Thermal Infrared Sensors Theory, Optimisation and Practice

Using a large number of examples, this extremely practical book explains how to utilise the fundamentals of thermal infrared sensor systems in realworld applications In Thermal Infrared Sensors, the authors describe the measuring system comprising the sensor and also consider the relationship between radiation source, optical conditions and sensor. The main focus of the book is directed towards thermal (uncooled) detectors which are the cheapest and, hence, the mostused detector elements. The book begins with a concise presentation of the basic physical and photometric fundamentals needed for the consideration of these interactions. Noise is a limiting factor for thermal resolution and detectivity and so the authors consider main noise sources in detail with regard to mathematical description. To understand the properties of IR sensor systems in conjunction with the measurement environment and the application conditions, the authors explain the appropriate sensor parameters describing thermal resolution (responsivity, noise, detectivity, noise equivalent temperature difference) and spatial resolution (modulation transfer function), as they are used commonly in IR measurement practice, and give many practical examples. The final chapter deals with the different types of thermal sensors which due to their different properties will be used for different applications. For instance, bolometer focal plane arrays dominate thermal imaging cameras, whereas almost all motion detector systems are based on pyroelectric sensors.

Professor Gerald Gerlach, Department of Electrical Engineering, Dresden University of Technology, Germany
Professor Gerlach is Head of the Solid State Electronics Laboratory at Dresden University of Technology. He is Deputy Chairman of EUREL (Convention of National Societies of Electrical Engineers of Europe); Chairman of the German Association of University Professors in Measuring Technology (AHMT) and Vice-President of the German Society for Measurement and Control (GMA). He is a member of the Board of Directors of the SENSOR+TEST conference and an Associate Editor of IEEE Sensors journal. Professor Gerlach is an existing Wiley author having co-authored with Wolfram Dotzel and translated by Dörte Müller, Introduction to Microsystem Technology: A Guide for Students (2008). The German version of this book was published by Hanser in 2006. He has contributed chapters to the book Functional Elements in Precision Engineering and Fabrication in Precision Engineering and Microtechnology (both Hanser). He has also written over 250 journal and conference papers, and holds more than 35 patents.

Dr Helmut Budzier, Department of Electrical Engineering, Dresden University of Technology, Germany
Dr Budzier is a senior researcher at the Solid State Electronic Laboratory at Dresden University of Technology. His main research interests include infrared systems, sensors, IR applications and uncooled IR cameras.