Infrared detector with non-cooled quantum well structure

US5969375A · kind A · utility

Assignee

• Thomson-CSF · FR

Inventors

• Emmanuel Rosencher · Bagneux, FR
• Borge Vinter · Paris, FR
• Vincent Berger · Rambouillet, FR
• Daniel Kaplan · Paris, FR
• Francois Micheron · Paris, FR

Key dates

• Filing date: Dec 16, 1997
• Grant date: Oct 19, 1999
• Expiry date: Dec 16, 2017

Classification

• Technology area (CPC Y): Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
• CPC primary: Y02E10/50

Abstract

A detector with quantum structure comprising a small-gap semiconductor material inserted between two large-gap semiconductor materials, the structure comprising a coupling grating between the wave to be detected and the detector zone constituted by the small-gap material. Under these conditions, the detector zone may have a very small thickness (typically of the order of 1,000 .ANG.) and lead to a detectivity, limited by the dark current, that is high.