EmberScope

Detector path ยท 14 May 2026

Thermal core options

The detector decision is a recommendation, not a catalogue: use Boson+ 640 radiometric for the custom-optics path unless AAO chooses a faster integrated payload route.

Read recommendation Read mission requirements Review radiometry

Current shortlist

Boson+ is the preferred custom-optics detector branch, with Boson as fallback and Tau 2 retained only as a legacy comparison.

Boson+ Preferred custom-optics core because it keeps the small package while materially improving NETD.
Boson Fallback path with near-identical package shape and broader installed-base familiarity.
Tau 2 Legacy reference only; Teledyne FLIR marks it discontinued and points integrators to Boson+.
2 bounds Lepton 3.1R is the SWaP floor and Hadron 640R is the fastest integrated-payload branch.

What changed

Detector work is explicit enough to drive survey, radiometry, and optical decisions.

EmberScope no longer has to talk about detector choice as if all 640 x 512 uncooled LWIR modules were interchangeable. The shortlisted families differ in NETD, optics freedom, interface shape, legacy risk, and integration speed.

The catalogue separates the custom-optics question from the off-the-shelf integrated-payload question. That prevents later trade work from quietly comparing a detector core against a whole fixed-lens payload as if they were the same design decision.

Trade table

Public vendor specs for the current detector branches.

Family Role Resolution Pitch NETD Frame rate Mass / power Optics and interfaces
Lepton 3.1R SWaP floor 160 x 120 12 um <50 mK 8.6 Hz 0.9 g; 150 mW operating Fixed 95 degree optics, SPI video, 14-bit / 8-bit / 24-bit output options. Useful as a lower bound, but weak for broad-area survey closure.
Boson 640 Fallback custom-optics core 640 x 512 12 um <40 mK industrial 60 Hz or 9 Hz options 7.5 g without lens; as low as 500 mW on public pages Lensless and lensed variants, UART/USB control, CMOS or USB2 video, 14-bit family raw path before AGC. Clean candidate for custom LWIR optics.
Boson+ 640 Preferred custom-optics core 640 x 512 12 um <=20 mK industrial 60 Hz default, 30 Hz selectable 7.5 g without lens; configuration dependent low-SWaP power Lensless and lensed variants, USB/CMOS/MIPI video, small shared Boson package. Best current public fit for the EmberScope optical head.
Tau 2 640 Legacy comparison 640 x 512 17 um <30 mK industrial 30/60 Hz NTSC, 25/50 Hz PAL <1.2 W steady state Lensless option, Hirose/CMOS/LVDS/Camera Link ecosystem, 14-bit raw or filtered digital output. Still useful for comparison, but no longer the default branch.
Hadron 640R Integrated payload branch 640 x 512 thermal plus 64 MP visible 12 um thermal <40 mK 60 Hz 56 g; <1.8 W typical Fixed 32 degree HFOV thermal optics, USB 3.0 or 2-lane MIPI, onboard IMU. Useful if the project wants to fly quickly rather than own the optics stack.

References

The shortlist is grounded in public vendor material, not remembered module lore.

Tau 2

Legacy product page records the discontinued status and FLIR's recommendation to replace it with Boson+.

What remains to prove

The next steps are detector-coupled analysis and raw-frame integration.

The merit function can price pixel pitch, payload power, and detector sensitivity against the optical candidates using named modules rather than a generic sensor class.

The survey-operations model can compare the practical impact of 160 x 120 versus 640 x 512 formats and low-rate versus 60 Hz capture. The off-the-shelf camera comparison is separate from the detector-core decision, so validation-camera usefulness no longer contaminates the custom optical-head trade.