Engineering topics
Publications and source records attributed to Richards, P. L..
The present cryogenic blackbody reference, or 'cold load', for mm-wavelength radiation has an emissivity of more than 0.99 over a two-octave wavelength range and can be used as a calibrating standard for sensitive IR photometers. The transmittance spectrum obtained indicates that wave impedance and index do not vary significantly over the 80-360 GHz range.
Ion implantation and sputter metallization are used to produce ohmic electrical contacts to Ge:Ga chips. The method is shown to give a high yield of small monolithic bolometers with very little low-frequency noise. It is noted that when one of the chips is used as the thermometric element of a composite bolometer it must be bonded to a dielectric substrate. The thermal resistance of the conventional epoxy bond is measured and found to be undesirably large. A procedure for soldering the chip to a metallized portion of the substrate in such a way as to reduce this resistance is outlined. An evaluation is made of the contribution of the metal film absorber to the heat capacity of a composite bolometer. It is found that the heat capacity of a NiCr absorber at 1.3 K can dominate the bolometer performance. A Bi absorber possesses significantly lower heat capacity. A low-temperature blackbody calibrator is built to measure the optical responsivity of bolometers. A composite bolometer system with a throughput of approximately 0.1 sr sq cm is constructed using the new techniques. The noise in this bolometer is white above 2.5 Hz and is slightly below the value predicted by thermodynamic equilibrium theory.
Techniques are described for producing improved infrared bolometers from doped germanium. Ion implantation and sputter metalization have been used to make ohmic electrical contacts to Ge:Ga chips. This method results in a high yield of small monolithic bolometers with very little low-frequency noise. When one of these chips is used as the thermometric element of a composite bolometer, it must be bonded to a dielectric substrate. The thermal resistance of the conventional epoxy bond has been measured and found to be undesirably large. A procedure for soldering the chip to a metalized portion of the substrate is described which reduced this resistance. The contribution of the metal film absorber to the heat capacity of a composite bolometer has been measured. The heat capacity of a NiCr absorber at 1.3 K can dominate the bolometer performance. A Bi absorber has significantly lower heat capacity. A low temperature blackbody calibrator has been built to measure the optical responsivity of bolometers. A composite bolometer system with a throughput of approx. 0.1 sr sq cm was constructed using the new techniques. In negligible background it has an optical NEP of 3.6 10((exp -15) W/sq root of Hz at 1.0 K with a time constant of 20 ms. The noise in this bolometer is white above 2.5 Hz and is somewhat below the value predicted by thermodynamic equilibrium theory. It is in agreement with calculations based on a recent nonequilibrium theory.
A systematic study was carried out of the properties of Ge:Ga photoconductive infrared detectors for wavelengths approx. 100 micron. The detectors studied were made from Ge:Ga with acceptor concentration N sub A approx. 2 x 10 exp 14/cu cm with both low compensation (10 exp -2) and ultralow compensation (10 exp -4). Noise measurements have been made as a function of background photon rate, bias voltage, and chopping frequency. Detective quantum efficiencies approaching unity have been observed over a side range of experimental parameters. Photocurrent has been measured as a function of voltage and temperature. Hall mobility and lifetime have been measured to determine their effect on detector properties. A small potential drop has been observed in nominally ohmic contacts produced by implantation of B ions.
Some conclusions reached are as follow. Ge:Be detectors provide lower Noise Equivalent Power (NEP) and higher responsivities than state of the art Ge:Ga detectors at 42 microns. Reliable Be doping was achieved with Czochralski growth from a carbon susceptor under vacuum. The photoconductive behavior of Ge:Be detectors is strongly influenced by the concentration of residual shallow impurities. Optimization of Ge:Be detectors requires both a low concentration and precise compensation of shallow acceptors.
Some conclusions reached are as follow. Neutron Transmutation Doping (NTD) of high quality Ge single crystals provides perfect control of doping concentration and uniformity. The resistivity can be tailored to any given bolometer operating temperature down to 0.1 K and probably lower. The excellent uniformity is advantaged for detector array development.
A review is given of the present status of measurements of the spectrum of the microwave background. Factors that limit experimental accuracy are discussed with particular reference to high-frequency measurements. A selection of the available measurements yields a data set that is reasonably consistent with the black-body spectrum for a temperature of 2.9 K. A simple statistical analysis suggests either that there are errors in the data set, or that deviations from a black-body spectrum exist. The difficulties inherent in properly averaging the results from different observers are described. Prospects for improved measurements are summarized.
