Single photon detection with amorphous silicon-based microchannel plates: A Monte Carlo model

Löffler, Janina; Thomet, Jonathan; Frey, Samira; Ballif, Christophe; Wyrsch, Nicolas

doi:10.1016/j.nima.2022.166589

Cited by 2 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…The relationship between gain and bias for the measured channel geometry has also been simulated with a finite element method (FEM) model presented in [19]. Fig.…”

Section: Comparison With Simulationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

New Developments in Amorphous Silicon-Based Microchannel Plates

Frey

Antognini

Beygi

et al. 2023

IEEE Trans. Nucl. Sci.

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Microchannel plates fabricated from hydrogenated amorphous silicon (AMCPs) are a promising alternative to conventional glass microchannel plates. Their main advantages lie in their flexible fabrication processes, allowing for adaptable channel shapes and the possibility of vertical integration with an electronic readout, a tunable resistivity of the main amorphous silicon layer, which allows a charge replenishment by a current flowing directly through the bulk material and possibly a lower cost of production. In this publication, we present further developments of the AMCP technology and its characterization. Small channel diameters down to 1.6 µm could be achieved, resulting in an aspect ratio of 25. This led to an increase of the electron multiplication gain to 1500 compared to the previous maximum of 100. The fabricated devices were characterized under both continuous and pulsed illumination. Additionally, the gain dynamics were measured over several minutes, showing increased gain stability with respect to previous devices. With the achieved gain values of this new generation of AMCPs, this technology can now be considered a viable option for real applications such as time-of-flight positron emission tomography or mass spectrometry.

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“…The relationship between gain and bias for the measured channel geometry has also been simulated with a finite element method (FEM) model presented in [19]. Fig.…”

Section: Comparison With Simulationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

New Developments in Amorphous Silicon-Based Microchannel Plates

Frey

Antognini

Beygi

et al. 2023

IEEE Trans. Nucl. Sci.

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“…The details of our AMCP fabrication process have been elaborated by A. Franco [5] and J. Löffler [6] and are only briefly summarized in this section. A schematic representation of the full AMCP architecture as well as a cross section image of a finished detector are shown in Fig.…”

Section: Amcp Fabrication Processmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For this last generation, the maximum channel gain for a detector with aspect ratio of 25 (1.6 µm channel diameter and 40 µm channel length) was measured to be 1485 for an applied E-field of 12.5×10 4 V/cm. The expected gain for this channel geometry was additionally simulated using a Monte Carlo model presented in [9]. The measurement of the multiplication gain as a function of the applied electric field as well as the simulated values can be seen in Fig.…”

Section: Gain Characterizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fabrication and Characterization of High Aspect Ratio Amorphous Silicon Based Microchannel Plates

Frey

Beygi

Löffler

et al. 2021

2021 IEEE Nuclear Science Symposium and Medical Imaging Conference (NSS/MIC)

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This contribution focuses on the fabrication and characterization of microchannel plates made of hydrogenated amorphous silicon (AMCPs). Flexible fabrication processes and the semi-conducting nature of amorphous silicon could give these detectors the advantage of superior temporal and spatial resolution over conventional lead glass based microchannel plates (MCPs). The current work focuses on the fabrication and characterization of high aspect ratio devices. The multiplication gain was measured under continuous illumination of UV light using a customized setup. Through optimization of the microengineering processes, devices with high aspect ratios up to 25 were realized which resulted in a multiplication factor of ~1500 for this new generation of AMCPs. This high gain, coupled with the AMCPs remarkable temporal and spatial resolution make them a promising alternative for various applications such as detectors for positron emission tomography.

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Single photon detection with amorphous silicon-based microchannel plates: A Monte Carlo model

Cited by 2 publications

References 20 publications

New Developments in Amorphous Silicon-Based Microchannel Plates

New Developments in Amorphous Silicon-Based Microchannel Plates

Fabrication and Characterization of High Aspect Ratio Amorphous Silicon Based Microchannel Plates

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