Roll-2-Roll (R2R) manufacture of multilayer planar optics

Optical fibres have transformed our modern world. They form the backbone of our telecommunication network and have enabled high power lasers used in manufacturing. There is a huge amount of technology that is now possible due to the development of the optical fibre.

This project seeks to develop a manufacturing approach for the next generation of optical fibre. Rather than a single flexible strand of glass, we look to manufacture flexible glass sheets. These glass sheets will have similar properties as current optical fibre but the additional width dimension will allow new technology to be realised.

For example, the glass sheet can be internally structured to manipulate light. Applications of this ability would include next generation of augmented reality eyewear, quantum computers, telecommunication infrastructure and new potentially higher power lasers. This technology could be transformative for communications, computation and engineering sectors.