QMC Instruments Ltd. 

QMC Instruments Ltd (QMCI) is located in the School of Physics and Astronomy at Cardiff University where we develop instrumentation for the detection and processing of electromagnetic radiation at far-infrared and mm/Terahertz wavelengths. We are part of the Churchwood Trust group of companies, along with TK Toolmaking and TK Instruments.

Our main products are a long-established range of cryogenic detectors and associated components and instruments. They are used in diverse applications such as atmospheric remote sensing, astronomy, semiconductor materials characterisation, hot plasma fusion diagnostics and electron spin resonance (ESR) spectroscopy. A 2 year guarantee is provided as standard on all QMC Instruments Ltd products.

We have recently introduced two major new products. All our detector systems are now available with cryogen-free pulse tube cooler technology, providing a ready-to-go system which does not require any liquid cryogens.

In addition, our new thin film superconducting bolometers have all the high sensitivity associated with their traditional semiconductor counterparts. Available in both cryogen-free and helium bath cooled systems, they offer greater linear dynamic range and speed of response, and are far less susceptible to noise from their environment.

Dry cryostat system

 
Recent work includes a multi-channel FIR detector for laser interferometry of the plasma in the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) in Hefei, China, anti-reflection coated vacuum windows for the Herschel Heterodyne Instrument for the Far Infrared (HIFI), and band-selection filters for the Herschel Photodetector Array Camera and Spectrometer (PACS.) Herschel is a space telescope which was launched in May 2009. We are currently supplying windows, cooled polarisers and solar blocking filters for the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) in Chajnantor in the Chilean Andes. 

A list of our products with links to further information is given below. If you have any queries, please do contact us; contact details and information on our local distributors can be found here. Other information about the company can be obtained via the menu on the left.

Product areas

Product list

THz detector systems

THz optical components

 Edited October 2012