Detectors: Infrared and Focal Plane Arrays

Abstract

Silicon (Si) is the most popular material in the microelectronics field. An enormous number of Si-based microdevices are being manufactured, including imaging devices. Si-based focal plane arrays (FPAs) are widely used in the commercial visible imager arena. However, the Si band-gap energy of 1.12 eV limits optical sensitivity of intrinsic Si photodetectors up to the near-infrared (IR) spectral region. Thermal imaging with Si-based detectors is only possible using an internal photoemission or thermal mechanisms.