Stencil lithography of gold-black IR absorption coatings

• We report infrared spectral microscopy of gold black patterns produced by stencil lithography.
• The spatial extent of strong IR absorption is somewhat smaller than the mask openings and visual appearance of the pattern.
• The edges of the patterns appear sharper at long-wave IR wavelengths than at shorter wavelengths.
• The patterned gold black is more conductive than for blanket depositions.

Gold black coatings are deposited through a stencil shadow mask to produce infrared-absorbing patterns with sub-mm lateral dimensions. Such dimensions match the characteristic pitch of Long Wave Infrared (LWIR) array bolometers. Infrared spectral imaging with sub-micron spatial resolution reveals the spatial distribution of absorption across the pattern.