On-Chip hyperspetral imaging system for portable IR spectroscopy Applications

Hyperspectral middlewave infrared and longwave infrared (MWIR/LWIR) imaging systems capable of obtaining hundreds of narrow band (10-15 nm) spectral information of Earth's surface, the atmosphere, and land use in agriculture are of great importance in NASA's Earth remote sensing missions. Existing hyperspectral MWIR/LWIR imaging systems are bulky and heavy and thus not suitable for portable and small satellite applications. This SBIR project aims to develop an on-chip hyerspectral imaging system with integrated narrow-band (15 nm) hyperspectral filers on the pixels of the MWIR/LWIR image array. Successfully developing the proposed innovation will provide an enabling ultra-compact on-chip hyperspectral imaging technology with significantly reduced size, weight, and power consumption suitable for NASA's portable and small satellite earth remote sensing missions. In phase I, the proposed on-chip hyperspctral imaging system will be evaluated and compared with existing technologies. A preliminary MWIR/LWIR photodetector with the integrated plasmonic narrow-band filter will be fabricated and characterized. In Phase II, a prototype of the miniature on-chip mega pixel (1024x1024) MWIR/LWIR hyperspectral imaging system will be developed for laboratory demonstration.

The on-chip plasmonic hyperspectral MWIR/LWIR imaging system enables hyperspectral MWIR/LWIR sensing and imaging on a single chip with substantially reduced device size, weight and power consumption and improved system reliability for portable and small satellite remote sensing applications. This on-chip hyperspectral MWIR/LWIR imaging system will significantly reduce the costs of NASA's Earth mission in measurement of Earth's resources and its environment as well as land use in agriculture, such as carbon-based trace gases, CH4, and CO2, mapping of Ozone (O3) layers, as well as soils, and understanding of the Earth system and its response to natural and human-induced changes.

The on-chip hyperspectral MWIR/LWIR imaging technology with high sensitivity and high spectral-resolution is particularly useful in portable and standalone sensing and imaging 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 ultra-compact portable hyperspectral IR camera technologies to meet the potential needs of the huge defense and commercial market.

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