Sofradir has demonstrated a prototype of the first 10µm pixel pitch infrared (IR) detector for tactical applications.
The image quality of an infrared detector depends on its spatial resolution, which is related to the size and number of pixels. This means the higher the number of pixels and the smaller the pixel size, the sharper the image.
In regards to the 10µm pixel pitch, the small pitch means that Sofradir can double the number of pixels on a standard size chip. The focal plane array prototype was developed with the support of Direction Générale de l’Armement by CEA-Leti at DEFIR, the joint laboratory of Sofradir and CEA-Leti. CEA-Leti is a European microtechnology, IT and health technology research center.
Sofradir credits its Mercury Cadmium Telluride (MCT/HgCdTe), a cooled IR technology using a silicon-like photodiode implantation process, for enabling the development of the IR detector.
