Project description
Advanced focal plane arrays for space imaging
Focal plane arrays (FPAs), advanced sensor technologies used in imaging systems, play a significant role in space research, capturing detailed images of distant celestial bodies. The rise of mercury cadmium telluride (MCT) infrared FPAs has significantly enhanced the observation capabilities in the infrared part of the spectrum. Despite this, EU detector manufacturers are lagging behind their United States counterparts, who have successfully produced MCT infrared FPAs with up to 4K×4K pixels. The EU-funded STEP project aims to bridge this gap by creating a European supply chain focused on designing and manufacturing large format type-II superlattice extended short-wave infrared FPAs. STEP will cover all aspects of infrared FPA production, from detector design to the evaluation of large space prototype FPAs.
Objective
In the last years, Mercury Cadmium Telluride (MCT) IR Focal Plane Arrays (FPAs) have drastically boosted the observational capabilities of space IR payloads. In the US, industrial production of MCT IR FPAs with formats up to 4K×4K pixels is established, while in Europe, initiatives from European Institutions and most advanced EU manufacturers are currently on-going to progress on large format MCT hybrids such as 2kx2k, though the industrial set-up necessary to support operational space programs remains to be elaborated and matured. As instruments designers are asking for larger size FPAs, EU detector manufacturers are losing ground with respect to US competitors.
T2SL technology is an alternative to MCT for the manufacturing of IR FPAs. In the US, progress on T2SL FPA development led to up to 8K×8K IR FPAs demonstrations, but like US MCT ones, these are not easily available for the EU market due to strong export/ITAR restrictions. Moreover, US ROICs feature better performances and interfaces compared to their EU counterparts.
The STEP project will provide a disruptive European supply chain fully focused on the design and manufacturing of competitive and affordable large format T2SL eSWIR FPAs. STEP will incorporate all steps of the IR FPA production chain: detector design, large scale growth, fabrication, hybridization, large format and high performances scalable ROIC with dedicated features to improve eSWIR space FPA performances, and evaluation of large space prototype FPAs (including space environment evaluation).
STEP will benefit from a European complementary consortium team: Airbus, the well-known space industrial (requirements, performances testing, environment evaluation, space missions insertion and business plan), the European leader in T2SL manufacturing, IRnova (high performances eSWIR T2SL design & characterization, FPA space prototype manufacturing and non-space applications insertion), a world class RTO, Fraunhofer IAF (T2SL manufacturing and characterization), and a leader in aerospace research ISAE-SUPAERO (high performance large format ROIC design & validation and establishment of a EU large format digital space ROIC line).
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CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques.
- natural scienceschemical sciencesinorganic chemistrytransition metals
- natural scienceschemical sciencesinorganic chemistrymetalloids
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HORIZON-RIA - HORIZON Research and Innovation ActionsCoordinator
31402 Toulouse Cedex
France