Patent · US Expired

Room temperature 3-5 micrometer wavelength HgCdTe heterojunction emitter

US5998809A · kind A · utility

4Cited by
14References
20Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateOct 4, 1996
Grant dateDec 7, 1999
Priority date
Expiry dateOct 4, 2016

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
  • CPC primaryH01S2302/00
  • WIPO fieldOptics
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

A room temperature emitter (10) operating in the 3-5 .mu.m wavelength range is provided. The emitter (10) includes a substrate (12) formed of a material selected from the group comprising cadmium telluride or cadmium zinc telluride. An epitaxial active layer (14) is formed over the substrate (12) from mercury cadmium telluride. The active layer (14) may be either a p-type or an n-type layer. The active layer (14) is doped with a predetermined concentration of dopant selected from the group comprising indium and arsenic. More particularly, if the active layer (14) is a p-type layer, it is doped with arsenic in a concentration between approximately 1.times.10.sup.16 atoms/cm.sup.3 and 1.times.10.sup.17 atoms/cm.sup.3. If the active layer (14) is an n-type layer, it is doped with indium in a concentration between approximately 5.times.10.sup.14 atoms/cm.sup.3 to 1.times.10.sup.15 atoms/cm.sup.3. A first epitaxial confinement layer (16) is formed from mercury cadmium telluride. The first confinement layer (16) is formed over the active layer (14). The first confinement layer (16) may be either an n.sup.+ layer or a p.sup.+ layer, depending upon whether the active layer (14) is a p-type…

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.