SpectraFluidics to develop detector tech

SANTA BARBARA, Calif., May 1 (UPI) -- California-based SpectraFluidics has received a contract to work on a hand-held explosive detection development project.

SpectraFluidics announced its team that includes the University of California Santa Barbara's Institute for Collaborative Biotechnologies and the U.S. Army's Edgewood Chemical Biological Center has received a three-year development contract.

According to the release, the SpectraFluidics team will develop a next-generation hand-held explosive detector technology using "free-surface microfluidics and nanoparticle techniques with surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy" for deployment with Army units in combat theaters.

"Detection of improvised explosive devices is one of the Army's most pressing issues," Craig Cummings, SpectraFluidics chief executive officer, said in a statement.

"Our detector is highly sensitive, molecular specific, and will detect a wide range of explosive agents, including homemade, improvised explosives."