SBIR Phase II: SWARS IR Camera

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This Small Business Innovation Research Phase II (SBIR) project will develop a microfabricated subwavelength antireflective structure (SWARS) for use with a MEMS infrared detector to form and infrared camera. The SWARS structure was prototyped in Phase I and shown to allow greater than 90% of incident radiation in the 8-12 ìm portion of the IR spectrum to pass, thus performing better than standard antireflective (AR) multilayer coatings which presently perform this function. These AR coatings are notoriously unreliable, as the thick films tend to delaminate during the processing and packaging of the IR device. In this Phase II project, the SWARS devices will be mated with a thermal light valve (TLV) to make the IR camera. If successful the proposed approach may be used to produce MEMS devices for a broad range of IR applications, including gas sensors, IR beacons and IR thermographers. Because of their superior transmission properties and the robustness of the design to temperature fluctuations SWARS structures will be used in devices which must operate over a wide range of temperatures, and withstand virtually any operating or processing temperature. Such applications include equipment for factory floor inspections, power grid monitoring, maritime navigation, and security monitoring, in addition to fire fighting and first response.