This PDF file contains the front matter associated with SPIE Proceedings Volume 9974 including the Title Page, Copyright information, Table of Contents, Introduction, and Conference Committee listing.

Significantly improved carrier lifetimes in very long wavelength infrared (VLWIR) InAs/GaInSb superlattice (SL) absorbers are demonstrated by using time-resolved microwave reflectance (TMR) measurements. A nominal 47.0 Å InAs/21.5 Å Ga0.75In0.25Sb SL structure that produces an approximately 25 μm response at 10 K has a minority carrier lifetime of 140 ± 20 ns at 18 K, which is an order-of-magnitude improvement compare to previously reported lifetime values for other VLWIR detector absorbers. This improvement is attributed to the strain-engineered ternary SL design, which offers a variety of epitaxial advantages and ultimately leads to the improvements in the minority carrier lifetime by mitigating defect-mediated Shockley-Read-Hall (SRH) recombination centers. By analyzing the temperature dependence of TMR decay data, the recombination mechanisms and trap states that currently limit the performance of this SL absorber are identified. The results show a general decrease in the long-decay lifetime component, which is dominated by SRH recombination at temperatures below ~30 K, and by Auger recombination at temperatures above ~45 K. This result implies that minimal improvement can be made in the minority carrier lifetime at temperatures greater than 45 K without further suppressing Auger recombination through proper band engineering, which suggests that the improvement to be gained by mitigation of the SRH defects would not be substantial at these temperatures. At temperatures lower than 30 K, some improvement can be attained by mitigated of the SRH recombination centers. Since the strain-balanced ternary SL design offers a reasonably good absorption coefficient and many epitaxial advantages during growth, this VLWIR SL material system should be considered a competitive candidate for VLWIR photodetector technology.

Performance of quantum well infrared photodetector (QWIP) device parameters such as detector cutoff wavelength and the dark current density depend strongly on the quality and the control of the epitaxy material growth. In this work, we report on a methodology to precisely control these critical material parameters for long wavelength infrared (LWIR) GaAs/AlGaAs QWIP epi wafers grown by multi-wafer production Molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). Critical growth parameters such as quantum well (QW) thickness, AlGaAs composition and QW doping level are discussed.

Influence of iodine vapor pressure during the sensitization process on the morphology, microstructure, and electrical properties of the PbSe films was studied. PbSe films of polycrystalline particles were coated on thermally oxidized silicon substrates by chemical bath deposition using a solution of lead acetate and sodium selenosulfate without or with iodine-doping. As-grown PbSe films were oxidized at 380°C for 30 min and then treated with iodine vapor of different pressures at 380 °C for 5 min. As the iodine vapor pressure was increased above 20 Pa during the iodination process, the PbI2 phase begins to form in the undoped films, while the PbI₂O₂ and Pb₃O₄ phases as well as PbI₂ are formed in the iodine-doped films. Only iodine-doped films showed photo response. The sheet resistance and the signal to noise ratio increased with the iodine vapor pressure up to the 17.5 Pa iodine pressure. The role of iodine in the sensitization is thought to be helping recrystallization of PbSe grains and the resultant redistribution of oxygen atoms in the effective atomic sites.

We report on InP-based high power modified uni-traveling carrier (MUTC) photodiodes heterogeneously integrated on silicon on diamond (SOD) waveguides. Typical dark currents of MUTC photodiodes on SOD waveguides are 20 nA at - 5 V bias voltage. A 50-μm long photodiode has an internal responsivity of 1.07 A/W at 1550 nm wavelength. The bandwidths of photodiodes with active areas of 14×25 μm², 14×50 μm², 14×100 μm² and 14×150 μm² are 22 GHz, 16 GHz, 10 GHz and 7 GHz, respectively. The maximum output RF powers of 14×100 μm² photodiodes are 13 dBm, 14.4 dBm and 15.3 dBm at 10 GHz, respectively. The maximum DC dissipated power is 0.67 W. To our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of III-V photodiodes integrated on SOD waveguides.

