Study of the effect of the stress on CdTe nuclear detectors

Abstract

CdTe detectors are commonly used for X and γ ray applications. The performance of these detectors is strongly affected by different types of mechanical stress; such as that caused by differential expansion between the semiconductor and its intimate metallic contacts and that caused by applied pressure during the bonding process. The aim of this work was to study the effects of stress on the performance of CdTe detectors. A difference in expansion coefficients induces transverse stress under the metallic contact, while contact pressure induces longitudinal stress. These stresses have been simulated by applying known static pressures. For the longitudinal case, the pressure was applied directly to the metallic contact; while in the transverse case, it was applied to the side. We have studied the effect of longitudinal and transverse stresses on the electrical characteristics including leakage current measurements and γ-ray detection performance. We have also investigated induced defects, their nature, activation energies, cross sections, and concentrations under the applied stress by using photo-induced current transient spectroscopy and thermoelectric effect spectroscopy techniques. The operational stress limit is also given.