The world's population is rapidly growing and, most importantly, at the same time is ageing. This provides a driving force for the increase in cancer, which is predicted to grow from 18.5M in 2018 to 29.5M in 2040. One of the most effective strategies to combat cancer has been the introduction of screening programmes, which enable the disease to be detected at an earlier stage when it is curable. Earlier stage disease also lends itself to minimally invasive and endoluminal surgery, with advantages in terms of reduced morbidity and better preservation of normal function. There is an acceptance that the use of minimally invasive and endoluminal surgery will continue to grow, perhaps in conjunction with robotic-assistance. But, to deliver this ambition, appropriate surgical tools need to be developed. This includes tools for real-time diagnosis of cancer that can be coupled with ablative and excisional modalities to eradicate the disease. Combined diagnostic and ablative tools will enable microscopic disease to be detected, particularly at cancer margins where infiltrative growth is difficult to distinguish from normal tissue. Failure to eradicate such microscopic disease is usually the cause for treatment failure and cancer recurrence. Our multidisciplinary team of physical scientists, engineers, laser specialists, and clinicians have begun to address this shortfall in surgical hardware precision by investigating a new laser-based approach ideally suited for minimally invasive and endoluminal cancer surgery. By employing "ultrashort" picosecond lasers, that deliver energy in a series of pulses only a few picoseconds long, we have demonstrated the ability to remove (ablate) tumours on a precision 2 orders of magnitude smaller than existing tools. Importantly, because the laser pulses are so short, there is no time for heat to diffuse into surrounding tissue, as is the case for existing surgical tools. Therefore, we have shown that damage to tissue around the surgical zone can be restricted to less than the width of a human hair - almost on the scale of individual cells. On clinically relevant tissue models we have demonstrated in the laboratory that this picosecond laser ablation could provide a step change in precision resection of the bowel and hence transform endoluminal colorectal cancer surgery. Additionally, we have shown that ps laser pulses can be flexibly delivered via novel hollow core optical fibres giving confidence that endoscopic deployment can be realised and opening up new areas of minimally invasive procedures. We now need to capitalise on this foundation and have therefore expanded our network of clinical expertise and identified new areas where our technology could be truly transformative. Neurosurgery is the ultimate test of precision, even microscopic loss of healthy tissue can have a huge impact on quality of life. In head and neck surgery, minimising resection of normal tissue allows functional preservation of speech and swallowing, positively influencing quality of life outcomes. In parallel, we aim to build on our successful results in colorectal cancer by developing novel strategies for incorporating real-time diagnostic imaging aiming towards clinical application. The proposal will take our understanding of lasers in colorectal cancer surgery towards clinical application, whilst simultaneously exploring new areas of application (Head & neck and brain cancer) where the technology is also thought to have huge potential benefit.

Hollow core optical fibres guide light in a hollow (usually, gas-filled) core rather than in a solid glass core as in all conventional fibres. The use of a hollow core means that many of the constraints on optical fibre performance which are due to the properties of the core material are lifted (often by many orders of magnitude) and the fibres can by far outperform their more familiar conventional counterparts. There is a problem, however: how can you trap light in a hollow core? Substantial effort has been put into developing so-called photonic bandgap fibres over the last 20 years. These fibres rely on a complex cladding structure to trap light in the hollow core with low losses. They have been developed to a high degree but have been held back by some apparently insurmountable practical problems. These have especially constrained their performance at the short wavelengths which are important in many applications such as high precision laser machining and materials modification. The state-of-the-art laser systems can now deliver the necessary radiation for these applications: however, a truly flexible delivery system does not currently exist. This ability to deliver the pulsed laser light flexibly from the laser system to the point of application is a key advance required to develop practical and commercially viable applications. Over the last eighteen months, researchers in this collaboration and at a couple of other laboratories across Europe have demonstrated that a much simpler fibre design can actually be far more effective than the bandgap fibres. This is especially true at long wavelengths (in the mid-infrared) and at short wavelengths (eg 1 micron wavelength and below.) Numerical simulations now suggest that these designs can be extended to offer the possibility of their outperforming any existing optical fibres at almost any optical wavelength. This proposal is to demonstrate these fibres at a range of short wavelengths and to work with four UK-based companies to establish them as useful in manufacturing and clinical environments. This involves making fibres with several designs, verifying their performance, identifying the barriers to their use and overcoming them, and then working in the laboratories of our collaborators to establish them as useful on the factory floor and also in medical and engineering measurements. Along the way, we aim to demonstrate the lowest-loss optical fibre ever (at a longer wavelength) and to investigate whether these designs can be extended to deliver laser beams with low beam quality.

