Photonic antenna coupled middlewave infrared photodetector and focal plane array with low noise and high quantum efficiency

Middle-wave infrared (MWIR, 3-5 ¿¿m) photodetectors are of great importance in numerous NASA applications, including thermal remote sensing for carbon-based trace gases (CH4, CO2, and CO), heat capacity mapping for earth resource locating, environment and atmosphere monitoring, and IR spectroscopy. However, existing MWIR photodetectors are require a low operating temperature, below 77K to achieve high photodetectivity (D*). The requirement for cryogenic cooling systems adds cost, weight and reliability issues, thereby making it unsuitable for small satellite applications. This STTR project aims to develop a new photonic antenna coupled MWIR photodetector with a significantly enhanced quantum efficiency. In addition, the antenna technology would also allow a large-area signal collection with a small active area of the detector. Successfully developing the proposed innovation is expected to provide an enabling technology for ultra-compact high performance MWIR detection and imaging systems suitable for NASA's small satellite earth remote sensing applications. In phase I, the proposed photonic antenna enhanced MWIR photodetector technology will be evaluated and compared with existing technologies. The proposed photonic antenna structure will be simulated to generate an optimal design. A preliminary photonic antenna coupled MWIR photodetector will be developed for proof-of-concept demonstration. In Phase II, a prototype of the photonic antenna coupled MWIR photodetector will be developed and packaged with supporting electronics and software interfaces for laboratory demonstration.

The proposed photonic antenna coupled MWIR photodetector technology enables ultra-compact high performance MWIR sensing with high quantum efficiency. This technology avoids the bulky and heavy cryogenic cooling system and enables ultra-compact carbon-based trace gases (CH4, CO2, and CO) sensing with substantially reduced device size, weight and power consumption and improved system reliability for small satellite applications. It forms a key building block in IR cameras for numerous NASA's earth remote applications, including space telescope and high-sensitive space object imaging, high definition acquisition of radiation characteristics of Earth and its environments, monitoring of atmospheric variables such as temperature, winds, and trace constituents for understanding and predicting the earth's climate and potential hazards as well as topographical profiling of Earth for mineral identification and vegetation mapping.

The high-performance ultra-compact MWIR detector technology is particularly useful in detecting ultra-weak signals for many critical military and homeland security applications such as night vision, missile early launch detection and remote chemical sensing and detection for biological/chemical warfare. Commercial markets include leak detection, chemical process control, remote chemical sensing for atmospheric pollution and drug monitoring, IR spectroscopy, and medical diagnoses. The technology developed herein should considerably accelerate the commercialization of IR camera technologies to meet the potential needs of the huge defense and commercial market.

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