Gated IR Imaging with 128 × 128 HgCdTe Electron Avalanche Photodiode FPA

The next generation of infrared (IR) sensor systems will include active imaging capabilities. One example of such a system is a gated active/passive system. The gated active/passive system promises target detection and identification at longer ranges compared to conventional passive-only imaging systems. A detector that is capable of both active and passive modes of operation opens up the possibility of a self-aligned system that uses a single focal plane. The mid-wave infrared (MWIR) HgCdTe electron injection avalanche photodiode (e-APD) provides state-of-the-art 3 μm to 5 μm performance for the passive mode and high, low-noise, gain in the active mode, and high quantum efficiency at 1.5 μm. Gains of greater than 1000 have been measured in MWIR e-APDs with a gain-independent excess noise factor of 1.3. This paper reports the application of the mid-wave HgCdTe e-APD for near-IR gated-active/passive imaging. Specifically a 128 × 128 focal-plane array (FPA) composed of 40-μm-pitch MWIR cutoff APD detectors and custom readout integrated circuit was designed, fabricated, and tested. Median gains as high as 946 at 11 V bias with noise equivalent photon inputs as low as 0.4 photon were measured at 80 K and 1 μs gate times. This subphoton sensitivity is consistent with the high gains, low excess noise factor, and low effective gain normalized dark-current densities, near or below 1 nA/cm2, that were achieved in these FPAs. A gated imaging demonstration system was designed and built using commercially available parts. High resolution and precision gating was demonstrated in this system by imagery taken at ranges out to 9 km.