US Patent 8154028 - Infrared detector with nanoparticle Schottky barriers

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/8154028.html

This patent from Howard University teaches a way to use nanoparticles to form infrared detectors for detecting radiation in the 1-20 micron range. Claim 1 reads:

1. An infrared external photoemissive detector, comprising:

an n-p heterojunction comprising an n-type semiconductor layer and a p-layer;

the n-layer semiconductor comprising doped silicon embedded with nanoparticles forming Schottky barriers; and

the p-layer is a p-type diamond film.