640 x 512 pixel narrow-band, four-band, and broad-band quantum well infrared photodetector focal plane arrays

A 9 mum cutoff 640x512 pixel hand-held quantum well infrared photodetector (QWIP) camera has been demonstrated with excellent imagery. A noise equivalent differential temperature (NEDT) of 10.6 mK is expected at a 65 K operating temperature with f/2 optics at a 300 K background. This focal plane array has shown background limited performance at a 72 K operating temperature with the same optics and background conditions. In this paper, we discuss the development of this very sensitive long-wavelength infrared camera based on a GaAs/AlGaAs QWIP focal plane array and its performance in quantum efficiency, NEDT, uniformity, and operability. In the second section of this paper, we discuss the first demonstration of a monolithic spatially separated four-band 640 x 512 pixel QWIP focal plane array and its performance. The four spectral bands cover 4-5.5, 8.5-10, 10-12, and 13.5-15 mum spectral regions with 640 x 128 pixels in each band. In the last section, we discuss the array performance of a 640 x 512 pixel broad-band (10-16 mum full-width at half-maximum) QWIP focal plane. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.