Characterisation activities of new NIR to VLWIR detectors from Selex ES Ltd at the UK ATC

The UKATC has undertaken to test and evaluate new infrared detectors being developed at Selex ES Ltd, Southampton in the UK for astronomy and space applications. Current programmes include: the evaluation of large format (1280×1024), near-infrared detectors for astronomy, the characterisation of shortwave infrared detectors (up to 2.5μm) for satellite-based earth observation, long wavelength (8 to 11μm) and very long wavelength (10 to 14.5μm cut-off) devices for cosmos applications. Future programmes include the evaluation of large format, avalanche photodiode arrays for photon-level sensing and high speed applications. Custom test facilities are being setup in order to drive and characterise the detectors at the ATC under conditions representative of the applications. In this paper the test facilities will be described along with the associated challenges to evaluate the performance of these detectors. The paper also includes an overview of the Selex ES detectors, including the ROICs and the MOVPE HgCdTe arrays, and will present the latest results from the characterisation program.