High photon detection efficiency InGaAs/InP single photon avalanche diode at 250 K

Planar semiconductor InGaAs/InP single photon avalanche diodes with high responsivity and low dark count rate are preferred single photon detectors in near-infrared communication.However,even with well-designed structures and well-con-trolled operational conditions,the performance of InGaAs/InP SPADs is limited by the inherent characteristics of avalanche pro-cess and the growth quality of InGaAs/InP materials.It is difficult to ensure high detection efficiency while the dark count rate is controlled within a certain range at present.In this paper,we fabricated a device with a thick InGaAs absorption region and an anti-reflection layer.The quantum efficiency of this device reaches 83.2%.We characterized the single-photon performance of the device by a quenching circuit consisting of parallel-balanced InGaAs/InP single photon detectors and single-period sinus-oidal pulse gating.The spike pulse caused by the capacitance effect of the device is eliminated by using the characteristics of parallel balanced common mode signal elimination,and the detection of small avalanche pulse amplitude signal is realized.The maximum detection efficiency is 55.4%with a dark count rate of 43.8 kHz and a noise equivalent power of 6.96×10^(−17 )W/Hz^(1/2) at 247 K.Compared with other reported detectors,this SPAD exhibits higher SPDE and lower noise-equivalent power at a higher cooling temperature.

Numerical analysis of In_(0.53) Ga_(0.47) As/InP single photon avalanche diodes

A rigorous theoretical model for Ino.53Gao.47As/InP single photon avalanche diode is utilized to investigate the dependences of single photon quantum efficiency and dark count probability on structure and operation condition. In the model, low field impact ionizations in charge and absorption layers are allowed, while avalanche breakdown can occur only in the multiplication layer. The origin of dark counts is discussed and the results indicate that the dominant mechanism that gives rise to dark counts depends on both device structure and operating condition. When the multiplication layer is thicker than a critical thickness or the temperature is higher than a critical value, generation-recombination in the absorption layer is the dominative mechanism; otherwise band-to-band tunneling in the multiplication layer dominates the dark counts. The thicknesses of charge and multiplication layers greatly affect the dark count and the peak single photon quantum efficiency and increasing the multiplication layer width may reduce the dark count probability and increase the peak single photon quantum efficiency. However, when the multiplication layer width exceeds 1 μm, the peak single photon quantum efficiency increases slowly and it is finally saturated at the quantum efficiency of the single photon avalanche diodes.

Total dose test with γ-ray for silicon single photon avalanche diodes

Gamma-ray(γ-ray)radiation for silicon single photon avalanche diodes(Si SPADs)is evaluated,with total dose of 100 krad(Si)and dose rate of 50 rad(Si)/s by using 60Co as theγ-ray radiation source.The breakdown voltage,photocurrent,and gain have no obvious change after the radiation.However,both the leakage current and dark count rate increase by about one order of magnitude above the values before the radiation.Temperature-dependent current-voltage measurement results indicate that the traps caused by radiation function as generation and recombination centers.Both leakage current and dark count rate can be almost recovered after annealing at 200℃for about 2 hours,which verifies the radiation damage mechanics.

Determination of breakdown voltage of In_(0.53)Ga_(0.47)As/InP single photon avalanche diodes

We examine the saturation of relative current gain of Ino.53Gao.47As/InP single photon avalanche diodes （SPADs） operated in Geiger mode. The punch-through voltage and breakdown voltage of the SPADs can be measured using a simple and accurate method. The analysis method is temperature-independent and can be applied to most SPADs.

GHz photon-number resolving detection with high detection efficiency and low noise by ultra-narrowband interference circuits

We demonstrate the photon-number resolution(PNR)capability of a 1.25 GHz gated InGaAs single-photon avalanche photodiode(APD)that is equipped with a simple,low-distortion ultra-narrowband interference circuit for the rejection of its background capacitive response.Through discriminating the avalanche current amplitude,we are able to resolve up to four detected photons in a single detection gate with a detection efficiency as high as 45%.The PNR capability is limited by the avalanche current saturation,and can be increased to five photons at a lower detection efficiency of 34%.The PNR capability,combined with high efficiency and low noise,will find applications in quantum information processing technique based on photonic qubits.