Opto-Electronics Review

Infrared (IR) science and technology has been mainly dedicated to surveillance and security: since the 70’s specialized techniques have been emerging in thermal imaging for medical and cultural heritage diagnostics, building and aeronautics structures control, energy savings and remote sensing. Most of these applications were developed thanks to IR FPAs sensors with high numbers of pixels and, actually, working at room temperatures. Besides these technological achievements in sensors/ receivers, advanced developments of IR laser sources up to far IR bands have been achieved in the form QCL (quantum cascade laser), allowing wide band TLC and high sensitivity systems for security. recently new sensors and sources with improved performances are emerging in the very far IR region up to submillimeter wavelengths, the so called terahertz (THz) region.

A survey of the historical growth and a forecast of the future developments in Devices and Systems for the new frontier of IR will be discussed, in particular for the key questions: “From where and when is IR coming?”, “Where is it now?” and “Where will it go and when?”. These questions will be treated for key systems (Military/Civil), key devices (Sensors/ Sources), and new strategic technologies (Nanotech/TeraHertz).

This study is based on the investigation of AlSb layer thickness effect on heavy−hole light−hole (HH−LH) splitting and band gap energies in a recently developed N−structure based on InAs/AlSb/GaSb type II superlattice (T2SL) p−i−n photodetector.eFirst principle calculations were carried out tailoring the band gap and HH−LH splitting energies for two possible interface transition alloys of InSb and AlAs between InAs and AlSb interfaces in the superlattice. Results show that AlSb and InAs−GaSb layer thicknesses enable to control HH−LH splitting energies to desired values for Auger recombination process where AlSb/GaSb total layer thickness is equal to InAs layers for the structures with InSb and AlAs interfaces

We describe an all−in−fibre apparatus for Constant Intensity Direct Absorption Spectroscopy (CIDAS) for gas concentration measurements which keeps the power of a diode laser constant along the frequency sweep. The reduction of the large variation of the laser power, connected to the frequency scan, enhances the ability of detecting small variations in a background signal, resulting in an increase of the sensitivity with respect to standard direct absorption techniques. Moreover, CIDAS allows for a real−time observation of the absorption signals without any kind of post−detection processing. The apparatus has been tested with carbon dioxide (CO₂) and methane (CH₄), around 1.57 and 1.65 μm, respectively.

In this paper the experimental results of piezoelectric and magnetostrictive ultrasonic stimulation are comparatively analyzed in the evaluation of impact damage in a graphite epoxy composite sample chosen for a round robin test. By comparing theoretical and experimental results, it is shown that the equivalent power of internal friction can reach some hundreds mill watt per a single crack.

Metal nanoshells are a type of nanoparticle composed by a dielectric core and a metallic coating. These nanoparticles have stimulated interest due to their remarkable optical properties. In common with metal colloids, they show distinctive absorption peaks at specific wavelengths due to surface plasmon resonance. However, unlike bare metal colloids, the wavelengths at which resonance occurs can be tuned by changing the core radius and coating thickness. One basic application of such property is in medicine, where it is hoped that nanoshells with absorption peaks in the near−infrared can be attached to cancerous cells. In this paper, we study the changes of optical response in visible and near infrared wavelengths from single to randomly distributed clusters of nanoshells. The results were obtained using a novel formulation of Mie theory in evanescent wave conditions, with a finite−difference time−domain (FDTD) simulation and experimentally on BaTiO₃−gold nanoshells using a scanning near−optical microscope. The results show that the optical signal of a randomly distributed cluster of nanoshells can be supplementary tuned with respect to the case of single nanoshell depending by the geometric configuration of the clusters.

