Does Silex technology work?, page-6

My thoughts on this focus on the laser technology. Is this where Silex has made such advances that they need to be kept secret?  Seems unlikely to me; Goldsworthy has a laser background, but it doesn't seem to be as the leading light (http://bit.ly/1EvdKEp - academic at the University of South Wales).  Also, if a big enough laser breakthrough was made that would make SILEX truly commercially viable, one would expect that enrichment would be only one of a multitude of applications to which the laser would open doors, and the last thing he would want would be for it to be restricted.

Currently known CO2 laser technology is inadequate to sufficiently meet full SILEX commercial requirements. Their solution, if it's based on current CO2 laser technology, which I assume it is, is limited to an operating frequency of 50 Hz and thus only 1% of the feedstock is reportedly processed, which is at the probable upper limit for the low frequency (this 2005? LANL paper is quite telling http://fas.org/sgp/othergov/doe/lanl/docs4/silex.pdf). Numerous limiting factors of CO2 lasers, such as low wall-plug efficiency, gas and filter replacement, catalyzer particulate deposits on optics and unacceptable dynamic lifetime make the laser far from operationally ideal.

A somewhat parallel example of CO2 laser limitations can be found in the semiconductor industry's attempt to develop extreme ultraviolet lithography -  one of the few major factors that has caused a decade long history of missed milestones has been the CO2 drive laser.

Development depends on advances in appropriate laser characteristics and reliability.  What is required to make the highly attractive SILEX process technologically, practically and commercially viable, is a new generation of lasers. These will be continuously tuneable, have an increased operating frequency, i.e. repetition rate, substantially improved wall plug efficiency, and will produce short duration laser pulses, or equivalently, amplify short pulses with high efficiency.  Does SLX have this in their drive laser?