Thermal imaging through ordered bundles of infrared-transmitting silver-halide fibers

Ordered bundles of infrared-transmitting silver-halide (AgClxBr1-x) fibers were fabricated by extrusion. Bundles of total area 5-20 mm(2) and lengths 5-50 cm included 100-2500 individual fibers and the packing fraction was 0.2-0.3. Each of the individual fibers was transparent in the spectral range 3-30 mu m, and therefore, the whole bundle was suitable for thermal imaging. The modulation transfer function was studied using the "bar chart" and the "knife-edge" methods. The resolution was found to be 4-5 lines/mm for a 900 fiber bundle. Thermal images of objects at room temperature were transmitted from the entrance ends to the exit ends of the bundles. (C) 2000 American Institute of Physics. [S0003-6951(00)02014-3].