Photonics systems, circuits and sensors (PSCS) is a large multidisciplinary group in the Optoelectronics Research Centre that has made a significant contribution to the field of photonics. It comprises the following research sub-groups:
PSCS specializes in design, fabrication and characterisation of photonics integrated circuits and devices based on various material platforms (silicon, silicon dioxide, germanium, silicon nitride, chalcogenides, ferroelectrics etc) and their implementation in a number of important application areas.
The group members work on transceivers for tele- and data-communications, LiDAR for autonomous cars and imaging applications, gas sensors for environmental monitoring and industrial process control, quantum technology for multiple applications, medical sensors for detection of cancer or infectious diseases, and for therapeutic drug monitoring, as well as other healthcare applications. They develop circuits and systems for agriculture and food processing, and they investigate important nonlinear effects for light generation and processing signals at ultrafast speeds. Lot of effort is devoted to integration of photonics circuits with electronics, microfluidic channels, and micromechanical systems, and for developing fabrication processing for mass manufacturing of photonics devices.
State of the art fabrication tools available in the cleanroom complex are used to demonstrate numerous world’s leading results. PSCS researchers are leading grants awarded by the EPSRC, the EU, the Royal Society, the Royal Academy of Engineering, Innovate UK, the UK Space Agency and industry (Intel, Microsoft, IBM, Huawei, Honeywell etc).
PSCS members are passionate educators who teach undergraduate and postgraduate students and supervise MSc and PhD projects. They have developed innovative teaching methods and tools for the education of future photonics engineers. They are also very active in outreach and public engagement activities.