Abstract
We report the design and performance of 300-mK composite bolometers that use micromesh absorbers and support structures patterned from thin films of low-stress silicon nitride. The small geometrical filling factor of the micromesh absorber provides 20× reduction in heat capacity and cosmic ray cross section relative to a solid absorber with no loss in IR-absorption efficiency. The support structure is mechanically robust and has a thermal conductance, G < 2 × 10-11 W/K, which is four times smaller than previously achieved at 300 mK. The temperature rise of the bolometer is measured with a neutron transmutation doped germanium thermistor attached to the absorbing mesh. The dispersion in electrical and thermal parameters of a sample of 12 bolometers optimized for the Sunyaev–Zel’dovich Infrared Experiment is ±7% in R(T), ±5% in optical efficiency, and ±4% in G.
© 1997 Optical Society of America
Full Article | PDF ArticleMore Like This
Anthony D. Turner, James J. Bock, Jeffrey W. Beeman, Jason Glenn, Peter C. Hargrave, Viktor V. Hristov, Hien T. Nguyen, Faiz Rahman, Srinivasan Sethuraman, and Adam L. Woodcraft
Appl. Opt. 40(28) 4921-4932 (2001)
D. C. Alsop, C. Inman, A. E. Lange, and T. Wilbanks
Appl. Opt. 31(31) 6610-6615 (1992)
Adam L. Woodcraft, Rashmi V. Sudiwala, Peter A. R. Ade, Matthew J. Griffin, Elley Wakui, Ravinder S. Bhatia, Andrew E. Lange, James J. Bock, Anthony D. Turner, Minhee H. Yun, and Jeffrey W. Beeman
Appl. Opt. 42(25) 5009-5016 (2003)