Adiabatic demagnetization refrigerators have been built and installed in small portable liquid helium cryostats to test the feasibility of this method of cooling infrared bolometric detectors to temperatures below 0.3 K. Performance has been achieved which suggests that bolometer temperatures of 0.2 K can be maintained for periods of approximately 60 hours. Applications to sensitive infrared detection from ground-based telescopes and space satellites are discussed. Design data are given which permit the evaluation of refrigerator performance for a variety of design parameters.
A description is given of a method for the measurement of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) spectrum. A helium-cooled, balloon-borne spectrophotometer was used to measure the emission spectrum of the night sky over the frequency range 1.7-40/cm. The apparatus was calibrated using a blackbody source at a variety of temperatures both before and after the flight. It is shown that the spectrum of the CMB peaks at 6/cm and is approximately that of a blackbody out to several times that frequency. The measured flux is also found to be equivalent to that from a blackbody in the temperature range from 2.88 to 3.09 K. The data set resulting from the combination of these measurements with previous observations of the CMB covers three decades in frequency, and is compared with various CMB models.
The properties of bandpass filters for broadband photometry are reported in the 3-12/cm frequency range. The filters are based on a combination of capacitive grids deposited on thick Mylar substrates and are designed to have very high out-of-band rejection. Low frequencies are blocked by a thick grill that consists of a hexagonal grid of circular holes in a thick metal plate.
Infrared grid polarizers consisting of copper lines with a 3.6-micron grid constant on a 4-micron-thick Mylar polyester substrate have been prepared by the techniques of photolithography and sputter-etching. Their polarization properties have been measured and found to be suitable for use at infrared frequencies below 700/cm. The polarizers have been used to extend the useful frequency range of a Martin-Puplett polarizing interferometer designed for Fourier transform spectroscopy. The efficiency of the interferometer has been measured over a frequency range from 50 to 700/cm and compared to that of a conventional Michelson interferometer. The results are shown to be consistent with the measured properties of the polarizers. Methods are suggested for improving the efficiency of a Martin-Puplett interferometer which employs these polarizers.
The status of incoherent detectors and coherent receivers over the infrared wavelength range from one micrometer to one millimeter is described. General principles of infrared receivers are included, and photon detectors, bolometers, coherent receivers, and important supporting technologies are discussed, with emphasis on their suitability for low background astronomical applications. Broad recommendations are presented and specific opportunities are identified for development of improved devices.
Measurements of the emission spectrum of the night sky have been made in the frequency range from 1.7 to 40 kaysers by using a fully calibrated liquid-helium-cooled balloon-borne spectrophotometer. The results show that the spectrum of the cosmic background radiation peaks at 6 kaysers and is approximately that of a 3-K blackbody out to several times that frequency. However, the data show deviations from a simple blackbody curve.
The fabrication and optimization of composite submillimeter wave bolometers with metal film absorbing elements and doped Ge thermometers are described. Performance characteristics are given for 4 x 4-mm bolometers designed for operation at both He-4 and He-3 temperatures. The performance expected from such bolometers when they are optimized for various values of background loading is calculated. Current dependent noise, which can arise from any of several sources, is included in the analysis. This can make it impossible to reach the background fluctuation noise limit. Feed structures for these bolometers which employ Winston light concentrators are described.
The paper reports observation of doubly degenerate parametric amplification and oscillation at 36 GHz from a single point-contact Josephson junction. The experimental results agree qualitatively with theoretical calculations based on the resistively shunted junction model. The estimated noise temperature of an amplifier with 11 dB net gain is consistent with zero, but has an upper limit of 50 K. Attempts to observe parametric amplification in the singly degenerate mode with a pump frequency of 72 GHz were not successful.
The spectrum of the night sky has been measured in the wave number range from 3 to 40 per cm using a fully calibrated liquid-helium-cooled balloon-borne spectrophotometer at an elevation of 39 km. A model based on the known molecular parameters was used to subtract the atmospheric emission. In the range from 4 to 17 per cm, the spectrum of the background radiation is that of a blackbody with a temperature of about 2.99 K.
A balloon-borne liquid-helium-cooled spectrometer was developed and flown to measure the cosmic background radiation in the 3- to 18-per-cm region. It features a cooled horn antenna, a polarizing Michelson interferometer, and a germanium bolometer. These design features and the performance of the instrument are discussed.
Mountaintop observations were made at 1 per cent spectral resolution of atmospheric and sky emission in an attempt to determine the spectral features of submillimeter background radiation. No emission features were found that could be related to the diffuse isotropic flux reported from rocket and balloon experiments.