Company
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Back to Company SearchLASER THERMAL ANALYSIS, INC
UEI: E14VYCEW9YG8
Number of Employees: 17
HUBZone Owned: No
Woman Owned: No
Socially and Economically Disadvantaged: No
SBIR/STTR Involvement
Year of first award: 2023
3
Phase I Awards
4
Phase II Awards
133.33%
Conversion Rate
$589,814
Phase I Dollars
$5,793,361
Phase II Dollars
$6,383,175
Total Awarded
Awards
A Real-time Automated Plasma Integrated Diagnostic (RAPID) for spatially and temporally resolved evaluation of plasma-exposed surfaces
Amount: $1,199,888 Topic: AF222-0018
Due to the wide array of energetic particles and species that are present in plasma, plasma-surface interactions offer unique abilities to deliver both energy and chemically active species to the surface of materials. This characteristic is common across all plasma-based technologies and processes, and the thermal and chemical processes of plasma-surface interactions are the mechanistic basis of numerous technologies of fundamental interest to the Department of Defense (DoD). To support these technologies, there is a critical need to characterize the plasma-facing surfaces with resolution and sensitivity to be able to monitor these energy transport mechanisms and resulting structural/chemical modifications, particularly using in situ/operando methods. To address this gap, Laser Thermal will provide an innovative and adaptable fiber-optically integrated thermoreflectance sensor for plasma-surface diagnostics. This Phase II project will build on the success of the Phase I project and develop a fully functional 300 mm scanning platform, which includes the control systems, analysis, and scan capabilities.
Tagged as:
SBIR
Phase II
2025
DOD
USAF
Measuring Extreme Thermal Conductivity Ranges using Infrared Components (METRIC)
Amount: $843,801 Topic: O23B-003
The goal for the Phase II Base Period is to develop and build the Measuring Extreme Thermal Conductivity Ranges using Infrared Components (METRIC) prototype. An emphasis will be placed on evaluating the fiber optic components in isolation to ensure optimum functionality when fully integrated. While simultaneously evaluating and integrating these components, a software simulation will be developed to evaluate both hardware components and end-user workflow. The Base Period will culminate in the build of a METRIC Engineering Prototype, accompanied by requisite documentation and certification.The goal for the Phase II Option Period is to build, test, and deliver a production METRIC unit to the Navy, providing them with the capacity to measure thermal conductivities as high as 3000 W·m-1·K-1. Following delivery, Laser Thermal will work with the Navy to identify areas for further improvement and features for METRIC. The Option Period will culminate in a final report detailing gains in functionality as a result of METRIC and the next steps for continued development.
Tagged as:
STTR
Phase II
2025
DOD
NAVY
LATTICE (Large-Area high-Throughput Thermal Inspection for Complex Electronics)
Amount: $1,749,993 Topic: AFX255-DPCSO6
Laser Thermal proposes to extend the capabilities of its FASTR (Frequency And Steady-state ThermoReflectance) system to enable fully automated thermal metrology for wafer-level materials characterization, integrating FOUP/FOSB-based wafer handling and supporting near-line inspection workflows in semiconductor manufacturing environments. This extension will allow the FASTR platform to move beyond research and pilot line applications into scalable, production-adjacent use cases, addressing unmet needs in high-resolution, non-contact thermal property screening of full 300 mm wafers. FASTR is a precision thermal metrology platform that combines steady-state thermoreflectance (SSTR) and frequency-domain thermoreflectance (FDTR) in a unified architecture. This dual-mode operation allows for rapid, accurate, and spatially resolved measurement of critical thermal properties, including in-plane and cross-plane thermal conductivity, interfacial thermal resistance (TBR), and volumetric heat capacity. These metrics are essential for characterizing thin films, multilayer stacks, and subsurface thermal features in advanced microelectronic materials. While the existing FASTR platform supports automated stage-based scanning of 150 mm and 300 mm wafers, current throughput is limited by manual sample handling and alignment. To bridge the gap between lab-scale capability and fab-integrated inspection, Laser Thermal proposes a fully automated wafer handling upgrade. This will include integration of standard FOUP/FOSB interfaces, robotic wafer loading/unloading, alignment automation, and recipe-driven scanning protocols. The result will be a turnkey system capable of high-throughput, high-resolution thermal metrology suitable for near-line deployment. The automated FASTR platform will enable advanced process control and R&D screening of temperature-sensitive properties in front-end and packaging materials.
