Silicone dielectric gel cryogenic detector interface

An improvement in a cryogenically cooled detector including a detector and a cryo-engine for cooling said detector comprising

• a cold finger means for thermally coupling said cryo-engine to said detector;
• a dewar means enveloping said cold finger means for insulating said cold finger means from the ambient, a space being defined between said dewar means and cold finger means;
• and
• a self-sealing gel means disposed in said space for excluding liquefiable gases from said space, said self-sealing gel means characterized by an ability to maintain adhesion to said dewar means and cold finger means and to self-seal from ambient temperatures to at least temperatures within the range of -60 degrees C. to -100 degrees C.,
• such that video noise levels in said detector are reduced and video-flashing eliminated when the temperature is at 77 degrees K.

An improvement in a method for preventing video-flashing in a cryogenically cooled detector, said method comprising the steps of cooling a cold finger with a cryogenic cold source, transferring said cooling through said cold finger to a detector, and insulating said cold finger with an enveloping dewar, said dewar and cold finger defining a space therebetween, said improvement comprising the steps of:

• substantially completely filling said space in the vicinity of said detector with a flowable thermally stable self-sealing gel;
• and
• maintaining adhesion of said gel with said cold finger and dewar as said gel is cooled to said cryogenic temperatures,
• such that video noise is reduced and said video-flashing is eliminated.