Open Access
28 March 2013 Special Section Guest Editorial: Infrared Systems
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Abstract
Infrared sensing technology has come a long way since Hershel made the unexpected discovery in 1800 that radiation at wavelengths beyond the visible spectrum were measurable by his rudimentary bolometer instrument. The tremendous advancements in this technology have been propelled heavily through defense research and development, aimed at providing important night vision and target detection capabilities for surveillance, reconnaissance, targeting, and threat warning systems. The maturation of the underlying infrared sensing technology, specifically infrared optics and focal plane arrays, has not only enhanced the system capabilities for these missions, but has also resulted in the proliferation of infrared systems into a more diverse set of air, land, sea, and space-based platforms. Furthermore, infrared sensing has become more affordable through the advent of uncooled and high-operating-temperature focal plane arrays, which has opened up civilian and commercial applications such as thermography, law enforcement, fire and security, weather monitoring, transportation, and spectroscopy.
© The Authors. Published by SPIE under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License. Distribution or reproduction of this work in whole or in part requires full attribution of the original publication, including its DOI.
Michael T. Eismann and Philip Perconti "Special Section Guest Editorial: Infrared Systems," Optical Engineering 52(6), 061301 (28 March 2013). https://doi.org/10.1117/1.OE.52.6.061301
Published: 28 March 2013
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Cited by 1 scholarly publication.
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KEYWORDS
Infrared imaging

Infrared radiation

Infrared sensors

Sensors

Infrared technology

Infrared detection

Imaging systems

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