High performance and Cost Effective Diffraction Gratings by Projection Photolithography

Use of projection photolithography allows for fabrication of high fidelity diffraction gratings with individual control on location and shape of each groove using modern semiconductor tools and powerful computer-based simulation and CAD software. The method yields master-grade highly efficient diffraction gratings with high batch-to batch reproducibility at the fraction of the cost of regular holographic or mechanically ruled gratings. Proposal included development of the entire range of designs for hyperspectral imagers covering VIS, SWIR, MWIR and LWIR ranges, dual band grating design for MWIR/LWIR range and fabrication of VIS grating prototype all in Phase I. BENEFIT: Proposed method will be ideal for large volume, highly reproducible, high yield and high efficiency gratings requested by AirForce in the topic. The grating design and fabrication technology has been already proven in other types of diffraction gratings.