A semiconductor YBaCuO microbolometer for room temperature IR imaging

The characteristics of infrared (IR) microbolometer arrays utilizing semiconducting YBaCuO and operating at room temperature are presented. Surface-micromachined structures in the form of 1×10 arrays of pixel size 40 μm×40 μm and 60 μm×60 μm as well as single pixels of various geometries were constructed. Using the chopped radiation from a broad-band IR source, the responsivity R _V of the sensor was measured to be as high as 10⁴ V/W and detectivity D* to be ~2×10⁷ cm Hz^1/2/W for a thermal conductance G~10^-5 W/K between the detector and the substrate. The spectral response was found to be uniform over a range of 1-12 μm. Silicon micromachining and ambient-temperature processing were employed to ensure compatibility and, therefore, potential integration with CMOS-based signal processing circuitry. Methods of enhancing the figures of merit are discussed