Performance Of Silicon Photomultipliers Research Articles

Direct comparison of SiPM and PMT sensor performances in a large-size imaging air Cherenkov telescope

The peak photon detection efficiency (PDE) of silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) can be as good or better than the PDE of photomultiplier tubes (PMTs). There are experiments where the signal is measured in the presence of a strong, steady background light emission. In these, one needs to accurately evaluate the signal-to-noise ratio. Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes (IACT) observe in the presence of strong noise induced by the light of the night sky. It is certainly interesting to investigate the SiPM performance under operational conditions of IACTs and to compare it with that of the PMTs.For that purpose, we built a SiPM-based detector module, which was installed in one of the imaging cameras of the two Major Atmospheric Gamma-ray Imaging Cherenkov (MAGIC) telescopes in 2015. The experience gained from that module was used to design the second generation of modules of improved performance. Two such modules were installed in 2017.MAGIC is a system of two IACTs located on the Canary Island of La Palma. The mechanical structure of the MAGIC imaging cameras offers the possibility to install up to 6 additional detector modules of 7 pixels each into the open vertices of the hexagonal-shaped camera. This allows us to directly, without making any assumption, compare the performance of the PMT-based modules with that of the SiPM-based prototype modules, where SiPMs from three different manufacturers are used.

Achieving significant performance recovery of SiPMs’ irradiation damage with in-situ current annealing

Irradiation damage is one of the main drawbacks restricting the application of Silicon Photomultiplier (SiPM), especially in high irradiance environments such as space, colliders, and nuclear power plants. In-situ current annealing is a method of using the self-current heating of SiPM, and because it does not require disassembly of the SiPM and additional heating devices, it exhibits potential for dealing with radiation damage. We investigate the in-situ annealing performance of three types of SiPM for irradiation damage. The annealing current and time are optimized and the SiPM performance before and after annealing is compared. It was found that after annealing the dark currents of the three types of SiPMs decreased significantly by 1–2 orders of magnitude. Finally, the variation of SiPM performance with temperature is investigated. The energy resolution does not recover as well as the dark current.

Radiation damage effects of protons and X-rays on silicon photomultipliers

Silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) are highly-sensitive photodetectors emerging as the technology of choice for many applications. In high-energy physics experiments and as the detectors for space instruments they are often exposed to a large amount of irradiation. In recent years, there has been an increasing interest in assessing the performance deterioration of such detectors after ionizing and non-ionizing radiation, such as protons, neutrons and X or gamma rays. It is interesting to compare the radiation damage effects on several types of SiPMs, to assess the main deterioration mechanisms on SiPM performances. In this work we report on the irradiation by protons and X-rays of several types of small-area ( ∼ 1 mm 2 ) SiPMs, produced in FBK with different technologies. We show and compare the most interesting results of the online measurements, taken just after each irradiation step, for both irradiations. We performed and monitored the current variation during a room temperature annealing. Finally we characterized all the main functional performance of the irradiation SiPMs, highlighting the most interesting variations.

NUV and VUV sensitive Silicon Photomultipliers technologies optimized for operation at cryogenic temperatures

The silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) emerged as a promising solution in many applications, like high-energy physics experiments and recently, they are the detector of choice for the readout of liquid noble gases scintillators (e.g. liquid Xenon and liquid Argon) in large-area physics experiments. Here the SiPMs are operated at cryogenic temperatures. Important studies have been done to optimize SiPM performance for such conditions and we developed the NUV-HD-cryo and the VUV-HD-cryo technologies, with sensitivity optimized for the blue-wavelength and NUV range, or for the VUV range respectively. Important technological improvements have been demonstrated: (i) reduction of electric field, to lower band-to-band tunneling, (ii) doping profiles modifications to reduce afterpulsing at low temperatures and (iii) reduction of quenching resistor variation over temperature.In this work we show and compare the recent characterization results of primary noise, correlated noise and the dependences of the photon detection efficiency (PDE) and photon-number resolution of these SiPMs over temperature, between 300 K and 75 K.Primary dark count rate reduces to few counts per second already at 200 K, and of 7 orders of magnitude going towards liquid nitrogen temperature and the afterpulsing increment is mitigated. The PDE in the blue-wavelength region remain high in the investigated temperature range (>45%), while it changes at longer wavelengths and a good photon number resolution is preserved.

