Radiation detector, method of manufacturing a radiation detector and use of the detector for measuring radiation
AssigneesFinPhys Oy, Consejo Superior De Investigaciones Cientificas (Csic)
InventorsFrancisco Garcia, Risto Orava, Manuel Lozano, Giulio Pellegrini
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Abstract
A radiation detector is disclosed. The detector has an entrance opening etched through a low-resistivity volume of silicon, a sensitive volume of high-resistivity silicon for converting the radiation particles into detectable charges, and a passivation layer between the low and high-resistivity silicon layers. The detector also has electrodes built in the form of vertical channels for collecting the charges generated in the sensitive volume, and read-out electronics for generating signals based on the collected charges.
Claims20
A detector for detecting high-intensity radiation or particles, comprising:
- a silicon wafer having an entrance opening etched through a low-resistivity volume of silicon;
- a sensitive volume of high-resistivity silicon for converting the radiation particles into detectable charges;
- a passivation layer between the low and high-resistivity silicon layers;
- a plurality of electrodes built in the form of vertical channels for collecting the charges etched into the sensitive volume;
- and
- read-out electronics for generating signals from the collected charges,
- wherein the detector is constructed to take in the radiation or particles to be detected directly through the passivation layer and wherein the thickness of the sensitive layer has been selected as a function of the mean free path of the particles to be detected.
A method of manufacturing a detector from a semiconductor-on-insulator (SOI) wafer, the wafer comprising two outmost layers of n-type silicon and an intermediate layer of silicon dioxide, the method comprising:
- selecting the thickness of one of the silicon layers to be the sensitive layer at the front surface as a function of the mean free path of the particles to be detected;
- growing or depositing an insulation layer on both surfaces of the wafer by leaving open a window;
- etching holes in the sensitive layer to reach the silicon oxide layer;
- doping the holes to create electrodes;
- depositing and patterning a metal layer at the front surface of the wafer and routing the metal layer to read-out electronic;
- and
- forming a window in the back surface of the wafer to reach the silicon oxide layer.
A method of using a detector for detecting high-intensity radiation particles, the method comprising:
- causing radiation or particles to enter through an entrance window into the detector;
- ionizing neutral atoms within the sensitive volume of high-resistivity silicon;
- applying a voltage between electrodes etched into the sensitive volume;
- and
- detecting signals at the electrodes with read-out electronics.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.