THIN FILM COATINGS FOR INFRARED DETECTORS

THE METHOD OF PLASMA ASSISTED CHEMICAL VAPOR DEPOSITION (PACVD) WILL BE EMPLOYED TO DEPOSIT QUARTER WAVELENGTH FILMS ON LONG WAVELENGTH IR DETECTORS (E.G., INSB). THE TECHNIQUE EMPLOYED HAS BEEN SHOWN TO PRODUCE FILMS OF TUNABLE REFRACTIVE INDEX (FROM 1.3 TO 2.3) AND THESE FILMS ARE KNOWN TO HAVE FAVORABLE PTICAL TRANSMISSION PROPERTIES. THESE FILMS WILL ENHANCE IR DETECTOR SENSITIVITY BY ACTING AS ANTIREFLECTIVE COATINGS. A NUMBER OF MONOMERS WILL BE TESTED UNDER VARYING PLASMA DISCHARGE CONDITIONS TO PRODUCE THE DESIRED FILMS. IN PARTICULAR, AMORPHOUS C:H ILMS OBTAINED FROM PLASMA POLYMERIZATION OF HYDROCARBONS APPEAR MOST PROMISING. THE FILMS OBTAINED WILL BE EVALUATED IN TERMS OF THEIR REFRACTIVE INDICES, OPTICAL (UV-VISIBLE AND IR) PROPERTIES AND TEMPERATURE STABILITIES, INCLUDING CYCLING BETWEEN ROOM TEMPERATURE AND 10K. IN PRINCIPLE, THE METHODOLOGY PROPOSED IS IDEALLY SUITED FOR FUTURE DEVELOPMENT AS MULTILAYERED INTERFERENCE DEVICES. THIS WOULD INVOLVES SIMPLE THE SEQUENTIAL DEPOSITION OF FILMS USING DIFFERENT MONOMERS.