Study on SiPM performance at low temperatures between -60°C and -20°C

Radon is the main background source of dark matter and neutrino experiments.Radon concentration (mBq/m3) measurement by liquid scintillation detector is a highly sensitive method at low temperatures using silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) arrays.The SiPM performance characteristics are closely related to the lower detection limit of the detector. In this study, we built an automatic and accurate low-temperature measurement system to study the single photoelectron (SPE) spectrum, SPE resolution, optical crosstalk, and after-pulse of the SiPM at different temperatures. As a result, we obtained the variation trend of the SiPM parameters at different temperatures, and the SiPM optimal working conditions were obtained, which can improve the detector's sensitivity.

NEXO light detection system

nEXO is a future 5-tonne scale liquid xenon time projection chamber (TPC) experiment looking for hypothetical neutrinoless double beta decay of isotope 136Xe. To attain the projected half-life sensitivity of 1028 years, it aims to achieve an energy resolution of 1% or better at the Q-value (Qββ = 2.458 MeV) of the decay. nEXO plans to employ silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) on the lateral surface of the cylindrical TPC to detect the light signals. Newly developed SiPMs sensitive to vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) light will be directly used for the detection of scintillation photons (λ = 175nm) in liquid xenon. For achieving the target energy resolution, the light detection system must have high photon detection efficiency, low correlated avalanche noise and low dark noise rate. The SiPM devices from two vendors are considered for the light detection system in the experiment. The primary goal of this research project is to characterize the VUV-SiPMs and measure their various features like gain, crosstalk, afterpulsing, dark noise rate, reflectivity and photon detection efficiency. Along with all these measurements, a monitoring tool will be required to test the large number of SiPMs before installing them in the detector. Current-voltage(IV) curve characterisation is being explored as a quick quality-testing tool for the performance of SiPM.

Optimization of the CEPC-AHCAL scintillator detector cells

The Circular Electron Positron Collider (CEPC) project was proposed to measure precisely the properties of the Higgs bosons. A superb Hadronic Calorimetry (HCAL) will be a crucial component of the CEPC. Among many choices, an analog read-out HCAL is under development, which consists of stainless steel as absorber and scintillator as active medium. A detector cell consists of a scintillator tile and Silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs). A new cavity shape design for scintillator tiles of 40× 40× 3 mm^3 by injection molding technique is developed. The simulation and measurements results show the light output uniformity deviation is within 10% in a tile with the new design. In this paper, performance of SiPMs from Hamamatsu (13360-1325PE) and Novel Device Laboratory (NDL 22-1313-15S) are compared for the CEPC-AHCAL detector cells. From the measurements of MIP response, the average light output of a detector cell consisting of the injection molding tiles and the NDL-SiPMs can reach about 40 photoelectrons (p.e.), which is reasonable, considering that the light yield of a scintillator will be reduced by about 40% after 10 years running. The energy resolution of the CEPC-AHCAL prototype will degrade less than 2% for each tile with a non-uniformity of less than 10%, which is acceptable. This kind of detector cells could be massively produced.

Industrial exploitation of SiPM technology developed for basic research

The Silicon Photomultipliers (SiPM) have overcome the deficiencies of Photo-Multiplier Tubes (PMT) in terms of compactness, low voltage operation and insensitivity to magnetic fields. Starting from the needs for large volume manufacturing, for large physics experiments, FBK and LFoundry started a collaboration in order to allow large volume production of SiPMs based on FBK technology. The results of this technology transfer are promising. SiPM performance, which attracted the attention from industrial players in the fields of the medical and automotive market, are well in agreement between FBK and LFoundry productions.

Development of a multi-channel power supply for silicon photomultipliers reading out inorganic scintillators

The motivation of the current R&D project is based upon the requirements of the JEDI international collaboration11http://collaborations.fz-juelich.de/ikp/jedi/. aiming to measure Electric Dipole Moments (EDMs) of charged particles in storage rings. One of the most important elements of such an experiment will be a specially designed polarimeter with the detection system based on a modular inorganic scintillator (LYSO crystal) calorimeter. The calorimeter modules are read out by Silicon Photo Multipliers (SiPMs). This paper describes the development of a multi-channel power supply for the polarimeter modules, providing very stable and clean bias voltages for SiPMs. In order to ensure the best possible performance of SiPMs in conjunction with the crystal-based calorimeter modules and to guarantee the required level of calorimeter stability, several quality requirements have to be met by the power supply. Additionally, it is required to provide features including remote control via the network, ramping of the output voltage, measuring and sending the information about its output voltages and currents, etc. The obtained results demonstrate that the goals for the JEDI polarimeter are met. The developed hardware will be useful in other fields of fundamental and applied research, medical diagnostic techniques and industry, where SiPMs are used.