We describe a new method to separate ballistic from the scattered photons for optical tissue characterization. It is based on the hypothesis that the scattered photons acquire a phase delay. The photons passing through the sample without scattering or absorption preserve their coherence so they may participate in interference. We implement a Mach−Zehnder experimental setup where the ballistic photons pass through the sample with the delay caused uniquely by the sample indices of refraction. We incorporate a movable mirror on the piezoelectric actuator in the sample arm to detect the amplitude of the modulation term. We present the theory that predicts the path−integrated (or total) concentration of the scattering and absorption centres. The proposed technique may characterize samples with transmission attenuation of ballistic photons by a factor of 10^-14.

Skin dynamic termography supplemented by a mathematical model is presented as an objective and sensitive indicator of the skin prick test result. Termographic measurements were performed simultaneously with routine skin prick tests. The IR images were acquired every 70 s up to 910 s after skin prick. In the model histamine is treated as the principal mediator of the allergic reaction. Histamine produces vasolidation and the engorged vessels are responsible for an increase in skin temperature. The model parameters were determined by fitting the analytical solutions to the spatio-temporal distributions of the differences between measured and baseline temperatures. The model reproduces experimental data very well (coefficient of determination = 0.805÷0.995). The method offers a set of parameters to describe separately skin allergic reaction and skin reactivity. The release of histamine after allergen injection is the best indicator of allergic response. The diagnostic parameter better correlates with the standard evaluation of a skin prick test (correlation coefficient = 0.98) than the result of the thermographic planimetric method based on temperature and heated area determination (0.81). The high sensitivity of the method allows for determination of the allergic response in patients with the reduced skin reactivity.

Trophic disorders like reduced skin blood circulation are well−known epiphenomenon of cerebral palsy (CP). They can influence quality of life and can lead to skin damages and, as a consequence, to decubitus. Therefore, it is important to analyse temperature regulation in patients with CP. Thermal imaging camera FLIR BCAM SD was used to study the dependency of skin blood circulation in upper extremities of patients with CP on hand dominance, hand force and hand volume. The hand force was evaluated using a conventional dynamometer. The hand volume was measured with a volumeter. A cold stress test for hands was applied in 22 patients with CP and 6 healthy subjects. The warming up process after the test was recorded with the thermal camera. It was confirmed that the hands of patients warm up slower comparing to healthy persons. The patients’ working hands warm up faster than non−working ones. A slight correlation was established between the hand grip force of the working hands and their warm up time. No correlation was found between the warming up time and the volume of the hand. The results confirm our assumption that there is a connection of peripheral blood circulation to upper limb motor functions.

Automated motion reduction in dynamic infrared imaging is on demand in clinical applications, since movement disarranges time−temperature series of each pixel, thus originating thermal artifacts that might bias the clinical decision. All previously proposed registration methods are feature based algorithms requiring manual intervention. The aim of this work is to optimize the registration strategy specifically for Breast Dynamic Infrared Imaging and to make it user−independent. We implemented and evaluated 3 different 3D time−series registration methods: 1. Linear affine, 2. Non−linear Bspline, 3. Demons applied to 12 datasets of healthy breast thermal images. The results are evaluated through normalized mutual information with average values of 0.70 ±0.03, 0.74 ±0.03 and 0.81 ±0.09 (out of 1) for Affine, Bspline and Demons registration, respectively, as well as breast boundary overlap and Jacobian determinant of the deformation field. The statistical analysis of the results showed that symmetric diffeomorphic Demons’ registration method outperforms also with the best breast alignment and non−negative Jacobian values which guarantee image similarity and anatomical consistency of the transformation, due to homologous forces enforcing the pixel geometric disparities to be shortened on all the frames. We propose Demons’ registration as an effective technique for time−series dynamic infrared registration, to stabilize the local temperature oscillation.

Aerial thermography is performed from a low−cost aerial vehicle, copter type, for the acquisition of data of medium−size areas, such as neighbourhoods, districts or small villages. Thermographic images are registered in a mosaic subsequently used for the generation of a thermographic digital terrain model (DTM). The thermographic DTM can be used with several purposes, from classification of land uses according to their thermal response to the evaluation of the building prints as a function of their energy performance, land and water management. In the particular case of buildings, apart from their individual evaluation and roof inspection, the availability of thermographic information on a DTM allows for the spatial contextualization of the buildings themselves and the general study of the surrounding area for the detection of global effects such as heat islands.

