Our research facilities are located in modern purpose built laboratories and clean rooms. These contain extensive laser, optics, computing, electronic manufacture and rapid prototyping equipment.
Nanotech Laboratory
A state of the art research laboratory where we are active in
- Carbon Nanotubes
- Tissue Engineering
- Micro fabrication and laser fabrication
Equipment in this lab includes:
- State-of-the-art Exitech excimer laser micro-machining system, pictured.
- Clean room wet processing stations
- Vibration isolated optical benches
- Argon Ion Lasers
- Fully programmable spin coaters, vacuum ovens, dryers, etc
This facility is utilised for machining of micro-components used in:
- Electronics
- Mechatronics
- Photonics / Optics
- Biotechnology
Features may be machined to micron tolerances, with minimal thermal damage in the vicinity of the machining site.
Research programs utilising this equipment are delivering new devices such as: bio-sensors, micro-actuators and drives, micro-connectors and micro-optical components.
The image on the left shows a micro-structure built by the group using a stereo-lithographic we pioneered.
Informatics and Computer Vision Laboratory
This is a computer and electronics laboratory that is heavily involved in computer vision research and information processing among other areas such as:
- Biometrics. For example iris recognition systems
- Medical image processing
- Scene activity tracking
- Human and ridged body tracking
- Speech processing
- Communications networks
- Optical Modeling such as laser cavity systems; computer generated holograms and Zemax optical design
- Forensic computer analysis
- Neural networks
- Correlation filter design
It contains:
- A 25+ PCs and Mac workstations
- Labview/Matlab and data acquisition cards
- DSP development kits
- CCD and CMOS cameras with frame grabber cards
- Various optimised object illumination light sources
- Anti-static electronic test and build facilities.
Mathematical modelling is often carried out using: MATLAB [Toolboxes: Image processing, Fuzzy logic, Neural networks, Optimisation, Signal processing etc]; Labview with image processing and measurement software; or compilers and code development IDEs.
Photonic Systems Laboratory
A fully equipped optics lab which contains
- Three vibration isolated optical tables
- A visible wavelength 10W Spectra Physics argon ion laser
- A CW Nd+3:YAG laser
- Numerous He-Ne and diode lasers
- Several 'state of the art' liquid crystal spatial light modulators for the production of dynamic computer generated holograms and correlation filters
- CCD based beam visualisation system
- Many micro-positioning translation stages, extensive array of optical equipment, photo-refractive materials, fibre-optic micro-postioners, significant instrumentation and measurement systems.
CAD/CAE/CAM Laboratory
The computer aided design (CAD); computer aided engineering (CAE) and computer aided manufacturing (CAM) laboratory is widely equipped with multiple workstations and various software packages for working on:
- Finite Capacity Scheduling: Preactor (Systems Modelling Corp)
- Forward/backward bidirectional loading;
- Resource constraints;
- Process industry features;
- Mid batch updating and alternate routing
- Quantitive modelling and simulation: ARENA (Systems Modelling Corp)
- Business process re-engineering;
- Advanced Manufacturing;
- Witness (AT&T)