OXFORD INSTITUTE FOR LASER SCIENCE

Clarendon Laboratory, Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3PU

The Oxford Institute for Laser Science, OILS, is a consortium of world-leading scientists drawn from seven different departments of Oxford University to advance inter-disciplinary research in Physical and Bio-medical Science and technology.

The primary aim of OILS is to stimulate new science. The means to achieving this aim is the provision of an infrastructure that enables inter-disciplinary activity and encourages cross-fertilization of ideas from different research areas. OILS meets a need for practical and intellectual support for laser-based research in departments which lack "in house" expertise in advanced laser systems. Laser-optical methods are being increasingly applied in bio-medical and physical sciences creating a need for integrated teams with relevant electro-optical expertise. As well as encouraging inter-disciplinary activity the institute aims to provide support and equipment for leading edge research in each individual department where laser methods are employed. Industrial collaboration is a major aim of the institute with the aim of disseminating the latest science and technology to UK industry. Enquiries regarding collaborative ventures between industry and the institute should be directed in the first instance to Professor Webb.

OILS provides laboratory facilities for advanced laser-based research and state-of-the-art laser and electro-optic equipment with associated diagnostic support. The institute aims to provide intellectual stimulation in inter-disciplinary activity by collaborative research projects, establishing a programme of inter-departmental symposia and encouraging international participation by visiting scientists from overseas. The institute is supported by excellent library and administrative facilities, with technical and maintenance support from the Oxford Physics Department in computing, electronics, optical and mechanical fabrication.

The research programme consists of two major components - novel inter-disciplinary projects and projects at the forefront of the individual sciences. A shared equipment base provides the necessary laser and diagnostic systems for both types of project. In addition the Physics-based staff of OILS provide technical and intellectual support in laser science to the other departments. The creation of cross-subject links will encourage transfer of technology and stimulate new scientific advances. The enabling technology based on laser optical methods is already proving of immense importance in a wide range of scientific disciplines.

The science being advanced by OILS includes the following representative ventures.

• Engineering studies of combustion in gasoline direct injection (GDI) and natural gas-fuelled engines for reduction of atmospheric pollution utilize advanced laser-based diagnostics developed in the Physics department.
  (P. Ewart, Physics - C.R. Stone, Eng Sci.)
• Physics and Chemistry collaborate on laser spectroscopic techniques for studies of chemical reaction kinetics and molecular dynamics of relevance to combustion, atmospheric chemistry, industrial plasma processing, and bio-chemical processes.
  (P. Ewart, Physics - G. Hancock, Chemistry)
• Laser-optical methods are applied in Physiological and Pharmacological studies of cell dynamics with particular regard to heart rhythm and drug therapy.
  (P. Ewart, Physics - D. Terrar, Pharmacology)
• Materials science is benefiting from the use of lasers for diagnostics of plasma processes. In addition, high power lasers are developed for precision machining.
  (C.E. Webb and D. Coutts, Physics - P. Grant, Materials)
• Laser techniques and mass-spectrometry methods for ultra-sensitive detection are aiding geochemical analysis in Earth Sciences.
  (C.E. Webb, Physics - E. Young, Earth Sci.)

All of these projects are under-pinned by research in laser physics and technology. This basic research activity in new lasers and non-linear optics supports OILS collaborators in using the present laser technology. The collaboration with laser physicists will ensure that future research in other disciplines will be able to benefit from the latest developments in laser science.

Participating staff of the Institute for Laser Science