Energy efficiency and reduction of building consumption are deeply felt issues both at Italian and international level. The recent regulatory framework sets stringent limits on energy performance of buildings. Awaiting the adoption of these principles, several methods have been developed to solve the problem of energy consumption of buildings, among which the simplified energy audit is intended to identify any anomalies in the building system, to provide helpful tips for energy refurbishments and to raise end users’ awareness. The Energy Signature is an operational tool of these methodologies, an evaluation method in which energy consumption is correlated with climatic variables, representing the actual energy behaviour of the building. In addition to that purpose, the Energy Signature can be used as an empirical tool to determine the real performances of the technical elements. The latter aspect is illustrated in this article.

Infrared (IR) reflectography has been used for many years for the detection of underdrawings on panel paintings. Advances in the fields of IR sensors and optics have impelled the wide spread use of IR reflectography by several recognized Art Museums and specialized laboratories around the World. The transparency or opacity of a painting is the result of a complex combination of the optical properties of the painting pigments and the underdrawing material, as well as the type of illumination source and the sensor characteristics. For this reason, recent researches have been directed towards the study of multispectral approaches that could provide simultaneous and complementary information of an artwork. The present work relies on non−simultaneous multispectral inspection using a set of detectors covering from the ultraviolet to the terahertz spectra. It is observed that underdrawings contrast increases with wavelength up to 1700 nm and, then, gradually decreases. In addition, it is shown that IR thermography, i.e., temperature maps or thermograms, could be used simultaneously as an alternative technique for the detection of underdrawings besides the detection of subsurface defects.

The subflorescence and efflorescence phenomena are widely acknowledged as the major causes of permanent damage to fresco wall paintings. They are related to the occurrence of cycles of dry/wet conditions inside the walls. Therefore, it is essential to identify the presence of water on the decorated surfaces and inside the walls.

Nondestructive testing in industrial applications have confirmed that active infrared thermography with continuous timed images acquisition can improve the outcomes of thermal analysis aimed to moisture identification. In spite of that, in cultural heritage investigations these techniques have not been yet used extensively on a regular basis. This paper illustrates an application of these principles in order to evaluate the decay of fresco mural paintings in a medieval chapel located in North−West of Italy. One important feature of this study is the use of a robotic system called aIRview that can be utilized to automatically acquire and process thermal images. Multiple accurate thermal views of the inside walls of the building have been produced in a survey that lasted several days. Signal processing algorithms based on Fast Fourier Transform analysis have been applied to the acquired data in order to formulate trustworthy hypotheses about the deterioration mechanisms.

This paper presents and assesses an inverse heat conduction problem (IHCP) solution procedure which was developed to determine the local convective heat transfer coefficient along the circumferential coordinate at the inner wall of a coiled pipe by applying the filtering technique approach to infrared temperature maps acquired on the outer tube’s wall. The data−processing procedure filters out the unwanted noise from the raw temperature data to enable the direct calculation of its Laplacian which is embedded in the formulation of the inverse heat conduction problem. The presented technique is experimentally verified using data that were acquired in the laminar flow regime that is frequently found in coiled−tube heat−exchanger applications. The estimated convective heat transfer coefficient distributions are substantially consistent with the available numerical results in the scientific literature.

Non−uniformity noise, it was, it is, and it will probably be one of the most non−desired attached companion of the infrared focal plane array (IRFPA) data. We present a higher order filter where the key advantage is based in its capacity to estimates the detection parameters and thus to compensate it for fixed pattern noise, as an enhancement of Constant Statistics (CS) theory. This paper shows a technique to improve the convergence in accelerated way for CS (AACS: Acceleration Algorithm for Constant Statistics). The effectiveness of this method is demonstrated by using simulated infrared video sequences and several real infrared video sequences obtained using two infrared cameras