Mid-infrared Sensor Research Articles

A neural network filter based high-sensitive MIR CO2 sensor

A low-power consumption, small-size and high measurement sensitivity mid-infrared (MIR) carbon dioxide (CO2) sensor was developed based on wavelength modulation spectroscopy (WMS) technology, utilizing a mid-infrared distributed feedback interband cascade laser (DFB-ICL) operating around 2682 nm. The sensor incorporated two key components, a home-made multi-pass gas cell with base length of 10 cm achieving 1.5 m optical path and a highly integrated FPGA board, which were used to reduce the size of the sensor. A novel second harmonic-neural network filter (SH-NNF) was also proposed and implemented in this sensor. The sensor’s performance was evaluated through a 20 mins continuous experiment using calibrated gas with 500 ppm concentration. The results, before and after SH-NNF, demonstrated an improvement in sensitivity and detection precision from 1.68 ppm (1 σ) to 1.17 ppm and from 2.14 ppm to 1.45 ppm, respectively. The optimum limit of detection of 0.392 ppm with integration time of 218 s was obtained. The ppm detection and compact characteristics of the developed MIR sensor show its potential for detecting CO2 in the ambient air.

Photonic molecule based on coupled ring quantum cascade lasers

Photonic molecules—particular systems composed of coupled optical resonators—emulate the behavior of complex physical systems exhibiting discrete energy levels. In this work, we present a photonic molecule composed of two strongly coupled, mid-infrared ring quantum cascade lasers. We explore both experimentally and numerically the key features of the photonic molecule such as the energy level splitting of bonding and antibonding supermodes. Due to the large size of the resonators, the energy splitting results in bands containing tens of modes. Each of these modes is furthermore doubly degenerate with respect to the direction of propagation, namely, clockwise and counterclockwise. We explore several methods to carefully break these symmetries of the system in a controlled manner by introducing spatial and temporal asymmetries in the pumping scheme of the ring lasers. By employing these techniques, we achieve a high degree of precision in the dynamic control of the photonic molecule. Owing to their inherent suitability for on-chip integration, this class of devices may enable applications as varied as mid-infrared sensors or a rich playground for studying non-Hermitian photonics and quantum optics with quantum cascade lasers.

Ultra-Wideband Mid-Infrared Chalcogenide Suspended Nanorib Waveguide Gas Sensors with Exceptionally High External Confinement Factor beyond Free-Space.

On-chip waveguide sensors are potential candidates for deep-space exploration because of their high integration and low power consumption. Since the fundamental absorption of most gas molecules exists in the mid-infrared (e.g., 3-12 μm), it is of great significance to fabricate wideband mid-infrared sensors with high external confinement factor (ECF). To overcome the limited transparency window and strong waveguide dispersion, a chalcogenide suspended nanorib waveguide sensor was proposed for ultra-wideband mid-infrared gas sensing, and three waveguide sensors (WG1-WG3) with optimized dimensions exhibit a wide waveband of 3.2-5.6 μm, 5.4-8.2 μm, and 8.1-11.5 μm with exceptionally high ECFs of 107-116%, 107-116%, and 116-128%, respectively. The waveguide sensors were fabricated by a two-step lift-off method without dry etching to reduce the process complexity. Experimental ECFs of 112%, 110%, and 110% were obtained at 3.291 μm, 4.319 μm, and 7.625 μm, respectively, through methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2) measurements. A limit of detection of 5.9 ppm was achieved for an averaging time of 64.2 s through the Allan deviation analysis of CH4 at 3.291 μm, leading to a comparable noise equivalent absorption sensitivity of 2.3 × 10-5 cm-1 Hz-1/2 as compared to the hollow-core fiber and on-chip gas sensors.

Mid-infrared single-photon 3D imaging

Active mid-infrared (MIR) imagers capable of retrieving three-dimensional (3D) structure and reflectivity information are highly attractive in a wide range of biomedical and industrial applications. However, infrared 3D imaging at low-light levels is still challenging due to the deficiency of sensitive and fast MIR sensors. Here we propose and implement a MIR time-of-flight imaging system that operates at single-photon sensitivity and femtosecond timing resolution. Specifically, back-scattered infrared photons from a scene are optically gated by delay-controlled ultrashort pump pulses through nonlinear frequency upconversion. The upconverted images with time stamps are then recorded by a silicon camera to facilitate the 3D reconstruction with high lateral and depth resolutions. Moreover, an effective numerical denoiser based on spatiotemporal correlation allows us to reveal the object profile and reflectivity under photon-starving conditions with a detected flux below 0.05 photons/pixel/second. The presented MIR 3D imager features high detection sensitivity, precise timing resolution, and wide-field operation, which may open new possibilities in life and material sciences.

