Infrared technologies are very important for a wide range of military, scientific and commercial applications. Devices and systems based on semiconductor heterostructure and quantum well and quantum dot structures open up a new era in infrared technologies.This book deals with various topics related to the latest achievements in the development of intersubband infrared photodetectors, reviewed by top experts in the field. It covers physical aspects of the operation of the devices as well as details of their design in different applications. The papers included in the book will be useful for researchers and engineers interested in the physics of optoelectronic devices as well as their practical design and applications.

Infrared technologies are very important for a wide range of military, scientific and commercial applications. Devices and systems based on semiconductor heterostructure and quantum well and quantum dot structures open up a new era in infrared technologies.This book deals with various topics related to the latest achievements in the development of intersubband infrared photodetectors, reviewed by top experts in the field. It covers physical aspects of the operation of the devices as well as details of their design in different applications. The papers included in the book will be useful for researchers and engineers interested in the physics of optoelectronic devices as well as their practical design and applications.

Addressed to both students as a learning text and scientists/engineers as a reference, this book discusses the physics and applications of quantum-well infrared photodetectors (QWIPs). It is assumed that the reader has a basic background in quantum mechanics, solid-state physics, and semiconductor devices. To make this book as widely accessible as possible, the treatment and presentation of the materials is simple and straightforward. The topics for the book were chosen by the following criteria: they must be well-established and understood; and they should have been, or potentially will be, used in practical applications. The monograph discusses most aspects relevant for the field but omits, at the same time, detailed discussions of specialized topics such as the valence-band quantum wells.

In the past, infrared imaging has been used exclusively for military applications. In fact, it can also be useful in a wide range of scientific and commercial applications. However, its wide spread use was impeded by the scarcity of the imaging systems and its high cost. Recently, there is an emerging infrared technology based on quantum well intersubband transition in III-V compound semiconductors. With the new technology, these impedances can be eliminated and a new era of infrared imaging is in sight. This book is designed to give a systematic description on the underlying physics of the new detectors and other issues related to infrared imaging.

Advances in epitaxial growth and nanofabrication technology in the past several years have made it possible to engineer sophisticated semiconductor quantum devices with unprecedented control of their electronic and optical properties. A particularly important class of such devices is based on intersubband transitions, i.e. optical transitions between quantized electronic states in semiconductor heterostructures. Most notably, mid-infrared quantum-well infrared photodetectors (QWIPs) and quantum cascade lasers nowadays offer superior performance for applications such as thermal imaging, spectroscopy, and biochemical sensing, and have recently become commercially available. Intersubband devices also have the potential for a revolutionary impact in the fields of silicon photonics, terahertz sensing, and ultra-high-bandwidth fiber-optic communications, and extensive research is ongoing to fulfill this promise. Joined by an international group of world experts, Paiella describes the basic device physics and applications of intersubband transitions, as well as the more recent and important developments in this exciting area of semiconductor nanotechnology.

Completely revised and reorganized while retaining the approachable style of the first edition, Infrared Detectors, Second Edition addresses the latest developments in the science and technology of infrared (IR) detection. Antoni Rogalski, an internationally recognized pioneer in the field, covers the comprehensive range of subjects necessary to un