Ti:sapphire lasers set the standard for precision in instrumentation. However, commercial systems are bulky and complex to make, due in large part to the requirement for a painstakingly manufactured pump laser. The potential exists to replace these complex pump lasers with mass-produced, compact, and inexpensive diode lasers if we can unpick the physics of the light-matter interactions that govern the efficiency. This programme will lead to a step-change in our understanding, allowing us to redesign Ti:sapphire lasers from the ground up, tailoring them for diode-pumping and enabling high-end applications beyond the laser lab, initially in portable quantum technologies and analytical instrumentation. This project will - - Fully describe the underlying physics of pump-induced losses in Ti:sapphire crystals for the first time. - Initiate the development of a manufacturable, platform laser technology with the performance of Ti:sapphire but the practicality of diode-pumping. - Identify the combinations of diode-laser and Ti:sapphire crystal specification required to maximise both the wall-plug efficiency and manufacturability of Ti:sapphire lasers. - Develop exemplar narrow-linewidth and dual-comb demonstrators for future development towards applications in optical clocks and combustion analysis. The investigator team for this project brings together the grouping that demonstrated the first diode-pumped Ti:sapphire laser with experts in narrow-linewidth lasers for quantum technologies and laser spectroscopy for combustion analysis. The project partners include one of the world's leading manufactures of high-specification lasers (Coherent Scotland), the world's leading manufacturer of Ti:sapphire crystals (GTAT Corporation), a high-power visible diode-laser systems manufacturer (Arctos Lasertechnik), and the UK National Quantum Technologies Hub for Sensors and Metrology. An advisory panel of representative for these organisations, together with experts on technology transfer in the manufacturing of lasers and industrial gas-sensing, will provide the investigator team with strong industrial guidance and a route to accelerate economic and societal impact.

Over the last few decades our ability to exploit subtle quantum effects has advanced remarkably, and this in turn has fuelled the UK's new initiatives to pursue revolutionising quantum based technologies. Responding to this demand, Imperial College proposes to establish an inter-faculty Centre for Quantum Engineering and Science to lead interdisciplinary education and research activities for applications of quantum technology. Repeating the successes of the laser and transistor will rely on the cooperation of a diverse range of expertise, spanning quantum scientists, engineers, industry, designers and business leaders, who can not only work together to realise viable new technologies, but train the next generation of leaders. These new quantum engineers will overcome the hurdles of bringing laboratory proofs of principle to the market. Imperial's vision is to play a leading role in realising this endeavour. We have been successfully running the Centre for Doctoral Training in Controlled Quantum Dynamics for the last seven years, as well as the recent Innovative Doctoral Programme in Frontiers in Quantum Technology. The current proposal will take the College's vision a step further, aligning with these initiatives and bridging the gap between academic research, industry and the marketplace. Our Hub will train quantum engineers with a skillset to understand cutting-edge quantum research, a mindset toward developing this innovation, and the entrepreneurial skills to lead the market. Under this training and skills hub call, a coherent training and research programme will be provided to engineering and physical science graduates, with the express aim of bringing them to the forefront of quantum technology innovation and entrepreneurship. As such, it will be the engineering and physical science faculties at Imperial that will be providing the training. The programme is to be composed of a one-year master's course followed by three years of PhD research. The students will follow intensive coursework on quantum technology, systems engineering, photonics technology, and innovations & entrepreneurship in the first six months of the master's year, after which a six-month project will normally lead into a longer PhD project. Considering varied backgrounds of the students, extensive remedial courses on fundamental concepts will be provided at the start, followed by continued tutorial assistance. We will work closely with other national centres of excellence in order to expand the national capability. The research topics at the Hub includes: 1) Development of quantum technologies including inertial navigation systems, quantum simulators, quantum sensors and components for quantum networks, 2) Development of rugged and compact devices to enable quantum technology, 3) Fabrication and packaging, 4) Bridging conventional and quantum technologies and 5) new applications of quantum engineering. A high percentage of our researchers will be involved in collaboration with UK institutes, including industry partners and quantum technology hubs. At the same time, we will expand upon our established practices to serve as a national resource, encouraging collaboration and mobility between quantum researchers and engineers in the UK. We will provide national training and industry networking programmes, support training for visiting researchers and establish a career development fund to promote research innovation and entrepreneurialism. They will also be exposed to taylor-made entrepreneurship and innovation courses, through an intensive programme provided by the Imperial College Business School. Students in our Hub will benefit from compulsory placement opportunities across our industry partners and the UK quantum technology network. Finally, cohort building will be taken very seriously. This is an area where we have developed significant expertise.