A Simulation-Based Study of Back-Illuminated Lateral Ge/GeSn/Ge Photodetectors on Si Platform for Mid-Infrared Image Sensing

GeSn/Ge heterojunction photodetectors (PDs) have great potential to outperform conventional mid-infrared (MIR) sensors. In this work, simulated analysis is performed to demonstrate the back-illuminated lateral double <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\text{Ge/}{\text{Ge}}_{\text{0.90}}{\text{Sn}}_{\text{0.10}}\text{/Ge}$</tex-math> </inline-formula> heterojunctions p-i-n PDs for MIR imaging. This lateral PDs configuration is compatible with current complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (CMOS) technology, yielding reduced fabrication complexity and offering high resonance in optical characteristics (between 2000-and 2700-nm wavelength range), viable for high-performance operation in MIR wavelength bands. This work also investigates the effects of high-density point dislocation at GeSn/Ge heterointerface on various performance metrics, including dark current, photocurrents, detectivity, and noise-equivalent-power (NEP) of PDs. The results indicate that the defects have less impact on detectivity and NEP and have negligible impact on the collection of photogenerated carriers and thus responsivity. The device shows a maximum 3-dB optoelectrical bandwidth of <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$&gt;$</tex-math> </inline-formula> 92.4 GHz, which is among the highest of other GeSn p-i-n PDs. In addition, even in the presence of defects, the device achieves high responsivity in MIR bands and its values are 0.39, 1.45, and 0.25 A/W at the operating wavelengths of 2000, 2310, and 2700 nm, respectively. Thus, the proposed work can be a major step toward GeSn-based PDs on the Si platform for MIR imaging applications.

Effect of dislocations on the performance of GaSb-based diode lasers grown on silicon

Silicon photonics is a promising technology for the fabrication of dense photonic chips, thanks to the very mature silicon industry. The direct epitaxial growth of III–V lasers on silicon is one of the main challenges for the realization of compact and robust mid-infrared sensors based on photonic integrated circuits. The crystal defects arising from this heteroepitaxial growth affect the laser performance and, therefore, need to be mitigated but also studied to better understand their impact on the laser operation. Here, we studied the effect of threading dislocations on laser performance by comparing the series of GaSb-based diode lasers grown on native GaSb and Si substrates with different numbers of quantum wells (nQW) in their active zones. As expected, the laser threshold currents are higher in the case of diode lasers on Si, and they rapidly vary with nQW. Still, the lowest threshold current densities are achieved with nQW = 1 for both substrates. With the help of a theoretical gain model, we attribute these results to the fact that dislocations create non-radiative recombination but do not introduce additional optical losses. This work allows a better understanding of the origin of performance degradation and the decision to be made regarding the heterostructure design.

Development of a mid-infrared sensor system for early fire identification in cotton harvesting operations.

To realize early fire identification in cotton harvesting operations, a mid-infrared carbon monoxide (CO) sensor system was developed. To match the broadband light source with a 15° divergence angle, a multipass gas cell (MPGC) with an effective path length of 180 cm was designed to improve sensor sensitivity, leading to a limit of detection (LoD) of 0.83 parts-per-million by volume (ppmv). A damping module with springs at the bottom and front/back sides was fabricated, which can effectively reduce the vibration intensity by >80%. The sensor system can operate normally from -40 °C to 85 °C by stabilizing the temperature of the optical module through heating or cooling as well as using automotive electronic components. An adaptive early fire identification algorithm based on a dual-parameter threshold alarming method was proposed to avoid false and missing alarms. Field deployments on a harvester verified the good practicability of the sensor system.

Monolithically integrated mid-infrared sensor with a millimeter-scale sensing range.

