Taylor, DM;Jackson, JC;Morrison, AP;Mathewson, A;Rarity, JG

JOURNAL OF MODERN OPTICS

Characterization of novel active area silicon avalanche photodiodes operating in the Geiger mode

2004

June

Validated

1

WOS: 11 ()

PHOTON-CORRELATION MEASUREMENTS

1323

1332

We present a method for characterizing avalanche photodiode (APD) photon-counting detector efficiency as a function of active area. Various shallow-junction silicon APDs having a novel active area were manufactured and tested. We show that cylindrical and checkquerboard-shaped active areas have dark counts two orders of magnitude lower than standard circular devices with an equivalent active area. A parallel implementation of small active areas creates gettering sites for defects to migrate to, which is believed to create relatively defect-free active areas as the perimeter-to-area ratio is increased. However, a compromise between a large perimeter-to-area ratio and a structure useful for practical applications must be considered to optimize the detector.

10.1080/09500340410001674420