Current status of doped germanium photoconductors for far-infrared astronomy

Jeffrey W. Beeman

doi:10.1117/12.176693

1 June 1994 Current status of doped germanium photoconductors for far-infrared astronomy

Jeffrey W. Beeman

Proceedings Volume 2198, Instrumentation in Astronomy VIII; (1994) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.176693
Event: 1994 Symposium on Astronomical Telescopes and Instrumentation for the 21st Century, 1994, Kailua, Kona, HI, United States

Abstract

Germanium photoconductors are considered the `state of the art' for detection of the 30 to 200 micrometers band of the electromagnetic spectrum. Ge:Be, Ge:Ga and stressed Ge:Ga detectors have been developed for imaging and spectroscopic astronomy, and are successfully used in facilities such as sounding rockets and the Kuiper Airborne Observatory. Their use is also projected for NASA's Space IR Telescope Facility and ESA's IR Space Observatory. This paper describes a few of the figures of merit for these devices with consideration given to the various ways in which they are employed. Current device performance is reported. We briefly discuss recent advancements in understanding the electrical behavior of these devices as they respond to a step change in photon flux. Also discussed are several 2D photoconductor arrays that are currently in use or under development.

Citation Download Citation

Jeffrey W. Beeman "Current status of doped germanium photoconductors for far-infrared astronomy", Proc. SPIE 2198, Instrumentation in Astronomy VIII, (1 June 1994); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.176693

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