On-chip sensors based on quantum cascade laser technology are attracting broad attention because of their extreme compactness and abundant absorption fingerprints in the mid-infrared wavelength range. Recent continuous wave operation microcavity quantum cascade lasers are well suited for high-density optoelectronic integration because their volumes are small and thresholds are low. In this experimental work, we demonstrate a monolithically integrated sensor comprising a notched elliptical resonator as transmitter, a quantum cascade detector as receiver, and a surface plasmon structure as light-sensing waveguide. The sensor structure is designed to exploit the highly unidirectional lasing properties of the notched elliptical resonator to increase the optical absorption path length. Combined with the evanescent nature of the dielectric loaded surface plasmon polariton waveguides, the structure also ensures a strong light-matter interactions. The sensing transmission distance obtained is approximately 1.16 mm, which is about one order of magnitude improvement over the traditional Fabry-Perot waveguide. This sensor opens new opportunities for long-range and high-sensitivity on-chip gas sensing and spectroscopy.

Mid-Infrared Photoconductive Detectors Fabricated from Solution-Processed PbSe Nanocrystals

Lead selenide (PbSe) was the first semiconductor used for photosensors operating in the mid-wavelength infrared spectral region (3-5 um) and is still the primary choice for low-cost, uncooled photoconductive detector applications. Even through PbSe has been studied for over 70 years, more understandings on its physical mechanism for high photoresponsivity is still emerging. Common methods of fabricating PbSe detectors involve physical/chemical vapor deposition or chemical bath deposition (CBD) techniques, followed by post-deposition sensitization processes including oxygen annealing and iodization. Here, we present a new approach to fabricating photoconductive devices based on PbSe colloidal nanocrystals. This infrared colloidal ink can serve as a critical component to enabling digital additive manufacturing of mid-infrared sensor arrays and simultaneously lower the fabrication cost by removing multiple masking steps required in conventional approaches. We report on the synthesis and fabrication of PbSe nanostructured film and the effects of thermal annealing as well as oxygen and iodide incorporation on the photoconductive properties.

The effect of local samples in the accuracy of mid-infrared (MIR) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) -based spectral prediction models

Within the soil spectroscopy community, there is an ongoing discussion addressing the comparison of the performance of prediction models built on a global calibration database, versus a local calibration database. In this study, this issue is addressed by spiking of global databases with local samples. The soil samples were analysed with MIR and XRF sensors. The samples were further measured using traditional wet chemistry methods to build the prediction models for seventeen major parameters. The prediction models applied by AgroCares, the company that assisted in this study, combine spectral information from MIR and XRF into a single ‘fused-spectrum’. The local dataset of 640 samples was split into 90% train and 10% test samples. To illustrate the benefits of using local calibration samples, three separate prediction models were built per element. For each model, 0%, 50% (randomly selected) and 100% of the local training samples were added to the global dataset. The remaining 10% local samples were used for validation. Seventeen soil parameters were selected to illustrate the differences in performance across a range of soil qualities, using the validation set to measure performance. The results showed that many models already exhibit an excellent level of performance (R2 ≥ 0.95) even without local samples. However, there was a clear trend that, as more local calibration samples were added, both R2 and ratio of performance to interquantile distance (RPIQ) increase.

Performance of a Mid-Infrared Sensor for Simultaneous Trace Detection of Atmospheric CO and N2O Based on PSO-KELM.

In this article, a field deployable sensor was developed using a self-developed 4.58-µm continuous wave quantum cascade laser (CW-QCL) for the simultaneous detection of carbon monoxide (CO) and nitrous oxide (N2O), both of which have strong fundamental absorption bands in this waveband. The sensor is based on tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy (TDLAS) technology, which combined a multi-pass gas cell (MPGC) with a 41 m optical path length to achieve high-precision detection. Meanwhile, the particle swarm optimization-kernel extreme learning machine (PSO-KELM) algorithm was applied for CO and N2O concentration prediction. In addition, the self-designed board-level QCL driver circuit and harmonic signal demodulation circuit reduce the sensor cost and size. A series of validation experiments were conducted to verify the sensor performance, and experiments showed that the concentration prediction results of the PSO-KELM algorithm are better than those of the commonly used back propagation (BP) neural networks and partial least regression (PLS), with the smallest root mean square error (RMSE) and linear correlation coefficient closest to 1, which improves the detection precision of the sensor. The limit of detection (LoD) was assessed to be 0.25 parts per billion (ppb) for CO and 0.27 ppb for N2O at the averaging time of 24 and 38 s. Field deployment of the sensor was reported for simultaneous detection of CO and N2O in the air.

