The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jun. 04, 2013
Filed:
Jan. 26, 2010
Nathan Bluzer, Rockville, MD (US);
Nathan Bluzer, Rockville, MD (US);
Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation, Falls Church, VA (US);
Abstract
Electro-thermal feedback is utilized for reducing the effective thermal conductance between the detector stage of a bolometer pixel in a thermal radiation sensor assembly and the environment through its mechanical support structure and electrical interconnects, thereby coming closer to achieving thermal conductance limited primarily through photon radiation. Minimization of the effective thermal conductance associated with the mechanical support structure and electrical interconnects is achieved by electro-thermal feedback that adjusts the temperature of an intermediate stage and the mechanical support structure and electrical interconnects, connecting it to the detector stage, to equal the temperature of the bolometer pixel's detector stage (i.e., by active thermal isolation). Increased temperature sensitivity is preferably achieved through temperature sensing with reverse biased Schottky diodes connected in series.