TRIREM

Near-Infrared detector characterization platform

TRIREM is a characterization platform dedicated to infrared detectors used in scientific instrumentation projects. Building on developments carried out at IP2I for the Euclid space mission, it provides a cryogenic infrastructure that enables the performance of array detectors to be qualified under conditions representative of their operational environment.

The platform brings together IP2I’s expertise in instrumentation, cryogenics, optics, low-noise electronics, and data acquisition and analysis to support research and development activities focused on near-infrared detection.

 

From Euclid developments to TRIREM platform

The origins of TRIREM can be traced back to the instrumental developments carried out at IP2I as part of the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Euclid mission. This mission aims to study the dark universe by observing several billion galaxies using two onboard instruments, including NISP (Near Infrared Spectrometer and Photometer), which is dedicated to near-infrared observations.

 

     

                  Euclid space telescope                                                      Early commissioning test image NISP instrument

 

To meet the qualification requirements for the H2RG detectors on board NISP, IP2I designed, developed, and operated a cryogenic characterization bench capable of replicating the space instrument’s operating conditions.

This test bench was used throughout the mission’s development phases to validate the acquisition system, characterize the sixteen flight detectors, prepare tuning procedures for the flight models, and validate calibration scripts and quality control procedures. These developments were carried out in close collaboration with several international partners, notably the European Space Agency (ESA), the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) and Markury Scientific.

Today, this expertise and infrastructure form the foundation of the TRIREM platform, which aims to extend these characterization capabilities to new scientific and instrumental projects.

SCS with an H2RG sensor

 

A platform dedicated to the characterization of infrared detectors

TRIREM develops and implements experimental tools designed to study the performance of near-infrared detectors.

The platform enables the evaluation of detector behavior in a controlled cryogenic environment, where thermal contributions are significantly reduced in order to assess the intrinsic performance of the components.

Characterizing an infrared detector requires the study of several instrumental properties, such as readout noise, dark current, nonlinearity, and persistence effects. Each property is the subject of a specific measurement campaign, followed by a detailed analysis of the acquired data and the production of a characterization report summarizing the experimental results obtained under controlled conditions.

Characterization campaigns focus in particular on:

• dark current;
• readout noise;
• the thermal stability of the detectors;
• persistence and nonlinearity effects;
• the development and validation of calibration and quality control procedures.

The acquired data help improve our understanding of instrumental performance and enable the development of the analytical methods needed for future generations of scientific instruments.

TRIREM experimental lab

 

Data acquisition and automation system

For each property under study, the scientist defines a data acquisition scenario describing the sequence of measurements to be performed as well as the configuration of the associated instruments. In the context of infrared detector characterization campaigns, these scenarios can last several hours, making the complete automation of experimental sequences essential.

The DAS (Data Acquisition System), developed at IP2I, meets these requirements. It enables the automatic execution of complex acquisition scenarios for the characterization of infrared detectors, including instrument control, the sequencing of experimental steps, and data recording.

The system demonstrated its robustness during the TV1 phase of characterization of the sixteen flight detectors for the Euclid telescope’s NISP instrument, during which it ensured the automatic sequencing of scenarios for nearly three weeks of continuous 24-hour operation, with an efficiency rate of approximately 94% compared to a theoretical uninterrupted acquisition.

This automation ensures the reproducibility of measurements, optimizes the operational time of the experimental benches, and enables the conduct of long-duration characterization campaigns.

SAM board connected to the cryostat

 

Experimental methods

The core of the platform is a cryogenic bench designed to house infrared array detectors in a temperature-controlled vacuum environment.

The infrastructure includes, in particular:

• a pulsed-tube-cooled cryostat;
• high-stability temperature control;
• readout electronics dedicated to infrared detectors;
• illumination and shuttering systems for calibration campaigns;
• control, acquisition, and monitoring systems for the facility;
• a software suite dedicated to test control and data analysis.

This architecture enables dark-frame acquisitions, calibration sequences, and comprehensive characterization campaigns on scientific infrared detectors.

 

     

                                         CATIA 3D model of the cryostat                                          Cryostat structure connected to the SAM board

TRIREM provides research projects with expertise covering the entire instrumental characterization process:

• integration of infrared detectors;
• operation of cryogenic environments;
• optimization of optical and electronic performance;
• development of experimental protocols;
• data acquisition and processing;
• validation of calibration and quality control procedures.

The experience gained through the Euclid mission now serves as a technical foundation for supporting the development of new instruments and software that require precise characterization of infrared detectors.

     

Real-time visualisation of data acquisition during the characterisation of the 16 H2RG flight detectors on the Euclid telescope’s NISP instrument

The TRIREM platform continues to build on the experimental capabilities developed at IP2I to meet the needs of future instrument development projects.

Beyond its Euclid legacy, it is intended to become a research support infrastructure for collaborations requiring infrared detector characterization campaigns, the development of new measurement methodologies, or the validation of data acquisition and processing chains.

Through this work, TRIREM contributes to the development of future generations of instruments for astrophysics, cosmology, and, more broadly, scientific applications requiring near-infrared measurements.

 

3D model of the test bench’s illumination structure

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