Temperature Dependence of Avalanche Breakdown in InP and InAlAs

1550 nm InGaAs/InAlAs single photon avalanche diode at room temperature

“…The photocurrent data showed similar punch-through voltages (~15 V) at different temperatures. Within the temperature range studied, the breakdown voltages indicated by dark current data varied by < 0.2 V, consistent with the small C bd expected from [11]. Thus, there was always at least 10 V difference between the breakdown voltage and punch-through voltage, ensuring that the absorption region of SPAD is fully depleted even at low temperature.…”

“…For example, a SPAD with a 2.5 μm absorber and a 1.0 μm avalanche region (as from [5]) has a temperature coefficient of avalanche breakdown voltage, C bd , of 151 or 57 mV/K, depending on whether the avalanche region is made of InP or InAlAs, as predicted using Eqs. (1) and 2 from [11]. Note that for a given avalanche material, a design with a narrow avalanche region will yield a smaller C bd than one with a thick avalanche region.…”

“…Yet, replacing InP with InAlAs as the avalanche region material could offer a number of advantages for SPADs. Firstly the temperature stability of avalanche breakdown voltage, V bd , is better in InAlAs that in InP [11]. This affords greater freedom in adjusting the operation temperature of SPADs for optimum operation as well as less stringent voltage control for the SPADs.…”

AlAsSb Avalanche Photodiodes With a Sub-mV/K Temperature Coefficient of Breakdown Voltage

“…The smallest change is reported for x=0.6, in which C bd reduces from 20 to 3 mV/K when w reduces from 1 to 0.1µm. A small value of C bd in thin w was also observed in GaInP [6] (3.68mV/K for w = 0.2µm), InP [7] (6mV/K for w = 0.1µm) and InAlAs [7,8] (2.5mV/K for w = 0.13µm). These results suggest that a small C bd can be obtained in materials with large bandgap and in diodes with thin w. The dependence of C bd on w can be attributed to the reduced phonon scattering effects at high electric field in thin w leading to a weaker temperature dependence of avalanche gain (M).…”

“…(1) for InP and InAlAs diodes at temperature of 293 and 14K for ideal pin diodes with w = 80nm. The values of the bandgap in InP are taken from an empirical equation [7] and the band gaps at 293 and 14K for InAlAs were taken from Roura et al [14] while the values of σ T are 1.15 for InP [15] and 1.26 for InAlAs [16]. The results show that the tunneling current depends weakly on temperature in both materials, reducing by approximately an order of magnitude when the temperature reduces from 293 to 14K.…”