High performance mid infrared temperature sensor based on resonance excitation of hybrid Tamm surface states

Theoretical design of mid infrared temperature sensor based on the resonance excitation of hybrid Tamm surface state (HTSS) is presented. An excellent sensing performance is attained by the coupling of graphene plasmon polaritons and hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) phonon polaritons that forms hybrid polariton modes at the interface. In one dimensional ternary photonic crystal (1D TPC), terminated by hBN layer sandwiched between graphene monolayers, the coupling between Bloch surface waves and hybrid polariton modes leads to the formation of HTSS or Tamm plasmon-phonon modes. Employing Kretschmann configuration coupling mechanism, the excitation of the HTSSs at the truncated interface is manifested for transverse magnetic (TM) polarized wave. The structure supports excited HTSS between 7.14μm to 10.34μm that allows astounding control over the sensing ability by varying the number of unit cells and the resonant angles. The sensor has a high detection accuracy of 1010 at room temperature (300K). It is proved that for 50 unit cells and at 49° angle, a high quality factor of 372176, detection limit of 5K and sensitivity of 0.20pm/K is attained with operating range between 280K to 380K. The operating range is widened from 300K to 900K by changing the resonant angle from 49° to 53°. Further, for 30 unit cells and at 53° angle, the temperature sensing ability of the sensor extends from 100K to 900K with a sensitivity of 0.80pm/K and detection limit of 54.16K.

Optimizing Evanescent Efficiency of Chalcogenide Tapered Fiber.

Evanescent wave absorption-based mid-infrared chalcogenide fiber sensors have prominent advantages in multicomponent liquid and gas detection. In this work, a new approach of tapered-fiber geometry optimization was proposed, and the evanescent efficiency was also theoretically calculated to evaluate sensing performance. The influence of fiber geometry (waist radius (Rw), taper length (Lt), waist deformation) on the mode distribution, light transmittance (T), evanescent proportion (TO) and evanescent efficiency (τ) is discussed. Remarkably, the calculated results show that the evanescent efficiency can be over 10% via optimizing the waist radius and taper length. Generally, a better sensing performance based on tapered fiber can be achieved if the proportion of the LP11-like mode becomes higher or Rw becomes smaller. Furthermore, the radius of the waist boundary (RL) was introduced to analyze the waist deformation. Mode proportion is almost unchanged as the RL increases, while τ is halved. In addition, the larger the micro taper is, the easier the taper process is. Herein, a longer waist can be obtained, resulting in larger sensing area which increases sensitivity greatly.

Detection of volatile organic compounds using mid-infrared silicon nitride waveguide sensors

Mid-infrared (mid-IR) sensors consisting of silicon nitride (SiN) waveguides were designed and tested to detect volatile organic compounds (VOCs). SiN thin films, prepared by low-pressure chemical vapor deposition (LPCVD), have a broad mid-IR transparent region and a lower refractive index (nSiN = 2.0) than conventional materials such as Si (nSi = 3.4), which leads to a stronger evanescent wave and therefore higher sensitivity, as confirmed by a finite-difference eigenmode (FDE) calculation. Further, in-situ monitoring of three VOCs (acetone, ethanol, and isoprene) was experimentally demonstrated through characteristic absorption measurements at wavelengths λ = 3.0–3.6 μm. The SiN waveguide showed a five-fold sensitivity improvement over the Si waveguide due to its stronger evanescent field. To our knowledge, this is the first time SiN waveguides are used to perform on-chip mid-IR spectral measurements for VOC detection. Thus, the developed waveguide sensor has the potential to be used as a compact device module capable of monitoring multiple gaseous analytes for health, agricultural and environmental applications.

Method for Aerosol Particle and Gas Analyses based on Dual-channel Mid-infrared Sensor

Although researchers are actively investigating methods to improve fire detector performance, few studies have investigated fire detectors that detect the type of fire. Fire type detection serves a key role in quickly extinguishing fires and preventing their spread. We present a non-dispersive infrared (NDIR)-based dual-channel mid-infrared (mid-IR) method that can detect and classify aerosol particles and gases. 4.2 μm and 4.7 μm mid-IR light emitting diodes (LEDs) light sources with strong absorption for CO2 and CO are employed. and, and the mid-IR LEDs are modulated with 900 Hz and 1,000 Hz, respectively to increase the signal-to-noise ratio and reduce interference between the light sources. The modulated lights pass through the lenses and sample, and are acquired by a photodetector. The transmittances of the 4.2 μm and 4.7 μm lights are measured to detect the aerosol particles and gases, and the aerosol particles and gases are classified via hierarchical clustering using the measured transmittances and the ratio between the measured transmittances. Various aerosol particles and gases are detected by measuring the transmittance, and the aerosol particles and gases are classified by calculating the distance between clusters. Spectral transmittances analysis of different wavelength bands will enable the detection of various aerosol particles and gases, and further improve the classification accuracy. Furthermore, this method can be applied to fire detection to develop a highly useful technique that can detect and classify fire smoke and rapidly detect the type of fire.

