Integration of Photonic Detectors in Standard SiGe HBT BiCMOS

Abstract

The currently emerging optical data storage technologies of BluRay Disk, respectively High Density Digital Versatile Disk (HDDVD), have opened a new field of activity for photodetectors preferentially integrated in a SiGe heterojunction transistor (HBT) BiCMOS process platform. Besides the advantages this process offers for analog signal processing we show how HBT process modules can be used to integrate fast, high-responsivity photodetectors sensitive to blue, red and near-infrared light of wavelengths 405, 660 and 785nm, respectively. The tradeoffs made for tuning HBT performance are discussed with respect to their impact on photodiode performance. The integration of the photodetector can be carried out with layout changes only not altering any other process step making it therefore an easy-to-do and free-of-extra-cost extension of the HBT BiCMOS base process.

Streak camera in standard (Bi)CMOS (bipolar complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor) technology

“…Two kinds of photodiodes are reported. The first is a double P diff -N well -P sub CMOS photodiode and the second is a SiGe photodiode [32]. The simulated photodetector capacitances at the TIA-imposed 3.3 V reverse bias voltage are respectively 700 fF and 140 fF for the CMOS double photodiode and the SiGe photodiode.…”