The UK Home Office and other government departments are contributing GBP0.35 million towards the GBP1.5 million, two-year project. The company, based in NetPark, Sedgefield, is developing a prototype baggage scanner for airports that will use DSC’s proven compound semiconductor technology, to automatically detect explosives using x-rays. The technology will allow, for the first time, multi-view imaging for the identification and discrimination of explosives and flammable liquids.
The first prototype, a small baggage scanner, suitable for testing in a UK airport, is planned to be built within the next 12 months. A second prototype, a full-scale baggage scanner, will be ready for trials within two years. DSC has developed a proven breakthrough technology to produce, from vapor, single crystals of cadmium telluride which can be used as detectors of x and gamma rays. This technology will significantly aid the move from analogue to digital x ray imaging and it allows direct ‘fingerprinting’ to identify materials such as explosives.
Richard Morgan, Chief Executive Officer of Amphion Innovations, said: DSC’s patented technology has broad commercial opportunity in medicine, industry, and defense applications, as well as in security. Acceleration of the development of these important products for the security applications should help the development of products for these other markets. We are delighted that DSC is able to make such an important contribution to this critical field and we remain equally excited by the opportunities that lie beyond.
