Submillimeter bolometers large arrays for Herschel/PACS

In July 2004, with the PACS qualification model (5 × 256 active pixels), the first images from a fully sampled multiplexed submillimeter detector system, were recorded. The final photometer, two focal planes (a total of 2560 pixels), operating at a 0.3 K in the 60-210 μm range, is part of the PACS instrument on the Herschel Space Observatory. Recent results demonstrate, on flight model units, the performance achievement (NEP around 10^-16 W·Hz^{- 1}2 /, very close to the background limit) of the monolithic silicon bolometer arrays that CEA/LETI and SAp are developing for this application. This paper gives an overview of the detector system, an update of its status and its perspectives.