Coatings and Filters for Ultraviolet Imaging and Spectroscopy

Here we summarize JPL’s optical coatings methods for silicon-based UV detectors and report on the latest developments. The topics to be covered include UV-optimized antireflection coatings, solar-blind UV bandpass filters, as well as patterned coatings yielding detectors with spatially varying response spanning the UV and visible wavelength ranges. The latter innovation is achieved by combining well-established lithographic patterning techniques with optical coating techniques to produce butcher-block style AR coatings, similar to linear variable filters often used in infrared spectroscopy systems. With these patterned AR coatings, a detector’s spatial response can be tailored according to the spectral dispersion of the optical system. Thus, high-throughput, wide-wavelength imaging and spectroscopy can be achieved on a single detector.