SCD renews its IR Manufacturing Infrastructures

29 November, 2021

The upgrade is expected to be completed in 2022. Announced a breakthrough in MWIR detectors, with the introduction of a new 5-micron pitch/5 million pixels sensor

SCD renews its IR Manufacturing Infrastructures

SCD from the Galilea, Israel, has entered the final stage of upgrading its FAB manufacturing infrastructures as part of a multi-year, multi-million-dollar project. Techtime has learned that the move is expected to be completed in in 2022. SCD is one of the most advanced producers of infrared (IR) detectors for military, defense, and commercial applications. The program is aimed to allow the increasing of its production capacity, and to mass produce highly advanced sensors.

The company is jointly owned by Elbit Systems and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems. It maintains full control over all processes and core technologies, from R&D through manufacturing, packaging, testing, and integration. That includes also its latest product – the “Crane” Medium-wave infrared (MWIR) detectors (photo above), introduced in October 2021. This unique 5-micron pitch MWIR detector with 5 million pixels is considered a technological breakthrough.

Kobi Zaushnizer, VP Business Development & Marketing in SCD

MWIR spectrum enable true long-range passive night vision, used in aerial surveillance vision systems, thermal sights and missile warning systems. It answers a critical need of the defense industry to provide modern armies with multi-pixel terrain dominance in all weather conditions, day and night. Crane detectors are based on SCD’s unique 5 micron pixel pitch technology combined with its XBn technology, that allows operation at a relatively high temperature of 150⁰K.

Kobi Zaushnizer, VP Business Development & Marketing, said: “We are a strategic resource that provides Israel with independence and superiority in the field of electro-optics, from single photon to complete system.” He revealed that the new detector has been selected for a major defense program. “With Crane detector it is possible to build a very low size, weight and power (SWaP) IR camera with a single chip that provides 5 megapixel image resolution. The upgrade of our production line will enable serial production of the new detector.”