Charge-injection-device 2 x 64 element infrared array performance

Abstract

Three 2 x 64 element Si:Bi accumulation-mode charge-injection-device (CID) arrays were tested at low and moderate background to evaluate their usefulness for space-based astronomical observations. Testing was conducted both in the laboratory and in ground-based telescope IR observations. The devices showed an average readout noise level below 200 equivalent electrons, a peak responsivity of 4 A/W, and a noise equivalent power of 3 x 10 to the -17th W/sq rt Hz. This sensitivity compares well with that of nonintegrating discrete extrinsic silicon photoconductors. The array well capacity was significantly smaller than predicted. The measured sensitivity makes extrinsic silicon CID arrays useful for certain astronomical applications. However, their readout efficiency and frequency response represent serious limitations in low-background applications.