Dr Gary Hawkins

Abstract:

The ability of narrow bandpass filters to discriminate wavelengths between closely-separated gas absorption lines is crucial in many areas of infrared spectroscopy. As improvements to the sensitivity of infrared detectors enables operation in uncontrolled high-temperature environments, this imposes demands on the explicit bandpass design to provide temperature-invariant behavior. The unique negative temperature coefficient (dn/dT<0) of Lead-based (Pb) salts, in combination with dielectric materials enable bandpass filters with exclusive immunity to shifts in wavelength with temperature. This paper presents the results of an investigation into the interdependence between multilayer bandpass design and optical materials together with a review on invariance at elevated temperatures.

Abstract:

The Earth Cloud, Aerosol and Radiation Explorer mission (EarthCARE) Multispectral Imager (MSI) is a radiometric instrument designed to provide the imaging of the atmospheric cloud cover and the cloud top surface temperature from a sun-synchronous low Earth orbit. The MSI forms part of a suite of four instruments destined to support the European Space Agency Living Planet mission on-board the EarthCARE satellite payload to be launched in 2016, whose synergy will be used to construct three-dimensional scenes, textures, and temperatures of atmospheric clouds and aerosols. The MSI instrument contains seven channels: four solar channels to measure visible and short-wave infrared wavelengths, and three channels to measure infrared thermal emission. In this paper, we describe the optical layout of the infrared instrument channels, thin-film multilayer designs, the coating deposition method, and the spectral system throughput for the bandpass interference filters, dichroic beam splitters, lenses, and mirror coatings to discriminate wavelengths at 8.8, 10.8, and 12.0 μm. The rationale for the selection of thin-film materials, spectral measurement technique, and environmental testing performance are also presented.

Abstract:

NDIR is proposed for monitoring of air pollutants emitted by ship engines. Careful optical filtering overcomes the challenge of optical detection of NO2 in humid exhaust gas, despite spectroscopic overlap with the water vapour band.

Abstract:

The sea and land surface temperature radiometer (SLSTR) is a nine-channel visible and infrared high-precision radiometer designed to provide climate data of global sea and land surface temperatures. The SLSTR payload is destined to fly on the Ocean and Medium-Resolution Land Mission for the ESA/EU global monitoring for environment and security (GMES) programme Sentinel-3 mission to measure the sea and land temperature and topography for near real-time environmental and atmospheric climate monitoring of the Earth. In this paper we describe the optical layout of infrared optics in the instrument, the spectral thin-film multilayer design, and the system channel throughput analysis for the combined interference filter and dichroic beam splitter coatings to discriminate wavelengths at 3.74, 10.85, 12.0 μm. The rationale for selection of thin-film materials, the deposition technique, and environmental testing, inclusive of humidity, thermal cycling, and ionizing radiation testing are also described.