Pyroelectric vidicon: a new multichannel spectrometric infrared (1.0-30-microm) detector

Area of Science:

• Spectroscopy
• Infrared Technology
• Optoelectronics

Background:

• Infrared (IR) spectral analysis is crucial for material characterization and process monitoring.
• Existing IR detection systems may have limitations in sensitivity or dynamic range.
• Pyroelectric vidicon tubes offer potential for sensitive IR detection.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and evaluate an IR spectral analysis system using a pyroelectric vidicon tube and an optical multichannel analyzer (OMA).
• To assess the system's capability for detecting both continuous and pulsed IR signals.
• To investigate factors influencing system performance and its applicability to IR absorption and laser spectrometry.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a pyroelectric (triglycine sulfate) vidicon tube coupled with an optical multichannel analyzer (OMA).
• Acquired spectral information in the 1-30 micrometer (µm) IR range.
• Investigated system performance by analyzing parameters such as sensitivity, thermal diffusion, discharge lag, thermal lag, and noise.

Main Results:

• Successfully obtained IR spectral information from 1-30 µm.
• Demonstrated the system's ability to detect both continuous and pulsed IR signals.
• Showcased improvement in signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) via data accumulation in memory.
• Identified key performance-limiting factors including target sensitivity variation, thermal diffusion, and lag phenomena.

Conclusions:

• The pyroelectric vidicon tube and OMA system is a viable tool for IR spectral analysis.
• The system demonstrates effective detection of various IR signal types and improved SNR through data averaging.
• Further optimization is needed to mitigate performance limitations for enhanced spectral measurements.