The high-density inductively coupled plasma (ICP) etching technique has been applied to HgCdTe. The HgCdTe etch rate was studied as a function of key process variables commonly used in high-density plasma etching: chamber pressure, direct current (DC) bias, and ICP-source power. Mesa profiles were characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and the profiles for the process conditions used were found to be compatible with fabrication procedures for HgCdTe infrared focal-plane arrays (FPAs). The etch uniformity was measured to be better than 5% over a diameter of 6-in.

Raytheon Vision Systems (RVS, Goleta, CA) in collaboration with HRL Laboratories (Malibu, CA) is contributing to the maturation and manufacturing readiness of third-generation, dual-color, HgCdTe infrared staring focal plane arrays (FPAs). This paper will highlight data from the routine growth and fabrication of 256 ϫ 256 30-µm unit-cell staring FPAs that provide dual-color detection in the mid-wavelength infrared (MWIR) and long wavelength infrared (LWIR) spectral regions. The FPAs configured for MWIR/MWIR, MWIR/LWIR, and LWIR/LWIR detection are used for target identification, signature recognition, and clutter rejection in a wide variety of space and ground-based applications. Optimized triple-layer heterojunction (TLHJ) device designs and molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) growth using in-situ controls has contributed to individual bands in all dual-color FPA configurations exhibiting high operability (>99%) and both performance and FPA functionality comparable to state-of-the-art, single-color technology. The measured spectral cross talk from out-of-band radiation for either band is also typically less than 10%. An FPA architecture based on a single-mesa, single-indium bump, and sequential-mode operation leverages current single-color processes in production while also providing compatibility with existing second-generation technologies.

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For small pixel, infrared (IR) focal plane arrays (FPAs), Raytheon Vision Systems' architecture for integrated, dual-band detectors uses the sequential mode of the n-p ϩ -n configuration. There is a single indium bump per pixel, leaving the p ϩ layer floating, and the operating polarity of the bias selects the spectral sensitivity by reverse-biasing the active p-n junction. Photogenerated minority carriers in the absorber layer of the forward-biased inactive photodiode are lost through recombination. This paper is the first report of a new optical crosstalk mechanism that occurs in sequential-mode, dual-band detectors. In the long-wavelength mode under out-of-band, short-wavelength illumination, radiative recombination yields emission near the bandgap energy of the shortwavelength absorber layer, resulting in a spurious short-wavelength response that appears as spectral crosstalk. We present experimental and device modeling results on the spectral crosstalk in molecular-beam-epitaxy-grown HgCdTe arrays with the cutoff wavelength of both bands in the 4-5-µm range.

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