Who we are

I founded Rauscher Scientific Consulting LLC (RSC) to provide independent, high-level expertise in state-of-the-art infrared and visible detector systems, advanced instrumentation, and quantitative analysis. We help government, academic, and industrial programs reach the limits of measurement sensitivity in complex, photon-limited environments — including cases that demand single-photon-sensitive performance.

RSC combines deep understanding of detector physics, system engineering, and applied mathematics with hands-on experience developing cutting-edge instrumentation for ground- and space-based astrophysics and other scientific applications. Our work emphasizes practical innovation, analytical rigor, and clear communication — from initial concept through proposal, technology development, integration and test, system optimization, and final application.

Bernard J. (Bernie) Rauscher, Ph.D., founder and principal consultant, has led flight detector development teams and is internationally recognized for contributions to HgCdTe detector systems and the mathematics of detector calibration. He served as science lead for the JWST NIRSpec detector subsystem, guiding the effort from design through flight delivery, and collaborated extensively with the European Space Agency (ESA) on JWST and related programs. He also served as Principal Investigator for the Roman Space Telescope’s H4RG-10 detectors, providing science leadership during their maturation from TRL 3–5. Earlier in his career, he was a faculty member at the University of Durham (UK), gaining first-hand experience with Europe’s detector and instrumentation community.

His career spans decades of innovation in low-background, ultra-low-noise, nearly quantum-limited sensors and cryogenic electronics. Through RSC, he continues to apply this expertise to new challenges, including next-generation space instrumentation, maturing fields such as single-photon-sensitive detector systems, and emerging technologies on the quantum frontier.

At RSC, we believe that independent scientific expertise matters — especially where success depends on understanding the physical principles that define the limits of what is measurable.