Monolithically-integrated semiconductor/superconductor infrared detector and readout circuit
US5311020A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Nov 4, 1992 |
| Grant date | May 10, 1994 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Nov 4, 2012 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH10F39/184
- WIPO fieldBasic communication processes
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A monolithically-integrated semiconductor/ superconductor infrared detector and readout circuit providing sensitive, low-noise detection of infrared radiation for high-performance focal plane array applications. The infrared detector and readout circuit includes a semiconductor infrared detector and a semiconductor/superconductor transimpedance readout amplifier fabricated directly on the infrared detector using thin-film, integrated-circuit processing techniques. A superconducting analog-to-digital (A/D) converter digitizes the detector signals in the cryogenically cooled environment of the detector before coupling the signals to the much warmer and electromagnetically noisier environment of the back-end signal processing electronics, thus reducing noise contamination.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.