A new type of low noise uncooled microbolometer has been designed and fabricated. The sensor uses the low-noise properties of mechanical resonators (NEMS). As the temperature increases due to infrared absorption, the torsional Young’s modulus of mechanical parts decreases, modifying thereby the resonance frequency. Residual strains change also due to thermal expansion of layers, contributing also to the temperature coefficient of frequency (TCF). We compared the performances of various devices designed with different thermal isolation to identify the best devices for infrared detection and to assess the theoretical performance of such sensors. Results from FEM simulations of TCF for different designs are finally provided and confronted to experimental data.

We demonstrate the development of colloidal lithography technique to fabricate large-area plasmonic perfect absorbers using Al, which is an earth abundant low-cost plasmonic material in contrast to Au and Ag. Using numerical electromagnetic simulations, we optimize the geometrical parameters of Al perfect absorbers (AlPAs) with resonances at desired wavelengths depending on the applications. The fabricated AlPAs exhibit narrowband absorptions with high efficiency up to 98 %. By tuning AlPAs parameters, the resonance of AlPAs can be tuned from the visible to the middle infrared region. The AlPAs can be applied for spectrally selective infrared devices such as selective thermal emitters, selective surface-enhanced vibrational spectroscopy (SEIRA) for molecular sensing and selective IR detectors. In this report, we demonstrate applications of AlPAs for selective thermal emitters and SEIRA. The results obtained here reveal a simple technique to fabricate scalable plasmonic perfect absorbers as well as their potential applications in optoelectronic and photonic devices.

The detection of infrared radiation is of great importance for many defense and civilian applications. Eyesafe short-wavelength infrared (SWIR) spectral range is particularly interesting due to atmospheric propagation through obscurants. Applications include low-cost, long-range target identification, identification of heavily obscured targets, obstacle avoidance, and high resolution imaging from a variety of platforms including hand-held devices, unmanned air vehicles, or ground vehicles. HgCdTe grown on CdTe/Si by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) was processed into mini-arrays for 1.55 μm LADAR applications. Low-capacitance photodiodes (<10 pF) were demonstrated at room temperature with frequency responses exceeding 100 MHz. This paper discusses the device architecture and device performance results.

An uncooled thermal imager is being developed based on a liquid crystal (LC) transducer. Without any electrical connections, the LC transducer pixels change the long-wavelength infrared (LWIR) scene directly into a visible image as opposed to an electric signal in microbolometers. The objectives are to develop an imager technology scalable to large formats (tens of megapixels) while maintaining or improving the noise equivalent temperature difference (NETD) compared to microbolometers. The present work is demonstrating that the LCs have the required performance (sensitivity, dynamic range, speed, etc.) to enable a more flexible uncooled imager. Utilizing 200-mm wafers, a process has been developed and arrays have been fabricated using aligned LCs confined in 20×20-μm cavities elevated on thermal legs. Detectors have been successfully fabricated on both silicon and fused silica wafers using less than 10 photolithographic mask steps. A breadboard camera system has been assembled to test the imagers. Various sensor configurations are described along with advantages and disadvantages of component arrangements.

Active and passive short-wave infrared (SWIR) detection systems for surveillance and remote sensing applications are mostly required to detect extremely low photon fluxes. This can be achieved by utilizing the internal signal gain as provided by avalanche photodiodes (APDs). We report on our current development activities of SWIR photodetectors based on InGaAs/InAlAs/InP APDs, covering detector design, epitaxial growth, process technology, and electro-optical characterization results of single-element detectors and fanout hybrids. For the first time, the operation of an InGaAsbased SWIR camera with 640 × 512 pixels utilizing APDs for signal amplification is demonstrated for operating temperatures of 180 K and even 260 K.

We report high-quality n-type extended short wavelength infrared (eSWIR) HgCdTe (cutoff wavelength ~2.59 μm at 77 K) layers grown on three-inch diameter CdTe/Si substrates by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). This material is used to fabricate test diodes and arrays with a planar device architecture using arsenic implantation to achieve p-type doping. We use different variations of a test structure with a guarded design to compensate for the lateral leakage current of traditional test diodes. These test diodes with guarded arrays characterize the electrical performance of the active 640 × 512 format, 15 μm pitch detector array.

