The short wave infrared (SWIR) spectral band is an emerging domain thanks to its large potential. Close to VISible/Near Infrared wavelengths, SWIR images interpretation is made easier for the users. In this spectral region, new opportunities can be found in several fields of applications such as defense and security (night vision, active imaging), space (earth observation), transport (automotive safety), or industry (nondestructive process control, food and plastic sorting). In the frame of this paper, the development of a small pitch InGaAs technology for the SWIR band is described. The objective is to fuel an increase in focal plane arrays (FPA) resolution with the development of a10μm pitch process. A specific Read Out Integrated Circuit (ROIC) has been designed to address a high frame rate and various functions like the selection of lines or specific windowing. The ROIC exhibits 3 different gains. A full set of electro-optical characterizations for a VGA 10μm pitch focal plane array is presented.
The short wave infrared (SWIR) spectral band is an emerging domain thanks to its large potential. Close to VISible/Near Infrared wavelengths, SWIR images interpretation is made easier for the users. In this spectral region, new opportunities can be found in several fields of applications such as defense and security (night vision, active imaging), space (earth observation), transport (automotive safety), or industry (nondestructive process control, food and plastic sorting). In the frame of this paper, two different developments of the InGaAs technology addressing emerging fields of SWIR imaging are described: pixel pitch reduction and multi-spectral imaging. In pixel pitch reduction the obvious objective is to increase the imaging resolution without jeopardizing system cost. Multi-spectral resolution deals, on the other hand, with interposition of pixelated filters in the optical path right onto SWIR focal plane arrays (FPA) to enable a real time spectral analysis of recorded SWIR images.
SOFRADIR is the worldwide leader on the cooled IR detector market for high-performance space, military and security applications thanks to a well mastered Mercury Cadmium Telluride (MCT) technology, and recently thanks to the acquisition of III-V technologies including Indium Gallium Arsenide (InGaAs). As a result, strong and continuous development efforts are deployed to deliver cutting edge products with improved performances in terms of spatial and thermal resolution, dark current, quantum efficiency, low excess noise and operability. Recent years have evidenced significant progress with InGaAs process maturity enabling low noise detectors operable at room temperature, with no cooling requirement. This new generation of so called Tecless devices meets a surging interest for affordable Short-Wave Infrared (SWIR) detectors for use in volume applications such as industrial machine vision, science imaging or surveillance applications. For these systems, the latest uncooled InGaAs sensors allow major cost savings without sacrificing performance. In this talk we will review and analyze the impact of temperature on InGaAs detectors. We will also discuss implementation and optimization tradeoffs which should be considered when using uncooled InGaAs SWIR detectors.
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