Project R-16030

Advanced Light Sources through Nanostructured Materials (AVALON) (Research)

AVALON aims at realizing advanced light sources in the visible spectrum based on colloidal nanocrystals (NCs) as a printable optical material. Such a platform technology will provide the photonics industry with the light sources needed for next-generation systems for augmented reality/virtual reality, large area projection and quantum technology. All these emerging fields, many of which have active SMEs in Flanders, experience a gap between a demand for compact sources with tailored emission spectra and patterns with robust form factors, and the available, semiconductorbased light sources. The latter involve either incoherent, wide angle, broadband light emitting diodes or expensive, bulky and spectrally limited lasers. A laser technology based on colloidal NCs as the gain material can address this mismatch as they show optical gain across the full blue-green-red (RGB) visible spectrum and be integrated with nano-photonic circuits. Even when combined with sources providing blue pump light, NC lasers can offer the desired compact form factor and designer emission properties. However, the industrial adaption of NC lasers is still hampered by fundamental scientific roadblocks at the level of (i) the optical materials, (ii) the photonic building blocks and (iii) the demonstration of complex systems based on NC-lasers. What AVALON does, is addressing these challenges by (i) developing a new generation of non-restricted bulk NCs (BNCs) for optical gain, (ii) finding best optical designs for BNC lasers, (iii) explore the potential of electrically pumped BNC lasers and (iv) realize prototype optical systems for applications in projection, display and quantum technology. Building on the latest progress in NC research and focusing on demonstrators with specifications set by industry, AVALON will demonstrate the potential of a hybrid BNC-based lasing technology, and transfer results to a valorization chain in Flanders from material production to enduser implementation.

01 October 2025 - 30 September 2029