In this paper, we analyze and experimentally demonstrate the medium-wave infrared (MWIR) imaging ability based on optical readout bimaterial microcantilever focal plane array (FPA) uncooled infrared imaging system. Multiband infrared imaging technology has been a hotspot in the field of infrared imaging. In the infrared band, medium-wave infrared (3~5 μm) has minimal attenuation of atmospheric infrared window, and it also covers many atomic and molecular absorption peak. Imaging study on MWIR radiation source also appears particularly important. First of all, we introduce the bimaterial microcantilever IR sensing principle and the fabrication of the bimaterial microcantilever FPA. Secondly, the paper introduces the theory of the optical-thermal-mechnical reading based on FPA. Finally, the experimental platform was constructed to conduct the MWIR imaging experiment. The medium-wave infrared radiation source consists of a continuous-wave optical parametric oscillator (OPO) that is pumped by a polarization-maintained, single-mode fiber amplifier. The length of the 50mm periodically polarized LiNbO₃ crystal (5%MgO) is used as the nonlinear crystal. The stable cavity of the ring is designed, and the output of the 3~4 μm band is realized by the design of the nonlinear crystal polarization period. And the FPA employed in our experiment contains 256×256 pixels fabricated on a glass substrate, whose working bandwidth is covering the three IR atmospheric windows. The experimental results show that the bimaterial microcantilever FPA has a good imaging ability to the MWIR sources.

One of urgent security problems is a detection of objects placed inside the human body. Obviously, for safety reasons one cannot use X-rays for such object detection widely and often. Three years ago, we have demonstrated principal possibility to see a temperature trace, induced by food eating or water drinking, on the human body skin by using a passive THz camera. However, this camera is very expensive. Therefore, for practice it will be very convenient if one can use the IR camera for this purpose. In contrast to passive THz camera using, the IR camera does not allow to see the object under clothing, if an image, produced by this camera, is used directly. Of course, this is a big disadvantage for a security problem solution based on the IR camera using. To overcome this disadvantage we develop novel approach for computer processing of IR camera images. It allows us to increase a temperature resolution of IR camera as well as increasing of human year effective susceptibility. As a consequence of this, a possibility for seeing of a human body temperature changing through clothing appears. We analyze IR images of a person, which drinks water and eats chocolate. We follow a temperature trace on human body skin, caused by changing of temperature inside the human body. Some experiments were made with measurements of a body temperature covered by T-shirt. Shown results are very important for the detection of forbidden objects, cancelled inside the human body, by using non-destructive control without using X-rays.

We report our recent developments of antimonide based infrared photodetectors utilizing a complementary barrier infrared detector (CBIRD) design. The new generation of devices can operate close to zero bias with the same quantum efficiency as the initial design. 320x256 pixel long-wavelength infrared focal plane arrays utilizing optimized design have been demonstrated with 8.8 μm cutoff wavelength and noise equivalent differential temperature of 26 mK at operating temperature of 80 K for 300 K background and f/2 optics. As CBIRD detectors became valuable candidates for space-based instruments, question of their radiation tolerance became important. Here, we report our investigations of the proton irradiation effects on the photodetector performance.

Group-IV semiconductors have the opportunity to have an equivalent or better temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR) than other microbolometer thermistor materials. By using multiple-quantum-well (MQW) structures, their TCR values can be optimized due to a confinement of carriers. Through two approaches – an activation energy approximation and a custom Monte Carlo transfer matrix method – we simulated this effect for a combination of Group-IV semiconductors and their alloys (e.g., SiGe and GeSn) to find the highest possible TCR, while keeping in mind the critical thicknesses of such layers in a MQW epitaxial stack. We calculated the TCR for a critical-thickness-limited Ge_0.8Sn_0.2/Ge MQW device to be about -1.9 %/K. Although this TCR is lower than similar SiGe/Si MQW thermistors, GeSn offers possible advantages in terms of fabricating suspended devices with its interesting etch-stop properties shown in previous literature. Furthermore, using finite element modeling of heat transport, we looked at another key bolometer parameter: the thermal time constant. The dimensions of a suspended Ge microbolometer’s supporting legs were fine-tuned for a target response time of 5 ms, incorporating estimations for the size effects of the nanowire-like legs on thermal conductivity.

