While quality standards have increased substantially over the past decade, software products, including those used in optical manufacturing and design applications, still often fail to deliver "zero defects." Indeed, it seems that software consumers have come to accept a certain level of operational problems as unavoidable. On the positive side, the advancement of software quality is an active area of study, and progress has been made in the development of specific applied techniques for its improvement. Several elements are key to a quality-oriented software-design process.
High-gain photodetector
A new high-gain, hybridized photodetector for OEM applications consists of a low-dark-current PIN photodiode, integrated with a transimpedance amplifier within a hermetically sealed TO-5 package. The CMOS amplifier works with an input bias current of 10 fA. The product has a detector active area of 6.45 mm2 and a transimpedance gain of 600 MΩ. It is designed as a lower-cost alternative to thermoelectrically cooled detectors in many applications.
Advanced Photonix, Camarillo, CA