A bolometer pixel trigger array includes a substrate, an electrically conductive contact pad formed on the substrate, and bolometer formed on the substrate. The bolometer includes at least one thermally conductive trigger arm having a fixed end coupled to a portion of the bolometer and an electrically conductive free end configured to deflect with respect to the fixed end. At least one trigger arm establishes different operating states of the bolometer pixel trigger in response to the at least one trigger arm realizing different temperatures. The different operating states are configured to change an electrical connection between the at least one trigger arm and the contact pad.

A bolometer pixel trigger including a substrate, a bolometer formed on the substrate, and a thermal-sensitive film trigger. The thermal-sensitive film trigger includes a resistive varying thermal-sensitive material configured to change resistance in response to a change in temperature thereof. The thermal-sensitive film trigger is configured such that current flow therethrough varies in response to changes in the resistance of the resistive varying thermal-sensitive material.

An infrared sensor includes a supporting body having supporting body metal wiring that allows infrared rays to pass through. The supporting body is provided so as to cover one portion of an infrared detecting portion in a different plane spatially separated from that of the infrared detecting portion. The supporting body metal wiring disposed in an interior of the supporting body is such that one portion of a cobalt iron film is oxidized by a plasma discharge being carried out in an oxygen atmosphere. According to this kind of structure, infrared rays pass through the supporting body, and are absorbed by the infrared detecting portion, because of which there is no need to provide an infrared absorption layer in an upper layer of the supporting body.

A system is proposed for observing nocturnal activities and temperature variation of a living target during daytime. The system includes an observation box, an imaging device, and a near infrared (NIR) source unit. The observation box allows passage of near infrared, blocks passage of visible light, and contains and covers the living target. The imaging device includes a first image capturing module to capture a thermal image of the observation box using far infrared, and a second image capturing module to capture an image of the observation box using visible light and of the living target using near infrared. The NIR source unit projects near infrared toward the observation box for enhancing near infrared reflected by the living target.

A semiconductor material emitting device is positioned such that its output flux impinges on a substrate at a non-perpendicular angle, so as to grow a first epilayer which is linearly graded in the direction perpendicular to the growth direction. The linear grading can be arranged such that, for example, each row of pixels has a different cutoff wavelength, thereby making it possible to provide a spectroscopic FPA without the use of filters. The non-perpendicular angle and/or the flux intensity can be adjusted to achieve a desired compositional grading. A spectral ellipsometer may be used to monitor the composition of the epilayer during the fabrication process, and to control the intensity of the flux.

A system for detecting microwave power. In some embodiments, the system includes: a first resonator including a graphene-insulating-superconducting junction; a probe signal source, coupled to the first resonator; and a probe signal analyzer. The probe signal analyzer is configured: to measure a change in amplitude or phase of a probe signal received by the probe signal analyzer from the probe signal source, and to infer, from the change in amplitude or phase, a change in microwave power received by the graphene-insulating-superconducting junction.

A gas monitoring apparatus (10) identifies a target anesthetic or respiratory gas species and determines a concentration thereof. The gas monitor includes a multi-spectral mosaic filter and lens array (12), a composite thermal sensing focal plane array (26), and a signal processor (32). The mosaic filter and lens array (12) comprises a 2D array of lens structures (14) and long wave infrared (IR) band-pass filter elements (16) having a patterned thermally reflective metal disposition layer (18, 22) disposed on a first and/or second surface (20, 24) between adjacent lens structures and/or filter elements, respectively. The composite focal plane array (26) includes a plurality of individual thermal sensing focal plane arrays (28) with integrated read out integrated circuits (ROIC) that output a respective sensed channel data (36). The signal processor (32) receives the sensed channel data outputs (36) and generates an output indicative of the identification (50) and/or concentration (52) of the target gas based on an oversampling of an absorption signal, on a frame by frame basis and/or an image stacking basis.

The invention concerns a detection device for detecting electromagnetic radiation, comprising a substrate, an array of thermal detectors, each thermal detector comprising a suspended absorbent membrane and a reflective layer. The detection device comprises at least one opaque vertical wall, arranged on the substrate and extending longitudinally between two adjacent thermal detectors, and produced from a material that is opaque to the electromagnetic radiation to be detected.

A microbolometer for measuring thermal radiation comprises an electrical circuit on a perforated plastic substrate. The electrical circuit comprises at least one thermistor having a temperature dependent electric resistance, wherein the thermistor is arranged to receive the thermal radiation for changing its temperature depending on a flux of the received thermal radiation. The electrical circuit is configured to measure the electric resistance of the thermistor for calculating the thermal radiation. The microbolometer is configured to cause a gas flow through the perforations for improving thermal characteristics.

A method for manufacturing a thermal sensor, the method may include forming, using ion etching, one or more first holes that pass through (a) an initial layer, (a) a first oxide layer, (c) a first semiconductor substrate; filling the one or more first holes with oxide to form supporting elements; fabricating one or more thermal semiconductor sensing elements; forming one or more second holes in the one or more upper layers and the first oxide layer; applying an isotropic etching process to remove the first semiconductor substrate and expose the supporting elements to provide a suspended first oxide layer.