used for monitoring and profiling structures, range, velocity, vibration, and air turbulence. Remote sensing in the IR region has several advantages over the visible region, including higher transmitter energy while maintaining eye-safety requirements. Electron-injection detectors are a new class of detectors with high internal avalanche-free amplification together with an excess-noise-factor of unity. They have a cutoff wavelength of 1700 nm. Furthermore, they have an extremely low jitter. The detector operates in linear-mode and requires only bias voltage of a few volts. This together with the feedback stabilized gain mechanism, makes formation of large-format high pixel density electron-injection FPAs less challenging compared to other detector technologies such as avalanche photodetectors. These characteristics make electron-injection detectors an ideal choice for flash LiDAR application with mm scale resolution at longer ranges. Based on our experimentally measured device characteristics, a detailed theoretical LiDAR model was developed. In this model we compare the performance of the electron-injection detector with commercially available linear-mode InGaAs APD from (Hamamatsu G8931-20) as well as a p-i-n diode (Hamamatsu 11193 p-i-n). Flash LiDAR images obtained by our model, show the electron-injection detector array (of 100 x 100 element) achieves better resolution with higher signal-to-noise compared with both the InGaAs APD and the p-i-n array (of 100 x 100 element).

In recent years, the use of multi-modal camera rigs consisting of an RGB sensor and an infrared (IR) sensor have become increasingly popular for use in surveillance and robotics applications. The advantages of using multi-modal camera rigs include improved foreground/background segmentation, wider range of lighting conditions under which the system works, and richer information (e.g. visible light and heat signature) for target identification. However, the traditional computer vision method of mapping pairs of images using pixel intensities or image features is often not possible with an RGB/IR image pair. We introduce a novel method to overcome the lack of common features in RGB/IR image pairs by using a variational methods optimization algorithm to map the optical flow fields computed from different wavelength images. This results in the alignment of the flow fields, which in turn produce correspondences similar to those found in a stereo RGB/RGB camera rig using pixel intensities or image features. In addition to aligning the different wavelength images, these correspondences are used to generate dense disparity and depth maps. We obtain accuracies similar to other multi-modal image alignment methodologies as long as the scene contains sufficient depth variations, although a direct comparison is not possible because of the lack of standard image sets from moving multi-modal camera rigs. We test our method on synthetic optical flow fields and on real image sequences that we created with a multi-modal binocular stereo RGB/IR camera rig. We determine our method's accuracy by comparing against a ground truth.

Head pose can be seen as a coarse estimation of gaze direction. In automotive industry, knowledge about gaze direction could optimize Human-Machine Interface (HMI) and Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). Pose estimation systems are often based on camera when applications have to be contactless. In this paper, we explore uncooled thermal imagery (8-14μm) for its intrinsic night vision capabilities and for its invariance versus lighting variations. Two methods are implemented and compared, both are aided by a 3D model of the head. The 3D model, mapped with thermal texture, allows to synthesize a base of 2D projected models, differently oriented and labeled in yaw and pitch. The first method is based on keypoints. Keypoints of models are matched with those of the query image. These sets of matchings, aided with the 3D shape of the model, allow to estimate 3D pose. The second method is a global appearance approach. Among all 2D models of the base, algorithm searches the one which is the closest to the query image thanks to a weighted least squares difference.

The spectral noise characteristic and relative intensity noise of an all fibre Sagnac interferometer system consisting of a 980nm pump source at 130mW maximum output power, a 980/1550nm wavelength division multiplexer, a 10m-piece of Erbium-doped fibre, a fibre Bragg grating (FBG) centered at 1.548um, an optical circulator at 1550nm and a 50/50 fibre coupler, were measured with an optical spectrum analyzer (OSA) for fine tuning for a range of temperature between 5 and 180 degrees Celsius in step of 1 degree Celsius. At the probing end, a high-bi piece of fibre and a Peltier were employed for temperature variation of the system. Spectral and temperature response of the noise reduction due to temperature variation was performed remotely using and Arduino micro-controller and a DS18B20 digital sensor, into a local area network. Full optical and thermal characterization of the system will be included in the presentation.