Reflectance of silicon photomultipliers in linear alkylbenzene

Reflectance of silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) is an important aspect to understand large scale SiPM-based detector systems and evaluate the performance of SiPMs. We design and produce a new experimental setup to measure the reflectance in air or in a liquid at visible wavelengths for various samples. With the new setup, we establish the measurement methods and validate its measurement results. The systematic errors are estimated to be 1.9% and 3.4% for measuring the reflectance in air and in a liquid, respectively. The reflectance of two SiPMs, NUV-HD-lowCT and S14160-60-50HS manufactured by Fondazione Bruno Kessler (FBK) and Hamamatsu Photonics K.K. (HPK) respectively, is measured in linear alkylbenzene (LAB) and in air at visible wavelengths. Our results show that the reflectance of the FBK SiPM in air varies in the range of 14% to 23% , depending on wavelengths and angle of incidence, which is two times larger than that of the HPK device. This indicates that the two manufacturers are using different designs of anti-reflective coating on the SiPM surfaces. The reflectance is reduced by about 10% when the SiPMs are immersed in LAB, compared with that measured in air. The profiles of the reflected light beams are also measured by a charge-coupled device (CCD) camera.

Modelling of SiPM Performance for Detection of Cherenkov Radiation from Extensive Air Showers in UV and Visible Ranges for Application at the TAIGA-IACT Telescope

Abstract A novel cluster of sensitive detectors based on silicon photomultipliers (SiPM) is being developed for the Cherenkov gamma-ray telescope TAIGA-IACT (Tunka valley, Republic of Buryatia, Russia). The cluster will be able to detect Cherenkov radiation from extensive air showers in two wide bands: 250–300 nm (UV) and 250–700 nm (visible and UV). Each pixel consists of a Winston cone, 4 SiPMs with the total sensitive area of 144 mm2, and readout electronics based on fast analogue memory. During operation in the UV band, a UV-bandpass filter is used to suppress cluster sensitivity in the visible range. In order to evaluate the detection efficiency of the selected SiPMs, a specific software simulator of SiPM output signal has been developed. This simulator takes into account such inherent parameters of SiPMs as total number of microcells, their recharge time, the dark count rate, the effective detection area, the quantum efficiency, the crosstalk between microcells, as well as conditions of SiPM operation, namely, the background noise and the Ohmic load in the readout (front-end) electronics. With this simulator it is possible to determine the expected trigger threshold under given conditions and parameters of selected detectors. Based on preliminary simulations, OnSemi MicroFJ-60035 SiPM chips have been chosen for the novel cluster of TAIGA-IACT. These SiPMs have sensible efficiency in the ultraviolet range (5–20% in the 250–300 nm band) and are distinguished by the presence of a fast output, which allows one to capture a low amplitude signal above a relatively high background noise.

Performance of silicon photomultipliers at low temperature

The performances of silicon photomultipliers with different structures are investigated at low temperature.The first sample is a micro pixel avalanche photodiode with deep buried pixel structure from Zecotek Photonics Inc. The second and third ones are multi-pixel photo counters with a surface pixel design from Hamamatsu Photonics. The influence of temperature on the main parameters of the photodiodes such as photon detection efficiency (PDE), gain, and capacitance was studied in the temperature range from 0̂C to −120̂C.

Characterization of SiPM Avalanche Triggering Probabilities

Silicon Photo-Multipliers (SiPMs) are detectors sensitive to single photons that are used to detect scintillation and Cherenkov light in a variety of physics and medical-imaging applications. SiPMs measure single photons by amplifying the photo-generated carriers (electrons or holes) via a Geiger-mode avalanche. The Photon Detection Efficiency (PDE) is the combined probability that a photon is absorbed in the active volume of the device with a subsequently triggered avalanche. Absorption and avalanche triggering probabilities are correlated since the latter probability depends on where the photon is absorbed. In this paper, we introduce a physics motivated parameterization of the avalanche triggering probability that describes the PDE of a SiPM as a function of its reverse bias voltage, at different wavelengths. This parameterization is based on the fact that in p-on-n SiPMs the induced avalanches are electron-driven in the ultra-violet and near-ultra-violet ranges, while they become increasingly hole-driven towards the near-infra-red range. The model has been successfully applied to characterize two Hamamatsu MPPCs and one FBK SiPM, and it can be extended to other SiPMs. Furthermore, this model provides key insight on the electric field structure within SiPMs, which can explain the limitation of existing devices and be used to optimize the performance of future SiPMs.

