Our goal is to construct a high-end state-of-the-art instrumentation for our researchers. Our development team is engaged in Mechanics, Optics, Electronics, and Software.  

Optics

We are focused on the optical design of laser optics, imaging systems, and spectroscopic systems. For the design of individual systems, numerical calculations and computer simulations (e.g. in Zemax sw) are used. We test and use a variety of different types of lenses, mirrors, lasers, spectrometers, and other equipment coming from established manufacturers (LTB, Ocean Insight, Litron, Quantel, etc.). All these particular parts are combined together into the whole optical system with the most appropriate parameters for given application.

• Optical and optomechanical design
• Laser optics and spectroscopy systems for collecting of plasma radiation
• Imaging systems and sample illumination modules
• Development of motorized lens and mirror mounts
• Prototyping and testing of designed instruments and modules

Mechanics and electronics

We design based on prototypes for the real-world instruments. Our team develops fine optomechanical and mechatronic systems and designs the vacuum systems for laser spectroscopy. 

We develop and build the electronic equipment for LIBS device control based on modern technology according to Worldwide Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) regulations. The current state-of-the-art of electronic development is based on more than 20 years of experience.​

• Mechanical, fine mechanics and mechatronics design
• Design of eye-safe compartments for laser systems
• Development of sample manipulators using motorized stages
• Tailor-made sample holders (for pellets, biological samples, rocks)
  ensuring stable experimental conditions (i. e. temperature)
• Vacuum and pressure gas systems
• Medium vacuum systems optimized for laser spectroscopy

Software for system control and data processing

In order to effectively control many different devices in a heterogeneous environment, we have developed an abstract communication layer called Software-Defined Devices. It allows us to abstract away any hardware specifics. ARM, AMD64, with or without Operating System, a single sensor or a complex device, we can control it through SDDS. Moreover, we develop software synchronizing all these devices to perform various experiments.

Our LIBS systems produce a huge amount of data. The writing scripts in R, Matlab or Python for data processing are not fast enough. That is why all the computation of our LIBSAnalyzer is multithreaded and optimized offering more than a hundred-fold speed improvement in creating detailed chemical maps compared to other methods.

• Bare metal – cable management, assembly, and testing of devices
• synchronization of measurement devices, detectors, lasers and other auxiliary devices
• Low level – design, production and testing of custom developed electronics
• Firmware for ARM and AVR microprocessors, in future SoM
• Communication over RS485 and Ethernet
• Middle level – interfacing with spectrometers, lasers, and custom developed electronics
• GUI applications for spectrometers and lasers
• Bootloader and custom electronics controls
• High level – programming and interfacing the entire devices
• GUI applications for measurement control
• Computationally extensive spectrum analysis applications
• Data analysis – multivariate statistics, machine learning
• Applications of data science in spectroscopy
• Investigation of recent approaches in data processing, currently deep learning