Patent highlights

10 Dec 2004

The pick of this week's applications including a blue-emitting phosphor for use in plasma display panels.

•  Title: VUV-excited device with blue-emitting phosphor
Applicant: Osram Sylvania Inc, US
International application number: WO 2004/105070
Osram of the US has applied to patent a blue-emitting phosphor which it says is ideal for use in vacuum ultraviolet (VUV)-excited products such as plasma display panels. Phosphors currently used in VUV-excited devices are known to have some undesirable effects such as degradation of brightness and color after extended exposure to VUV wavelengths. "These [Osram's] blue-emitting phosphors exhibit improved degradation characteristics, including reduced color shift and increased intensity maintenance," say the applicants. Osram's phosphor is a europium-activated calcium-substituted barium hexa-aluminate (CBAL) phosphor.

•  Title: Group II-VI semiconductor devices
Applicant: Robert H Burgener II, Roger L Felix and Gary M Renlund
International application number: WO 2004/105099
A range of semiconductor devices based on II-VI materials such as zinc oxide is disclosed in patent application WO 2004/105099. Devices under discussion include LEDs, laser diodes, field effect transistors and photodetectors. The authors say the devices may include a p-n junction where the p-type semiconductor includes one or more p-type dopants. "The p-type dopant concentration is greater than 10¹⁶ atoms cm^-3, the semiconductor resistivity is less than about 0.5 ohm cm, and the carrier mobility is greater than about 0.1 cm²/Vs," say the authors.

•  Title: Archery laser training system and method
Applicant: BeamHit, LLC, US
International application number: WO 2004/104508
An arrow that contains a laser within its point could soon be helping archers improve their aim. The inventors say the laser enables them to track the arrow during its flight. It also collects data that helps the user adjust their bow. In one version of the system, a sensor detects the arrow's impact on the target and transfers this information to a computer which displays the arrow's trajectory and the bow motion during aiming.

•  Title: Laser perimeter awareness system
Applicant: Rosemount Aerospace Inc, US
International application number: WO 2004/104633
Patent application WO 2004/104633 discusses a laser system for monitoring a perimeter and detecting potential threats. The system scans a pulsed laser beam across the perimeter zone and collects reflected pulses to form an image of the scene. The authors say the system can be used in a variety of situations including monitoring an expanse of water around a vehicle or detecting an object floating in water.

Author
Jacqueline Hewett is technology editor on Optics.org and Opto & Laser Europe magazine.