At the SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing (DCS 2016) event in Baltimore, MD, USA (17–21 April), Sofradir of Palaiseau near Paris, France, which makes cooled infrared (IR) detectors based on mercury cadmium telluride (MCT/HgCdTe), indium antimonide (InSb), quantum-well infrared photodetector (QWIP) and indium gallium arsenide (InGaAs) technology for military, space, scientific and industrial applications, is marking its 30th anniversary.
In booth 408 at DCS, Sofradir is unveiling its extended Daphnis MW portfolio featuring the HD version, which is claimed to be the first high-definition (HD)-format midwave IR detector based on the new 10μm pixel-pitch industry standard (which replaces 15μm pixel-pitch generation models). With 1280 x 720 pixels packaged to fit previous platform generations, Daphnis-HD MW enables imaging equipment used in airborne, naval and ground vehicles to achieve longer range, wider field of view and better resolution than previously available (significantly improving target detection, recognition and identification ranges).
Sofradir's IR detectors are at the center of multiple military and space programs and applications: thermal imagers, missile seekers, surveillance systems and targeting systems. Its IR detectors have played a key role in space-borne earth observation, meteorology and environment monitoring such as Sentinel 2, Tropomi, Hayabusa 2 and, more recently, ExoMars space programs (now totaling over 70 flight models to date).
Sofradir was formed in 1986 through an initiative by the French Defense Procurement Agency (DGA) to transfer research in infrared technology developed at Grenoble-based micro/nanotechnology R&D center CEA-Leti, which is run by the French Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), into highly specialized industrial components. Sofradir is a subsidiary of Safran and Thales (which are equal shareholders).
Sofradir owns all four main cooled IR technologies, enabling it to cover the whole infrared spectrum and offer infrared products in each category for all wavelengths, from the near visible to the very far infrared. Since being founded, Sofradir has experienced above-market double-digit growth, to an annual turnover of $244m (€214m) in 2015. The firm manufactures an average of 7000 IR detectors per year.