing 2016.

3. C. Eisenberg, Hats off for TSA; airport screeners authorized to check anyone wearing head gear, News Day, 2007. http://www.aviationpros.com/news/10386129/hats-off-for-tsa-airport-screeners-authorized-to-check-anyone-wearing-head-gear Accessed 18 April 2016