Tagged as:
SBIR
Phase II
2025
DOD
USAF
Measuring Extreme Thermal Conductivity Ranges using Infrared Components (METRIC)
Amount: $149,984 Topic: O23B-003
This Phase I STTR project aims to conduct feasibility study and establish the design of a temperature-dependent (25-225 °C) thermal conductivity measurement system based on the framework of Steady-State Thermoreflectance in Fiber (SSTR-F). The system will produce highly accurate (± 5%) and reproducible (± 1%) measurements of the thermal conductivity from 0.1 W?m-1?K-1 to 2000 W?m-1?K-1 in both thin films and bulk substrates of wide bandgap semiconductors, as well as thermal boundary resistance in the 1-100 m2·K/GW range across semiconductor interfaces at the wafer scale. The fiber-optic design ensures no optical maintenance or alignment of laser paths to ensure day-to-day repeatability and accuracy when operated by different users. During the Phase I project, the goal is to achieve the following technical objectives: 1) determine limits to commercial state-of-the-art measurement capabilities; 2) identify system design requirements via modeling and simulation; 3) design the system and select components; 4) demonstrate feasibility to measure extreme thermal conductivities at room temperature; 5) demonstrate feasibility to measure extreme thermal conductivities from 25-225 °C; 6) design user experience and software for automation, leveraging artificial intelligence and machine learning for data acquisition and analysis.
Tagged as:
STTR
Phase I
2024
DOD
OSD
Device-scale AFM Thermoreflectance metrology: Analytics, Probe design, machine Learning, User experience, and Standards (DATAPLUS)
Amount: $289,831 Topic: 4
Laser Thermal Analysis, Inc. aims to build a hybrid Atomic Force Microscopy-thermoreflectance (AFM-TR) instrument to generate maps of the thermal resistance, thermal boundary interface resistance, and temperature profiles of microprocessors and wide bandgap semiconductor materials and devices with < 100 nm spatial resolution, < 0.5 ºC temperature resolution, < 10 % measurement uncertainty, and capability of characterizing materials without the need for an applied transducer coating. The dramatic enhancement in resolution provided by AFM-TR comes with some additional experimental considerations to overcome. AFM probes used may have a limited operational lifetime from wear with the surface. Laser Thermal aims to reduce these functional and cost related challenges that currently exist by utilizing novel coatings and tip geometries. This includes utilizing artificial intelligence/machine learning (AI/ML) solutions that offer powerful gains in data throughput and insights through intelligent targeting of high-value material regions. Because AFM-based metrologies have long been considered slow, with measurement times ranging from minutes to hours, this presents an additional economic motivation to efficiently collect data, via intelligent and strategic acquisition methods. These AI/ML concepts can be further leveraged to identify when tips have degraded, allowing for users to quickly understand when data may be compromised and even providing paths toward being able to correct flawed data post facto. These efforts combined will bring new levels of throughput and functionality to AFM-TR as a thermal measurement tool to provide new and useful data to researchers and modelers.
Tagged as:
SBIR
Phase I
2024
DOC
Advancing Thermo-Optical Metrology for Integrated Circuitry (ATOMIC)
Amount: $1,999,679 Topic: HR0011SB20234-04
This project aims to develop a super-resolution thermal metrology tool that enables accurate characterization of the thermal resistance of semiconductor materials, heterostructures and devices, particularly wide bandgap and ultra-wide bandgap materials and devices at the nanometer length scale. The tool will be capable of characterizing both epilayers and operating devices with a thermal resolution of less than 0.25 °C, thermal precision of 1 °C, spatial resolution below 50 nm, accuracy above 90%, and reproducibility and repeatability of less than 2%. During the base period, the Nano-probe Thermoreflectance Microscopy (NTM) thermal metrology tool will be designed. Then, the thermal resistance, thermal boundary resistance, and local temperature rise measurement capabilities will be demonstrated individually and then integrated together. The team will perform validation experiments including thermal resistance, temperature, and thermal resolution of the surface and cross-section of GaN and AlGaN transistors with less than 100 nm spatial resolution. Finally, the team will demonstrate and confirm that the complete NTM system meets the program requirements. During the option period, the automated, push-button thermal metrology tool will be designed in coordination with the designated U.S. government organization. The team will then build and deliver the automated, turn-key NTM system to the designated organization.
Tagged as:
SBIR
Phase II
2023
DOD
DARPA
A Real-time Automated Plasma Integrated Diagnostic (RAPID) for spatially and temporally resolved evaluation of plasma-exposed surfaces
Amount: $149,999 Topic: AF222-0018
Due to the wide array of energetic particles and species that are present in plasma, plasma-surface interactions offer unique abilities to deliver both energy and chemically-active species to the surface of materials. This characteristic is common across
Tagged as:
SBIR
Phase I
2023
DOD
USAF