News: Optoelectronics
9 December 2020
Sivers Photonics receives £325,000 Innovate UK funding for SPIDAR
Sivers Photonics (formerly CST Global of Glasgow, Scotland, UK, and a subsidiary of Sivers Semiconductors AB of Kista, Sweden) – which develops and manufactures products for optical fiber networks, sensors and optical fiber communications (Li-Fi) – has received £324,800 of funding from UK Government agency Innovate UK for its part in SPIDAR (‘Single Photon Infrared Imaging, Detection and Ranging’), a quantum project to develop range-finding and 3D imaging systems for driver-assisted and autonomous vehicles.
The total SPIDAR project grant is worth £3.62m, split between Sivers Photonics and project partners Toshiba Research, Network Rail Infrastructure, Thales UK, Bay Photonics, Heriot-Watt University, Horiba Mira, IQE, University of Cambridge, University of Edinburgh and the University of Glasgow.
“The SPIDAR project will develop single-photon, infrared imaging, detection and ranging technology,” says Sivers Photonics’ managing director Billy McLaughlin. “This technology will be used to sense the proximity of objects and other vehicles for driver safety and self-driving vehicle applications; a market valued at $556bn by 2026 [according to the report ‘Global Autonomous Vehicle Market’ from Allied Market Research],” he adds.
“Cameras are used to detect single photon light particles in the infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum,” McLaughlin continues. “The distance to the detected object or range is the measured time from the photon’s emission to the object and back again. The photon detector delivers sub-nanosecond precision, detecting single photons from the faintest possible reflections. This technology enables a far greater detection range for 3D cameras than is currently available, enhancing both safety and effectiveness when deployed in real-life applications like vehicle safety.”
