Intercomparison of the LBIR absolute cryogenic radiometers to the NIST optical power measurement standard

Abstract

The Low Background Infrared calibration (LBIR) facility at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) presently maintains four absolute cryogenic radiometers (ACRs) which serve as standard reference detectors for infrared calibrations performed by the facility. The primary standard for optical power measurements at NIST-Gaithersburg has been the High Accuracy Cryogenic Radiometer (HACR). Recently, an improved radiometer, the Primary Optical Watt Radiometer (POWR), has replaced the HACR as the primary standard. In this paper, we present the results of comparisons between the radiometric powers measured by the four ACRs presently maintained by the LBIR facility to that measured by the HACR and POWR. This was done by using a Si photodiode light-trapping detector as a secondary transfer standard to compare the primary national standards to the ACRs maintained by the LBIR facility. The technique used to compare an ACR to the trap detector is described in detail. The absolute optical power measurements are found to be within 0.1% of the primary standard for all the ACRs examined in this study.