III-V semiconductor quantum well and superlattice detectors

Martin Walther; Frank Fuchs; Harald Schneider; Joachim Fleissner; J. Schmitz; Wilfried Pletschen; Juergen Braunstein; Johann Ziegler; Wolfgang A. Cabanski; Peter Koidl; Guenter Weimann

doi:10.1117/12.328032

26 October 1998 III-V semiconductor quantum well and superlattice detectors

Martin Walther, Frank Fuchs, Harald Schneider, Joachim Fleissner, J. Schmitz, Wilfried Pletschen, Juergen Braunstein, Johann Ziegler, Wolfgang A. Cabanski, Peter Koidl, Guenter Weimann

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 3436, Infrared Technology and Applications XXIV; (1998) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.328032
Event: SPIE's International Symposium on Optical Science, Engineering, and Instrumentation, 1998, San Diego, CA, United States

Abstract

The paper reviews the development of IR detectors for the 8 - 12 micrometer wavelength range based on GaAs/AlGaAs quantum well structures and InAs/(GaIn)Sb short-period superlattices (SPSLs) at the Fraunhofer-Institute IAF. Photoconductive GaAs/AlGaAs quantum well infrared photodetectors (QWIPs) are used for the fabrication of starring IR cameras for thermal imaging in the third atmospheric window. The long wavelength infrared (LWIR) camera, devleoped in cooperation with AEG Infrarot-Module (AIM), consists of a two-dimensional focal plane array (FPA) with 256 X 256 detector elements, flip- chip bonded to a read-out integrated circuit (ROIC). The technology for the fabrication of FPAs, electrical and optical properties of single detector elements in the two-dimensional arrangement and the properties of the LWIR camera system are reported. A noise equivalent temperature difference (NETD) below 10 mK has been measured at an operation temperature of T equals 65 K with an integration time of 20 ms. More than 99.8% of all pixels are working and no cluster defects are observed. InAs/(GaIn)Sb SPSLs with a broken gap type-II band alignment are well suited for the fabrication of IR detectors covering the 3 - 12 micrometer spectral range. Due to the lattice mismatch of the InAs/(GaIn)Sb SPSL with respect to GaSb, tight control of thickness and composition of the layers and a controlled formation of the chemical bonds across the interface in the SPSLs are used for strain compensation. Photodiodes with a cut-off wavelength (lambda) _c equals 8 micrometer and a current responsivity R_(lambda ) equals 2 A/W exhibit a dynamic impedance of R₀A equals 1k(Omega) cm² at T equals 77 K. This leads to a Johnson- noise limited detectivity in excess of D* equals 1 X 10¹² cm(Hz)^1/2/W for these type of detectors.

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Martin Walther, Frank Fuchs, Harald Schneider, Joachim Fleissner, J. Schmitz, Wilfried Pletschen, Juergen Braunstein, Johann Ziegler, Wolfgang A. Cabanski, Peter Koidl, and Guenter Weimann "III-V semiconductor quantum well and superlattice detectors", Proc. SPIE 3436, Infrared Technology and Applications XXIV, (26 October 1998); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.328032

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