A Wrexham University research facility based at the OpTIC Technology Centre in St Asaph supports a Welsh-led mission to search for life on Mars, which is due to launch in 2028.
The optical components of Enfys are being manufactured by Qioptiq who have developed the coatings required using the Vacuum Thin Film Coating Facility based within the Centre Photonics Expertise, research facility at Wrexham University’s OpTIC Technology Centre.
Unique Thin-film Coatings for Mars Rover Mission
Enfys will identify targets on the surface of Mars for sampling and analysis, building on the scientific discoveries of the Mars rover mission. It will be hung from a mast holding the robot's camera platform, called PanCam, working in unison with high-resolution and wide-angle sensors to survey the Martian landscape.
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We feel enormously proud that our Thin Film Coating Facility here at the OpTIC Technology Centre is supporting this Welsh-led mission to Mars,” said professor Caroline Gray, director of Wrexham University’s OpTIC Technology Centre.
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The vacuum coating research facility being utilized to support the project partners was developed as part of the ERDF funded Centre for Photonics Expertise project, which concluded in December 2022. Prior to this project no facility of this type of research and development existed in Wales, so of course, it is fantastic that this facility is playing its part in supporting the Welsh-led space mission,” added Gray.
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Having such a state-of-the-art facility in North Wales has provided Qioptiq with an opportunity to develop some unique thin-film coatings to help support this mission," said Andrew Hurst, coating development manager at Qioptiq.
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The coatings play a vital role in ensuring the instrument meets its performance requirements. This project is on a very tight schedule and so having this specialist facility available to carry out the coating development has been an important part of making this demanding project possible,” said Dr. Matt Gunn, principal investigator on Enfys from Aberystwyth University.
Wrexham University’s Thin Film Coating Facility is the first of its kind in Wales and allows companies to develop thin film technology products and applications.
Source: Wrexham University