Starting date : Apr. 2017 > Aug. 2020
Lifetime: 40 months
Program in support : H2020 COMPET
Status project : complete
CEA-Leti's contact :
Giacomo Badano
Pierre Castelein
Project Coordinator: Sofradir (FR)
Partners: - AT: EVG
- ES: IFAE
- FR: ADDL, CEA-IRFU, CEA-Leti, Sofradir
Target market: n/a
Publications:Overview of space activity at Sofradir and new trends
for future detector for science applications. In International
Conference on Space Optics—ICSO 2016 (Vol. 10562,
p. 105623Z). International Society for Optics and Photonics.
B. Fieque, P. Chorier, N. Jamin, C. Leroy, P. Pidancier,
O. Boulade, & O. Gravrand (2017, September).
Investment: € 1.4 m.
EC Contribution: € 1.4 m.
| Stakes
ASTEROID increases CEA-Leti’s footprint in the astronomical short-wave infrared detector market. For astronomers, the short-wave range means the band of wavelengths between approximately 2 and 3 μm, which is used for imaging colder objects and in spectroscopy. Close interaction with future customers, including astronomers and optical engineers, has been the starting point for designing and fabricating these state-of-the-art detectors, which are now poised for long-term operation in orbit under very aggressive radiation conditions. The technical resources deployed for their fabrication has had to evolve to meet performance requirements and prepare for the industrialization phase. For the first time at CEA-Leti, very large format arrays (2048 x 2048 pixels at 15 μm pitch) are being fabricated from HgCdTe, an infrared detector material that guarantees best possible performance in relation to noise and quantum efficiency. Fabrication is prompting a variety of technological advances in terms of materials, device fabrication and testing. For example, CEA-Leti has demonstrated, for the first time, Liquid Phase Epitaxial (LPE) growth of HgCdTe on 4’’ substrates, a size never achieved before. This demonstration of capability has been rapidly matched by CEA-Leti’s industrial partner Sofradir and a novel state-of-the-art readout circuit is being designed and built. The first ASTEROID-based focal plane array will be deployed in a ground telescope in Mexico as part of the Sino-French SVOM mission. Shortly, Sofradir intends to build an entirely new production line for these detectors with a view to supplying a major market comprising multiple scientific applications. Lastly, credit must be given to FOCUS, a consortium of French universities that is funding this development and promoting the project’s scientific contribution.
The ASTEROID project is a scientific and industrial endeavor aimed at developing the high-end, scientific grade infrared detectors needed for astronomical observations. Its principal challenges involve demonstrating the very high performance characteristics required by scientists and manufacturing detectors on a large scale, thereby building European know-how and facilities and training the personnel ultimately needed for scientific ventures. ASTEROID represents a collaborative effort shared by CEA-Leti, Sofradir and three other European partners: Austrian company EVG, French company ADDL and Spanish laboratory IFAE. CEA’s Institute for the Study of the Fundamental Laws of the Universe laboratory is also involved.
IMPACT
The ASTEROID project’s impact will be extensive for European business. First and foremost, Europe will achieve a capability for competing with the main US players in this field (Teledyne Inc.), which enjoys the lion’s share of the large area, short wave detector market. Its ability to compete in this field will give Europe the necessary strategic independence not only in science and astronomy, but also in other areas such as Earth observation for defense purposes.
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