Spectroscopic performance of a Sr co-doped 3” LaBr3 scintillator read by a SiPM array

Abstract LaBr3:Ce crystals represent a key element for high-resolution gamma-ray detectors based on indirect conversion. Recent developments in crystal technologies have brought to the market Sr2+ co-doped 3” scintillators with a light yield 28% higher than standard LaBr3 crystals. Concurrently, high-density silicon photo-multipliers (SiPMs) have enabled the possibility of solid-state readout of these crystals, providing state-of-the-art energy resolution and wide dynamic range. In order to assess the performance of a solid-state readout of a large LaBr crystal, we developed a low-noise readout instrument based on a 12 × 12 array of 6 mm × 6 mm NUV-HD SiPMs produced by FBK. The array of photo-detectors was coupled to a custom-developed 8-channel ASIC with automatic gain switching named GAMMA. Detector biasing, data acquisition, processing and transfer are performed by a compact microcontroller-based unit. The resulting instrument was tested with two different crystals: a standard 3”LaBr3:Ce3+ and the Sr2+ co-doped version. Thanks to the low-noise performance of SiPMs and of the electronics it has been possible to investigate the ultimate noise performance of the crystal and compare the results between the two crystals. A 3.4% FWHM energy resolution at the 137Cs 662 keV photopeak was measured with the standard LaBr3 crystal, while it improved to 2.6% at 662 keV with the co-doped crystal. Beyond presenting the unprecedented spectroscopic performance of the 3” co-doped crystal, this work is a further demonstration of the SiPM consolidating technology suitability to replace photo-multiplier tubes (PMT) for demanding applications in nuclear physics and astrophysics.

Silicon Photomultipliers: Technology Optimizations for Ultraviolet, Visible and Near-Infrared Range

Silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) are single-photon sensitive solid-state detectors that are becoming popular for several applications, thanks to massive performance improvements over the last years. Starting as a replacement for the photomultiplier tube (PMT), they are now used in medical applications, big high-energy physics experiments, nuclear physics experiments, spectroscopy, biology and light detection and ranging (LIDAR) applications. Due to different requirements in terms of detection efficiency, noise, etc., several optimizations have been introduced by the manufacturers; for example, spectral sensitivity has been optimized for visible light, near ultraviolet, vacuum ultraviolet, and near infrared light. Each one of them require specific processes and structural optimization. We present in this paper recent improvements in SiPM performance, owing to a higher cell fill-factor, lower noise, improved silicon materials, and deep trench isolation. We describe issues related to the characterization of analog SiPM, particularly due to the different sources of correlated noise, which have to be distinguished from each other and from the primary pulses. We also describe particular analyses and optimizations conducted for specific applications like the readout of liquid noble gas scintillators, requiring these detectors to operate at cryogenic temperatures.

First results from the CMS SiPM-based hadronic endcap calorimeter

The CMS hadronic calorimeter employs a plastic-scintillator-based endcap detector. In early 2017, a 20° wedge of the endcap was upgraded with silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) and readout electronics based on the QIE11 digitizer. Based on the excellent experience with this 20° pilot system in 2017, the entire endcap detector was upgraded with SiPMs in early 2018. We report on the first ever operation of SiPMs in a high-rate collider detector.We compare SiPM performance to that of the previous hybrid photodiode / QIE8-based readout and describe how the factor three improvement in photon-detection efficiency, increased longitudinal segmentation, and improved response stability allow for mitigation of scintillator radiation damage and simplified calibration. We report in situ measurements of radiation-induced SiPM dark current. Overall, we show that the upgraded SiPM-based system brings more than 50% improvement in radiation-induced response degradation.

