Teledyne awarded $16.4m modification to contract for rad-hard HgCdTe-based medium- and long-wave IR sensors

Under the program ‘Focused Opportunity Reaching Toward Reliable Electro-Optic Strategic Sensors’ (FORTRESS), the US Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) has awarded Teledyne Scientific & Imaging LLC of Thousand Oaks, CA, USA a $16,448,132 modification to contract FA9453-17-C-0037 to continue work on radiation-hardened medium-wavelength and long-wavelength infrared sensors with mercury cadmium telluride (HgCdTe)-based detector technologies that have higher performance than conventional HgCdTe photodiodes.

The contract modification tasks Teledyne with pursuing these HgCdTe detector technologies in parallel with conventional HgCdTe and III-V-based unipolar barrier infrared detectors, but grown on larger substrates.

Beginning in 2016, FORTRESS program contractors are working to advance and maintain the state-of-the-art, scientific knowledge, growth, processing and characterization capability associated with low-noise infrared sensor chip assemblies (SCAs) for US strategic space applications, such as electro-optical surveillance satellites.

Fiscal 2018 and research, development, test and evaluation; and Title III funds of $6,750,000 are being obligated at the time of award. Total cumulative face value of the contract is $22,381,868. The Air Force Research Laboratory at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico is the contracting activity.

Work on the contract modification will be performed by Teledyne in Thousand Oaks and should be completed by 12 March 2022.

As well as Teledyne, the Raytheon Co’s Vision Systems business in Goleta, CA, USA is also a FORTRESS program partner, having been awarded a $7,355,017 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract in November 2016 to design, grow and fabricate large-format HgCdTe infrared focal-plane array detectors with ultra-low noise and high quantum efficiency (with work due to be completed by 10 July 2019). In addition, last November Raytheon Vision System was awarded a $19m contract modification seeking to develop more capable mid-wave infrared focal-plane arrays for persistent surveillance applications. The firm is producing larger and more resistant SCAs that can withstand bombardment by space radiation, as well as laser attacks. This work should be completed by February 2022.

Tags: Teledyne HgCdTe IR detectors

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