It was the first to deliver second-generation IR detectors to the market. It is the first European IR detector manufacturer to have achieved space-deployed products, which are currently in orbit on Venus Express.
Second-generation IR detectors have a high level of sophistication. They integrate readout electronics on the Focal Plane Array (FPA) and signal processing, such as photocurrent integration, antiblooming on each pixel and skimming. The signal processing also covers partitioning, multiple gain, time delay integration, pixel de-selection, subframe imaging, multiplexing and output pre-amplification.
Sofradir’s product achievements include:
| Pluton: 288 x 4 LWIR, | (more than 20,000 delivered), the first 2nd generation IR detector supplied to the market, the reference for Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR) |
Mars: 320 x 256 MWIR, |
the first mass-produced staring array |
Scorpio: 640 x 512 MWIR, |
the first 15 µm pitch and the smallest full TV array on the market |
Saturn: 1000 x 256 SWIR & MWIR, |
the only SWIR large format for hyperspectral imaging |
Mercury: 480 x 6 LWIR, |
(under contract with the US Army) equips the highest performance FLIRs |
Venus: 384 x 288 LWIR, |
unique for LWIR FLIR |
Sirius: 640 x 512 QWIP, |
20 µm pitch, developed in cooperation with Thales Research & Technology |
Sofradir is advancing the development of third-generation IR detectors. By third-generation, we mean IR detectors made from MCT layers using the Molecular Beam Epitaxy (MBE) technique. The MBE technique enables the development of dual band IR detectors, which is a new class of IR detectors.
All of Sofradir’s IR products are delivered worldwide.
