Advanced Photonix Wins 2 Government Contracts

Advanced Photonix Inc. in Camarillo said it was awarded separate contracts from the U.S. government for the company’s photodetector technology.

One contract came from the Department of Energy, which wants the technology for its “supercollider” program that will explore the nature of matter by accelerating protons at high speeds and then causing them to collide. That contract initially provides $40,000 of an expected $200,000 in total awards.

The second contract, with an initial award of $50,000, came from the Pentagon’s Strategic Defense Initiative Office.

The photodetector technology converts light into amplified electrical signals and, in the case of the supercollider, would help scientists track the direction and velocity of subatomic particles, Advanced Photonix said.