MIRAGE Emitter Improvements Technology Review

摘要

Data is presented that resulted from a major science & engineering study aimed at improving the maximum operating temperature of the Mirage emitter array. The past year has seen substantial improvements in the Mirage emitter pixel, resulting in high operability and yield, and most recently, a highly stable MWIR apparent temperature of 700K. Advanced diagnostic techniques were used in order to identify and optimize the emitter fabrication process. First principles were employed, where appropriate, in order to gain insight into the physical mechanisms responsible for driving each of the emitter figures of merit. A materials study was performed in order to select the best material stack, and a variety of anneal conditions were used to determine which produced the highest and most stable temperatures. Optical constants of the materials were measured over the IR band of interest in order to allow more accurate modeling of the emissivity.