The degeneration of performance of an optical thin-film interference filter associated with the change of temperature is not acceptable. In this letter, we report a new progress in improving low-temperature performance of infrared narrow-band filters by using Pb_1-xGe_xTe initial bulk alloy with appropriate Ge concentration x. It can be found that there exists a critical temperature for the investigated narrowband filter, at which the temperature coefficient of filter is exactly zero. Therefore, by means of controlling the composition in (Pb_1-xGe_x)_1-yTe_y layers, the temperature coefficient of filter can be tunable at the designated low-temperature. In our present investigation, when temperature varies from 300 to 85 K, a shift of peak wavelength of 0.05935 nm.K^-1 has been achieved.

© 2005 Optical Society of America

1. D. F. Heath, E. Hilsenrath, and S. Janz, �??Characterization of a �??hardened�?? ultrastable UV linear variable filter and recent results on the radiometric stability of narrow band interference filters subjected to temperature/humidity, thermal/vacuum and ionizing radiation environments,�?? in Optical remote sensing of the atmosphere and clouds, J. Wang, B. Wu, T. Ogawa and Z. Guan, eds., Proc. SPIE 3501, 401-411 (1998). [CrossRef]
2. H. Blifford, �??Factors affecting the performance of commercial interference filters,�?? Appl. Opt. 5, 105-111 (1966). [CrossRef] [PubMed]
3. J. S. Seeley, R. Hunneman, and A. Whatley, �??Temperature-invariant and other narrow-band IR filters containing PbTe, 4-20 µm,�?? in Contemporary infrared sensors and instruments, H. Kaplan and F. M. Zweibaum, eds., Proc. SPIE 246, 83-94 (1980).
4. G. J. Hawkins, R. Hunneman, R. E. Sherwood, and B. M. Barrett, �??Infrared filters and coatings for the high resolution dynamics limb sounder (6-18µm),�?? Appl. Opt. 39, 5221-5230 (2000). [CrossRef]
5. D. K. Hohnke, H. Holloway, and S. Kaiser, �??Phase relations and transformations in the system PbTe-GeTe,�?? J. Phys. Chem. Solid 33, 2053-2062 (1972). [CrossRef]
6. Q. T. Islam, �??Ferroelectric transition in Pb1-xGexTe: extended X-ray-absorption fine-structure investigation of the Ge and Pb sites,�?? Phys. Rev. Lett. 59, 2701-2704 (1987). [CrossRef] [PubMed]
7. B. Li, J. C. Jiang, S. Y. Zhang, and F. S. Zhang, �??Low-temperature dependence of mid-infrared optical constants of lead germanium telluride thin film,�?? J. Appl. Phys. 91, 3556-3561 (2002). [CrossRef]
8. B. Li, S. Y. Zhang, J. C. Jiang, B. Fan, and F. S. Zhang, �??Improving low-temperature performance of infrared thin-film interference filters utilizing the intrinsic properties of IV-VI narrow-gap semiconductors,�?? Opt. Express, 12, 401-404 (2004), <a href="http://www.opticsexpress.org/abstract.cfm?URI=OPEX-12-3-401">http://www.opticsexpress.org/abstract.cfm?URI=OPEX-12-3-401</a> [CrossRef] [PubMed]

Appl. Opt.

• H. Blifford, �??Factors affecting the performance of commercial interference filters,�?? Appl. Opt. 5, 105-111 (1966). [CrossRef] [PubMed]
• G. J. Hawkins, R. Hunneman, R. E. Sherwood, and B. M. Barrett, �??Infrared filters and coatings for the high resolution dynamics limb sounder (6-18µm),�?? Appl. Opt. 39, 5221-5230 (2000). [CrossRef]

J. Appl. Phys.

• B. Li, J. C. Jiang, S. Y. Zhang, and F. S. Zhang, �??Low-temperature dependence of mid-infrared optical constants of lead germanium telluride thin film,�?? J. Appl. Phys. 91, 3556-3561 (2002). [CrossRef]

J. Phys. Chem. Solid

• D. K. Hohnke, H. Holloway, and S. Kaiser, �??Phase relations and transformations in the system PbTe-GeTe,�?? J. Phys. Chem. Solid 33, 2053-2062 (1972). [CrossRef]

Opt. Express

• B. Li, S. Y. Zhang, J. C. Jiang, B. Fan, and F. S. Zhang, �??Improving low-temperature performance of infrared thin-film interference filters utilizing the intrinsic properties of IV-VI narrow-gap semiconductors,�?? Opt. Express, 12, 401-404 (2004), <a href="http://www.opticsexpress.org/abstract.cfm?URI=OPEX-12-3-401">http://www.opticsexpress.org/abstract.cfm?URI=OPEX-12-3-401</a> [CrossRef] [PubMed]

Phys. Rev. Lett.

• Q. T. Islam, �??Ferroelectric transition in Pb1-xGexTe: extended X-ray-absorption fine-structure investigation of the Ge and Pb sites,�?? Phys. Rev. Lett. 59, 2701-2704 (1987). [CrossRef] [PubMed]

Proc. SPIE

• J. S. Seeley, R. Hunneman, and A. Whatley, �??Temperature-invariant and other narrow-band IR filters containing PbTe, 4-20 µm,�?? in Contemporary infrared sensors and instruments, H. Kaplan and F. M. Zweibaum, eds., Proc. SPIE 246, 83-94 (1980).
• D. F. Heath, E. Hilsenrath, and S. Janz, �??Characterization of a �??hardened�?? ultrastable UV linear variable filter and recent results on the radiometric stability of narrow band interference filters subjected to temperature/humidity, thermal/vacuum and ionizing radiation environments,�?? in Optical remote sensing of the atmosphere and clouds, J. Wang, B. Wu, T. Ogawa and Z. Guan, eds., Proc. SPIE 3501, 401-411 (1998). [CrossRef]

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