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We have great depth of expertise stretching back decades. With Dr. Frank Low’s invention of the Ga-doped Ge Bolometer in 1961, cryogenic science approached the sensitivity limits set by thermodynamics. Low’s bolometer operated at 2°K with a noise equivalent power of 5×10−13 w and a time constant of 400 μsec.
In the forefront of infrared detection and cryogenics, Low founded IRLabs in 1967. We delivered the first dual Ga-doped Ge bolometer delivered to Kitt Peak National Observatory in 1968, and the company has been a leader in the field of astronomy ever since.
Our products find applications in:
- Aerospace
- Astronomy
- Fault analysis
- Focal plane array testing
IRLabs innovates and designs a comprehensive catalog of equipment for liquid cooling, including dewars, cryostats and accessories. Our standard equipment meets the needs of most industry operations, but we excel at producing customized systems that solve thorny problems for our clients.
Finding Solutions for Cryogen Conundrums
We have built a global reputation for creating solutions to meet industry-specific challenges.
Overcoming obstacles in high-altitude liquid cooling is just one such challenge. We recently built a custom dewar for a stratospheric balloon used to study climate change in Earth’s upper atmosphere. IRLabs was able to factor in how changes in temperature and air pressure would affect seals, overcome strict size and weight specifications, account for temperature extremes in the upper atmosphere, and ensure that equipment could withstand the force of landing and flight.
The result was one of many successful collaborations. Many researchers have benefitted from IRLabs’ decades of knowledge and expertise. We’ve:
- Designed and built a large closed-cycle cryostat for GRANCAIN, a high-resolution NIR imaging system that serves the adaptive optics needs of the Gran Telescopio de Canarias.
- Retrofitted NASA’s Mid-IR Spectrometer and Imager (MIRSI) with a cryogen-free refrigerator that eliminated the need for liquid cryogens.
- Collaborated with NASA on the Winston cone assembly and miniature vacuum vessel for their Ice Giant Net Flux Radiometer
- Designed, produced, and tested a customized dewar for the System for coronagraphy with High Adaptive optics from R to K band (SHARK-NIR) instruments in Mt. Graham’s large binocular telescope in southeastern Arizona.
- Rebuilt an IR telescope camera with a new H1RG detector for Kagoshima University in Japan.
IRLabs Delivers Solutions
Our experience and depth of knowledge have made us the choice for such clients as the Air Force Research Lab, Army Night Vision Lab, Australian Synchrotron, Bruker, CERN, DMEA, Fermi National Acceleratory Lab, German Aerospace Center, Goddard Space, Flight Center, Intel, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Micron, MIT, National Optical Astronomy Observatory, Nvidia, Physical Research Institute, Qualcom, Sandia National Laboratories, Smithsonian Institute Observatory, Teledyne Imaging Systems, Texas Instruments, Thermo Electron Scientific, Toshiba, and more.
No matter the challenge, our team has the chops to tackle it. Whether it’s a softball like a standard dewar or a curve ball like a custom GM cryostat system for a focal plane array characterization, IRLabs should be your go-to.