Reflectance of VUV-sensitive SiPM surfaces in liquid xenon

The nEXO experiment will operate an ultra-low background time projection chamber filled with 5 t of isotopically enriched liquid xenon (LXe) for the search for the neutrinoless double beta decay in Xe-136. The detector will use 4 m 2 of silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) operated at about − 104 ∘ C to collect the scintillation light. There are strong requirements on the background levels, light collection efficiency and SiPM performance to set the most stringent limits on the half-life. Detecting the 0 ν β β -decay would have wide-spread implications for neutrino physics. The SiPMs need to be sensitive to the vacuum-ultraviolet scintillation light of LXe at 178 nm which is not given for off-the-shelf SiPMs. The SiPM performance requirements adopted by nEXO are (among others) a photon detection efficiency of at least 15% at 178 nm , a correlated avalanche probability of less than 20% and a low dark-rate. Additionally, the VUV-reflectance of the SiPM surface in LXe is an important parameter for optimal light collection and thus the energy resolution of nEXO. We present measurements with state-of-the-art VUV-sensitive SiPMs focusing on the surface VUV-reflectance in liquid xenon. • SiPM surfaces reflect up to 17% of incident VUV light when immersed in liquid xenon. • Due to the surface micro-structure, reflectance spectra reveal additional artefacts. • Knowing the surface reflectivity is vital for simulating large scale LXe detectors.

Silicon photomultipliers radiation damage and recovery via high temperature annealing

The performance of Silicon Photomultipliers (SiPMs) from several vendors are characterized before and after exposure of up to 1010 neutron/cm2 dosage. Collectively, we firmly established that the typical orders of magnitude increase in dark current upon neutron irradiation can be lowered substantially after processing them with a thermal annealing procedure, and single-photon detection are to some extent recovered at room temperature. Moreover, we found no significant difference on neutron damaged behavior when SiPMs are irradiated at room temperature or in liquid nitrogen.

Assessment of Performance of New-Generation Silicon Photomultipliers for Simultaneous Neutron and Gamma Ray Detection

Significant interest in silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) over the last decade has spurred impressive growth in their technology, both in terms of performance and selection of SiPMs with differing characteristics. Nuclear nonproliferation and safeguards is a field of particular relevance for the development of SiPMs as they have been shown to be capable of simultaneously detecting gamma rays and neutrons when coupled with organic scintillators and utilizing pulse-shape discrimination (PSD). As such, an assessment of the state of the art in SiPM technology and study of the impact certain SiPM characteristics have on performance in different applications is required. This paper characterizes the performance of 20 different SiPMs from five manufacturers with pixel sizes ranging from 3 to 6 mm and microcell size ranging from 15 to $75~\mu \text{m}$ . Emphasis is placed on the ability to discriminate between neutrons and gamma rays when coupled to organic scintillator stilbene as a function of overvoltage, as well as the noise. Comparison with a fast photomultiplier tube (PMT) shows that current generation SiPMs perform competitively with PMTs in PSD, and it is found that SiPMs with larger microcells tend to have more effective neutron–gamma ray discrimination capability.

Performance of SiPMs and pre-amplifier for the wide field of view Cherenkov telescope array of LHAASO

The Wide Field of View Cherenkov Telescope Array (WFCTA), a main component of the Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO), is designed for cosmic rays spectrum measurement from 30 TeV to several EeV. Silicon photomultipliers (SiPMs) have been adopted for the telescope cameras as they do not suffer any aging even with strong light exposure and thus they can be operated with moonlight. The physics of WFCTA requires a dynamic range of SiPMs to be within 10 p.e. (photoelectrons) to 32, 000 p.e. at any energy range. And the dynamic range of SiPMs is proportional to the total number of APDs and depends on the distribution of light hitting on the active area. This light distribution is affected by the use of light concentrator and also by the use of spherical mirrors of the telescope. The effect of these two factors on the Cherenkov light distribution has to be taken into account to evaluate the dynamic range and in this work they have been simulated with a ray-tracing software. The non-uniform light distribution caused by the light concentrator and the spherical mirror will be below 2% for 32, 000 p.e. at the condition if the SiPM has 360, 000 cells. The characteristics of SiPMs from three different producers – Hamamatsu, FBK, and SensL – are measured in laboratory, and the dynamic range of them has also been measured using a uniform light flux. The results of dynamic range correspond with the calculation by the function which describes the relationship between the number of fired APDs and the total number of APDs in the SiPM. The performance of the SiPMs and PMTs under long time duration light pulses up to 3 μs are compared, in order to investigate the stability of the gain of the SiPMs for the fluorescence mode.