Mid-Infrared Sensor Based on Dirac Semimetal Coupling Structure.

A multilayer structure based on Dirac semimetals is investigated, where long-range surface plasmon resonance (LRSPR) of a dielectric layer/Dirac semimetal/dielectric layer are coupled with surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) on graphene to substantially improve the Goos–Hänchen (GH) shift of Dirac semimetals in the mid-infrared band. This has important implications for the study of mid-infrared sensors. We studied the reflection coefficient and phase of this multilayer structure using a generalized transport matrix. We established that subtle changes in the refractive index of the sensing medium and the Fermi energy of the Dirac semimetal significantly affected the GH shift. Our numerical simulations show that the sensitivity of the coupling structure is more than , which can be used as a potential new sensor application. The novelty of this work is the design of a tunable, highly sensitive, and simple structured mid-infrared sensor that takes advantage of the excellent properties of Dirac semimetals.

Polariton-induced transparency in hybrid 2D-material hetero-nanostructure with multi-functions

In this work, we theoretically investigate the polariton-induced transparency (PoIT) phenomenon based on a hetero-nanostructure that possesses hybrid two-dimensional (2D) materials. The hetero-nanostructure consists of periodic hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) and graphene nanoribbons that are separated by a dielectric spacer. Consequently, the near-field coupling between hyperbolic phonon-polaritonic resonances on hBN ribbons and localized surface plasmon resonances on graphene ribbons leads to a transparent window in the mid-infrared region, where strong phase dispersion as well as slow light effect exist. Such hybrid-polariton induced transparency is dominated by electric dipole, and possesses reciprocity. It can be passively tailored by changing structural parameters, and actively tuned by shifting graphene Fermi level. Meanwhile, it is insensitive to the incident angle within a wider range, and rotating polarization angle of the incident wave leads to the excitation of edge phonon polaritons, which enriches the adjustability of this heterostructure. Furthermore, it can serve as a mid-infrared sensor to detect surrounding refractive index change, gas concentration, and molecular fingerprints. And introducing a metal reflector can easily turn it to be a wide-angle dual-band light absorber. Finally, we investigate the near-omnidirectional PoIT and polarization-dependent PoIT in the extended bilayer metasurface. This work has potential mid-infrared multifunctional applications in low-dimensional hybrid-polaritonic nanodevices for phase manipulation, slow light, sensing, and absorption.

Development of Mid-infrared Plasmonics and Thier Sensor Applicatons

Development of Mid-infrared Plasmonics and Thier Sensor Applicatons

Development of a Mid-Infrared Sensor System for Early Fire Identification in Cotton Harvesting Operation

Development of a Mid-Infrared Sensor System for Early Fire Identification in Cotton Harvesting Operation

Octave-spanning low-loss mid-IR waveguides based on semiconductor-loaded plasmonics

Plasmonic waveguides are crucial building blocks for integrated on-chip mid-infrared (mid-IR) sensors, which have recently attracted great interest as a sensing platform to target enhanced molecular sensing. However, while hosting a wide range of applications from spectroscopy to telecommunication, the mid-IR lacks suitable broadband solutions that provide monolithic integration with III-V materials. This work reports a novel concept based on hybrid semiconductor-metal surface plasmon polariton waveguides, which result in experimentally demonstrated low loss and broadband devices. Composed of a thin germanium slab on top of a gold layer, the waveguiding properties can be directly controlled by changing the geometrical parameters. The measured losses of our devices are as low as 6.73 dB/mm at 9.12 µm and remain &lt;15 dB/mm in the mid-IR range of 5.6–11.2 µm. The octave-spanning capability of the waveguides makes them ideal candidates for combination with broadband mid-IR quantum cascade laser frequency combs and integrated spectroscopic sensors.