Quantum cascade lasers ‘can detect falsified drugs’.
Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute in Germany have developed a miniaturised quantum cascade laser (QCL) device that could provide a new, no-contact way of rapidly distinguishing falsified from genuine medicines.
The matchbox-sized unit has already showed its security potential in the rapid detection of explosive or toxic substances – at a distance of several metres – and Fraunhofer is in the process of seeking out industry partners to develop that commercial application. At the same time, it is assessing QCL for pharmaceutical applications, including not only detection of counterfeits but also monitoring the quality of medicines during manufacturing.
The semiconductor-based infrared laser technology comes from a tie-up between Fraunhofer’s Dresden-based Institute for Photonic Microsystems IPMS – which has been working on the detector component of the device – and its Institute for Applied Solid State Physics which developed the tunable laser chips.
Related Posts
Fake eggs may replace oiling in bid to control seagull menace in Gloucestershire
They are the winged menace that terrorise the streets.But their days could be...
Panchkula: Two nabbed for smuggling country-made liquor, IMFL
The Panchkula police arrested two persons for smuggling country-made liquor and...
Fake Samsung phones worth Sh6.5m seized in Nairobi
The Anti-Counterfeit Agency seized 276 counterfeit Samsung phones worth Sh6.5...
Tobacco smuggling shoots up by 28 per cent
The amount of tobacco smuggled into Malta grew by some 28 per cent last year,...