Broadband mid-IR fiber supercontinuum source for hyperspectral image projection

Abstract

Testing, calibration, and validation of imaging sensors and imaging systems require bright sources of emission to simulate scene artifacts. Ideally, such sources are broadband or tunable over a wide wavelength region to provide spectral content to the scenes and/or to target the spectral response of the system. In the mid-infrared (IR), projection systems for sensor testing typically use globars, blackbodies, resistor arrays, optical parametric oscillators (OPO), or quantum cascade laser sources. Globars and resistor arrays are not bright enough to simulate high temperature artifacts which may be necessary for testing of some sensors and systems. OPO sources aand quantum cascade laser sources do not have the spectral coverage. To meet testing requirements for IR sensor systems, we have developed a broadband fiber based supercontinuum mid-IR source for projection systems.