Infrared Sensitive Thin-Film Photodetectors for Integration on Top of CMOS

Nowadays, infrared light sensors are becoming widely used in numerous applications, from single imagers till fiber optics, medical and space applications. Current image sensors operating in the short-wavelength infrared (SWIR) range typically use epitaxially grown III-V semiconductors as the photoactive material. To realize a two-dimensional focal plane array, the active layer chip is connected with a CMOS readout chip using solder bump hybridization, imposing a limit on the pixel pitch. One way to realize higher resolution and finer pixel scaling is to use a monolithic approach with the photoactive layer deposited directly on top of the readout chip. In this direction thin-film photodetectors present great potential interest offering low cost, physical flexibility and ease of process. This dissertation will focus on the fabrication of thin-film photodiode detectors, investigating materials sensitive in the infrared spectrum  such as colloidal quantum dots or polymers and trying to fabricate state-of-the-art infrared sensitive optoelectronic devices. Going a step further, the fabricated devices can be integrated on top of CMOS readout circuits leading to high performance IR imaging systems.