Recently, an influential American business magazine, Forbes, chose Quantum Engineering as one of its top 10 majors (degree programmes) for 2022. According to Forbes magazine (September 2012): "a need is going to arise for specialists capable of taking advantage of quantum mechanical effects in electronics and other products." We propose to renew the CDT in Controlled Quantum Dynamics (CQD) to continue its success in training students to develop quantum technologies in a collaborative manner between experiment and theory and across disciplines. With the ever growing demand for compactness, controllability and accuracy, the size of opto-electronic devices in particular, and electronic devices in general, is approaching the realm where only fully quantum mechanical theory can explain the fluctuations in (and limitations of) these devices. Pushing the frontiers of the 'very small' and 'very fast' looks set to bring about a revolution in our understanding of many fundamental processes in e.g. physics, chemistry and even biology with widespread applications. Although the fundamental basis of quantum theory remains intact, more recent theoretical and experimental developments have led researchers to use the laws of quantum mechanics in new and exciting ways - allowing the manipulation of matter on the atomic scale for hitherto undreamt of applications. This field not only holds the promise of addressing the issue of quantum fluctuations but of turning the quantum behaviour of nano- structures to our advantage. Indeed, the continued development of high-technology is crucial and we are convinced that our proposed CDT can play an important role. When a new field emerges a key challenge in meeting the current and future demands of industry is appropriate training, which is what we propose to achieve in this CDT. The UK plays a leading role in the theory and experimental development of CQD and Imperial College is a centre of excellence within this context. The team involved in the proposed CDT covers a wide range of key activities from theory to experiment. Collectively we have an outstanding track record in research, training of postgraduate students and teaching. The aim of the proposed CDT is to provide a coherent training environment bringing together PhD students from a wide variety of backgrounds and giving them an appreciation of experiment and theory of related fields under the umbrella of CQD. Students graduating from our programme will subsequently find themselves in high-demand both by industry and academia. The proposed CDT addresses the EPSRC strategic area 'Quantum Information Processing and Quantum Optics" and one of the priority areas of the CDT call, "Towards Quantum Technologies". The excellence of our doctoral training has been recognised by the award of a highly competitive EU Innovative Doctoral Programme (IDP) in Frontiers of Quantum Technology, which will start in October 2013 running for four years with the budget around 3.8 million euros. The new CDT will closely work with the IDP to maximise synergy. It is clear that other high-profile activities within the general area of CQD are being undertaken in a range of other UK universities and within Imperial College. A key aim of our DTC is inclusivity. We operate a model whereby academics from outside of Imperial College can act as co-supervisors for PhD students on collaborative projects whereby the student spends part of the PhD at the partner institution whilst remaining closely tied to Imperial College and the student cohort. Many of the CDT activities including lectures and summer schools will be open to other PhD students within the UK. Outreach and transferable skills courses will be emphasised to provide a set of outreach classes and to organise various outreach activities including the CDT in CQD Quantum Show to the general public and CDT Festivals and to participate in Imperial's Science Festivals.