Research
The Aquitaine optics/lasers research community represents one of Europe’s highest concentrations of specialists in this field and draws many collaborative R&D projects, combining the resources of laboratories and companies.
Internationally recognized excellence
The Bordeaux region enjoys a tradition of research excellence in the field of optics and lasers, particularly since the ground-breaking work of Alfred Kastler. This discipline, with a strong university culture in the study of physics, has gone through profound modifications and experienced many new developments since 1996, following the decision to install the Laser Megajoule (LMJ) at the CEA CESTA site (Le Barp).
All of the laboratories of the Route des Lasers competitiveness cluster are public. They employ 600 research scientists at the University of Bordeaux 1, Bordeaux 2 and CEA CESTA which works with laboratories and institutes on technology research and development topics related to the cluster. The personnel of the Department of Power Lasers of CEA CESTA, CELIA and CPMOH, account for most of these employees.
All of the research projects are carried out at the highest level of international standards, as illustrated by the 2,000 publications from the group of laboratories concerned during the period 2005-2008.
Although most of the research involves basic or applied physics, rather than products, systems or process development, these laboratories are increasingly concerned with protecting intellectual property and technology transfer. The laboratories had a portfolio of over 100 patents as of December 31, 2007.
Training through research is a very active part of the approach of these laboratories. During the period 2005-2008, over 250 theses were defended.
A scientific flagship for global visibility
With the completion of the LMJ, the Aquitaine region will benefit from world-class research facilities. The only comparable equipment is at the National Ignition Facility, in Livermore, California. The LMJ-related markets are very attractive for the big names in the sector, such as Sagem, Cilas, Quantel and Gerac.
Laboratories at the heart of R&D in the cluster
The CEA CESTA center, with the arrival of the Megajoule project and the transfer of teams from the Department of Power Lasers of Limeil (Paris region) to Bordeaux, is turning its focus to intense lasers. The CPMOH (center for optical molecular and radio physics) and CELIA (center for intense lasers and applications) are working on, or using advanced laser technologies, specifically with short pulse laser sources (femtoseconds). Developments in the physics of condensed matter and physics of dense and hot plasmas have raised the visibility of these two laboratories. CELIA, a laboratory created in 1996 specifically to provide university support to the LMJ project, became a joint research unit in 2002 under the auspices of CNRS, the University of Bordeaux 1 and CEA.
Other laboratories in the Aquitaine region, traditionally devoted to subjects other than lasers or photonics, continue to move in new directions, intersecting their traditional research focuses with topics inspired by the physics of intense lasers. For example:
• The IMS, (laboratory for the integration of materials and systems) which carries out original research in a variety of disciplines, such as modeling and elaboration of materials, sensors and microsystems for electronic devices, signal and image processing, supervision and management of complex, heterogeneous processes,
• The ICMCB, (institute of chemistry and condensed matter of Bordeaux) which is extending its work on materials for optics, particularly with CEA CESTA and CPMOH, resulting in numerous industrial applications for laser glass,
• The CENBG, (center for nuclear studies of Bordeaux-Gradignan), traditionally focused on nuclear and corpuscular physics, and now working on the use of lasers for nuclear excitation.
• The IMB, (institute of mathematics of Bordeaux), a joint research unit of CNRS – University of Bordeaux 1 – University Victor Segalen Bordeaux 2, organized in three teams, including that of MAB (applied mathematics of Bordeaux). In 2000, within the framework of the CEA-University of Bordeaux 1, MAB became a correspondent research laboratory of CEA (LRC M03). This status reinforces its existing partnerships in electromagnetism and the mechanics of numerical fluids and in the development of longer term research projects centered on the Laser Megajoule project.
The CRPP – Paul Pascal research center, IPREM- multidisciplinary research institute of environment and materials, the ISM – institute of molecular sciences, the LaBRI – Bordeaux laboratory of IT research, the LMP – laboratory of physical mechanics, and the PCS – synapse cellular physiology laboratory, all focus a growing part of their research on specific topics of the cluster. Their activities, like those of other laboratories, are presented in detail in the directory.
R&D Platforms
Bordeaux Imaging Center (BIC)
The BIC (Bordeaux Imaging Center) offers ressources in photonic and electronic imaging, mainly in life, health and plant sciences. It is a core facility identified at the national level as “Infrastructure en Biologie Sante et Agronomie“ (IBISA).
The PHOTONIC imaging component of the BIC (ex-PICIN) has strong skills in imaging at ultra-high resolution (single molecule techniques, multi-photon techniques, STED and soon PALM imaging. His team of R&D is dedicated to the development and implementation to biology of new imaging technologies: making routinely available dynamic imaging of living samples (FRET / FLIM / FRAP / FCS), development of correlative microscopy techniques. It works in close partnership with the CPMOH laboratory and Amplitude Systèmes.
ALPhANOV
In 1998, research carried out by CPMOH and CELIA led to the implementation of a technology transfer center, PALA – platform for laser applications in Aquitaine, which served as the nucleus of the ALPhANOV optics and lasers technology center, created in January 2007. ALPhANOV’s activities focus on five areas of excellence: laser processes and micro-machining, laser sources and instrumentation, optical and imaging development, terahertz applications, medical applications.
