METHOD FOR MICRO-FABRICATING A PIXELLESS INFRARED IMAGING DEVICE

摘要

The present invention relates to a method for micro-fabricating a pixelless thermal imaging device. The imaging device up-converts a sensed 2-dimensional M/FIR image into a 2-dimensional image in the NIR to visible spectrum in dependence thereupon. A plurality of layers forming an integrated QWIP-LED wafer are crystallographically grown on a surface of a first substrate. The layers comprise an etch stop layer, a bottom contact layer, a plurality of layers forming a QWIP and a LED, and a top contact layer. At the top of the QWIP-LED wafer an optical coupler such as a diffraction grating for coupling at least a portion of incident M/FIR light into modes having an electric field component perpendicular to quantum wells of the QWIP is provided. In followi ng processing steps the first substrate and the etch stop layer are removed. Various different thermal imaging devices are manufactured by changing the order of manufacturing steps, omitting some steps or using different materials. Therefore, it is possible using a same manufacturing equipment for producing a large variety of different imaging devices considerably reducing manufacturing costs.