A previous paper described LWIR pupil imaging, and an improved understanding of the behavior of this type of sensor for which the high-sensitivity focal plane array (FPA) operated at higher flux levels includes a reversal in signal integration polarity. We have since considered a candidate methodology for efficient, long-term calibration stability that exploits the following two properties of pupil imaging: (1) a fixed pupil position on the FPA, and (2) signal levels from the scene imposed on significant but fixed LWIR background levels. These two properties serve to keep each pixel operating over a limited dynamic range that corresponds to its location in the pupil and to the signal levels generated at this location by the lower and upper calibration flux levels. Exploiting this property for which each pixel of the Pupil Imager operates over its limited dynamic range, the signal polarity reversal between low and high flux pixels, which occurs for a circular region of pixels near the upper edges of the pupil illumination profile, can be rectified to unipolar integration with a two-level non-uniformity correction (NUC). Images corrected real-time with standard non-uniformity correction (NUC) techniques, are still subject to longer-term drifts in pixel offsets between recalibrations. Long-term calibration stability might then be achieved using either a scene-based non-uniformity correction approach, or with periodic repointing for off-source background estimation and subtraction. Either approach requires dithering of the field of view, by sub-pixel amounts for the first method, or by large off-source motions outside the 0.38 milliradian FOV for the latter method. We report on the results of investigations along both these lines.

Space Situational Awareness (SSA) is of utmost importance in today's congested and contested space environment. Satellites must perform orbital corrections for station keeping, devices like high efficiency electric propulsion systems such as a Hall effect thrusters (HETs) to accomplish this are on the rise. The health of this system is extremely important to ensure the satellite can maintain proper position and perform its intended mission. Electron temperature is a commonly used diagnostic to determine the efficiency of a hall thruster. Recent papers have coordinated near infrared (NIR) spectral measurements of emission lines in xenon and krypton to electron temperature measurements. Ground based observations of these spectral lines could allow the health of the thruster to be determined while the satellite is in operation. Another issue worth considering is the availability of SSA assets for ground-based observations. The current SSA architecture is limited and task saturated. If smaller telescopes, like those at universities, could successfully detect these signatures they could augment data collection for the SSA network. To facilitate this, precise atmospheric modeling must be used to pull out the signature. Within the atmosphere, the NIR has a higher transmission ratio and typical HET propellants are approximately 3x the intensity in the NIR versus the visible spectrum making it ideal for ground based observations. The proposed research will focus on developing a model to determine xenon and krypton signatures through the atmosphere and estimate the efficacy through ground-based observations. The model will take power modes, orbit geometries, and satellite altitudes into consideration and be correlated with lab and field observations.

A diode laser sensor based on absorption spectroscopy has been developed for the measurement of spectroscopic parameters of the R(50) line at 5007.787cm^-1 (20012<-00001 band) of CO₂. Survey spectra of the CO₂ R(50) line of CO₂ - CO mixture gas with 49.82% CO₂ were recorded at different temperatures and pressures through a high temperature measurement system using tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy. High-resolution measurements of the CO₂ R(50) line shape were used to determine collisional broadening full-width of CO₂ by CO as a function of pressure and temperature. The collisional broadening coefficients were obtained at temperatures between 323K and 1873K, and the temperature dependent coefficient of the collisional broadening full-width of CO₂ by CO was calculated. These parameters are supplement and improvement to the existing database. They are helpful for the detection of CO₂ concentration in combustion diagnosis to ensure the accurate inversion of CO₂ concentration in the combustion process.

This work introduces the experimental results of a temperature sensor device, with doped fiber and LPGs. The device is introduced in a temperature controlled oven, observing a 1 nm shift in wavelength toward longer wavelengths when the temperature increases 3 °C. It is possible to observe the average rate of change in the power related to increased temperature for two and three fiber gratings temperature sensors, and finally it is noted that the channels generated by the interference pattern are dispersed as temperature increases. The experiment was performed for 2 and 3 LPFGs in series where the wavelength displacement, output power and the number of channels were analyzed when the temperature was increased.

