  We are designing and constructing a new SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial
Intelligence) instrument to search for direct evidence of interstellar
communications via pulsed laser signals at near-infrared wavelengths. The new
instrument design builds upon our past optical SETI experiences, and is the
first step toward a new, more versatile and sophisticated generation of very
fast optical and near-infrared pulse search devices. We present our
instrumental design by giving an overview of the opto-mechanical design,
detector selection and characterization, signal processing, and integration
procedure. This project makes use of near-infrared (950-1650 nm) discrete
amplification Avalanche Photodiodes (APD) that have greater than 1 GHz
bandwidths with low noise characteristics and moderate gain (~10^4). We have
investigated the use of single versus multiple detectors in our instrument (see
Maire et al., this conference), and have optimized the system to have both high
sensitivity and low false coincidence rates. Our design is optimized for use
behind a 1m telescope and includes an optical camera for acquisition and
guiding. A goal is to make our instrument relatively economical and easy to
duplicate. We describe our observational setup and our initial search
strategies for SETI targets, and for potential interesting compact
astrophysical objects.
