Government of the United States of America, As Represented by the Secretary of Commerce

National Institute of Standard and Technology

Nathan A Tomlin

John Henry Lehman

Christopher Shing-Yu Yung

Nikolai Nikolaevich Klimov

Paul A Williams

Christopher Yung

Daniel R Schmidt

Alexandra Brae Artusio-Glimpse

Michelle Stephens

Ivan Ryger

A photonic bolometer includes: a photonic chip; a weak thermal link; a thermally-isolated member, and the weak thermal link thermally isolates the thermally-isolated member from the photonic chip; a photonic temperature sensor; a chip waveguide in optical communication with the photonic temperature sensor; and a photon absorber that receives incident radiation light, increases temperature due to absorption of the incident radiation light, heats the photonic temperature sensor in response to receipt of the incident radiation light, and changes the resonance frequency of the photonic temperature sensor in response to receiving the incident radiation light.

Photonic bolometer and performing broadband high-absorption photonic bolometry

Embodiments of the present invention relate to an optical detector system capable of detecting in the infrared and terahertz regions of the electromagnetic spectrum with increased sensitivity and simplicity. It includes microbolometers in an array, a waveguide for receiving readout light input from an optical light source, waveguide splitters for splitting the waveguide to output waveguides such that each microbolometer in the array is optically coupled to an output waveguide. The output waveguide is coupled to an optical resonator of the microbolometer at a resonance frequency to generate a readout light output having a characteristic based on a change in a characteristic of the optical resonator. The system further includes a detector for receiving the readout light output from each of the output waveguides to convert the readout light output to an electrical signal.

Optical readout for thermal detector array

A recessed carbon nanotube article includes a base; a substrate disposed on the base; wells disposed in the substrate and bounded by the base and a substrate wall; and a carbon nanotube element disposed in individual wells and including vertically aligned carbon nanotubes such that a longitudinal length of the vertically aligned carbon nanotubes is less than a depth of the well in which the carbon nanotube element is disposed. A recessed carbon nanotube bolometer includes a base; a substrate on the base; radiation wells in the substrate; carbon nanotubes in the wells; thermistors and heaters on the membrane arranged as an electrical substitution member. A process for making a recessed carbon nanotube bolometer includes forming a substrate on a base; forming a radiation well in the substrate; forming carbon nanotubes in the well; disposing a cover on the wells; and forming a thermistor and a heater on the base.

Recessed carbon nanotube article and method for making same

A photon momentum sensor includes: a reflector plate that includes: a central disk including a mirror; an annular member; a plurality of spring legs interposed between the central disk and the annular member, such that: the spring legs are interleaved; neighboring spring legs are spaced apart; and the spring legs individually are arranged in an Archimedean spiral that provides orthogonal motion of the central disk relative to the plane of the annular member; and a bias plate disposed opposing the reflector plate such that: the central disk of the reflector plate moves orthogonally to a plane of the bias plate in response to reflection of laser light, and the central disk and the bias plate are arranged spaced apart as a capacitive structure.

Photon momentum sensor

A radiometer includes a substrate; a radiation absorber disposed on the substrate to absorb radiation; a thermal member disposed on the substrate to change electrical resistance in response to a change in temperature of the radiometer; and a thermal link to connect the radiometer to a thermal reference, wherein the radiation absorber, the thermal member, or a combination comprising at least one of the foregoing includes a plurality of carbon nanotubes, the carbon nanotubes being mutually aligned with respect to the substrate, and the radiometer being configured to detect optical power.

Growing community of inventors

Boulder, CO, United States of America

Nathan A Tomlin