High Performance Optical Detectors and Imagers for Emerging Applications

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Vision is one of our more important senses. In many situations, humans develop and apply technologies to enable them to “see” better or to expand the range of wavelengths over which the human eyes are sensitive for many demanding applications in health and environmental sciences. The proposed work is part of our ongoing research program in advanced optical detectors and imaging systems. Here, we propose to use two technologies, each with distinct advantages for the targeted applications. One technology uses quantum dot infrared photodetectors for mid-infrared medical and environmental sensing applications. Another technology uses low-cost, silicon-based photodetectors and high-performance integrated circuits to create imagers with world-class performance for biomedical imaging applications. The proposed research leverages our 2.5 decades of expertise and experience in photodetector design and integrated circuits to create fully integrated silicon-based and hybrid compound semiconductor-based optical detection systems for low-cost, miniaturized biomedical and environmental sensing and imaging systems. Our focus will be on the following. - Modeling and optimized design of “foundry-based” low-cost, high-performance optical detectors, pixels, digital integrated circuits and integrated imagers for applications including early disease detection using positron emission tomography, functional brain imaging or fluorescent lifetime imaging. - Mitigation of challenging issues that degrade the performance of advanced photodetectors and imagers such as noise, afterpulsing, jitter or timing resolution. - Accurate, calibrated models to predict the static and dynamic characteristics of advanced quantum dot infrared photodetector structures, and their optimized design and fabrication for mid-infrared biological and chemical sensing applications. The novelty and impact of the proposed research include the modeling and optimized design of high-performance silicon photodetectors and imagers with tailored performance characteristics that can be successfully manufactured at first attempt, thus saving both time and money; and computationally efficient, accurate modeling and manufacture of quantum-based photodetectors. The research is highly significant because it targets high-impact, emerging national needs in health sciences, especially the screening and early detection of costly diseases such as cancers. Finally, it would also help to maintain our leadership position in advanced photodetectors and imagers.