A program has been started at NIST to make high-accuracy measurements of the infrared (IR) index properties of technologically important IR materials, in order to provide the IR optics community with updated values for the highest quality materials now available. For this purpose, we designed and built a minimum-deviation-angle refractometry system enabling diffraction-limited index measurements for wavelengths from 0.12 μm to 14 μm. We discuss the apparatus and procedures that we use for IR measurements. First results are presented for germanium for the wavelength range from 2 μm to 14 μm, with standard uncertainties ranging from 2 × 10^-5 near 2 μm to 8 × 10^-5 near 14 μm. This is an improvement by about an order of magnitude of the uncertainty level for index data of germanium generally used for optic design. A Sellmeier formula fitting our data for this range is provided. An analysis of the uncertainty is presented in detail. These measurements are compared to previous measurements of Ge.

In this paper, we have proposed a video enhancement algorithm to improve the output video of the infrared camera. Sometimes the video obtained by infrared camera is very dark since there is no clear target. In this case, infrared video should be divided into frame images by frame extraction, in order to carry out the image enhancement. For the first frame image, which can be divided into k sub images by using K-means clustering according to the gray interval it occupies before k sub images’ histogram equalization according to the amount of information per sub image, we used a method to solve a problem that final cluster centers close to each other in some cases; and for the other frame images, their initial cluster centers can be determined by the final clustering centers of the previous ones, and the histogram equalization of each sub image will be carried out after image segmentation based on K-means clustering. The histogram equalization can make the gray value of the image to the whole gray level, and the gray level of each sub image is determined by the ratio of pixels to a frame image. Experimental results show that this algorithm can improve the contrast of infrared video where night target is not obvious which lead to a dim scene, and reduce the negative effect given by the overexposed pixels adaptively in a certain range.

Wearable devices often employ optical sensors, such as photoplethysmography sensors, for detecting heart rates or other biochemical factors. Pulse waveforms, rather than simply detecting heartbeats, can clarify arterial conditions. However, most optical sensor designs require close skin contact to reduce power consumption while obtaining good quality signals without distortion. We have designed a detection-gap-independent optical sensor array using divergence-beam-controlled slit lasers and distributed photodiodes in a pulse-detection device wearable over the wrist’s radial artery. It achieves high biosignal quality and low power consumption. The top surface of a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser of 850 nm wavelength was covered by Au film with an open slit of width between 500 nm and 1500 nm, which generated laser emissions across a large divergence angle along an axis orthogonal to the slit direction. The sensing coverage of the slit laser diode (LD) marks a 50% improvement over nonslit LD sensor coverage. The slit LD sensor consumes 100% more input power than the nonslit LD sensor to obtain similar optical output power. The slit laser sensor showed intermediate performance between LD and light-emitting diode sensors. Thus, designing sensors with multiple-slit LD arrays can provide useful and convenient ways for incorporating optical sensors in wrist-wearable devices.

In this work, a fiber optic microphone system was built and tested. The purpose of the fiber microphone is to sense photoacoustic waves produced by water molecules excited by an ultrafast laser. The use of a fiber sensor allows for ease of three-dimension measurement implementation for a 3-D imaging based on water amounts of different materials, this sensor can be directly submerged in water or a phantom gel without electromagnetic interference nor corrosion.

Ion Beam Sputter Deposition (IBSD) is a versatile technique particularly suited to applications requiring high quality, high performance layer materials as it allows independent and accurate control of the process parameters. Vanadium oxides, used for example in the fabrication of microbolometers, optical switches or optical storage, exhibit interesting properties such as a high Temperature Coefficient of Resistance (TCR), relatively low 1/f noise and a semiconductormetal phase transition close to room temperature. However, it is very challenging to control the stoichiometry of the deposited film as there are at least 25 different oxidation states of vanadium, few of which display the required electrical characteristics. In the present study, vanadium oxide thin layers were deposited by IBSD using an Oxford Ionfab300+ and analyzed with regard to their electrical properties. The impact of the system parameters on the resistance repeatability, wafer-to-wafer and batch-to-batch, was thoroughly investigated to provide the end user with a clear understanding of the factors affecting film resistivity while ensuring at the same time a steep variation of resistance with temperature, as notably required for uncooled bolometers. These parameters were balanced to also achieve a good deposition rate, throughput and uniformity over large device areas, compatible with the requirements of industrial applications.