CDTE DETECTOR ARRAY FOR PASSIVE IMAGING OF SPATIALLY-DISTRIBUTED RADIATION SOURCES

A NEW CRYSTAL GROWTH METHOD IS BELIEVED TO PRODUCE CDTE CRYSTALS WITH THE QUALITY AND HOMOGENEITY REQUIRED FOR LARGE AREA GAMMA-RAY DETECTOR ARRAY FABRICATION. THE OVERALL PROGRAM GOAL IS TO DEVELOP AND CHARACTERIZE A TWO-DIMENSIONAL MATRIX ARRAY SUITABLE FOR DOD APPLICATIONS (E.G., 2500 1-MM(2) ELEMENTS ON A 50 CM(2) SUBSTRATE). THE PHASE I EFFORT IS DESIGNED TO DEMONSTRATE FEASIBILITY BY DEVELOPING AND TESTING A ONE DIMENSIONAL ARRAY OF 1-MM X 10-MM STRIPES ON A 1 CM(2) SUBSTRATE. THE EFFORT WILL INCLUDE CRYSTAL PROCESSING, DEVELOPMENT OF A SUITABLE PHOTO-LITHOGRAPHIC TECHNIQUE TO PRODUCE THE STRIPES, DEVELOPMENT OF APPROPRIATE PREAMPLIFIER ELECTRONICS, AND THOROUGH CHARACTERIZATION, INCLUDING IMAGING STUDIES WITH A PINHOLE APERTURE. IN ADDITION TO DEMONSTRATING FEASIBILITY, PHASE I WILL YIELD TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES AND FUNDAMENTAL DATA NEEDED FOR SUBSEQUENT PHASE II PROGRESS.