Empirical frequency domain model for fixed-pattern noise in infrared focal plane arrays

Abstract

In this paper, a new empirical model for the spatial structure of the fixed-pattern noise (FPN) observed in infrared (IR) focal-plane arrays (FPA) is presented. The model was conceived after analyzing, in the spatial frequency domain, FPN calibration data from different IR cameras and technologies. The analysis showed that the spatial patterns of the FPN are retained in the phase spectrum, while the noise intensity is determined by the magnitude spectrum. Thus, unlike traditional representations, the proposed model abstracts the FPN structure using one matrix for its magnitude spectrum and another matrix for its phase spectrum. Three applications of the model are addressed here. First, an algorithm is provided for generating random samples of the FPN with the same spatial pattern of the actual FPN. Second, the model is used to assess the performance of non-uniformity correction (NUC) algorithms in the presence of spatially correlated and uncorrelated FPN. Third, the model is used to improve the NUC capability of a method that requires, as a reference, a proper FPN sample.