Patent ID: 7042015

Claim:
A light producing and monitoring system comprising: a light producing device from which light is emitted with wavelengths that can range from approximately 700 nm to approximately 3 microns; and a semi-transparent sensor manufactured on a semi-transparent substrate separate from the light-producing device, the semi-transparent substrate bonded to the light-producing device to position the light-producing device where the semi-transparent sensor is located in front of the light producing device, at least a portion of the emitted light passes through the semi-transparent sensor and at least a portion of light is absorbed by the semi-transparent sensor, wherein the semi-transparent sensor is configured to be semi-transparent at the wavelength of the emitted light, the sensor including: a first transparent/conductive electrode layer deposited on the substrate, an active sensor element deposited on top of the first transparent/conductive layer, a second transparent/conductive electrode layer deposited on top of the active sensor element, and an absorption layer deposited on top of the second transparent/conductive electrode layer to prevent visible light from reaching the active sensor element.