Abstract: A substrate-removed, surface passivated, and anti-reflective (AR) coated detector assembly is provided. The assembly has an AR coating or passivation layer which includes a wide bandgap thin-film dielectric/passivation layer integrated therein. The wide bandgap thin-film dielectric/passivation layer is positioned proximal to a back interface of a substrate-removed detector assembly. A method of manufacturing the detector assembly includes etching a backside of a partially-removed-substrate detector assembly to obtain an etched detector assembly removed from a substrate. A wide bandgap layer is deposited, in a vacuum chamber, on the etched detector assembly without utilizing an adhesive layer. Additional anti-reflective coating layers are deposited, in the same vacuum chamber, on the wide bandgap layer to form an anti-reflective coating layer with the wide bandgap layer integrated therein.

Abstract: A substrate-removed, surface passivated, and anti-reflective (AR) coated detector assembly is provided. The assembly has an AR coating or passivation layer which includes a wide bandgap thin-film dielectric/passivation layer integrated therein. The wide bandgap thin-film dielectric/passivation layer is positioned proximal to a back interface of a substrate-removed detector assembly. A method of manufacturing the detector assembly includes etching a backside of a partially-removed-substrate detector assembly to obtain an etched detector assembly removed from a substrate. A wide bandgap layer is deposited, in a vacuum chamber, on the etched detector assembly without utilizing an adhesive layer. Additional anti-reflective coating layers are deposited, in the same vacuum chamber, on the wide bandgap layer to form an anti-reflective coating layer with the wide bandgap layer integrated therein.

Abstract: A vanadium dioxide front-end advanced shutter device. The electronic shutter device is designed to protect receiver front-ends and other sensitive circuits from HPM pulse events such as HPM weapons, directed energy weapons, or EMPs. The shutter incorporates a transition material such as thin-film vanadium oxide (VOX) materials that exhibit a dramatic change in resistivity as their temperature is varied over a narrow range near a known critical temperature. A high-energy pulse causes ohmic heating in the shutter device, resulting in a state change in the VOX material when the critical temperature is exceeded. During the state change the VOX material transitions from an insulating state (high resistance) to a reflective state (low resistance). In the insulating state, the shutter device transmits the majority of the signal. In the reflective state, most of the signal is reflected and prevented from passing into electronics on the output side of the shutter device.

Abstract: A vanadium dioxide front-end advanced shutter device. The electronic shutter device is designed to protect receiver front-ends and other sensitive circuits from HPM pulse events such as HPM weapons, directed energy weapons, or EMPs. The shutter incorporates a transition material such as thin-film vanadium oxide (VOX) materials that exhibit a dramatic change in resistivity as their temperature is varied over a narrow range near a known critical temperature. A high-energy pulse causes ohmic heating in the shutter device, resulting in a state change in the VOX material when the critical temperature is exceeded. During the state change the VOX material transitions from an insulating state (high resistance) to a reflective state (low resistance). In the insulating state, the shutter device transmits the majority of the signal. In the reflective state, most of the signal is reflected and prevented from passing into electronics on the output side of the shutter device.

Abstract: Switching uniformity of an optical modulation device for controlling the propagation of electromagnetic radiation is improved by use of an electrode comprising an electrically resistive layer that is transparent to the radiation. The resistive layer is preferably an innerlayer of a wide-bandgap oxide sandwiched between layers of indium tin oxide or another transparent conductor, and may be of uniform thickness, or may be graded so as to provide further improvement in the switching uniformity. The electrode may be used with electrochromic and reversible electrochemical mirror (REM) smart window devices, as well as display devices based on various technologies.

Abstract: A cadmium oxide (CdO) film doped with any of the Group III elements is substantially transparent to radiation between about 0.7 ?m and 12 ?m. A film made according to the invention having a sheet resistance of <600?/? will also have exceptionally low optical absorption throughout the IR range. The film is suitably employed as transparent, electrically conductive electrodes, and can be used in devices such as liquid crystal cells for beam steering, spatial light modulators, optical switches for fiber optical communications, switchable and/or tunable polarization modification components, and top transparent electrodes for SWIR (1.3 and 1.5 ?m) VCSELs.

Abstract: A variable focus liquid-filled lens or microlens array is formed with an elastomer membrane and filled with a polyphenyl ether (PPE) liquid. PPE provides approximately twice the refractive power of water and exhibits better absorption/evaporation properties than water.

Abstract: A miniature chemical sensor using a thin film acoustic resonator coated with a chemically sensitive sorbent coating. The thin film acoustic resonator has electrodes separated by a thin piezoelectric layer and is supported by a multilayer resonant acoustic isolator. The resonant acoustic isolator has alternating layers of high and low acoustic impedance material, each layer being one quarter acoustic wavelength thick or an odd multiple thereof at the resonant frequency. The resonant acoustic isolator is solidly mounted on a substrate but provides acoustic isolation between the thin film acoustic resonator and the substrate at a resonant frequency.

Abstract: A resonant acoustic isolator supports a thin film acoustic resonator comprising a layer of piezoelectric material having top and bottom electrical contacts. The resonant acoustic isolator comprises at least one pair of layers of materials having different acoustic impedances. The isolator materials are deposited in alternating layers of high and low impedance material, with each layer having a thickness of 1/4 acoustic wavelength at resonant frequency. Silicon dioxide (SiO.sub.2) is preferred for the low impedance material because it is ubiquitous in the semiconductor industry, it has relatively low acoustic impedance with very low intrinsic acoustic loss, and it can be deposited using a variety of convenient methods. Hafnium oxide (HfO.sub.2) is preferred for the high acoustic impedance material because it can be deposited by evaporation to form a hard, dense dielectric having a relatively high acoustic impedance. Deposition of an entire stack of alternating SiO.sub.2 and HfO.sub.

Abstract: An optical O-plate compensation device, in accordance with the invention, uses an inorganic thin film which is grown by physical vapor deposition at oblique incidence. The resulting thin film exhibits a biaxial form birefringence and performs, in a liquid crystal display (LCD), in a similar manner to uniaxial films with its extraordinary axis oriented obliquely at about 45.degree. with respect to the surface of the film. The invention makes possible a significant improvement in the gray scale properties and contrast ratios of liquid crystal displays (LCDs) over a wide range of viewing angles.